Well, the Brits have Brexited; here in Australia we go to the polls this weekend (Lord only knows why – every time we actually elect a Prime Minister internal party political infighting deposes them and puts someone else in the top job!) I’m sure my friends in the U.S. are sick to the back teeth with Trump and Hilary and there’s still a long way to go on that one….
Most of these campaigns are being run on scare tactics and fear mongering so why not kill the bad vibes with a super tasty cocktail. I’m in…how about you?
And oh boy do I have an absolutely beauty for you! The Political Partini! It’s not only delicious but punny which means I love it even more!!!! And what’s not to love? It’s pear infused vodka, traditionally Grey Goose La Poire but I made my own, Amaretto which I absolutely adore, simple syrup and lemon juice. So, it’s filled with fruit and nuts kind of healthy…in a boozy sort of way!
This is so, so good. I only wish I had made more pear-infused vodka so I could make it my election night tipple! Do people in other countries have election night parties? It’s kind of a thing here. My parents used to always have / or go to one. If I had not just started a new job I may have thought more about it and organised something for the weekend but that’s totally not happening…maybe I’ll tag along to my parents’ party….oh Lord really? Is this what my life has come to?
Well, here’s an ode to something I most likely will not be this Saturday from one of my favourite singers Dan Kelly. It does contain some of the naughty words so, if you are at work or there are kiddies about, you might want to delay playing it.
The Political Partini was created for the US 2008 election campaign but is delicious enough to celebrate or commiserate any election wins or losses. Or indeed anything.
OMG…it’s so good!!!! And that’s coming from someone who is not overly fond of pears.
One of the best things about 2014 was connecting with other cooks and bloggers and cooking from the same books. I love doing it in person at the Tasty Reads bookclub but it was also so much fun doing the Joan Crawford inspired dinner for Jenny’s book launch.
Which is pretty much all cook-a-longs. They choose a new book every two months and anyone can cook from the book and post on their own site. Then, Leah shares what everyone posts on The Cookbook Guru. What a great idea!!!
The book for January and February is Jane Grigson’s Vegetable Book. First published in 1978, this has become a classic. And very auspicious that I get to start with a book full of retro recipes.
I was even more excited that there were a whole heap of artichoke recipes because the local continental deli had been having a sale and I bought about a ton of artichokes because they were something insane like 50 cents a can.
Then I read Jane’s advice on
How to choose canned artichokes.
“Don’t”
Huh….Jane apparently doesn’t mince words. I like her already. But anyway I hightailed it out of artichokes and landed at the very other end of the book at watercress and found this lovely recipe for a very fancy grilled cheese called Locket’s Savoury.
Locket’s Savoury 2
I did have a little giggle when I read the name of this dish. Back in the day, we used to have a footballer by the name of Lockett nicknamed Plugger because….I have no idea why and have sufficient lack of interest in football to be arsed to Google it. Anyway, some time before the Grand Final one year (the equiv of the Super Bowl or the FA Cup Final), Plugger hurt his groin. And I swear for an inordinately long amount of time, it seemed like if you picked up a newspaper, turned on the radio or the tv, all you heard about, all people seemed to care about was Plugger’s Groin. Strangers would approach you on the street and say “So, do you think it will be good for the Granny?”
“What?”
“Plugger’s groin.”
Not since David Beckham made those underwear ads has an entire nation been so obsessed by the state of a football player’s nether regions. And yes, by the way…we do nickname our Super Bowl/FA Cup etc The Granny. As in a little old lady. That’s Australia for you.
So, all that was Lockett’s Unsavoury, let’s turn to the matter at hand – Locket’s Savoury
So simple. So delicious, and just 4 ingredients.
Bread
The original recipe called for white bread. I used this beautiful seeded ciabatta. Jane’s recipe called for the crusts to be cut off. I left mine on because I love the taste of the toasted seeds!
Locket’s Savoury – Bread
Watercress
One of my favourite greens. I love the peppery taste of it!
Locket’s Savoury – Watercress
Pears
Are probably my least favourite fruit. Will this recipe redeem them in my mind?
Locket’s Savoury – Pear
Stilton.
