World Cooking Archives - Page 2 of 30 - Retro Food For Modern Times

Category: World Cooking

01
Sep
2024

Welsh Rarebit Crumpets

categories: Bread, Cheese, Grilled Cheese, United Kingdon

Hello, friends! Tuesday, September 3rd, is Welsh Rarebit Day. Welsh Rarebit is one of my favourite foods—breakfast, brunch, lunch, supper. You name it – I’ll happily eat a Welsh Rarebit at that time. And over here at Maison de la Retro Food, we will be celebrating with a Welsh Rarebit Crumpet.

I have previously written about the dubious origins of the name so I won’t repeat myself. But, for anyone not familiar with the dish, it is a fancy version of cheese on toast. My recipe comes from British chef Mark Hix from the book Midnight Feasts: An Anthology of Late Night Munchies by Charmain Ponnuthurai. He calls it a “Rabbit,” a term used in the 18th century. I’m using “rarebit” to be kind to vegetarians. And no bunnies were harmed in the making of this dish!

I chose this recipe because, whilst having eaten Welsh Rarebit many times, I have never combined it with the joy that is a crumpet before! And it really was a joy! I had these for a working at home lunch and not only did they hit the spot taste-wise, they are also quick to make and the ingredients are usually on hand in most kitchens. Well, you might have to buy crumpets. And if you are the type of person who always has crumpets on hand, well done! You are truly living your best life! You could also use toast for these but you would miss out on one of the delights of the Welsh Rarebit Crumpet.

Crumpets, as I am sure I don’t need to tell you are full of holes. Here is one of my crumpets pre Rarebit

Now, when you add Welsh Rarebit to your crumpets and heat them, something wonderful happens. Those holes fill up with lovely, lovely melted cheese! So, not only do you have cheese on top of your crumpet, you also have it in your crumpet as shown in the photo below.

Bloody brilliant!!!!! I take my hat off to you Mark Hix, you are a genius!

Welsh Rarebit Crumpets – Recipe

Here is the recipe including the adorable drawing that accompanies it:

And just cos that looks tiny, here is a close up of the actual recipe:

Variations on Welsh Rarebit

If crumpets or bread are not your bag, here are some other variations on Welsh Rarebit so you can still celebrate on Tuesday!

Welsh Lamb Rarebit Hotpot: This is going onto my list of things to cook!

Welsh Rarebit Potato Skins: Cheese and Potato is never wrong!

Here’s one with chicken: Yes please!

This Welsh Rarebit Tart is right up my alley

As is this Welsh Rarebit version of cauliflower cheese

Have a wonderful day however you decide to spend Welsh Rarebit Day!

25
Aug
2024

Fish In Lolo Sauce

categories: 1970's recipes, Good Housekeeping World Cookery, Vintage Cookbooks, Vintage Recipes, World Cooking

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.

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?

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!

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!

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!

25
Aug
2024

Spice It Up – August 2004

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Apples, Baking, Blue Cheese, Delicious, Indonesia, Lamb, Leeks, Magazines, Pie, Salad, Savoury Pies and Tarts

Hello friends! Welcome to Twenty Years Ago Today! For a spicy twist this month, I turned to the August 2004 issue of Delicious magazine for recipe ideas. While the month wasn’t perfect, one dish stood out as a clear highlight and is easily one of my top ten of the year. But, before we get there, let’s take a little look at what was making the charts pop culture-wise back in August 2004!

Pop Culture – August 2004

So, for the first week of August 2004 and, also for the first time in what seems like eleventy billion years, The Da Vinci Code was NOT the number one selling book. That honour went to R for Ricochet by Sue Grafton. Now, I have never read any of this series. Is anyone out there a fan? I love a good mystery / thriller. Please let me know if you think this series might be good for me! However, before we get too excited about the demise of The Da Vinci Code, it went back to number one for the rest of August.

Collateral was the best-selling film of August 2004 but Garden State, which was a film we covered in my film club was #10. Leave, (Get Out) by JoJo was the number 1 song. I do not remember this song or the singer at all!!! Does anyone?

In the absence of any memory of JoJo, let’s pop the soundtrack for Garden State onto Spotify and get cooking!

The Spice It Up Menu – August 2004

Gado Gado

Spices used – garlic, ginger etc in the Satay sauce, chilli

I adore Gado Gado. It’s the perfect balance of health and indulgence, combining the virtue of steamed vegetables with the decadence of a spicy satay sauce. Unfortunately, despite searching through multiple supermarkets, I couldn’t find the tofu puffs I typically include. To compensate for the protein, I added some eggs. I ate this as a main dish so wanted to make it a substantial meal.

