Getting in Tuna

Gardening leave from a game of cricket one Saturday gave me some thinking time. It made me realise that one of the things the game has lost as a result of the Covid Pandemic is the Cricket Tea. Cricket teas have advanced in my time involved in the game from being a simple affair of a glass of squash, some custard creams and a bag of corner shop crisps, to more exotic fare of Hummus and well-crafted sandwiches.

While I had time on my hands I decided to make a quiche that included homegrown and locally sourced ingredients and would stand fit to make it onto a spread for a cricket tea. 

The ingredients for this quiche are as follows:

Shortcrust Pastry made from 200 grams of Plain Flour, 100 grams of cubed, unsalted butter with around a tablespoon of Almond Milk to thicken the pastry.

240 grams of Tinned Tuna. 

2 Duck Eggs, beaten.

1 Chicken Egg beaten.

A quarter of a pint of Skimmed Milk.

50 grams of Fresh Dill- I used some that I'd grown from seed in the conservatory. 

25 grams of Fresh Parsley- I used some that I'd grown in my garden. 

100 grams of strong cheese. For this recipe I used Isle of Arran Cheddar however plain Cheddar, Red Leicester or, for the Pro Europeans amongst us, Gruyere will do. 

On the player was a classic band, who I only knew from a few listens during the dying days of my A-Levels, called Santana. The album on the player was their recent offering Santana IV which saw some of the original members return and successfully rekindle the Latino swing- rock that made them so famous in the first place. 

Now to the method of this quiche. I first prepared the pastry by rubbing together the Flour and the Butter in a bowl until they formed something with the consistency of breadcrumbs. Then I added the Almond Milk and kneaded the mixture with some forceful punches until I had a pliable dough.

Next I rolled the pastry out and used it to line a circular cake tin that I had previously greased to avoid the pastry sticking. 

I distributed the Tuna, Dill and most of the Parsley evenly throughout the cake tin. I cut the Arran Cheddar into pieces and spread them as well.

Then I beat the eggs together in a measuring jug before adding the Skimmed Milk and whisking thoroughly to create a golden paste in the measuring jug. I poured this into the cake tin and watched it distribute widely to cover and flood the Tuna, Cheese and Herbs. After that I added the final piece of Parsley in the centre of the Quiche to provide some decoration. 

The Quiche was then cooked in the oven on Gas Mark 3, or 160 degrees for an electric oven, for 45 minutes. 

After it was cooked, some of the Tuna atop the quiche had a smoked feel to it and the fish itself contained plenty of protein. As did the Eggs, especially the Duck Eggs which tend to be larger and richer than the eggs of chickens. The Dill and Parsley meanwhile gave this one a real freshness and bite that would help fill anybody's stomach between innings in a game of cricket. 

New Baconcy

 White Fish and Bacon are a combination that traditionally goes together very well. Recently we acquired some back Bacon Rashers from the wonderful local farm shop at Stretton Hall, see their website at: (2) Stretton Hall Farm Shop | Facebook for more about them. 

Prior to making to dish we had prepared the garden and set out the seeds we were going to grow for this summer's vegetable garden project. On the player was the downbeat, claustrophobic thud of the Manic Street Preachers 1994 offering "The Holy Bible". It can be heard at: Manic Street Preachers The Holy Bible (1994) - YouTube . It's the last album to feature contributions from guitarist Richey Edwards who vanished in mysterious circumstances not long after its release. 

To make this dish you need the following ingredients:

Six Rashers of Back Bacon.

Two Hundred Grams of Samphire.

Three Mooli Radish, peeled, topped and tailed and sliced thinly. We used some that had been freshly grown out of my garden. 

Two Cod Fillets.

A head of Broccoli, cut into small florets.

This one is a simple recipe to make and it goes like this. 

1. Layer the Broccoli florets across the bottom of a steaming pan. 

2. Put the Cod Fillets on top of them. 

3. Steam for thirty minutes.

4. Meanwhile fry the Mooli Radish and Samphire on a medium heat for ten minutes. 

5. Add the Bacon and continue to fry lightly for another ten minutes.

The moist and succulent feel of the Cod offsets the sharp taste of the Mooli Radish and salty texture of the Samphire and the Bacon making this a tasteful combination for all.

Broccoli and Roll over you

 One of the great joys of Lockdown has been the discovery of growing my own vegetables from scratch. After nursing some Ironman Broccoli through a very cold winter, which involved a lot of night time gardening after work, I harvested it just as the clocks changed for British Summertime and then soaked it in hot water to ensure it was clean. 

