Gumbo

Driving rain, floods, hail, storms and high winds.  It's all a bit bleak here at the moment; everything is cold and grey and wet and miserable.  I'll admit that in the Costa del Kent we aren't doing too badly compared with the rest of the UK (have a look at the South West) but even so it's still fairly depressing outside.  Sunshine appears to be a distant memory and I can't even remember what it is like to venture outside without a coat and an umbrella.  This is the exact sort of weather that demands full on comfort food, brightly coloured, warming, rich and satisfying.  Something that wraps you in the food equivalent of a cashmere jumper and blanket, curled on a sofa in front of a roaring fire.

I have just the thing.  Gumbo.

Gumbo is a traditional Louisiana dish, consisting of a strongly flavoured stock thickened with a French roux made from flour and fat, the Creole Trinity of celery, onion and pepper (add garlic to make it a Holy Trinity), and shellfish and meat.  It is the official dish of Louisiana and is a warming, hearty, filling supper for a cold winter's night.  It is very similar to the French bouillabaisse except that gumbo should always have okra in it (we'll just ignore the fact that the supermarket was completely out when I went there, grrr).

While I was at the fish counter the man serving me asked if I was making paella.  I explained that I was making gumbo and he went slightly cross eyed and started to drool a bit, simply saying 'ooooh, I love gumbo'.  For people who like shellfish, this is a real crowd pleaser.   This recipe will easily serve 6, or 2 with a week's worth of leftovers!

Steve asked me for my gumbo for dinner one night, and it wasn't until I was 2/3rds of the way through cooking it that he realised he made a mistake.  He stuck his head in the kitchen, looked puzzled and asked me why it was red.  Gumbo is always red I replied, to which he stated he had expected it to be white and then realised he had meant to ask for chowder for dinner.  Too late!

It may not have been what he was expecting, but, even if I do say so myself, my gumbo is really rather tasty.  I know it looks like a lot of ingredients but they are worth it.  Don't feel restricted to the seafood I have listed below either - gumbo is real country food and should be amended and adapted to different palettes; that's the beauty of dishes like this.

Just try it for yourself. 

80ml peanut oil
130g plain flour
4 boned chicken thighs, butterflied (will serve 6 people)
6 smokey sausages (I used 3 smokey chilli chipotle sausages and 3 smokey chorizo chipotle sausages from Morrison's but andouille or any smokey sausage will do), chopped into large thirds.
450ml chicken stock
450ml beef stock
1 small octopus per 2 people
6 small langoustines per 2 people
4 small whole squid per 2 people
50g king prawns per 2 people
2 tins chopped tomatoes
1/2 tube tomato paste
Handful fresh parsley
Handful fresh thyme
4 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
3 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon dried chilli flakes
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon celery salt
1 clove chopped garlic
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery sticks, peeled and chopped
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 green pepper, chopped
Salt and pepper
Tabasco to taste
Parsley to garnish

In a large pan heat the peanut oil and then pan fry the chicken thighs until brown on both sides.  Remove from the pan and leave to cool, then cut into chunks.

In the same pan add the sausages and brown all over to release their oils.  Remove and set to one side.

Add the flour to the chicken and sausage scented oil in the pan and whisk briskly to make a thick roux.  Add more oil if it is not smooth.  Keep whisking the roux until it turns brown and has the consistency of pancake batter.   Slowly pour the chicken and beef stocks into the roux and continue whisking to form a soup-like stock.  Transfer to a large soup pan and keep warm on a low simmer.

In a large pan heat a little oil and cook the vegetables and garlic until the onion is soft and translucent.

Add the softened vegetables, tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, chicken, sausages, herbs and spices to the flour and stock mix and stir together to form a thick stew.  Taste and adjust the seasonings and spices according to preference.

Allow to simmer on the hob for 30-40 minutes.

Prepare your fish by cleaning the octopus and squid and peeling the prawns.   If you are not sure how to do this ask your fishmonger to do it for you.   Keep the langoustine whole.  Add the fish to the stew about 5 minutes before you are ready to serve; it will cook very quickly.