I also took some liberties with the vegetables, using ingredients I preferred or had readily available instead of strictly adhering to the recipe.”

Gado-Gado Recipe

Lamb Chops with Bay, Paprika and Chickpeas

Spice used: Paprika

The Jamie Oliver recipe was…alright. While it wasn’t a favorite, it was certainly edible. I’m not likely to make it again, but it was passable.

The biggest issue was the excessive amount of chili. As someone who enjoys spicy food, that’s a rare complaint for me. The chili completely overwhelmed the other flavors.

Another minor annoyance was the recipe’s use of the term “chops” while actually calling for “cutlets.” For those unfamiliar with lamb, cutlets are significantly more expensive than traditional chops. I used loin chops for my version because I had some in my freezer.

Lamb Chops with Bay, Paprika and Chickpeas Recipe

Apple and Blackberry Pie

Spices used: Cinnamon and Cloves

This. Was .Divine.

Unfortunately, my photos were not. Please don’t judge this on the photo or my really bad lattice work because the pie really truly was AMAZING!!!! This is a top ten dish if ever there was one! There is a version with Rhubarb mentioned which I will also be trying ASAP!

Apple and Blackberry Pie Recipe

Cinnamon Tea and Recipe

Spice Used: Cinnamon

Delicious Magazine also contained a recipe for Cinnamon Tea. I only ever really drink herbal tea, so this was not for me. Howeever, as the name suggests, it does contain a spice so if you are a tea drinker and maybe wanted something to sip on while eating your pie, here is the recipe.

My Nigella Moment – Leek and Gorgonzola Tarts

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in because it is too good not to share.

I love leek and gorgonzola anything as it reminds me of a pizzeria I used to go to with my work mates a few years ago that did an amazing leek and gorgonzola pizza! I didn’t think these were as good as the pizza but that could also be nostalgia talking. They were quite nice in their own right!

Leek and Gorgonzola Tarts Recipe

I hope you have enjoyed this trip back to August 2004. Have a great week!

18
Aug
2024

Cheddar Scotch Eggs

categories: 1970's food, 1970's recipes, 500 Recipes for Quick Meals, Eggs, England

Hey friends! Today, I’m diving into a classic recipe: Cheddar Scotch Eggs. This little gem hails from 500 Recipes for Quick and Easy Meals by Marguerite Patten (1972).

I’ve got a confession: Scotch Eggs are one of those foods I adore eating but dread making. Remember the Pakistani version, the Nargisi Kofta, I made back in 2019? It was a culinary delight, but let’s face it, Scotch Eggs are a lot of work! Who wants to deal with the mess of a deep fryer just for one meal? It’s like running a marathon for a single slice of pizza!

Scotch eggs are however, quite lovely eaten cold, which makes making a big batch worthwhile as you can enjoy meals for a few days! They are also amazing picnic food so if you are contemplating an al fresco meal in the near future, these could be your go-to dish!

Ahem, I hear you say. That looks exactly like a regular Scotch Egg. Where’s the extra cheese you promised? Scotch Eggs are already laborious enough to make, but this version takes things to a new level. You cut the eggs in half, remove the yolks, and mix them with cheese. Then, you reassemble the eggs and proceed with the normal Scotch Egg process.. You can see the split in the eggs where they where cut through in the close up photo below.

What Are Scotch Eggs?

But maybe I should pause here in case some of my readers are unfamiliar with the concept of a Scotch Egg.

First thing. They are not from Scotland. They were invented by Fortnum and Mason the very posh department store in Picadilly in London in 1738. The term scotch comes from adding anchovies to the meat to cut through the fattiness of the meat and to give it a stronger flavour.

Second, they are an egg, wrapped in a meat casing and then crumbed and fried.

Cheddar Scotch Eggs – The Recipe

Have a great week!

11
Aug
2024

Crooked House – Tarte Tatin

categories: Apples, Dining With The Dame, France, Puff Pastry, Stand Alone, Tarts

Hello, crime readers and food lovers! Today’s Dining With The Dame delves into “Crooked House,” which is an absolute belter of a read! Typically, I prefer the Poirot or Marple novels, and standalone novels often fall short for me. However, this one is a delightful exception! The storyline is captivating, and Christie truly outdoes herself in crafting the villain.

