Your Signature Dish
- Thread starter Euronymous
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simmo
Senior Jockey
This would require 1 tsp of chilli powder and 2 (maybe 3) fresh green chillies. I would hate to spoil the taste of the mince.
A
Ardross
Guest
That reminds me of the story that in the US there was a hoo hah after the publication of Robert Carrier's Great Dishes of the World as his chili con carne recipe had a misprint of 2 tablespoons rather than 2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper
Very burnt mouths across the nation !
Very burnt mouths across the nation !
simmo
Senior Jockey
Even I take care with cayenne pepper.
And Scotch Bonnet chillies (in fact, I can't eat them).
And Scotch Bonnet chillies (in fact, I can't eat them).
We feasted at Songsheet's - her simple little lunch for a few friends started with baked pears wrapped in pancetta, followed by a monster roasted Med veg on a puff pastry base. Aubergines, courgettes, red and yellow peppers, sweet and red onions, herbs, and an interesting zip added by mashed-up anchovies and Parmesan, I believe. (I was absent during the final prep stages.) Absolutely delicious and very filling!
Shadow Leader
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Mmmmm, must make a booking for a few days at Poleshill then!!!
Julie's been going to an Italian lady's cooking lessons which are paying off big time! You won't believe the hundreds of foodie mags and books Julie has in the kitchen, either - and it's a gastronomic treat to visit, I can tell you, so they were worth the £50,000 investment! :lol: Not only do you get very well fed and watered, but you have an interesting itinerary, too, while you're there. From the Tuesday night to the Friday morning, here's mine:
Drove Julie into Milverton (so she could have a couple of drinkies) to the newly and totally-refurbished pub, The Globe, which is now a very civilized eatery. We ate identically, with tiger prawns in tempura batter with sweet chilli dip; a huge steak of Spring lamb with luvverly fresh veggies, and a shared pot of panecotta (sp?), which was SO rich and gorgeous, we could barely walk the two paces to the car afterwards! Very much recommended.
Next day, an outing to a charity sale held in a monster house with good gardens and rambling stone outbuildings, The Old Rectory, where it was nice to meet locals, including the vicar, and to buy a few items.
In the afternoon, playing with the horses and foals and then grooming a huge Belgian Blue cow called, er, Wee Lass. The size of a Volvo, very tractable and pleasant, but would have come up better for a full body shampoo!
Next day, being Helper in the kitchen as the feast was prepared, then having a lovely time yattering with Julie's friends.
The one thing that's so apparent when I visit is how urbanized I've become as far as walking and keeping my balance is concerned - no, nowt to do with liquor! - it's just that you get so used to walking on flat pavements, or just driving, that trying to walk across lumpy fields and lanes becomes quite a challenge. I also realized just how damn unfit I am! Just closing a few heavy farm gates several times a day would do wonders for the biceps, I'm sure.
Drove Julie into Milverton (so she could have a couple of drinkies) to the newly and totally-refurbished pub, The Globe, which is now a very civilized eatery. We ate identically, with tiger prawns in tempura batter with sweet chilli dip; a huge steak of Spring lamb with luvverly fresh veggies, and a shared pot of panecotta (sp?), which was SO rich and gorgeous, we could barely walk the two paces to the car afterwards! Very much recommended.
Next day, an outing to a charity sale held in a monster house with good gardens and rambling stone outbuildings, The Old Rectory, where it was nice to meet locals, including the vicar, and to buy a few items.
In the afternoon, playing with the horses and foals and then grooming a huge Belgian Blue cow called, er, Wee Lass. The size of a Volvo, very tractable and pleasant, but would have come up better for a full body shampoo!
Next day, being Helper in the kitchen as the feast was prepared, then having a lovely time yattering with Julie's friends.
The one thing that's so apparent when I visit is how urbanized I've become as far as walking and keeping my balance is concerned - no, nowt to do with liquor! - it's just that you get so used to walking on flat pavements, or just driving, that trying to walk across lumpy fields and lanes becomes quite a challenge. I also realized just how damn unfit I am! Just closing a few heavy farm gates several times a day would do wonders for the biceps, I'm sure.
archie
Senior Jockey
While I do a mean chilli, I think my wife would claim that my signature dish is Sky.
S
solerina
Guest
Have to say Simmo's partner did a fabulous seafood pasta with mussels and the biggest prawns . Absolutely gorgeous . Lots of chilli and garlic . They certainly don't need any cookery lessens . 
