Tag Archives | potatoes

Commando Casserole

By on April 14, 2012 in Food

Lord Woolton, wartime Minister for Food

This recipe comes courtesy of Mrs Cromarty who has something of a penchant for vintage cookware.
Unfortunately I made a cock-up with the photograph and deleted it before I had successfully transferred it to the computing machine, so here is a photograph of Lord Woolton.

Pyrex cookware has been popular for a long time and the company tried to make a virtue of it in World War 2, encouraging housewives to use the glassware for more economical recipes like Commando Casserole.   Their advert boasted that because all the ingredients went in one casserole, the glass retained heat so saving fuel.  And because the dish went straight to the table, there was no waste and less washing up!

COMMANDO CASSEROLE

Utensils:
1 x casserole dish

Ingredients:
1lb / 480g potatoes
1lb / 480g parsnips or turnips
1 leek or small onion
1 teaspoon vegetable or meat extract (or 1 stock cube) dissolved in one teacup of water
1/2 teaspoon of thyme
1lb / 480g sausage meat
1/3  small cabbage
Pinch of sage
Small piece of dripping or butter
Salt and pepper

Method:
Shred cabbage finely
Slice other vegetables as thinly as you can
Roll out sausage meat on a well-floured board and cut into four pieces, the size of the Pyrex casserole
Grease the casserole and, starting with a layer of potatoes, put in alternate layers of vegetable and sausage, seasoning as you go.  The top layer should be potato
Pour in the stock
Put on lid and cook in moderate oven for 30 minutes.
Take off the lid, dot the top potatoes with tiny pieces of dripping and return to oven (without the lid) for a further 20 minutes.

Comments { 6 }

Cheesy Potatoes

By on January 12, 2012 in Food, Slider

At the request of Penny B, here is the recipe for cheesy potatoes as featured in the last post about Pork Chops with Mustard.

I never peel potatoes if I can possibly avoid it, in order to wrestle every ounce of taste and goodness out of them.

CHEESY POTATOES

Utensils:
1 x saucepan
1 x ovenproof dish

Ingredients:
2lb potatoes – washed and thinly sliced (about 3mm)
6-8oz Cheddar cheese – coarsely grated or thinly sliced
Black pepper
½ pint double cream

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 / 375 / 5
Par boil the potatoes until just softening
Drain thoroughly
Place a layer of potatoes in the bottom of the dish and put a layer of cheese on top with a light twist of black pepper
Repeat these layers, finishing with a layer of potatoes
Pour the cream over the top
Place in the oven and bake for about half an hour or until the top is browning nicely

Comments { 27 }

Woolton Pie

By on November 16, 2011 in Food

No, M'Lord, that's where I wash me smalls!

Woolton Pie was created in 1941 at The Savoy Hotel in London and was named after Lord Woolton who was head of The Ministry of Food.

It can be made with just about any vegetables that you have to hand; fresh bought, leftovers, odds and ends, roasted veg, frozen mixed veg. – the decision is yours.  This recipe is about as Wartime Housewife as it gets, using all the elements of  leftovers, using what you have in the fridge or cupboard, and is very, very cheap.

The basic elements are:
Mixed vegetables
A sauce
A topping of pastry, crumble or potatoes – mashed or sliced

WOOLTON PIE

Utensils:
A deep-sided pie dish or casserole

Ingredients:
*   Mixed vegetables cut into similar shapes if possible eg julienne strips or cubes
*   White sauce flavoured with cheese or herbs or both (see HERE for recipe)
*   A quantity of shortcrust pastry OR mashed potato OR sliced potatoes
OR savoury crumble mix (see HERE for crumble recipe)
*   Beaten egg to glaze pastry or grated cheese and butter for the potatoes

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 375 / 5 / 190
If using fresh vegetables, steam them very lightly until they are just cooked
Put the vegetables into the dish
Pour over the sauce
Top with mash, sliced potatoes, crumble mixture or pastry
Top potatoes with grated cheese or brush the pastry with beaten egg
Bake in the oven until whichever top you’ve used is golden brown

 

Comments { 8 }

A delicious Sausage Stew

By on September 22, 2011 in Food

This is a recipe for a delicious, nutritious, easy and cheap sausage stew which is just the job for warming you up on a chilly day.  This recipe serves 6 easily and uses storecupboard ingredients.  If, as in my case, there are only 2 or 3 of you, eat the stew with the sausages on day one, then eat the rest the next day either on its own with bread and cheese or add some lamb chops, chicken legs or bits of black pudding.

