Easy Green Pea and Bacon Soup Recipe

I found some inexpensive bacon scraps at a farmer's market recently. Just perfect for a green pea and bacon soup like the one my mother used to make. This recipe is a popular variant of ham and pea soup which is usually made with gammon and yellow peas. But what made this recipe popular in my family kitchen was readily available, inexpensive dried marrowfat peas and leftover bacon, ham or gammon. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

• 1/2 kg ham, bacon, gammon leftovers
• 1 pack Batchelor's Quick Soak peas
• Seasoning

Preparation

• Prepare a ham stock by boiling a hambone or scraps of leftover bacon or ham in about a litre of water for a half hour or more (a couple of hours is even better)
• Chop the bacon into very small pieces and boil it in 750ml of the stock for at least 20 minutes
• Prepare the Quick Soak peas as directed on the package (plan ahead, they have to be soaked for 2 hours before use). The finished peas should be moist and mushy
• Stir the peas into the stock and return to the boil, season with garlic, chives, salt and pepper, then simmer for another half hour or so (until it thickens) before serving

John's Notes
This recipe makes a very filling and nutritious thick soup. I served mine with homemade garlic bread (melt some butter in a pan over gentle heat, add powdered garlic to taste, stir in chopped fresh or dried chives then pour over toasted bread). The smell of this soup, while it is cooking, will drive you crazy.

Royal Cheese Souffle

This dish is reported to be one of the Queen's favourites. According to sources, she likes to dig a spoon into the centre of the finished souffle and fill it with thick, heavy cream. I didn't get that adventurous but I did manage to make quite a fine Royal Cheese Souffle; here is how I did it.

Ingredients

• 1 cup cream
• 2 tablespoons plain or all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons potato flour
• 1/2 cup grated strong cheese (e.g. Parmesan)
• 6 eggs (separated)
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Preparation

• Using a whisk, stir the cream, plain flour, potato flour and cayenne together in a saucepan over medium heat until the sauce thickens
• Stir in the cheese until it melts into the sauce
• Blend the eggs yolks into the sauce which should now be quite thick
• Set the sauce to one side to cool
• Whisk the eggs whites at high speed until stiff peaks begin to appear
• Fold the egg whites into the sauce and mix thoroughly but do not stir too vigorously
• Spoon the mix into a well-greased souffle dish (one with straight sides to help the souffle rise)
• Bake in a hot oven until the souffle has risen and is light brown on top
• Serve immediately

John's Notes
One of the challenges of making a souffle is to get it to rise to the top of the dish without overflowing. I filled my dish to about halfway and the souffle just reached the brim as it completed its time in the oven. That was good luck more than judgement. The quantities given in this recipe made just a little more souffle mix than would fit in my souffle dish. But, no problem, I made two smaller souffles as well. More to enjoy - which I did!

Irish Soda Bread Recipe

Here is a traditional Irish recipe that makes a high quality, filling and tasty bread. Soda bread differs from regular bread in that it is leavened using baking soda instead of yeast. This is a simpler procedure because, instead of proofing the bread to activate the yeast, soda dough can go straight into the oven where the baking soda does the job of making the bread rise. Here is how I made mine.

Ingredients

• 3 cups plain or all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Preparation

• Mix the dry ingredients together
• Slowly add the buttermilk while stirring the mix until you get a moist dough
• Knead firmly then form into a ball and flatten until a couple of inches thick
• Make a deep cross cut in the top of the dough with a sharp knife
• Bake at 375F for about 45 minutes or until golden

John's Notes
This was a quick and easy recipe and the result was very good indeed. The salt is an optional ingredient; if you are health conscious you can miss it out completely. Some of the recipes I looked at used large amounts of salt - perhaps the Irish like it that way but my recommendation is to use just a little and throw the rest over your shoulder to get the luck of the Irish. Bake and enjoy.

