Vegetarianism Begins at Home

I’m going to try (#2) Glamorgan Sausages and to accompany, (#3) A White Fricassey of Mushrooms i think. I’ll also have it with mashed potato as the Welsh do, even though Ms. Grigson reckons it’s too stodgy – I’ll be the judge of that! The only potato-as-a-veg recipe in the book is Mashed Potato with Dulse, and I don’t have any of that (yet) so it won’t be a hat trick! Unless there’s an easy pea recipe. Hmmm…

Anyway, if Greg gives the sausages a good rating then they can be an official veggie option. We’ll have to wait until tonight and see what he says.

On Concessions….

I did say in the premise that I had to cook everything to the letter with no concessions (unless impossible!). I may have to go back on this for one tiny aspect – those damn vegetarians! I need veggie alternatives to meat dishes if people are coming round for a dinner party or Sunday lunch. However even veggie staples such as Glamorgan sausages are fried in lard or dripping. So in order to keep people happy and so that more people came come over and eat and drink and have fun, I simply have to make this ONE concession!

Recipe #1 – Smoked Finnan Haddock Soup

Well the first dish was made last night – my mate Simon popped on over to see my new house so I thought I’d better get started with this little undertaking!

I decided on Smoked Finnan Haddock Soup as the first dish – it seemed straight-forward enough and the ingredients were easy to get at short-notice. A bit of poaching and then liquidising were the most testing techniques. Easy-peasy – all done in 35 minutes.

I’ve decided that Tuedsay’s are the best day for fish dishes as the fish is usually delivered on that day. The fishmongers in the Arndale market were very good. Nice, super-fresh, plump fish fillets – and very good value for money; seven quid for 8 ounces of naturally-smoked haddock and 12 ounces of white fish (I chose cod, whiting and coley). I didn’t want to use all cod as the white fish as perhaps I would have done 10 years ago, but it’s much too expensive these days, plus it’s on its way to extinction with overfishing. (I doubt if I could pass the Pepsi challenge with coley and cod anyway.)

Pour boiling water over 8 ounces of Finnan haddock and let it lightly poach for 10 minutes. Whilst you’re waiting for that, cut 12 ounces of white fish into cubes and melt 2 ounces of butter in a pan and cook a large chopped onion. once soft, stir in a tablespoon of flour and let it cook out for two minutes or so. Measure out a quarter of a pint of the haddock water as well as a pint of milk. Flake the haddock and keep a tablespoon of the fish aside. Place the rest – bones, skin and all – into the soup pan and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove any large obvious bones and then liquidise the soup, then reheat it without letting it boil. Add a quarter of a pint of cream and some chopped parsley. Stir the tablespoon of reserved haddock meat, season with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Here’s what Simon said about the soup:

“Tuesdsay11th September 2007Grigson’s smoked haddock soup. Served with brown bread and a crisp Sauvinon Blanc.Happy to report I have had the pleasure of eating Neil’s first official dish from the book. The soup served was a creamy delight with a delicate but plentiful flavour. The smoked fish was balanced wonderfully with cream, parsley and lemon; all presented well with an excellent consistancy. Overall the soup was very moreish so I went back for more. Yummy, next please.
Food: 5
Service: 4
Decor: 2(Out of 5 that is)”

So a great start – I would certainly recommend this one to anyone who wants to make a quick supper or a very easy, but impressive starter.

Simon decided that the next dish to be attemped is: Duck Stewed in Green Peas

However, I’m going to do some veggie stuff soon too as my boyfriend Greg is a veggie – as well as a fair few friends of mine too! Maybe a meat and two veg with a veggie option is the way to go.

Send me your ideas please!!

The Premise

The whole idea of my blog came from a conversation I had with my boyf about a woman who decided to cook every recipe in a cook book she found. I’m quite an enthusiastic cook and thought it would be a great idea to give it a try too.

I’ve chosen to use Jane Grigson’s English Food for a variety of reasons. First, I enjoy cooking all sorts of world dishes but have never really concentrated on English/British cuisine apart from the odd dish here and there; second Grigson is a great writer; and third, although it was published in 1974, it very much concentrates on traditional dishes and many ingredients are no longer widely used (or perhaps not at all!).

That’s the serious bit done – the main reason I’m doing the whole thing is to become a better cook by concentrating on it as my hobby and to have some fun – although I don’t know where on Earth I’m going to get some of the ingredients from, i.e. brains!!

So this is it. I have to cook every dish in the book as written by Jane – even if it contains something I don’t like, e.g. whiskey and salmon. I’m sure I can find someone who’ll eat it! I may need help with finding some ingredients. If I can’t get hold of something, I’ll use the best alternative as a last resort. Many of the recipes contain foods that I’ve never tried myself so I’ll be giving feedback on everything as I go along!

I’d also like help from you too – hints and tips, good suppliers, whatever – all help will be greatly recieved! Also if you’d like to suggest the next recipe or even try cooking the recipes along with me to start discussions about the best way to devil a kidney or whatever we might be attempting!

All I need to decide on is what I’m going to cook first…