Kevin's Watch

Yeah, my uncle actually started his cellar by buying an entire collection from somebodies estate. He was never a collector though...we drank it. And when it turned, we poured it away... *sob*

--A

Just had two of the most exquisite chicken pasties I've ever eaten in my life! Home-made by my wife [a good Cornish girl], the traditional beef was replaced by succulent chicken and a good sprinkling of herbs and seasoning. Together with potato and onion and wrapped in a flaky puff pastry [but still holdable in the hand in the traditional Cornish way], she managed to infuse the filling with a moistness [added butter perhaps] that never over-ran your hand, but gave the near perfect 'mouth feel' [technical term that, actually used in the food industry] with the light golden pastry. Damn - that was fit for a Michellin Star kitchen anywhere in the world. If I could get her to make 1000 of them a day I'd be a millionaire now!

That sounds awesome, peter!
Did you happen to take a photo of her masterwork?

Alas Menolly, they didn't survive the subsequent onslaught that occured about 0.0001 seconds after I saw them on the plate. Trust me though - Venus emerging from the sea in the morning sunlight could not have looked more beautifull!

I'll be having yesterday's leftovers. Macaroni and cheese. (Made too much).

I had in mind to try out two cheeses. Powdered cheese sauce with the cooked macaroni, and grated Cathedral City cheese on top. Baked in the oven.
For a change, I tried adding mashed celeriac to the layer of macaroni before the grated cheese.
It was ok. The top layer was so delicious it made the macaroni too bland by comparison. Maybe next time I'll add English musturd to the cheese sauce.

Celeraic doesn't mash too well, though it turned out a good surpirse, because the lumpiness actually had the look and consistency of cod. Which I like.

I always add a dash of mustard to cheese sauce. But don't use powdered cheese sauce...make it from scratch, and cook your roux for 10 mins before adding the milk and cheese.

That's the secret to amazing cheese sauce.

--A

I picked up some mustard powder at the market.

I've been almost too lazy to eat recently, let alone cook. Lots of takeaway and easy meals. Meh.

--A

I made up pancake batter.
This batch is unusual for me, because I usually have whole wheat flour and use it...
But nope, these are 100% white flour. (unbleached, really, but similar in consistency.)

I've only cooked two of the pancakes so far.... maybe should heat that pan again and get back to it.

For lunch our plan is:
a stir-fry of carrot, onion, and napa cabbage with brown rice.

I usually use cake flour for pancakes. And buttermilk, and eggs. I don't measure ingredients, so they never turn out exactly the same way twice.

buttermilk.... mmmmm. that sounds fun to me...
I always use a cheap substitute, which is 1+1/3 T of vinegar mixed with milk to fill it to 1 cup.

There's this thick, velvety quality I sometimes get w/ whole wheat pancakes... I always want to reproduce that result.
(except not enough to pay close attention to what got me that...)

Tomorrow we're going down to visit the GF's grandmother to have a Christmas lunch type thing.

She loves the lamb shank I do, so I generally do that for her. However, since it's quite far, slow roasting the damn lamb shank at her place is impractical, so I do most of it here the night before, (now), then take them down and finish them there.

As a consequence, I am now suffering the torture of smelling my lamb shanks slow roasting in red wine, balsamic vinegar and rosemary, knowing full well that I cannot eat them until tomorrow.

Truly this is a form of hell...

--A

Avatar wrote:Truly this is a form of hell...

Take heart, Av. This is not hell, only a temporary purgatory. Hell would consist of being subject to that aroma with no chance at all of partaking of the roasted ovine goodness...and having to take what sustenance you do get in the absence of that bouquet.

Instead, you'll get to inhale the smells again tomorrow as you finish the preparations, then get to partake of it alongside folks who appreciate those lamb shanks as much as you do. A bit of heaven to offset the then-past torture of deprivation.

Very true SD. Anyway, I cheated. There was an extra one, so I took the others out, gave that one it's extra 45 mins, then ate it and put the others back in the roasting pan.

So I had it for dinner on Saturday, and lunch on Sunday. Saturday I literally just ate the shank.

--A

I just can't do lamb shank Av (though damn, your recipe makes me want to try again!). In fact I'm really starting to struggle with any meat cuts that are not lean in large part. I love a beef sirloin with the fat on the outside that caramelises during cooking, but short ribs, beef cheek, lamb shoulder etc, they all have a fatty connective tissue that runs into the lean and which I find seriously off-putting. It's a damn shame because some of these cuts have very much superior flavour - but it is what it is.

umm .. when Im away from home - I lack the motivation to cook and I hate spending my hard earned moolah on take away - its a conundrum. So I don't eat much .. away from home. I kinda get lazy as well - can I be bothered to make a mess than have to clean it up LOL

meh! Weetbix become a staple and yoghurt

My working hours and digestive problems in combination severely restrict what I can eat during the week, so tend to live on fish and rice based meals (Chinese dishes as well) - but at the weekend I can be more adventurous (hence my forays into more demanding cooking) particularly if I can wash it down with a bottle of wine or two!

For the most part, I tend to live off steak and whatever sides I feel like or can be bothered to prepare. Not nearly enough of anything healthy. And that red wine sauce is still making a seriously frequent appearance.

--A

hahahahaha... and why not Av .. red wine is actually good for you (in moderation)

I like simple food, easy to whip up, tasty but yeah not too fussed with multiple sides. A few veg here and there - just cos they're growing in the garden and need using.