Strawberry Pancakes for Shrove Tuesday

Today is Shrove Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. It is the last day before the start of Lent in the Christian calendar. Lent involves some form of fasting or going without fattening foods. So today, as they say in Italy, "mangia bene" (eat well).

Shrove Tuesday in the UK is commonly called "Pancake Tuesday" so what better way to eat well than to fill up on pancakes. Many people pick up a pack of pancake mix at the supermarket ... why? Pancakes are not only very easy to make from scratch, they actually taste better. Here is how I made my delicious Strawberry Pancakes for Shrove Tuesday 2011.

Ingredients

• 2 cups plain or all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 Eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
• Sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla essence
• Strawberries
• Light cream

Preparation

• Rub the butter into the flour then add the baking soda, baking powder and sugar to taste
• Beat the eggs into the mix until perfectly smooth, then add the vanilla essence, 
• Slowly pour in buttermilk, beating well until you have a smooth, stiff batter
• Cook slowly on a hot, greased griddle until a light golden colour on both sides
• When cooked, spread with butter, allowing the butter to melt into the hot pancakes, then spread with strawberry jam and stack the pancakes two high on a plate
• Chop a few strawberries, place in a blender with a small amount of light cream and blend on high speed until smooth. The resulting sauce should be thick and creamy. Pour over the pancakes and serve

John's Notes
These pancakes were light and spongy. I left my batter to sit for a few minutes before cooking to allow the lactic acid in the buttermilk to work on the baking powder; I found that really made a difference. The crowning glory of my Shrove Tuesday supper was the strawberry cream sauce. Absolutely delicious; I will be going to bed with a nice full belly tonight.

How to Bake Spiced Sweet Bread

This is quite an easy recipe to make if you don't mind spending a couple of pleasant hours in the kitchen. The end result is a pleasantly unusual bread that tastes great with a slice of ham or even just spread with soft butter. The recipe was inspired by, and similar to, a recipe found on www.greneboke.com and is believed to have originated in the 16th Century. Here is how I made my spiced sweet bread.

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons dried yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 3 cups plain flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 egg yolks
• Spice

Preparation

• Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and leave in a warm place to activate the yeast
• Warm the egg yolks, milk, butter and spice in a small saucepan until the mix just begins to thicken. Be sure to remove from the heat before the egg sets in the liquid
• Mix the flour and sugar together and beat in the yeast, then add the egg mixture
• Knead to form a stiff dough, adding water or flour as necessary to make a dry, stiff dough
• Leave in a warm place for about an hour until the dough has doubled in size
• Knead the dough again and shape into a loaf or cut into rolls and leave the dough for a little longer to rise again
• Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes

John's Notes
What spice to use? I used cardamom because it has a delicate, sweet flavour but cinnamon, nutmeg or even mace would work well too. I have the advantage of an electronically controlled range with a bread proofing oven and a "Bread" setting for the main oven. I am sure the same fine result could be obtained, with a little care, using a regular oven.

Mulberry Frumenty Recipe

This week's recipe is well and truly in keeping with this blog's "traditional British recipes" theme. Frumenty (or "Furmity " as it is also known) is a porridge made with wheat that was standard fare for the peasantry from Saxon times until perhaps a century ago.

I have made two versions of it for this recipe: a sweet version and a savoury version. The sweet version makes an excellent breakfast or a filling dessert. It was made famous in Thomas Hardy's classic novel, "The Mayor of Casterbridge". The principal character in the novel becomes drunk on the rum which was added to frumenty in days of yore. While drunk he sells his wife, but upon sobering up he regrets his action, forswears drink for 21 years and goes on to become mayor of the town of Casterbridge. It is a good story but we won't dwell on it here. Instead we will make frumenty; here is how I prepared it.

