Category: Good Housekeeping World Cookery

Pineapple Snow Pudding

Hello friends and welcome to our final voyage to the South Sea Islands aboard the SS Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery. Today, we’re crafting a delightful Pineapple Snow Pudding bursting with tropical flavours of pineapple and coconut.  As Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery doesn’t include many visuals, sometimes you need to use your imagination to envision the final product.

And sometimes my imagination runs a bit wild. I pictured the coconut settling at the bottom, so when I inverted it, the Pineapple Snow Pudding would resemble a miniature Mount Fuji. Unfortunately, reality didn’t quite align with my vision.  I’m not even sure why I had a Japanese vision for my South Sea Island dish…maybe it was because the previous recipe from this chapter, Mainland Teriyaki, was Japanese-inspired? 

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No surprises but it didn’t look anything like that…

Pineapple Snow Pudding

The Pineapple Snow Pudding may not have looked like how I imagined, but nor did it taste that way.  It is almost impossible to describe how light and airy this is.  It is almost as if you are just getting pure flavour from air!  Absolutely delicious!

I loved the Pineapple Snow Pudding!!!!

  It’s light and airy, fruity and tropical.  Never mind Mount Fuji, this dessert tasted, if not exactly like summer, then more like the promise of summer.  And with the coconut, pineapple and strawberry garnish, it also smelled of summer.  

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Pineapple Snow Pudding – The Recipe

TAA Pineapple Snow Pudding Recipe

This ends our trip to the South Seas and also technically ends Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery. However, those of you with a wanderlust for World Travel and 1970’s versions of classic dishes needn’t worry. For some reason, lost to time, I started cooking from this book with Swizterland which starts at page 400. So, from next month, we are heading to the start of the book to check out the best of pages 1-399!

Have a great week!

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Mainland Teriyaki

Today, we’re continuing our virtual journey to the South Sea Islands which started with Fish in Lolo Sauce. Our culinary adventure takes us through the pages of Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery (1972), where today we are rediscovering a classic recipe: Mainland Teriyaki.

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Setting the Scene

Imagine yourself on a secluded beach. The warm sun gently warms your skin while ocean waves crash softly against the shore. Meanwhile, the air is filled with the sweet scent of tropical flowers. Then, someone fires up a grill. Soon, you smell roasting pineapple and grilling meat. That’s the essence of Mainland Teriyaki. It captures the spirit of the South Sea Islands, even though the recipe has Japanese origins.

Although Mainland Teriyaki may not be for everyone, those who love a blend of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors will be delighted. The combination of sweet pineapple, salty olives, and umami-rich, garlicky, ginger-infused marinated steak is delicious!

 
 

 

For me, Mainland Teriyaki brought back a wave of nostalgia. It reminded me of a time I’ve only ever experienced through the lens of film and television. Specifically, it evoked memories of Gidget, the iconic surfer girl. Additionally, it took me back to when a young, handsome Elvis Presley was playing his ukulele on the beach in Blue Hawaii.

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Mainland Teriyaki is a perfect dish to enjoy on a warm summer day. Or, if you’re feeling a bit blue, it can serve as a reminder that summer is coming, even if it feels like “it’s been a long cold and lonely winter.” The combination of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors will transport you to a tropical paradise, making you forget about the cold weather. 

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Whatever your mood, why not fire up the grill and get ready to savor a taste of the South Sea Islands, courtesy of Mainland Teriyaki? 

Mainland Teriyaki – The Recipe

Mainland Teriyaki 4

At first I thought the inclusion of olives in this recipe was a bit weird.  They really didnt seem to fit in with the Asian inspired flavours of the rest of the dish.  But they really work together well here, just like they do on pizza!  

Mainland Teriyaki Recipe2

Have a great week!  

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Fish In Lolo Sauce

Bula friends! Which means hello in Fijian becaue today we are taking a trip to the South Sea Islands. Our guide is Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery (1972). We are starting our culinary journey to these tropical shores with a very yummy starter of  Fish in Lolo Sauce.

Fish in Lolo Sauce

What is Fish In Lolo Sauce?

For those of you who have read my post on Tiger’s Milk Ceviche, the concept of Fish in Lolo Sauce should be quite familiar.  It is, at it’s most simple, raw fish in coconut cream.  

Now technically you should grate your own coconut and make your own coconut cream.  I’m 100% sure that a Fish in Lolo Sauce made with freshly coconut cream is an absolute joy and would be a perfect thing to eat at at a beachside restaurant in Fiji.  Here maybe?  

Fiji Restaurant

Doesn’t that look like paradise?

However, for a quick meal on a Tuesday night, I think we can skip the home grating and use a bought coconut cream.  I loved this!  You could virtually taste the tropics in every bite.  It certainly brough a little bit of sun to a very dark and gloomy Melbourne winter day!  