Speaking of captivating, let’s transition to our culinary companion for this episode: Tarte Tatin. I selected this classic French dessert for a few reasons. Firstly, apples, a prominent motif in “Crooked House,” provided a thematic link. And, dare I say, there is a bad apple in the crooked house! Also, with the Paris Olympics in full swing, a touch of French flair seemed fitting. And finally, a well-executed Tarte Tatin is magnifique!

Crooked House – The Plot

“I think people more often kill those they love than those they hate . Possibly because only the people you love can really make life unendurable to you”

Agatha Christie – Crooked House

The plot of Crooked House is somewhat similar to Taken At The Flood which I covered last month. This time, we meet the Leonides family, the patriarch of which, Aristide Leonides has just been murdered. Someone, swapped his insulin for Eserine, a deadly poison contained in his eye medicine. Aristide had built up considerable wealth and members of his family stand to inherit a lot of money.

The family, and list of suspects include:

Brenda, Aristides young second wife, who may or may not be romatically involved with the tutor of his grandchildren, Laurence Brown
Roger and Clementine Leonides, one of Aristides brothers and his wife
Phillip Leonides and his wife, Magda West a (tryhard but largely unsuccessful actress played by Gillian Anderson in the 2017 adaptation)
Edith de Haviland, the sister of Aristides first wife who has lived with them since her sister’s death in order to take care of the children (played to perfection by Glenn Close in the 2017 adaptation)
Sophia Leonides, Aristides eldest grandchild and daughter of Phillip and Magda
Eustace Leonides the teenage son of Phillip and Magda
Josephine Leonides, the 12 year old daughter of Phillip and Magda
Laurence Brown, Eustace and Jospehine’s tutor

Charles Hayward, Sophia’s fiance is our amateur detective, working closely with Chief Inspecor Taverner and Detective Sergeant Lamb to find the killer.

Before we get there though, many things happen including

A missing will
Embezzlement
Josephine being attacked
Hidden love letters coming to light
The children’s nanny being poisoned by some deadly hot chocolate
The wrong people being arrested
A missing notebook that may hold the key to everything

It might not be a good thing that we have Charles trying to discover (as one of the covers below asks) who put the poison in the hypo. He is not, as they say, the sharpest tool in the shed. Despite the abundance of clues scattered throughout the text, he repeatedly overlooks them.

In fact, I found myself uncovering an unusual number of clues while reading “Crooked House,” far exceeding the usual number in Christie’s works. This abundance of hints led me to speculate on whether it was a deliberate strategy on Christie’s part. Given that “Crooked House” was published in 1949, I imagine the revelation of the villain must have been a truly shocking experience for readers of the time. It’s possible that Christie meticulously planted these clues to soften the impact of the eventual reveal for contemporary audiences. If you have read this, please let me know your thoughts on this!!!!

Crooked House – The Covers

I was very happy to be able to include a Greek cover here as the Leonides family are Greek in origin. I was also very glad to see that one of the covers featured an apple. This, vindicated my somewhat unusual choice of dish! There are lots of crooked houses which are to be expected, including one growing out of a ladies head, which is not. I don’t understand the rather scruffy looking chicken. And as for the creepy hell clown? No. Just no.

The Recipe: Tarte Tatin

There was no one in sight as we drove up to the front door. I paid the taxi and it drove away. I felt uncertain whether to ring the bell or to walk in. The front door was open. As I stood there hesitatiing I heard a sound behind me. I turned my head sharply. Josephine, her face partially obscured by a very large apple was standing in the opening of the yew hedge looking at me”

Agatha Christie – Crooked House

I broke off. Josephine had emerged from the door leading to the drawing room. She was eating the inevitable apple, and over its round rosiness her eyes sparkled with a kind of ghoulish enjoyment.

“Nannie’s been poisoned,” she said. “Just like grandfather. It’s awfully exciting, isn’t it?”

Agatha Christie – Crooked House

Links To The Christieverse

None that I picked up on – but please let me know if you found something!

Other Food & Drinks Mentioned in Taken At The Flood

Cocktails
Coffee x3
Whisky
Sweets
Wholesome nursery food
Queer rice dishes
Chocolate
Drinks
Scrambled eggs on toast
Apple x 2
Nourishing Soup
Cocoa
Ice Cream Soda

In September, we’re going Marple-ing. A Murder is Announced will be our next read.

Have a great week!