Ingredients

• 1 cup bulgur wheat (available in bulk food stores)
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs yolks
• Mulberries (or raisins, or your choice of fruit)
• Seasoning (mace, nutmeg)
• Your choice of sweetener
• Oxo cubes (only required for savoury version)

Preparation
Sweet Version

• Boil the bulgur wheat in the water until it is soft
• Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes to thicken
• Whisk the egg yolks with a tiny bit of the milk
• Stir in the rest of the milk, fruit, egg yolks, seasoning and sweetener and gently reheat but do not reboil

Savoury Version

• Make 4 cups of beef stock using 4 Oxo cubes in water
• Boil the bulgur wheat in the stock until soft
• Remove from heat and allow to thicken
• Season with ground white pepper or cayenne and Worcestershire sauce

John's Notes
What does it taste like? I would describe the sweet version as similar in flavour and texture to oatmeal. The egg yolks add a hint of custard. I didn't have any rum in my kitchen so I made an alcohol free version (my wife is very relieved to hear that) but rum is definitely, by tradition, an essential ingredient.

I found dried mulberries at my local bulk food supplier. They taste delicious but they are extravagantly expensive. Substitute whatever small soft fruit your prefer; raisins and sultanas work well in this recipe.

The savoury version would have been the entire meal for the Saxon peasantry. Instead of beef stock it might have been prepared using mutton (old sheep), rabbit or whatever other meat was to hand. I made mine as an accompaniment to an excellent vegeterian curry upon which my lady and I dined in the castle this evening.

One last note. Each week this blog attracts hundreds more casual visitors than it has subscribers. If you enjoy these recipes please consider subscribing by entering your email address in the convenient box at the top right of the page. Your email will not be used for any purpose other than to send you new recipes from this blog and I will be encouraged to carry on researching interesting new British recipes knowing that my hard work is appreciated. Thank you.

Beef Roly Poly Recipe

I was having a discussion with a customer in the store just before Christmas and the conversation drifted toward our favourite desserts. I mentioned the traditional English dessert dish Jam Roly Poly. The customer, who wished to remain anonymous, told me he made a savoury roly poly with beef. It sounded delicious so I decided to give it a try. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

• 1 pack Atora Light Vegetable Suet
• 3 cups plain or all-purpose flour
• Lean stewing steak
• Onions
• Seasoning

Preparation

• Knead the suet and flour together until smooth
• Add just enough cold water to make a workable dough and roll it out on a floured board
• Trim the fat and gristle from the beef and cut into small chunks
• Brown the beef in a hot saucepan with a little oil
• Chop and dice a large onion and cook in a little oil until just tender
• Lay out alternating rows of beef and onion on the dough, season then carefully roll the dough up
• Wrap tightly in several layers of aluminum foil
• Steam for 2 hours (I used a pressure cooker and the meal was ready in 45 minutes)

John's Notes
If I said "get stuffed" you might be offended, but if you try this recipe you really will feel stuffed after eating it. It's a real belly filler. You can include mushrooms or parboiled veggies in the roly poly if you wish. Use your imagination to make variations on the basic recipe. You can also add herbs and spices to the dough to give the pastry extra flavour.

After the roly poly has finished cooking, allow it cool for a few minutes then slice it for serving. Pour lashings of Bisto beef gravy over it and add some peas to the plate.

Please help us keep traditional British recipes alive. Share this recipe with your friends on Facebook by clicking on "Like" here:

Tasty Cheese & Onion Curry

Cheese & onion curry? Sounds weird doesn't it? During my student days in Merrie England we were so skint we couldn't afford to eat meat. We devised many inexpensive recipes that nearly all involved curry powder. One evening we thought we had gotten lucky. We found a can whose label had fallen off. We opened it and found meat. It went in the curry and we all enjoyed it. Later we discovered we had eaten the dog's dinner. But the strangest student recipe of all was apricot curry - now that was weird!

You may be tempted to think that curry is not so traditionally British. On the contrary, curry has never been more popular in the Land of Hope and Glory. It is documented that curry powder was a popular ingredient during Victorian times. Rumour has it that curry earned its popularity due to the lack of refrigerators in the nineteenth century. Anyway, this week's recipe is a fabulously tasty, inexpensive meal that will appeal to vegetarians and carnivores alike. Here is how I made it.