We decided to use the Broccoli in some soup with an unconventional ingredient:

A head of Fresh Broccoli that's been homegrown.

One large White Potato, peeled and cubed. 

One hundred and twenty-five grams of fresh Garden Peas. 

A quarter of a pint of Beef Stock. 

One hundred and twenty-five grams of Edami Beans something that doesn't normally get associated with these kind of ingredients for a soup. 

Some Charcoal Cheese, we sourced ours from Stretton Hall Farm Shop at Stretton Hall Farm Shop | Facebook

We also went for something a little unconventional in our soundtrack with the all girl punk band the Slits jagged and wonderful album "Cut". Check it out at: The Slits - Cut (full album) - YouTube 

This Soup was deceptively simple to make as follows:

1. Sweat the Broccoli and Potato in a Le Cresceut for around twenty minutes on a medium heat. 

2. Add the Peas, Edami Beans and Beef Stock and simmer for a further twenty-five minutes. 

3. Blend the soup and sprinkle some Charcoal Cheese in it before serving. 

Broccoli and Potato are known to go together well and the  freshly picked Broccoli certainly dominated this dish while the fresh peas made it feel like summer was not far away. The Edami beans also offered a gravelly texture and a lot of protein. 

#sourkrautsausage

 A line from the film "Lawnmower Man" about "taking my work back underground" heralded the start of the Prodigy's Second Album "Music for the Jilted Generation". The record is a mix of claustrophobic and tinny garage that is interspersed with some epic, sweeping ambience that foreshadows clearly the music of such present artists as Darren Styles. Although it was released in 1994, it's an album that still sounds like it could have been released yesterday. Check it out at: The Prodigy - Music for the Jilted Generation full album - YouTube

It was on the player as we decided to make a Sour Kraut recipe using some Cabbage that had survived through the winter months. It was to be served as a side with some grilled Sage Sausages sourced from Stretton Hall Farm: Stretton Hall Farm Shop | Facebook and some home baked bread. 

The full ingredients are: 

Five large leaves of a green Garden Cabbage, shredded finely. 

Three Diced Shallots.

Three Diced Cloves of Garlic. 

A fresh Yellow Pepper, we picked one that had been growing in the Conservatory, that has been de-cored and sliced thinly. 

Two tablespoons of Caraway Seeds.

A tablespoon of Brown Sugar.

Half a pint of Beef Stock. 

The method is:

1. Fry the Garlic, Shallots, Pepper, Brown Sugar and the Caraway Seeds for ten minutes until the Shallots become caramelised. 

2. Add the Beef Stock and Cabbage and simmer for around twenty minutes until the Stock has been absorbed into the other ingredients.

3. Serve as a filling to the Sausage Sandwiches. 

This take on Sour Kraut comes from a Bavarian recipe and is sweet but not too sweet because of the earthy Caraway Seeds while the Cabbage had a wild taste and texture that is only found in homegrown Cabbage and gets lost in the supermarket version. 

The Charcoal Burner

A Sunday full of light and shade had shards of bright sunlight, a coffee for two, rehabilitation for the Dogg's muscle strain and an exotic new frittata. 

On the player was Jeff Wayne's Musical version of HG Wells' apocalyptic novel "The War of the Worlds". It is a piece that shows how brightness can rise ultimately from seemingly inevitable defeat and so is highly relatable for many of us today.

The ingredients to make this recipe are as follows:

4 Duck Eggs

100 grams of Kale

6 Basil Leaves

2 Tomatoes cut into half.

A pinch of White Pepper.

0.1 litres of Skimmed Milk.

Fifty Grams of Charcoal Cheese cut into small pieces.

The method to make this recipe goes like this:

1. Beat the Duck Eggs together in a measuring jug until they are fully blended. 

2. Fry the Kale in a frying pan in some sunflower oil on a medium heat for around 10 minutes stirring frequently to avoid it being burned. 

3. Add the Duck Eggs, Milk, Tomato, Basil and White Pepper. Split the Tomato evenly over the top of the Frittata.

4. Cook on the hob for around ten minutes using spatula to get under the Frittata to save it from sticking as it warms through. 

5. Scatter the Charcoal Cheese over the the Frittata.

6. Remove the frying pan from the hob, keeping the Frittata in there, and put it under grill on a low heat for two minutes prior to serving. 