I think everyone benefits from looking at how a really good cook handles fresh and interesting recipes - it's not a question of needing to know how to cook, per se, which Julie certainly can handle in any quantity! Julie's lady shows her group 'how' and then they all eat the results - which would be my favourite sort of class. A boyfriend of mine took himself off to some blokes' cookery classes, and not only was it a nice social event for him, he actually began to realize there was more to life than roasts and spuds. I think they're great for expanding one's culinary horizons and also learning the smarter way to do some things - quite a lot of what we learned at school or at our Mammy's knee (I did neither) is now outdated or just not terribly practical for today's more crammed schedules. Another side is just getting together for some fun, especially for someone like Julie, pretty socially isolated when the farm demands so much of her time, as it's a pleasant, if brief, break from silage, tractors, calving and horses' foot-trimming!
I can follow pretty much any recipe in a book. As we say in the computer industry, RTFM - you really can't go to far wrong. It amazes me that people can't (or claim not to be able) to do it. Ok, sometimes I amaze myself, but usually because I don't always read ahead eg add the remains of the liquid used for cooking the fish in step 3 ...
My current favourite is roasted fillet steak with crushed peppercorns (crush peppercorns with mortar and pestle and stick it to the outside of a 1kg lump of fillet, brown the outside and put in the oven for 30 to 50 mins), shallots cooked in red wine and stock (err fry off shallots and add 1/2 pint wine 1/2 pint stock - reduce till liquid just coats the shallots), asparagus (boil, drain, add butter) and roast potatoes (par boil, shuffle about to make rough on the outside, coat in olive oil and shove in oven for 40 mins).
When I left home I was big into curries, pastas and chillies etc, but with the passing of time I find myself drawn to the plain meat/fish and two veg and a few decent spuds options which I never really appreciated as a child.
My current favourite is roasted fillet steak with crushed peppercorns (crush peppercorns with mortar and pestle and stick it to the outside of a 1kg lump of fillet, brown the outside and put in the oven for 30 to 50 mins), shallots cooked in red wine and stock (err fry off shallots and add 1/2 pint wine 1/2 pint stock - reduce till liquid just coats the shallots), asparagus (boil, drain, add butter) and roast potatoes (par boil, shuffle about to make rough on the outside, coat in olive oil and shove in oven for 40 mins).
When I left home I was big into curries, pastas and chillies etc, but with the passing of time I find myself drawn to the plain meat/fish and two veg and a few decent spuds options which I never really appreciated as a child.
K
Kathy
Guest
I am not a bad cook, although my OH says he can count on the fingers of two hands the amount of times I have cooked for him in the last 9 years! :shy: I am so lucky where I live that there are lot's of good places to eat out, so I have to admit I probably eat out (on average) about 4/5 nights out of 7. The other nights, it's just a stir fry or something ready made I can quickly shove in the oven. I am a lazy cook. That's my excuse and I am sticking to it!
When in the mood, I do (evidently) cook a very nice roast dinner followed by home made apple or rhubarb crumble and custard. I was taught all the basic recipes at school and one day, who knows now I have so much more free time, I may return to baking my own bread again and making tomato chutney!
PS The restaurant at Poleshill sounds well worth a visit. B)
When in the mood, I do (evidently) cook a very nice roast dinner followed by home made apple or rhubarb crumble and custard. I was taught all the basic recipes at school and one day, who knows now I have so much more free time, I may return to baking my own bread again and making tomato chutney!
PS The restaurant at Poleshill sounds well worth a visit. B)
A
Ardross
Guest
Can I put in a plea for steaming rather than boiling asparagus .
That means an extra bit to wash. I like my asparagus limp, or overcooked as some would have it. I also use big thick ones (from Peru, I believe) rather than the little fiddley ones (from Thailand) which tend to break up when you overcook them, so it makes little difference although you are correct.
I was told asparagus were simple to grow, why do we have to get them from Peru and Thailand?
I was told asparagus were simple to grow, why do we have to get them from Peru and Thailand?
K
Kathy
Guest
Melendez, I was wondering what you were talking about when I saw the expressions: "limp", "big thick ones" and "little fiddly ones" 
:shy: Oh, no, it's sliding into Cookery Porn now!
Definitely can't stand overcooked sparrows' guts - Mel, you might as well buy the tinned ones at that rate, if you like 'em like slush! I love asparagus served as a starter, with little serrano or prosciutto ham wraps round them, and a few Parmesan shavings to garnish - mmmm... gosh, I feel so hungry just reading this thread!
Definitely can't stand overcooked sparrows' guts - Mel, you might as well buy the tinned ones at that rate, if you like 'em like slush! I love asparagus served as a starter, with little serrano or prosciutto ham wraps round them, and a few Parmesan shavings to garnish - mmmm... gosh, I feel so hungry just reading this thread!
A
Ardross
Guest
The asparagus season in the UK and Ireland is short and is just about to start . The fresher asparagus is the better it is and home grown asparagus will only be around until the end of June