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 200g cheese
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 250ml white stock
• 1 fresh apple

Preparation

• Peel and chop the onion then lightly fry it in a little oil until tender
• Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour and curry powder; mix until smooth
• Slowly stir in the white stock (see note below) ensuring the sauce is smooth with no lumps
• Return to the heat and add the cheese (grated) while stirring until the cheese melts into the sauce
• Peel, core and dice the apple then add to the sauce and simmer until the apple is soft

How to make white stock: If you don't have any white stock to hand it can be made in just a few minutes. Chop some veggies (onion, bell peppers, tomatoes or whatever else you have in the larder, even old, less-than-fresh veggies are good for this purpose) and lightly fry until tender. Add a couple of cups of water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 minutes then separate the liquid stock and discard the veggies. You would usually season the stock but that isn't necessary for this recipe.

John's Notes
I served my cheese and onion curry with white rice. It was really very tasty indeed. I am sure that curry afficionadoes will consider this recipe to be very down-market. Well so it is. It put it in a category alongside Bubble and Squeak, Welsh Rarebit, Toad-in-the-Hole and all those other delicious and inexpensive meals my old mum used to serve up when I was a nipper.

Of course I also enjoy my Vindaloo, Tikka Masala, Madras and other fine curries but once-in-a-while it's nice to have a plate of something simple that makes you feel good. Enjoy.

Printable PDF version of this recipe

Anglesey Eggs

This recipe makes a really tasty meal that is a "welcome home" treat on a cold evening. It is very easy to make and the ingredients are very inexpensive. Here is how I made mine.

Ingredients

• Mashed potatoes
• 2 stems of leeks
• 4 Eggs
• Grated cheddar cheese
• Seasonings (salt, pepper, mustard)
• Milk
• Butter

Preparation

• Dice and steam the leeks until tender then mix with the mashed potato
• Hard boil the eggs, shell and slice them in half along their length
• Place the potato and leek mix in an ovenproof dish and press the eggs lightly into the potatoes
• Make a cheese sauce by melting a tablespoon of butter in a pan then stir in 2 tablespoons of flour. Add 1 cup of milk very slowly and continue stirring, ensuring no lumps form, until the sauce thickens. Stir in seasonings then add the grated cheese and stir until the cheese melts into the sauce.
• Pour the cheese sauce over the top of the dish and bake at 375F until the sauce turns golden

John's Notes
Inexpensive, easy to make and delicious. Try it for yourself. A truly traditional Welsh recipe.

Printable PDF version of this recipe

Leek Pudding

This wonderful recipe was given to me by a customer who came to the store to buy some of the ingredients. It is a traditional Geordie recipe from the northeast of England. I misspent a few years of my youth in that region and became familiar with the popularity of leeks in that part of Britain. Leek pudding is not a difficult dish to make but, like a lot of steamed products, it does require a fairly lengthy cooking time. Here is how I made mine.

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of leeks (about three or four pieces)
• 1 cup Atora Light Vegetable Suet
• 2 cups flour

Preparation

• Chop the leeks into small pieces and steam until tender
• Rub the suet thoroughly into the flour
• Slowly add water and mix until the dough binds into a ball
• Roll the dough on a floured board into rectangles
• Spoon steamed leeks into the centre of the rolled pastry then fold the edges over to make a rectangular shape
• Firmly press the edges of the pastry to seal the pudding
• Wrap the puddings securely in aluminum foil and steam for one and a half hours
• Serve with cooked ground beef in Oxo gravy

John's Notes
My first impression of this meal, when I saw it on my plate, was how unusual it was that the vegetable should be inside the pudding while the meat was outside. However, the flavour and texture of the meal was superb. I will be making this one again soon.