The Kale was juicy yet crunchy while the Duck Eggs carry a richness and protein to fortify us through a wild March. The Charcoal Cheese meanwhile is like no cheese I've ever tasted with the charcoal itself being a good aid to the immune system. 

And Soup and I

Two soups eat as one

The ides of March was a time in the month that, when the Romans were around, was seen as a time to settle debts and the ides of March are seen in folklore to be a time of the year to be wary of. Yesterday seemed to live up to that at first as typhoon style rain battered the Western Wall of my house while I waited anxiously to go on a wander with the most irreplaceable part of the band.

To fuel us up for a walk in the hills in the west  I decided to prepare a bright Beetroot Soup. On the player was Yes' dynamic "Keys to Ascension" Box Set that covered several re-union shows the band had with star keyboardist Rick Wakemen and wonderful new studio tracks the were the best the band had forged since their seventies heyday. 

The Recipe

Three Beetroots, topped, tailed, scrubbed clean and then cubed.

The leaves and stems of the three Beetroots. 

Three Cloves of Garlic, topped, tailed, peeled thinly sliced. 

One Hundred Grams of Fresh Root Ginger, peeled and thinly sliced. 

One small Red Chilli cut into minute pieces.

Half a pint of Vegetable Stock

The Method

1. Fry the Beetroot Pieces, Beetroot Leaves, Stems, Garlic Cloves, Ginger and the Chilli in sunflower oil on a medium heat in a deep sauce pan for ten minutes stirring regularly.

2. Add the Vegetable Stock and simmer for one hour.

3. Blend and serve or put in a flask to take with you on a walk to keep you warm. 

The ratio Ginger and the Chilli made sure the heat of the soup was evenly distributed while the sweet, earthy taste of the Beetroot gave the recipe real body. 

We took the soup to a place out in the west where the skies were wild and the horizons showed us, wild, distant, untamed but somehow forbidden countryside. There we took our cups of soup and drank our health and to the future adventures and wild wonders that we would experience. 

Orange Spring

The sun was shining, the sky a relaxing blue glow as we finished a long walk at the end of February during a spell of fake spring. On the way to the walk I had picked up some chicken fillets from the local farm shop, where I had also been door-stepped by an old acquaintance who wore her surgical mask like a beleaguered bandido. 

I used the chicken fillets to make a new recipe that featured a healthy amount of fresh orange juice. The ingredients are as follows:

For the marinated chicken fillets:

Two Chicken Fillets.

A tablespoon of Dried Tarragon.

The juice of one Orange. 

For the Butter Sauce

The juice of one Orange.

One Hundred Grams of Unsalted Butter.

A teaspoon of Fennel Seeds. 

For the White Sauce

The grated rind of one Orange.

One Hundred Grams of Unsalted Butter. 

A tablespoon of Cornflour. 

A quarter of a pint of Skimmed Milk. 

As a side dish

A head of Brocolli and some Kale steamed for thirty minutes prior to serving. 

On the player as I started the work on this dish was Emerson, Lake and Palmer's grand and ambitious effort "Works Volume 1". It features everything from a Piano Concerto, lots of obscure love ballads, Jazz Jams and delicate classical interpretations to barnstorming prog rock. All conjured up by three blokes. There's not been a hit album like it since. If you fancy an adventure then check it out at: Emerson, Lake and Palmer- “Works, Volume 1”(full album 1977) - YouTube 

The first job was to marinate the Chicken by rubbing it in Sunflower Oil, the Dried Tarragon and Orange Juice and then placing it on a baking tray and leaving it to cook in the oven for thirty minutes on Gas Mark Five. 

Also steamed for thirty minutes at this time was the Broccoli and Kale. 

I prepared the Butter Sauce by melting the Unsalted Butter in a sauce pan and adding the Fennel Seeds and Orange Juice. Once the Butter had melted I left this to one side until it was time to serve the dish.

Next I melted the Unsalted Butter in another sauce pan, added the grated rind of Orange and the Corn Flour and stirred these all together to form a thick paste. Then I gradually added the Milk to the pan, while keeping it on a medium heat, and stirring it until I had a thick sauce.

I served the dish by putting the Chicken Fillets on plates and pouring the Butter Sauce over them. Next I added the Broccoli and Kale and poured the White Orange Rind Sauce over them. Chicken, Tarragon, Fennel and Orange are flavours that go together well as does White Orange Rind Sauce Broccoli and Kale. There was just the right amount of Orange Juice on the Butter Sauce and the Chicken Fillets and the White Sauce had the rich flavour of a fruity cheese.