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.
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
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”.
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!
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!
Hello friends and welcome to another post on what posh people ate in the 1980s. Spring has sprung in many parts of the world. I have been holding over the recipe for Fresh Asparagus with Rouille for months as I think it is a perfect dish for the season.
Why Is Fresh Asparagus with Rouille Posh Food?
We’ve long considered asparagus a high-end vegetable.
A scene in The Crown was reshot because the etiquette advisor noticed Dominic West using a knife and fork for asparagus. The proper way is to pick it up with your fingers! This is exactly how I used to eat it back in my single days. Sometimes, when too tired to cook after work, dinner became microwave hollandaise sauce and steamed asparagus dunked straight from the jar. I just thought I was being lazy!
And I suspect that the inclusion of the word “Fresh” in the recipe title was further 1989 code for “Not that tinned garbage the hoi poiloi eat darling, we only want the real deal”.
Rouille accompanies the asparagus. This:
Is a Provençal Sauce
Is Hard to pronounce – its Roy-ee btw
Contains saffron, a very expensive spice
Any of which would send the Poshometer into overdrive. All of them? This could be the poshest recipe ever!
Finally, this recipe comes from an article called Polo Partying Shot. Now, I don’t know if you know any polo-playing people? One of my friends once dated a polo player and he and his buddies were universally vile. They truly believed that having more money than God entitled them to be arrogant, rude, dismissive, sexist and racist. They were the worst!
Dunking with Glee..not a knife in sight!
Fresh Asparagus with Rouille – The Facts According To Me
This was amazing! It was so tasty! I love asparagus. My Nana’s asparagus sandwiches (made with tinned asparagus) were one of my favourite things to eat!!!! And, as above, it was one of my lazy single-girl meals. So, I am already a fan of asparagus.
But the Rouille?
OMG….
The Rouille was a game-changer! I always thought nothing could be better than Hollandaise with asparagus. The Rouille blew my mind. Not only was it a beautiful deep, rich yellow but it also had a deep rich flavour that was nothing short of superb. It’s thick and lemony and garlicky with a little kick from some mustard and cayenne but you could also definitely taste the saffron. But whilst it is punchy, it doesn’t overwhelm the asparagus.
Finally, this was ridiculously easy to make! And certain to impress your friends at your next dinner party, picnic or night on the couch!
Fresh Asparagus With Rouille – The Recipe
via the pages of Vogue Entertaining Oct/Nov 1989
For another lovely take on Spring Asparagus recipes, why not check out my Easter Lily Sandwiches?
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!
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!
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
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.