PS: I don't own a steamer but I improvized. I have a large metal strainer that sits snugly inside the top of a large stock pot. I boiled water in the stock pot and placed the puddings (wrapped in foil) in the strainer. The lid of the stockpot sits neatly on the rim of the strainer. Perfect results every time!

I used the same apparatus for steaming the leeks. The water in the stock pot caught the juice from the leeks which can be reduced and used as a vegetable stock for soups.

Steal this Recipe!
As usual, you are welcome to steal this recipe, but I would appreciate it if you would credit http://britfood.blightys.com as the source. So go ahead, forward this to your friends, share it on Facebook, or email it to your friends.

Printable PDF version of this recipe.

Sumptuous Steak and Stilton Pie

Blighty's Tuck Store just started bringing in really top class pies from a new baker. One of the new flavours is the popular Steak and Stilton pie. Stilton is one those quintessentially British cheeses that has a strong flavour that adds a superb richness to a well-made succulent steak pie.

I wanted to find out if it was possible to duplicate the same superb flavour that the professional bakery has created, in a home kitchen. This recipe batted the ball for six (translated from English to Canadian that means it hit a home run). Here is how to make it:

Ingredients

• 750g prime steak
• 1/4 cup grated Blue Stilton
• 1 Oxo cube
• Flaky Pastry
• Seasonings (salt, cayenne, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce)

Preparation

• Dice the steak into small chunks and quickly brown in a little hot oil.
• Bring one and a half cups of water to a boil then add the browned meat and turn down the heat
• Crumble one Oxo cube into the meat, stir, then cook over very low heat for at least 4 hours
• After the meat has cooked and is quite tender, scoop it out and spread it over the bottom of an ovenproof pie dish
• Sprinkle the grated Stilton evenly over the meat
• Pour all the liquid from the meat into a small pan and cook it gently until it has reduced by two-thirds of its original volume
• Stir in one tablespoon of tomato ketchup, salt, a little cayenne and (optionally) a dash of brandy
• Sample the gravy - it is rich and superb!
• Spoon enough gravy over the meat and Stilton to completely cover it
• Trim a layer of flaky pastry to fit the pie dish and bake at 375F for about an hour (or until it turns golden and has fully risen)

John's Notes
The Stilton melts and blends into the gravy to lend its unique richness to the flavour of the meat. So you think you don't like Stilton because of those blue veins in the cheese? Don't worry, when Blue Stilton is cooked in a pie it no longer has the bitterness of the uncooked cheese. I thoroughly enjoyed my Steak and Stilton Pie as I hope you will enjoy yours.

But wait, there was enough Stilton and flaky pastry left over after preparing the pie for a couple of bonus recipes. I cut the spare pastry into round pieces about three inches in diameter and made an hors d'oeuvres and a dessert.

To make the hors d'oeuvres, lay slices of plum on a piece of pastry and bake until the pastry has risen and golden. Remove from the oven, put a tablespoon of grated Stilton on top and return to the oven until the cheese begins to melt. Serve immediately.

To make the dessert simply spoon a little Lyle's Golden syrup over the pastry before baking. Serve with custard or whipped cream.

Printable PDF version of this recipe

Bang-up British Beef Curry

Curry is often thought of as a dish indigenous to the East and West Indies. And so it is, but its popularity has soared in the UK; so much so that it can now be considered a traditional British dish too.

I once heard the story that curry was invented during the days of the British Raj in India. In the days before refrigeration was available, the flavour of meat quickly became tainted by the hot climate of the Indian sub-continent. The British would not accept meat that did not taste fresh so chefs invented a mixture of spices that would disguise its flavour.

Now that story could just be an old wives' tale but it sounds plausible enough. No matter what the origin of curry it has a tradition in Britain that goes back to at least the middle of the 20th Century and probably even further than that.

There are many varieties of curry available in jars as ready to cook sauces. One of the best-selling brands comes from the UK (and is, incidentally, a popular item on the shelves at Blighty's Tuck Stores).