Mmmmmm…blue cheese. Happy days….
Locket’s Savoury – Stilton
Stilton is apparently the king of cheeses. Who knew cheese had a royalty. Who’s the queen? And more importantly who is the red headed reprobate prince flashing it’s arse and donning a swastika for high jinks?
I’m betting it’s goats cheese.
Locket’s Savoury3
This was awesome. It actually made me like pears. And that’s saying something!
There’s a few more totally awesome watercress recipes in this same book and I have a ton of it left so you may get a few more o’ these before the month is through. There is definitely one more I have to do.
Locket’s Savoury 4
Here is Jane Grigson’s recipe:
This was really good. Super tasty, super easy and I wouldn’t change a thing in Jane’s recipe.
Or would I?
The more I thought about it, the more it seemed very unfair that my gluten-free friends missed out on this delight.
So without further ado, meet the pimped up, gluten-free Locket’s Savoury
Pimped Up Locket’s Savoury
Basically, scrap the bread, use a slice of pear as the base. Add your watercress and Stilton. Throw in some chopped walnuts. Once done, sprinkle with some chives.
In some ways this was almost better. Those pears got all caramelised and…dare I say it, delicious!!!
I’m so looking forward to doing the Cookbook Guru Cook-a-longs. And you know what would be even better? If you all did it too…
If you did want to, you already know the book for the rest of Feb. March and April is The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert. My local library has a copy of this. Yours probably does too. I also got the Jane Grigson book from the library.
But PS..The Locket’s Savoury is the gift that keeps on giving. Those little bits of blue cheese that slide off as you grill the cheese and go kind of crunchy. So good to eat later!!!
Have a fabulous week!
And I would love to know your royal family of cheese!!!
I have spoken previously about my abhorrence of food made to look like animals. It’s one of the reasons why Easter isn’t my favourite holiday.
Chocolate? Good.
Chocolate posing as rabbits and chickens? Not so much.
Not to mention the Easter Bilbies…
Easter Bilbies
I have nothing against bilbies, I think they’re kind of sweet when they are found in nature where they belong. Where they do not belong is in my Easter Basket.
However, given the time of year and the predilection for animal shaped food items I thought I would have a quick look at two recipes, one from the Party Cookbook (1971), the other from a modern book to see how our tastes have changed.
Let’s start with the 1971 recipe for White Mice in Jelly.
I didn’t make this because
a) It’s food made to look like rodents, and
b) I’m not fond of pears. I find them largely tasteless and a little gritty.
But imagine these sans lettuce leaf and cheese and drowned in a vat of Lucozade and you get the general idea of the White Mice in Jelly.
,
1971 verdict – I guess they’re kind of cute. If you like eating facsimile vermin and gritty fruit, knock yourself out.
Moving to 2013, I found the following recipe in Luke Nguyen‘s Greater Mekong Cookbook. I assumed his Chargrilled Coconut Mice would be an Asian version of the above, maybe made from a tropical fruit dipped in coconut. A cutesy way to end the book, like the puppy story at the end of the news.
Then I actually read the recipe and..oh….oh…OH! For the love of hopscotching Jesus…no!
Don’t get me wrong Luke, I like you. I think you are charming television host and a great chef. I follow you on social media. But seriously? REAL FUCKING MICE? Have you lost your mind?
I didn’t make this one either because
a) It’s food made of rodents and
b) Telling me to not freak out and use quail doesn’t work. The word mice has already been mentioned. Several times. I don’t give a crap if they are naturally clean I’m not throwing a few mice on the barbie!
2013 Verdict – Is this really what we’ve come to? We’ve had the foams and the bacon ice-cream and the molecular gastronomy, we’re now eating vermin? Bring back 1971!
Just in case the recipe wasn’t bad enough you can watch Luke cooking the mice here:
This is so, so good. I only wish I had made more pear-infused vodka so I could make it my election night tipple! Do people in other countries have election night parties? It’s kind of a thing here. My parents used to always have / or go to one. If I had not just started a new job I may have thought more about it and organised something for the weekend but that’s totally not happening…maybe I’ll tag along to my parents’ party….oh Lord really? Is this what my life has come to?
