Recipes

I was watching the hairy bikers new show the other night. It's all about family recipes, one of the problems they've had in collecting the recipes is that if they are handed down through the family there isn't much of an actual recipe. This got me thinking, I have a stack of recipe books, plus the internet, plus a couple of apps for smart devices but how do I actually use them ?

Nigel Slater & Hugh Fearnly-Whittingstall tend to be goto books for meat cooking times . Jamie Oliver & Nigella Lawson (happy birthday for yesterday) for cakes & pastry. The Hairys, Heston and the Two fat ladies mainly provide inspiration. (Though I am making Heston's treacle tart, his recipes are very exact). McGee whilst not exactly a recipe book gets consulted when I'm trying new stuff as it provides information about the presence of ingredients. Then I know if I can leave them out, substitute them or have to stick with them, rather than trial & error.

Looking at several things I've posted, I don't give recipes, I'll occasionally link to one but in general, I'm all about some, or a pinch. Pastries, doughs, and batters I weigh out, Indian dishes I do use a recipe quite heavily to get the right proportions of the right spices.

O F M

It should come as no suprise that I enjoy the Observer Food Monthly (OFM). However I am deeply irritated by Polly Vernon's "Cocktail girl" column. This month she is claiming she can't drink tequila because it tastes of anise. Sorry there but what the hell has she been drinking ?

Then there is her usual drink, vodka & tonic. This isn't a cocktail at the very best it's a mixed drink requiring little or no skill to prepare. Cold vodka, reasonable sized glass, tonic on the side job done.

So please Observer either get somebody who knows their cocktail onions or introduce Polly to actual cocktails made in actual cocktail bars, rather than the usual celeb ligger hangouts she bores us with on a monthly basis.

-- Posted from my iPhone