I wanted to see if I could make a scratch curry that would taste every bit as good as the store varieties. I think I succeeded; here is how I did it.

Ingredients

• Butter
• Onions
• Flour
• Curry powder, Cayenne, Bay Leaf
• Oxo Cubes
• Cream
• Tomato Ketchup
• Good quality beef

Preparation

• Make a roux by gently melting 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and stirring in an equal amount of flour.
• Cook the roux until it just begins to turn golden then remove from the heat.
• Stir in 2 cups of stock made from Oxo Cubes. Add the stock slowly and stir vigorously to prevent lumps forming.
• Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the sauce has thickened. It should still be quite liquid but cling heavily to a wooden spoon. Set this pan aside until later.
• Finely chop an onion and cook in butter (in a separate pan) until soft but not brown.
• Stir a heaped tablespoon of curry powder into the onion and add a bay leaf.
• Pour half a cup of stock made from Oxo Cubes over the onions and bring to the boil.
• Boil for about 15 minutes then stir the contents of the second pan into the first pan and cook for a further 15 minutes.
• Stir in half a cup of tomato ketchup and adjust the flavour of the curry with cayenne. If you prefer a hot curry be generous with the cayenne. If you like a mild curry you can omit the cayenne.
• Sweeten with a little sugar if necessary to mask any bitterness from the curry powder.
• Stir in half a cup of heavy cream at the end of the cooking process (optional but it does give the dish its "wow" factor).

• To prepare the beef, trim the fat from the meat and cut into cubes. Coat with a little oil then toss in flour until well coated. In a very hot wok or similar large pan, brown the meat quickly but do not overcook it or it will be tough. Slowly cook the meat over a low heat for at least three hours.

• Finally, mix the meat and curry sauce together and cook gently for 15 minutes.

John's Notes
Bingo. Professional chefs might shake their heads at the use of ingredients like tomato ketchup but my finished curry tasted superb. This curry can also be made for chicken. Substitute Knorr Chicken Cubes for the Oxo and miss out the tomato ketchup. Instead, stir in a generous tablespoon of real butter at the end of the cooking process.

Printable PDF version of this recipe

Blighty's Beef Wellington Recipe

Good old Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington is destined to be forever remembered more for his boots than his military prowess. Despite being a brilliant general, it is Wellington Boots that spring to mind whenever his name is mentioned.

But what is the connection between a pair of "wellies" and a popular and delicious meal made with beef? Probably only that the beef is encased in a "boot" of pastry. It is certainly one of my favourite meals; here is how I made it:

Ingredients

• One tenderloin or similar cut of beef for roasting
• Pastry (I used my favourite high-rise puff pastry but regular pastry will do just as well)
• Quality mushrooms (go for flavour - I used Shiitake mushrooms)
• Liver Pate

Preparation

• Rub the roast with oil and cook in a pre-heated oven (400F) for 20 minutes or until the outside of the roast has browned - do not overcook!
• Allow the roast to cool then cut into individual serving sized pieces
• Roll the pastry out into squares big enough to wrap around the beef portions
• Spread liver pate on the pastry and set aside
• Finely chop the mushrooms and cook gently in a little milk until tender
• Spread the cooked mushrooms on top of the pate
• Lay each piece of beef on top of the mushrooms and fold the corners of the pastry over the meat, taking care to seal the joins carefully
• Bake at 400F for about 20 minutes or until the pastry turns golden
• Serve immediately

John's Notes
I was really very surprised how well this recipe worked. The total cooking time for the beef was only about 40 minutes so I was pleasantly surprised at how tender the meat was. Beef Wellington is traditionally made with Fois Gras which is produced by force-feeding ducks until their livers swell. Like many people, I have reservations about Fois Gras so I substituted ordinary liver pate.

You can use almost any mushrooms (Gordon Ramsay even recommends wild mushrooms but, in my humble opinion, that is dangerous lunacy that could get you poisoned). I chose Shiitake mushrooms for their strong flavour.