SAUSAGE STEW

Utensils:
1 x large saucepan or casserole dish suitable for the hob
1 x chopping board
1 x vegetable peeler

Ingredients:
a little oil
8 good sausages
1 medium onion – chopped
1 small swede or half a big one – peeled & cubed
3 medium parsnips – peeled & cubed
3 medium carrots – chopped into chunks
2 medium potatoes – chopped into chunks (I leave the skins on)
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 pint of stock – I made half beef and half chicken
1 heaped tablespoon of tomato puree
1 tablespoon mixed herbs
1 flat tablespoon paprika
1 tin of baked beans
seasoning to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a saucepan
Add the sausages and cooked until nicely browned
Add the onions and soften a little, adding a bit more oil if necessary
Add all the other ingredients except the baked beans
Cook on a low heat until the vegetables have softened, stirring occasionally (probably about ½ hour to 40 minutes)
Add the baked beans and cook for a further five minutes
Serve in big bowls

Comments { 8 }

Tyneside Floddies all mine, all mine…

By on April 7, 2011 in Food, Slider

Bacon Floddies, a sort of potato cake, are a tradition part of a Tyneside breakfast and would be served with eggs and sausages.  Apparently they originated on the canals where the navvies would cook them on their shovels over the fire.

TYNESIDE FLODDIES

Utensils:
1 x potato peeler
1 x grater
1 x tea towel – clean!
1 x mixing bowl
1 x large frying pan
Kitchen roll (paper towel) to drain

Ingredients:
10oz / 300g potatoes – peeled
1 large onion – finely chopped
6oz / 180g bacon – rinds off and finely chopped
2oz / 60g self raising flour
2 eggs
oil for frying

Method:
Grate the potatoes onto the tea towel
Gather it up and squeeze the liquid out of the potatoes
Put the chopped onion into a bowl and add the potatoes, bacon and flour
Season to taste
Beat the eggs into the potato mixture
Heat the oil in the frying pan to a medium heat
Put ample tablespoonfuls of the potato mixture into the frying pan and flatten them out to form round cakes
Cook on each side until golden brown and cooked all the way through – about 4 minutes each side
Lift out of the pan and drain the oil off on the kitchen paper
Serve immediately with fried eggs and good sausages and shovel it down!

Comments { 7 }

Unfashionable Cauliflower – a retrospective (plus a recipe for Aloo Gobi)

By on March 12, 2011 in Food

Yet again, the subject of the poor, ganged-up-on, unpopular cauliflower has reared its curly head on the telly.  It always makes me really cross when people talk about unpopular foodstuffs.  Would the average shopper be happier if it had ‘Louis Vuitton’ stamped on every floret?  Or perhaps the Nike Turnip would prove to be a hit?  Fendi Fennel… stop me now – I’m only pretending that I know some designers.

Cauliflower is lovely and I shall prove it.  Read this article wot I wrote in May last year.

Now go and buy a cauliflower.

Than, if you want to be exotic, try this quick and delicious recipe for Aloo Gobi, a North Indian/Pakistani dish  made with cauliflower, potatoes and Indian spices.  My friend Ila also puts a handful of frozen peas in it at the potato stage.

ALOO GOBI

Utensils:
1 x large saucepan
1 x vegetable peeler

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons oil
1 medium onion – finely chopped
1 clove garlic – chopped
1 green chilli – chopped
1 inch / 2.5cm ginger peeled and finely chopped
2 medium potatoes – peeled and cut into smallish chunks
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp turmeric
1 medium cauliflower cut into florets
a dash of lemon juice
a little salt
½ tsp garam masala

Method:
Heat the oil and fry the onion, garlic, chillis and ginger until just tender.
Add the potatoes and fry for another 2-3 minutes
Add the spices except for the garam masala, and mix well
Add a tablespoon of water, cover the pot and cook
When the potatoes are al dente add in the cauliflower.
Replace the lid and cook until the cauliflower is just soft
Add a sprinkle of lemon juice, salt and garam masala and stir well
Serve with naan or parathas

Comments { 9 }

Lancashire Hot Pot

By on January 25, 2011 in Food

I was listening to Desert Island Discs on Sunday morning and it featured the wonderful actress Betty Driver who plays Betty in ITV’s ‘Coronation Street’.  In the programme, she is famous for her ‘Ot Pots and her presence on the wireless prompted me to give you this recipe. 

