Blog Archives
National Curry Week!
Today marks the beginning of a yummy week – National Curry Week! Check out TripAdvisor.com’s roundup of best curry restaurants in the U.K.
Personally, the best curry I ever had was in Bradford, England over 15 years ago! It was a little spot called The Kashmir, but remember it being a revelation of the tastebuds (and it was cheap as chips)!
What’s the best curry you’ve ever had?
Infographic: A look at British brekkie
Sorry for my lack of posts! This has been a ridiculously busy week!!
I wanted to share this great infographic about breakfast in the U.K., created by Thistle Hotels! It makes me hungry for breakfast right now!
Thanks to Lillie for sending!
Cauliflower bake with hazelnut crunch crust
A few months ago, we got “The Little Paris Kitchen” cookbook by Rachel Khoo and after a long summer of not feeling terribly interested in spending time in the kitchen, I’ve finally gotten around to cooking from it – Cauliflower bake with hazelnut crunch crust.
I like the simplicity of her recipes and the French flair (Khoo is a Brit who now lives in Paris and adds some Britishness to her French dishes). It’s seasonal, fresh and easy and the results speak for themselves – my cauliflower bake was gone in a day and it was a great recipe to get the kids to eat their veggies.
If you haven’t seen Khoo’s show before, it’s currently on the Cooking Channel in the states, showing every Friday at 12:30 p.m. EST.
Cauliflower bake with hazelnut crunch crust
3 lbs heads cauliflower, trimmed and separated into florets
1/3 cup hazelnuts, finely chopped
1 slice of extra crunchy toast, roughly chopped
Mornay sauce
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk, slightly warmed
1/4 onion, skin removed
1 clove
1 bay leaf
1 pinch salt and pepper
1 pinch nutmeg
7 ounces gruyere cheese, grated (can also use Comte or Parmesan)
To begin with, steam the cauliflower in a colander fitted inside a pan. Steam for around 15 minutes so the cauliflower still has some bite left in it.
For the sauce, melt the butter in a medium sized pan. Add the flour and stir hard until a smooth paste is achieved. Take off the heat and leave for a couple of minutes. Slowly add the milk, mixing all the time. Place it back on the heat and add the clove, bay leaf and leek. Simmer for 10 minutes, constantly stirring. Remove the leek, bay leaf and clove. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Stir the cheese into the warm sauce, saving a bit to sprinkle on top. Mix the cauliflower into the sauce and give it a good stir. Pour into a baking tin.
Sprinkle on the remaining cheese and top with the crushed hazelnuts and broken up pieces of toast. Bake for 20 minutes and then place under the broiler for a few minutes to get a golden and bubbling crust.
We dug in so quickly after I took it out of the oven that I later realized that I had forgotten to take a photo of this golden brown and bubbling goodness! Trust me when I say it looked and tasted divine!
Brits love French cheese
Wow! In 2012, almost 115,000 tonnes of French cheese were exported to the UK, according to this recent article in The Guardian. Of that, just under 2,995 tonnes were “pressed cooked” cheese, which includes abondance, comté, beaufort and emmental – up from 1,631 tonnes in 2000. Quelle surprise!
The UK’s 50 best tea rooms
In honor of National Afternoon Tea Week this week, check out The Independent’s 50 best tea rooms! I’m sad to say I haven’t been to any of these (I’ve only ever been to the Ritz Hotel in London for tea!) but will add them to my list for a future visit!
Ever been to any of these? What’s your favorite British tea room?
End Marmite neglect
Have you seen this?
I’ll admit I might be getting a visit shortly. I find that American toast is a sad sort of substitute for the kind of perfect British bread that had served as the every day vehicle for Marmite spread on our visit to the U.K. this spring.
Is your Marmite well kept or does it need to be freed?
Thanks to Lillie for the email!
The secret ingredient to perfect scones
Maybe it was hearing this story on NPR’s “Fresh Air” last week, but I’ve had “America’s Test Kitchen” on the brain and wanted to test drive one of their recipes.
This weekend, I decided to try a new current scone recipe and why not see WWATKD (What Would America’s Test Kitchen Do?)
Their cream scone with currants recipe proved to be ridiculously amazing and even better than the Epicurious recipe that has been my go-to scone recipe for the past year. Scone agnostics need to check this out.
The secret ingredient? Cream. I know. It’s not very British. But tasting is believing!
Cream Scones with Currants
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes and chilled
1/2 cup currants
1 cup heavy cream
1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Pulse the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a food processor to combine, about 6 pulses. Scatter the butter evenly over the top and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal with a few slightly larger butter lumps, about 12 pulses.
2. Add the currants and quickly pulse once to combine. Transfer the dough to a large bowl. Stir in the cream with a rubber spatula until the dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.
3. Turn the dough and any floury bits out onto a floured counter and knead until it forms a rough, slightly sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Press the dough into a 9-inch pan. Unmold the dough and cut into 8 wedges. Place the wedges on an ungreased baking sheet.
4. Bake until the scone tops are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
The big (and royal) cheese
What better way to welcome the future king of England than with a wheel of cheese? And not just any cheese but a Westminster William and Kate Royal Addition Cheddar!
The Kitchn.com describes its flavor: “Pleasantly sour milk, a bright lactic-ness, and decidedly cheddary goodness — linger on the tongue for quite some time.” You can get yours at Whole Foods Market for $9.99/lb.
Thanks to Ally for the tip!
Percy Pig turns 21
Percy Pig turns 21 this year! If you’ve never had a Percy Pig gummy sweet from Marks & Spencer, you don’t know what you’re missing! I like to think of myself as a gummy connoisseur and Percy Pig puts every Haribo and Trolli sweet to shame.
Read more on how Percy became the sweets dynamo that it is today. And order some Percy Pig paraphernalia from Marks & Spencer online!
Happy birthday, Percy! And have a happy weekend!
Jamie Oliver’s Recipeas
When we were visiting Notting Hill this spring, we happened upon Recipeas, one of Jamie Oliver’s kitchen shops. Have you heard of it?
I have nearly a dozen Jamie Oliver cookbooks and am a faithful fan of his TV programs, but hadn’t heard a peep about Recipeas. Taking a walk inside, I was struck by this charming little deli/cafe/cook store that also offers cooking lessons. So many intoxicating aromas! So many wonderful breads, olive oils, wines, cheeses, items perfect for packing into a picnic! Yet it was intimate and cozy, not intimidating or snooty.
I will definitely think of booking some lessons on our next trip over! Some classes center around a specific dish like beef wellington, roast pork belly or Thai green curry, led by cooking pros. Others focus on a technique like bread baking, filleting fish or rolling sushi. It might be the inspiration I need to get back into the kitchen with gusto!
Recipeas, 92-94 Notting Hill Gate, W11 3QB. 0203 375 5398.
BRITRISH.COM 