This recipe makes individual servings of Beef Wellington, but you can also wrap the entire uncut roast in pastry and then cut the finished product into slices for serving - your choice.

Beef Wellington is easy to prepare but, because the meat must be partially pre-cooked, you should begin preparation a day ahead. Give it a try - I guarantee you will enjoy it.

Welsh Rarebit - Alternate Recipe

I know we dealt with Welsh Rarebit only a couple of weeks ago but several people got back to me to say "Oh, no that's not how to make it; here is my recipe". Before the issue became forgotten I decided to go straight back to it and look at the alternative to my previously published recipe.

I have now made Welsh Rarebit two different ways. When I Googled the recipe, the majority of sources (including the venerable BBC) start with a roux of oil and flour as the base and then add the flavourings. Nonetheless, among the people bashing my ears over the issue a different recipe seems to be popular. I tried it and I can say that it is also delicious. Here it is:

Ingredients

• 1 cup Cheddar cheese
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon prepared mustard
• Salt, pepper
• 1 egg yolk (optional)

Preparation

• Gently warm the milk and cheese together until the cheese melts
• Add the butter and continue cooking gently until it has melted into the cheese/milk mix
• Stir in the mustard, salt and pepper
• Stir in 1 egg yolk to make the mixture thicker and richer (optional)
• Spoon onto toasted bread and grill for about thirty seconds or until the topping bubbles and begins to brown

John's Notes
So which recipe do I prefer? I liked both actually but I think I'll stick with my roux-based recipe on preference. I'll leave you to choose which is your favourite. Ok, that's it, the Welsh Rarebit debate is over. Next week: do you crack open a boiled egg from the big end or the small end? Yes, I'm only kidding, everybody knows you should do it from the big end.

Printable PDF version of this recipe

How to Make Real Welsh Rarebit

When I was a kid I was served melted cheese on toast and told that it was "Welsh Rarebit". Melted cheese on toast is a very tasty meal, but it isn't Welsh Rarebit.

Welsh Rarebit is toast covered in thick cheese sauce. Many people like to place the finished product under the grill before serving. I personally don't think grilling adds anything to the flavour but if you disagree then go ahead and grill it.

Ingredients

• Vegetable Oil
• Flour
• Cheese
• Seasoning
• Toast

Preparation

• Make a roux by warming a couple of tablespoons of oil in a saucepan then stirring in the same amount of flour and cooking gently for a couple of minutes
• Allow the roux to cool then stir in half a cup of water (or optionally, beer) and return to the heat
• Grate half a cup of cheese into the mixture and stir until it melts
• Add seasoning (cayenne, salt, mustard) and cook gently until the sauce is smooth and thick
• Spread on toast

John's Notes
This recipe makes enough cheese sauce to serve 2 people. You can garnish it with some chives, chopped onion or leeks. Total preparation time is about 10 minutes. Enjoy and don't accept melted cheese on toast as the real McCoy ever again.


Printable PDF version of this recipe

Bacon and Bean Pie

Bacon and bean pie is a simple-to-make, feelgood meal that is very inexpensive, tasty and filling. I really only had one reservation about making it, but it was a big one. I used imported British Heinz Baked Beans to make it. Heinz goes to a lot of trouble to procure the very highest quality beans - and I mashed them up into a bean gruel to make this pie. It broke my heart but it didn't hurt my tastebuds one little bit.

By the way, if you aren't convinced that imported Heinz beans are really the finest quality beans money can buy, just open a can alongside a can of cheapo beans from your local no thrills supermarket.