Serve with parsley sprinkled over the top, fresh bread and tabasco or other hot sauce on the side for people who want a bit more heat.  If you want to be more traditional, serve your gumbo over rice.

Close the curtains, lock the doors and listen to the wind howl outside as you tuck into a taste of sun-soaked Louisiana.

Bread and Butter Pudding

I'm not sure what's come over me recently.  I've been actively looking at leftovers and trying to work out what to do with them - I'm never that inventive or creative in the kitchen!   

Before you say anything, I KNOW that bread and butter pudding is hardly inventive but that's not the point.  I was more chuffed with the fact that I actually looked at some nearly-stale bread and thought, B&B Pud, perfect rather than my usual go-to of 'better turn the cat TV on (ie. feed the birds)!

B&B Pud reminds me of being little, it was such a warming, comforting, nursery supper type of dessert and no two versions were ever the same depending on what Mum had lying around the kitchen.  The smell for me is reminiscent of nights curled up on the sofa near the fire, watching a film with the cats by your feet and a giant mug of tea on standby.    Why on earth I decided I needed to make a batch in mid-August is a bit of a mystery but I was glad I did.

Apparently it doesn't invoke such heartwarming memories for a lot of people; during the 1990's this pudding had almost become extinct due to its association with really bad school dinners.

Trust me - this version is nothing like those sloppy, cold, chewy bowls of pale yellow mush you got at school.

I've had it with brioche, croissants, ginger jam instead of butter, fruit jam, chocolate chips, pieces of red berries, white bread, brown bread, cinnamon milk, fruit peel, the options are pretty much endless, all are delicious and all are easy and follow the same basic pattern.

All you need as a staple are bread, butter (obviously), milk, sugar and eggs.  After that, just experiment!  After all, it was originally invented as a way to use up leftovers and has been made in British kitchens ever since the 1720's (as apparently that was when the earliest known recipe for it was discovered).

This is British puddings at their most traditional.

Did you know that apparently the earliest versions were called 'Whitepot' and used bone-marrow instead of butter and could also be made with rice instead of bread, meaning that Bread and Butter Pudding and Rice Pudding share a common ancestry!

This version needs about 8 slices of stale-ish bread, buttered on one side and cut into triangles.  You arrange half in a greased baking dish, butter side up and then scatter the layer with sultanas (or chocolate chips) and then another layer on top using the remaining half of the bread.

In a pan you gently heat 350ml of whole milk and 50ml of double cream (if you are using it, otherwise just 400ml of milk) with 2 tsp's of cinammon, 1 tsp of nutmeg and 1tsp of vanilla (powder, extract, liquid, pod, all will work).  Warm the mix until gently heated but not boiling.

Crack 2 eggs into a bowl and add 20 grams granulated sugar and whisk together then add the egg mix to the milk mix and whisk to form a light custard.  Pour the custard over the bread, soaking as much as possible.

Sprinkle nutmeg and demerara sugar over the top and add some extra butter to any pointy bits sticking out to make them extra crisp. 

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 30-40 minutes until the custard is squidgy and the bread browned.  You may just want to sit near the oven and sniff during this stage as the smells that permeate out are simply divine. 

Serve hot with more warm custard (you cannot have too much custard with this dessert.  I don't think it is possible).  Add some jam as well maybe? 

It is pure comfort in a bowl.

Jewish Penicillin

Steve hasn't been very well recently.  He's come down with a nasty summer cough and cold and was laid up for most of the day.  I dosed him up with over the counter medicines, made him hot honey and lemon and hit my recipe book for my 'feeling sick standby'.

For centuries chicken soup has been known as Jewish Penicillin for its mythical healing properties.  I have no idea how much benefit it actually does but when your throat hurts and it's difficult to swallow, a homemade soup, laden with nutrients and vegetables, is very soothing.

I did do a little bit of digging on it and apparently a Doctor Stephen Rennard had done some research on his grandmothers recipe and discovered her version did have a mild medicinal effect as it inhibited the inflammation of cells in the nasal passage.  I'm not claiming mine will do the same; for all I know Grandma Rennard laced hers with Beechams powder to supercharge it.