Some time ago, I gave you the recipe for Cumberland Tattie Pot which is a regional variation which includes sausages and black pudding.  The great thing about this sort of dish is that it’s so versatile; see what’s cheap or on special offer at the butchers and throw that in, or see what you have in the freezer.  Substitute kidneys for liver, use pork shops or different type of sausage (look at Rate My Sausage for advice on different types), try mushrooms, carrots or thinly sliced swede.  Be wild and free!  

Betty's 'Ot Pot

LANCASHIRE HOT POT

Utensils:
1 x large frying pan
1 x large casserole dish with a lid

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons oil
8-12 lamb chops
6oz / 180g lamb’s kidneys – cored and cut into pieces
2 medium onions – thinly sliced
a few sprigs of rosemary
2lb / 1kg potatoes – thinly sliced (I leave the skin on)
1 pint / 600ml lamb or beef stock
3oz / 90g butter

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 / 350 / 4
Heat the oil to a high-ish heat in the frying pan
Brown the chops quickly on both sides to seal, remove from the pan and set aside
Put the kidneys into the frying pan and lightly brown
Remove from the pan and set aside
Layer the chops, kidneys, onions, herbs and potatoes in the casserole
Season if you wish
Finish off with a layer of potatoes
Pour over the stock and dot the top with bits of butter to brown it nicely
Put the lid on and pop it in the oven for 2 hours
Remove the lid and turn the heat up to 220 / 425 / 7
Return to the oven and cook, without the lid for another half hour until the potatoes are crisping nicely

Comments { 8 }

Garden Update 2

By on October 4, 2010 in Food, The Great Outdoors

From the pot to the pot in 5 minutes

Today I had the pleasure of harvesting the first of my carrots which were grown in pots.  I didn’t have as much time as I would have liked to prepare my garden properly for vegetables earlier in the year, but I did manage to get in a few rows of onions and potatoes, one row of cabbages and a few pots of carrots.

I inherited my garden with a small raised bed and I got very excited until I discovered that it was just a large lump of clay with a couple of old railway sleepers round the edge.  Hence the spuds which are starting to break the soil up a little.  My onions are now in and waiting to be plaited into a neat hanging thingy; they are so crisp and full of flavour they make me weep.  Oh hang on…. But joking apart they really are lovely onions.

I planted my potatoes much too close together which made them difficult to earth up and they completely overshadowed my cabbages and I forgot about them until about two months ago.  Consequently, the cabbages got a bit sluggy and the last but one has bolted, but the others were all nicely tight-headed and delicious.

As I mentioned earlier, the soil in my garden is very heavy clay and therefore completely unsuitable for carrots.  If you attempt to plant carrots in clay, all you will get is clumps of fanged, knobbly monstrosities which are neither use nor ornament, unless they grown into amusingly genital shapes, but even this has limited entertainment when the family is crying out for Sunday lunch! 

I didn’t have time to organise different areas of soil, or to improve all the soil in time for planting, so I did my old trick of planting in large plastic pots.  I made a mix of half compost and half sharp sand and filled three giant pots with it.  I then carefully and thinly sowed carrot seed as per the instructions on the packet and left them to it.  I’ve just had my first crop and I can’t tell you how delicious they were and you can’t get any fresher than taking them out of the ground and into the pot five minutes later.  Do try growing things in pots if you don’t have much garden – you will be amazed at what you can achieve.

Vis a vis the other things I planted, I had a grand total of ten tomatoes, the neighbour’s horse ate the pumpkin plant and the pepper just stared at me very hard as I walked past, but did nothing.