Ingredients

• 2 cans Heinz Baked Beans
• 1 pack Ayrshire Bacon
• 3 eggs
• 3 slices toast
• Mashed potato
• Seasoning

Preparation

• Cringe, then pour the world's finest beans into a liquidizer
• Break 3 eggs into the mushed up beans and stir them in
• Add seasoning (salt, pepper)
• Line the base of  large, greased ovenproof dish with toast then pour on the beans
• Chop and lightly fry the bacon, then add to the pie
• Top with mashed potato
• Bake at 350F for 45 minutes

John's Notes
This humble meal is like a cross between beans on toast and shepherds pie. You won't find it on the menu in the big house at the end of The Mall in London but us common folk enjoy it. Incidentally, while I was touring Sandringham House in Norfolk last summer I asked one of the tour guides if the Queen ever curled up with a plate of beans on her lap in front of the telly. "Never" came the reply; "Her Majesty always dines formally at table".

Baked beans were originally an expensive import from the Excited States. They were eaten in the United Queendom as almost a delicacy. As time went on they met with mass popularity and became associated with a cheap meal for the masses. I recall a British TV commercial from my childhood with the jingle: "a million housewives every day pick up a tin of beans and say: 'beanz meanz Heinz'". Do you remember it?

How to Make Mouth-Watering Lamb Hotpot

This dish is often referred to as Lancashire Hotpot. Indeed its most famous example is "Betty's Hotpot" from the Rovers Return pub on the TV show Coronation Street which is set in the Lancashire area. If anybody knows whether "Betty's Hotpot" is real or just a fictional dish from the TV show please let me know through the "comments" area at the bottom of this post.

The secret recipe for Betty's Hotpot was published on this blog about a year ago. Now in the grip of what has (so far) been a mild winter in southern Ontario I decided to revisit the recipe and make the best tasting hotpot that I could, with no expense spared. Actually it cost me about $20 to make a delicious and filling meal for four. I decided not to follow Betty's recipe exactly but I still cooked an exceptionally good hotpot. Here is how I made it:

Ingredients

• 1 medium leg of lamb
• 3 large potatoes
• 2 large onions
• 2 large carrots
• Seasoning (Daddies Sauce, garlic, salt, pepper, Sarson's malt vinegar, bay leaves, basil, Worcestershire Sauce, soy sauce)

Preparation

• Remove the meat from the bone, trim off the fat. Dice the meat into small cubes. Chop the bone into pieces about a couple of inches long using a meat cleaver
• Boil the bone vigourously in 2 litres of water for at least an hour, preferably longer, to make lamb stock.
• Toss the chopped lamb meat in a little oil and then again in flour, then brown the meat in hot oil
• Slice the potatoes fairly thinly and parboil (i.e. cook lightly until not quite soft - I used a microwave to do this)
• Slice the carrots thinly and parboil or steam until not quite soft
• Dice the onions and fry in hot oil until soft but not browned
• In a large ovenproof dish, layer the ingredients starting with meat at the bottom and ending with a layer of potato on top
• As the stock nears the end of its boil make the volume back up to 2 litres by adding boiling water, reduce the heat to a simmer add seasoning and continue to simmer for a while. Taste the stock. When it tastes really good it is ready
• Pour in the stock until it just covers the top layer of potato. Make enough stock so that you have some left over to top up the dish later
• Cover the dish with a lid and place in an oven at 350F and cook for at least 2 hours. Top up the stock as necessary during cooking. Half an hour before cooking is complete, remove the lid to allow the top layer of potatoes to brown.

John's Notes
Traditionally, neck of lamb is used, but this cut is not available in supermarkets in my area. I used leg of lamb instead because I needed the bone to make the lamb stock. Nota bene - as the Romans said to Queen Boadicea - the secret to a really good hotpot is in the stock. That is why I recommend tasting the stock before adding it to the dish. If the stock doesn't set your tastebuds alight the finished hotpot won't either.

The end result in my kitchen was a very, very tasty dinner. The meat was soft, tender and full of flavour. The vegetables were similarly well-cooked and full of flavour. It is important to parboil the potatoes and carrots before adding them to the dish to ensure that they cook fully and to make sure they keep their flavour.

This is one of the best; I'll be making it over and over again in my kitchen.