I have a recipe book at home that I turn to for our "family favourites" (i.e. recipes we make a bit more than others).  It's a pretty notebook that Steve bought me and all experimental recipes that get the taste test thumbs up get entered into it.  I hope one day to pass it onto my own children.

Chicken soup is one of the earliest recipes in it.  I went through a bit of a soup phase in the kitchen and I think I started with this one.

My version of soup is probably not the proper way of making it but I don't really care as it's so simple.  You take all the ingredients and chop them up, putting them in a large saucepan, holding back half of the main ingredients for later (e.g. in chicken and sweetcorn that would be the chicken and sweetcorn).

 Pour boiling water on the top and simmer for 45 minutes.

Blend the soup and the stock in batches, return to the saucepan with any leftover stock and throw in the held back chicken and sweetcorn.  Simmer for another 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.

 Serve with fresh crusty bread and allow the soups healing properties to kick in.

 Feeling better?

'Tater Torpedo's

It's brilliant that you can make these:

From something as humble as these:

Fully loaded potato skins (potato torpedo's) are just perfect.  They are warm, filling, bursting with flavour and the ideal comfort food.

These ones are in my mind extra special as instead of bacon I use chorizo sausage to fill them with smokey flavour.  They are so simple to make as well.  Just bake a couple of jackets for an hour or so until they are fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside.

Halve and scrape the potato out of the skin into a bowl

Add chopped chorizo, sour cream, grated strong cheese (cheddar, crumbled blue, stilton, whatever you fancy), fresh thyme or chives, salt and pepper and mix well then fill the skins back up with the mixture.

 Top with more cheese

 Stick back in the oven until the cheese is melted and gooey and dig in.

Try dunking them in more sour cream, salsa or add some mustard.  They also make a perfect sharing platter for when you have friends over.

What do you add to your torpedo's?

Vine Tomato, Chilli and Bacon Pasta

I have to say, I do like my pasta.  I am also incapable of making a tomato based sauce without putting chilli in it.  If I have none in the house (unlikely) then the tabasco comes out.  Normally I use both together to be honest.

I'm not sure why I require my tomato to pack a punch; it is a partnership thing.  You wouldn't have Laurel without Hardy, Ying without Yang or Bubble without Squeak and likewise I would never have tomato without chilli.

If you are not a chilli fan, just leave it out. I will be looking at you strangely though.

This is ridiculously quick and easy to make.  There are a million and one ways to make a basic tomato pasta sauce and I'm sure everyone has their own version; this is my go to for a fast, vitamin packed meal without opening a single tin.

5 large vine tomatoes
4 rashers streaky un-smoked bacon
1 large red chilli
1 clove garlic, crushed
Extra virgin olive oil
Tomato Puree
Dried Basil
Dried Oregano
Sugar
Pepper

Chop the tomatoes into small pieces and pan fry in a dry saucepan for a couple of minutes until the tomatoes start to break down.  I don't bother with peeling the tomatoes as I quite like the skin.  If this bothers you, dunk the tomatoes into a large bowl of boiling water before cutting them.  This makes the skin loose and easy to slide off.   It takes about 30 seconds or until the skin splits.

Add the bacon and crushed garlic to the tomato.  Sizzle for 2 minutes then add a good slog of olive oil.

Chop the chilli and add to the tomato mix.  Take the seeds and the membrane out if you don't like heat.  These big fat ones I don't find hot but have a lovely earthy rich flavour.

Add a good squeeze of tomato puree to the tomato sauce

Add a good shake of the dried herbs, pinch of sugar and decent amount of black pepper.  Fresh herbs are better if you have them. I don't really use measurements - just season to taste.  You shouldn't need to add extra salt as the bacon compensates for this.

When your sauce is simmering nicely, add a slosh of water and turn down to leave to simmer.  Stick your pasta onto boil.  Don't salt the water - you will see why below.

Cook according to the packet instructions.  When you drain your pasta, keep back a little of the cooking liqueur and add it to the sauce - this thickens it and makes it a little creamier.  If you have salted the water, don't bother with this stage.

Combine, serve and guzzle.  Makes enough for 2 people to have a generous lunch.  The below wasn't all for me, I promise!