I have grander plans for the garden next year.  As my landlord stole half my garden, there is no longer any need for the badly made and un-membraned gravel path that cuts across what remains of my lawn.  I shall remove it, use the wooden planks to edge the front flower bed, move the pathetic box plants to in front of the fence, where hopefully they will eventually form a nice hedge.  I will then be left with a decent, vaguely rectangular lawn which will be easier to mow.

I can then move the tatty sleeper edged bed, which is at the moment full of mint, and use the remaining sleeper to extend the vegetable patch.  With hard work and a following wind I may even have room for the garden swing which I bought and promised to put up for the boys two years ago.

This is not as much work as it sounds and, to be honest, I far prefer diggin’, choppin’ and ‘ackin’ work to poncing about with plants.  The Aged Parent can do that – it’ll keep her joints supple.

Comments { 1 }

Is it a Soup or is it a Lizard?

By on March 2, 2010 in Food

You are to be discouraged from putting this in your soup.

Cullen Skink is a Scottish soup, but it’s very thick, very hearty and wonderfully rich and filling.  I always serve it with thick chunks of granary bread and butter (don’t torment me with your margarine fakery!).  Just the job for these cold, bright days.  And it’s fish so it will make you really brainy.  Brainier – you are, after all, my readers. 

The name comes from the fishing village of Cullen, in Morayshire. “Skink” is a soup made originally from a shin of beef. But nowadays the main ingredient is smoked haddock. Och aye the noo (as absolutely no-one says in Scotland).

No lizards were harmed in the preparation of this recipe.

Utensils:
1 x large pan
1 x plate
1 x potato peeler
1 x potato masher

Ingredients:
1oz / 30g butter
½ onion – finely chopped
1 pint / 600ml of creamy milk
1lb / 480g potatoes – peeled and diced
1/2lb / 240g smoked haddock (pref. undyed)
1 tblspn fresh parsley – finely chopped (or ½ tblspn dried)

Method:
Melt the butter in a pan
Add the onion and sweat for 7-8 minutes until soft but not browned
Pour in the milk and bring to the boil
Add the potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes until they are really soft
Place the haddock on the top and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the fish begin to flake easily
Remove the fish carefully onto a plate and leave it until it’s cool enough to handle
Flake the fish, removing any bones and skin as you do so
While the fish is cooling, mash the potatoes in the pan just a little to thicken the soup
Put the fish back into the pan
Stir in the parsley and season to taste.

Comments { 0 }

A Very English Dinner Party in 3 Parts. Part 2 Cumberland Tattie Pot

By on January 19, 2010 in Food

This is the main course following on from yesterday’s starter of Huntingdon Pears.

CUMBERLAND TATTIE POT – serves 6

A note about lamb:  Hot Pots often suggest using lamb chops, but I think they’re far too expensive for what they are, and certainly unnecessary for use in a casserole that will be cooked for several hours.  Ask your butcher what he/she has – a neck or shoulder piece will melt in the mouth and is considerably cheaper.

Utensils:
1 x large ovenproof deep casserole dish
1 x chopping board
1 x sharp knife

Ingredients:
2lb / 1kg of lamb – (see above) cut into portion sizes or chunks
12oz / 360g black pudding – cut into 1″ / 2.5cm chunks
6 Cumberland sausages or a whole coiled sausage
2lb potatoes – thickly sliced
3 large onions – sliced
¾ pint / 500ml beef stock
1oz / 30g butter or dripping
Salt & pepper – to taste

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 160/325/3
Place a layer of potatoes in the casserole dish, then a layer of onions, lamb and black pudding, seasoning as you go
Then another payer of potatoes, onions and sausages
Finish off with a layer of potatoes
Pour the stock over the whole thing
Grease the lid of the casserole dish and place it on.
Put it in the oven and cook for about 2 ½ hours
Remove from the oven, take off the lid and smear the potatoes with butter or dripping
Return to the oven without the lid for a further half hour or until the potatoes are nicely browned
Serve with carrots and green beans.

PS.  I have just finished the remains of this for my Sunday lunch, washed down with a bottle Badger’s ‘Blandford Fly’, which is undoubtedly the best beer in the world.  Drink some at once.

Comments { 2 }