Culinary efforts and presents
If you are looking for Rachel Allen's Smoked Salmon Recipe Click here
So I have spent the past two days cooking:-
Christmas dinner for 6, very traditional food,
- smoked salmon, pate for the fish haters and salad for starters,
- Turkey, Ham, stuffing, mash, croquettes, 4 different steamed veg and not a sprout in sight, gravy and bread sauce.
- Desert much later was christmas pudding and custard for some and viennetta for the rest.
- Cheese board even later still for some - had some divine young Ardrahan cheese - smelly as old sports shoes but delicious.
There is a photo somewhere of the turkey being sliced but it's not really nailbiting stuff.
Today I did a Stephens Day breakfast buffet and tonight I cooked Turkey Curry with the assistance of Jamie Olivers Cook in Curry Sauce recipe.
Now on the presents front I have a load of vouchers for shoes and household goods and one of these:
This is a Jamie Oliver Flavour Shaker - think mini pestle and mortar - will have to try it out a bit more before I give my final verdict - but it made a good french dressing for the salad yesterday, whether it could cope with hard seeds, nuts etc I don't know. (and yes I know a small screw top jar with a lid on it would have done the same thing but its Jamie Oliver and makes noise and looks interesting!)
I also received a pizza plate and cutter set, a oriental dipping set and dips and a copy of Rachel Allen's new book. So lets say the people buying presents know that things culinary will go down well.
However as I have commented on Bibliocook's blog, Rachel Allen does nothing for me at all. Her second series of TV programmes on which the book is based is currently showing on RTE. (sponsored by Spar) And I am sorry but the book is boring, its full of 'you could add this' and 'my brother in law makes a great' that. Rachel is trying to be Ireland's Nigella, and failing miserably. Give me her mother in law, Darina Allen, any day. She knows her food and is passionate about it. Rachel is doing the busy mother with blonde hair and no personality thing.
I intend to keep on cooking over the next week and hope to try out a recipe or two from Roast Figs, Sugar Snow, Warming Food from Cold Climes by Diana Henry which was one of my presents to myself this month. More on that book anon but I hope it gets cold enough for it! :)
posted by Maman Poulet @ 12/26/2005 08:54:00 p.m.
6 Comments:
Mmmmm. Food.
Looks like you had a good few days :)
Maman- want an update on the Jamie shaker- rather intrigued by it meself but would like some expert feedback before I commit!
Oooh! Roast Figs, Sugar Snow is sitting in review position on my desk at the moment. There are some gorgeous things in it but, the Irish weather being so changeable, the days you decide to cook cold weather food turn out to be unseasonably warm...
Now that we're a couple of weeks into January is your Jamie shaker still being used?
alas Caroline I have not used the Jamie shaker since the time the salad dressing went all over the sink and shirt when I shook it and it came apart. I will keep you updated. And I am finding the cookbook difficult to read - the text is so tiny and obscured in parts. More on that later too! Look forward to your review.
You can find my review here, Suzy. I'm really interested in the Steamed Apple and Marmalade Pudding that she talks about. Something for the weekend, perhaps, although it's again gone a bit warm for winter food...
Post a Comment
<< Home