Beef Stew and Dumplings

This post does represent me putting my hands up and saying publicly 'I was wrong'.  Not an easy thing for me to do I have to say!  I have been with Steve for a long time now and during that time I have always told him I hate slow cooked beef, that it is dry and chewy and flavorless and that I would much rather have a steak where you wipe its backside and send it to the table, preferably still moo-ing (I like my steak blue - Parisian blue, not English blue).

Steve on the other hand has frequently gone googly-eyed over a slow cooked joint of beef.  He is a Northern boy by way of Lincolnshire and I strongly suspect that gravy runs through his veins instead of blood.  This weekend I caved and agreed to cook him a beef stew with dumplings.  With the proviso that I could get a pizza if I hated it.

I spent ages online looking at different recipes, different cuts of beef, different cooking times and methods and amalgamated a lot of them into this version.

Oh. My. God.  This was incredible.  Lip smackingly, scrape the bowl, stick your nose in and lick it clean good.  The beef had the most rich, succulent, decadent aroma that lit up your taste buds like fireworks night (this would actually work extremely well as a belly warmer on November 5th!); it melted in your mouth, it was gelatinous and sticky and soft. The dumplings were soft and fluffy and mopped up the gravy better than ciabatta (haven't tried it yet?  Next time you have gravy make sure you have some ciabatta).  The noises that came out of Steve as he bolted down his meal were bordering on the obscene.

So I thought I would share this recipe here.  Before I do I have a few announcements / warnings.

1) This is not healthy.  Not even close.  It is worth it.
2) If you cannot get shin of beef or beef dripping, do not substitute.  Please.  I'm begging you.  Just go to your butcher and arm wrestle them until they agree to order it in.  Most supermarkets should have it on their meat aisle shelves though.  It is a really cheap cut of meat.  Beef dripping can normally be found near the butter and margarine.
3) If you have any leftovers, try them on top of a slice of buttered bread the next day.  Trust me - you will never turn back.
4) It takes a couple of hours.  Do not even attempt unless you can spend 2-3 hours near the kitchen.

Ingredients:

• Beef Dripping (10g per 150g of beef) (if anyone can find this is smaller packets than the monster I had to get can you let me know?!)
• As much shin of beef as you think your family can handle.  Then add a bit more for good measure.
• Small bottle of red wine (or big and drink the rest.  Whatever floats your boat)
• 1.5 medium carrots per person - diced
• 1/2 stick of celery per person - diced
• 1/2 leek per person - diced
• 3 small shallots per person - peeled and left whole
• 1 bay leaf per person
• 1 clove garlic per person - peeled and crushed
• 2 fresh sage leaves per person
• 1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme per person
• Flour
• 5 Chestnut mushrooms per person - brushed and halved
• 250ml liquid fresh beef stock per person
• 100ml beef gravy per person
• Seasoning - salt and pepper

 For the Dumplings

I cheated and got a just-add-water dumpling mix.  There is a great dumpling recipe here though http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/beefstewwithdumpling_87333

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 180C

In a large casserole dish that is both hob and oven-proof, melt the dripping.

Cut the shin of beef into large chunks.

Season the flour with salt and pepper and coat each chunk of beef in the flour.

Brown in the dripping for about 5 minutes then add a generous slosh of red wine.  Reduce down until bubbling.

Remove the beef and set aside.

Add all the veg bar the mushrooms to the dripping, beef juice and red wine mix and soften.

Add the garlic.

When nicely soft return the beef to the pan and add the herbs.

Pour over the liquid stock, stir it all together, cover, stick it in the oven and cook for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, remove from the oven, stir and add the beef gravy.  Cook for 30 minutes (covered).

Make the dumplings. If you coat your hands in oil it is easier to roll the dumplings as the dough is very sticky!

After 30 minutes, remove from the oven, add the mushrooms and stir in.

Place the dumplings on top of the stew, making sure that they don't touch each other or the edges of the dish if possible.

Cook for 30 more minutes (uncovered if you want the dumplings slightly crispy)

Serve with mash potatoes and green vegetables if you feel like it.  I find this a hearty meal all on its own though.

Stick it on the table.  Tuck in.