I served mine as a starter alongside some potato chips and on some scallop shells.  I quite liked the saltiness and crunch of chips against the coconutty creaminess of the fish.  If you wanted to serve this as a more substantial meal, I would suggest a simple bowl of boiled or steamed rice with maybe some steamed green Asian veg.  My personal favourite is Chinese Broccoli but bok choy or pak choy or just plain old ordinary broccoli and beans would be great!

 

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Fish in lolo sauce is also a fairly heatlhy recipe.  Well…if you ditch the potato chips! 😊

Fish In Lolo Sauce – The Recipe

The recipe says to use white fish.  I used salmon because whilst I love raw fish, I want to err on the side of caution and my local fishmonger sells a very reliable sashimi grade salmon.  I’ve also included the recipe on how to make your lolo from scratch if you are so inclined!  Please let me know if you do! 

Fish in Lolo Sauce Recipe (1)

If you would like a virtual trip to Fiji, then Fish in Lolo Sauce might be the recipe for you!  I’ve also got a main, and a dessert coming up if you would want to make an entire meal of it!  

Have a great week!  

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New Zealand Oyster Cocktail

Hello friends, I’m back. The old adage that time heals all wounds has lasted so long because it is true. I have had my period of grief.  And whilst it is still not entirely gone, facing each day without tears is getting easier.   And what better way to celebrate my return than with a spicy starter from the land of the long white cloud!  Today’s New Zealand Oyster Cocktail recipe comes from Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery (1972).  The book says that New Zealand men like food with no frills or foreign touches.    Based on the two recipes I’ve made, my summary of New Zealand food is not “no frills” but “Ugly Delicious”. 

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This recipe was somewhat nostalgic for me as back in the day, our local pub used to do a “Bloody Mary Oyster Shot”  as an starter.  The New Zealand Oyster Cocktail had a very similar vibe.   These aren’t pretty!  But the best part about ugly delicious is the delicious.  And these met that brief in spades, even without the added sprinkle of nostalgia!  

New Zealand Oyster Cocktail – The Recipe

If you are entertaining and want a  starter that takes less than a minute to make but has a wow factor and as mentioned tastes great, then the New Zealand Oyster Cocktail is for you!  

New Zealand Oyster Cocktail Recipe

My Variations

  • The recipe calls for Tomato Sauce which to me means ketchup.  We’re classy people here at Retro Food for Modern Homes and ketchup is reserved for chips and pies.  I used tomato juice which also added to the Bloody Mary feel.
  • For my piquant Table Sauce I used a mix of Tabasco and Worchestershire.  
  • I made a little jug of the tomato juice, Tabasco, Worchestershire, Lemon juice and seasonings and added that to the oysters instead of adding each of these individually as the recipe suggests
  • Finally my serviing glasses were only large enough for one oyster but I prefer the idea of an indidivual serve rather than muliple oysters in the one cup!
  • You can also ditch the glasses all togther and pour your combined sauce and seasonings into the shell itself!  This, to my eye looks a bit prettier but is harder to eat without spilling tomato juice all over yourself! 
  • If you wanted to ramp up the Bloody Maryness of these, add a little splash of Vodka into your tomato juice mix!

 

New Zealand Oyster Cocktail 3

Have a great week!

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Classic Pavlova

G’Day Mates! Today we are heading back to our old friend Goodhousekeeping’s World Cookery for a sweet treat from the Antipodes! People hotly debate whether the Pavolva was invented in Australia or New Zealand.  We will not be entering into that discussion here.  Neither does Good Housekeeping.  They, rather wisely have a recipe for Pavlova in both the Australia and the New Zealand chapters! Nice diplomacy there GH!

Pavlova

I am using the recipe from the Australian chapter just because most of the other recipes in that chapter were awful! The recipes included things like Brain and Walnut Sandwiches, Sheep’s Tongues in Aspic, and a leg of lamb stuffed with kidneys, identified as Colonial Goose.  I’m sure that 1970’s Australian cuisine was better than what is represented here. So Pavlova or Pavlova Cake as they call it, it was! Not that I minded because I adore a pav! It is one of my favourite desserts and reminds me of summer, Christmas and good times whenever I eat it!

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Why Pavlova?

Anna Pavlova, the Russian Ballet dancer was the inspiration for the dessert.  She toured Australia and New Zealand in 1926.  

The lightness of the meringue represents not only the lightness of her steps but also her beautiful tutus. The Good Housekeeping Pavlova was wonderfully light. The meringue was crisp but it also had that lovely marshmallow inside which is the hallmark of a good pavlova.  

Pavlova – The Recipe

Pavlova recipe

I followed the recipe for the meringue as per Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery.  However, when it came to the topping I went my own way.  Pavlova can be very sweet so to add some tang, I add a dollop of lemon curd into my cream.  My favourite toppings are the classic strawberry and passionfruit but you can add whatever fruit you like.  

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