I have a confession to make, my kitchen is not perfect, far, far from it. I have bugs which I will call beetles for lack of proper recognition. They're not always there, but enough times to annoy. I think flour is their favourite snack as I found an entire beetle civilization living in a bag of forgotten self-raising sitting at the back of a cupboard. They were quickly evicted and relocated to a better place, (the garbage disposal). Ziploc bags and plastic bag clamps have become our best friends, sealing anything that may otherwise be exposed and prove to be a temptation to these little mites. Neil is so disgusted by these bugs that when I opened a drawer earlier, I was greeted by this extreme measure to keep them out of his ginger biscuits. In the absence of clamps, he has resorted to adapting something from his toolbox more equipped to deal with pieces of wood. Not only that, but realising how extreme a measure he is taking, he took a photo of it himself which I just found on the hard drive! I appreciate the fact that my husband is conscious of food safety but also a little amused at the lengths he will go to to keep some minuscule bugs from helping themselves to his biscuits.
January must be the worst month of the year. The post-Christmas blues and the horrible cold weather combine to make everyone a little down-hearted. So, when skies like this are revealed, the beauty does wonders to lift spirits and remind us that warmer days are coming.
Winter market brisket
I've only cooked brisket once before in Vancouver. I bought a package labelled 'brisket corned beef' from a supermarket which required long, slow cooking. Never a huge fan of corned-beef after over exposure to those tinned varieties that are covered in a dubious looking 'jelly', I hoped that the real thing would be far better. I was disappointed. The meat was almost gelatinous, bouncy even for lack of a better expression, it seemed to squeak between the teeth. I don't even remember the flavour that well, it must have been quite forgettable. But today I am cooking a piece from a local farm bought at the Winter market on Saturday and have much higher expectations. It is a deep red colour with some creamy fat to provide good tenderness with an open, distinctive grain. (Photo at top of post).
I found a recipe online that seemed to have great potential, rubbing the meat with a dry rub consisting of paprika, sugar, garlic and salt, cooking some onions with the meat and using red wine as the braising liquid.
Find the recipe here.
I didn't have any red wine, so I used dry Marsala and a little beef stock.
The beef was sealed tightly with foil and a lid and left to cook at 325oF for 2 hours.
After 2 hours it was uncovered and left to cook for another hour to develop a crust and deepen the flavours and juices.
Until it looked like this. So, how was it? It was indeed a much better beef than the previous disappointment. It had a nice, tender texture, although another hour of cooking may have been beneficial to make it really bbq house soft. Neil nodded mid mouthful and commented approvingly, "Yep, tastes like roast beef". It did. It had that depth of flavour that can be lacking from topside or round, definitely a taste remembered from growing up when beef and Yorkshire pudding would be presented. Neil took the choicest pieces to work in some sandwiches today, commenting that he wasn't even going to use any condiments. High praise. The juices and sauce that resulted from using Marsala instead of red wine had a sweetness that may have been lacking if I had used the suggested liquid. I kept drinking it by the spoonful whilst pretending to baste the meat, I honestly think I would have put it in a glass and drank it if I hadn't wanted it for the sauce!
Stuffed mushrooms
A brand new ingredient find. Smoked Prosciutto. I've never seen this available commercially before and picked this up at a recent trip to a local supermarket. Smoked ham was always my favourite growing up and was a treat beyond measure when my mum would buy it for my lunch time sandwiches, coupled with cheese and possibly some sort of green leaf like lettuce. The flavour of this Prosciutto was quite subtle but definitely smoked, a sweet back note to an interesting and slightly complex flavour. I used it as an ingredient for my stuffed mushrooms where it was paired with the mushroom caps, cheese and some 'breadcrumbs'.
On a visit to my local low carb shop recently, I noticed these interesting looking crackers for sale. Flax seed is low carb and apparently very good for you. I could see so many possibilities including cheese, cucumber, pickles, small pieces of tomato, anchovies, olives etc., I was almost watering at the mouth with the anticipation of re-living one of my favourite night time snacks. They also have the potential to be ground and turned into 'breadcrumbs' to possibly be used as a breading or topping for a crispy, gooey, cheesy gratin.
As you can see, they ground up well and produced a pretty convincing 'breading' which I combined with my favourite local cheese.
This is one of my favourite local cheeses. They sell the products at some local supermarkets as well as both the Summer and Winter farmer's market. They also make a really nice Caerphilly, which is a famous cheese created long ago not 10 miles from my home town, but rarely seem to have it available. This one is slightly nutty and creamy. (Click on photo for link to website)
Recipe: Stuffed mushrooms
2 large Portabello mushrooms, caps removed
2 pieces smoked Prosciutto, ham or bacon
the mushroom caps, chopped small
1 tbsp breadcrumbs or chopped crackers etc.
2 tbsp grated cheese
oil, butter and freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oven to 350oF and bake the mushrooms until starting to soften, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat about 1 tsp oil and 1 tsp butter in a frying pan and fry the pork product you have chosen until cooked and crispy, add the mushroom caps and fry until soft.
Remove the mushrooms from the oven and pile the ham and mushrooms on top, then sprinkle the breadcrumbs and cheese over everything.
Bake for a further 10 - 15 minutes until browned.
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