Fish fingers and custard with smashed Sontarans

If I say “fish fingers and custard” what pops into your mind?

No.  I’ve not joined some weird food blogging event sponsored by a multiconglomerate of processed “food” manufacturers daring participants to combine two unlikely products and pretend that they are fit for human consumption (individually or together).

No.  I’ve not accidentally typed “fish” when I meant “lady.”

No.  I’m not pregnant (but yes, I am still looking for a decent guy…in case anyone out there knows of one).

Yes.  I’m a Whovian. 

So what’s the big deal with Doctor Who?  Why has this TV series about a Time Lord and his companions hurtling through time and space in the TARDIS captivated so many worldwide? It’s not a big US “a big budget automatically makes it good” production--in fact, production values are traditionally low.  Really…have you seen a Dalek?  They look like overgrown pepperpots with a toilet plunger as one arm and a paint roller (or is it an elongated eggbeater) as the other, with a camera lens on a stick as an eye.  That's what they look like. In reality they're heartless, angry squid creatures who hide out in the pepperpot shells.

I think it works because when you strip away the sexy fish vampires, killer mannequins, battle-obsessed potato people, farting aliens, and cyborgs at its heart Doctor Who is about a drifter with a dark and mysterious past, who when he sees bad things happening, does something about it.  His friends and comrades are often recognizable to the average viewer—students, shopgirls, people just trying to get their act together—and together they get to the bottom of issues and generally make things better.

And for me…the cleverness of the baddie pretence is irresistible.  For 50 years writers have taken everyday items and made them terrifying: shop mannequins, stone angels, your neighbour's voice crying for help, your television set.  I've always known diet pills are evil.  As to The Doctor: he's eccentric. And he's smart.  How could I not be attracted to that?

Throughout the past half-century the Doctor has remained an enigma.  In as much as he’s an optimist, he reveals himself in bits and pieces.  Sometimes he references the Time War or other fights he’s been in.  Sometimes he talks about the people he’s lost. Sometimes his reactions tell the tale.  Whatever it is…there's a lot of darkness that he keeps at bay.

One of the things I find interesting is how fans interpret the words and deeds found within the canon.  Many have extrapolated life lessons, such as the ones I found that speak to PR and strategic communications.

Okay fine.  But what does all this have to do with fish fingers and custard?

Well…the Doctor has a few food peculiarities.  Pears are bad.  Jammy Dodgers save the day.  He likes to offer people Jelly Babies.  Celery is a boutonnière.  And then there’s the entire banana thing.

Long story short, after regenerating into the 11^th Incarnation, the doctor got hungry and after rejecting many foods, he was satisfied with fish fingers and custard.

I’m sure Stephen Moffat came up with that combination to see what Whovians would do with it. And yes, a number of people have created their own recipes, including Alton Brown, this sweet version using cookies.

So…a challenge.  And I’m up for it in honour of Doctor Who’s 50^th Anniversary celebrations this weekend.

The fish part is a fairly easy non-recipe recipe: dust fish goujeons with seasoned flour, dip in an egg wash and then coat in panko crumbs mixed with herbs (such as parsley or dill).   You could also just go out and buy a packet of fish fingers…but where’s the fun in that?

As to the custard, I knew I didn’t want to play around with a savoury milk pudding spiked with saffron, turmeric or mustard.  So I took the easy route and zhuzhed up a homemade aioli.  No my custard (or TARDIS sauce) isn’t electric yellow, nor is it cooked, but it does have dairy and egg.  I will say, the sauce is also good with roast potatoes.

And well…what’s fish without chips? You could do fries or good, chunky chips…but given how battle-loving the potato-like Sontarans are, I decided to make some crispy, smashed Sontarans. 

Fish fingers

Ingredients
500g (1lb) firm white fish such as cod or haddock, cut into finger-like pieces.

Salt

All purpose flour, seasoned with salt and pepper

1 beaten egg

100g (1.5 c) panko breadcrumbs mixed

1Tbsp  chopped fresh herbs (such as dill or parsley)

Oil, for frying

Method

Lightly salt the fish fingers and refrigerate, uncovered for 20 minutes.

Heat  enough oil so you can either deep fry or shallow fry the fish. 

Dab off any wetness from the flesh, then dredge in the seasoned flour, dip in egg and then cover in the herbed panko crumbs.

Fry until the fingers are cooked.

Custard Sauce/Tardis Sauce

For the Aioli

1 egg yolk

2 grated garlic cloves (as paste-like in consistency, as you can get it)

7.5ml (0.5Tbsp) Dijon mustard (smooth or grainy)

60ml (0.25c) flavourless oil

60ml (0.25c) extra virgin olive oil

7.5ml (0.5Tbsp) warmed white wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Combine egg and garlic with mustard, salt and pepper.  Whisk in the oils in a steady stream.  Keep whisking until fully incorporated and then whisk hard for about a minute to make the mix thick and glossy.  Add the vinegar and whisk some more.  Balance flavours to taste.

You’ll get about 125ml (1/2c) of aioli from the above recipe

To turn the aioli into TARDIS sauce, mix together the following ingredients

60ml (0.25c)  aioli

60ml (0.25c) sour cream

7ml (1.5tsp) prepared horseradish

5ml (1tsp) Dijon mustard (smooth or grainy)

5ml (1tsp) prepared English mustard

2ml (0.25tsp) cayenne pepper (or to taste)

2ml (0.25tsp) onion powder

salt

Balance flavours to taste.

Smashed Sontarans

Again, this is another non-recipe recipe.

Baby potatoes (about 5cm/2” in length) OR regular potatoes, cut  into 5cm/2”  chunks. Leave the skins on

Salted water (for boiling)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Other seasonings, you see fit.

Preheat oven to 200C/400F.  Slick a cookie sheet with olive oil

Parboil the potatoes in the salted water.  Drain and tumble onto the oiled cookie sheet.

Press the down on the potatoes with a  spoon, fork or the bottom of a sauce pan.  You can smash flatish or just press down enough to rough up the surface.

Sprinkle with salt, pepper and other herbs and spices as you see fit. 

Drizzle more olive oil on top.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until the potatoes are cooked, with crispy brown bits.

Allons-y!
jasmine
I'm a quill for hire!

Maple Harissa Chicken Wings

This post should have been a cookbook review.


But it's not.


A few months ago I received a gorgeous-looking book about Moroccan cooking.  Then I read it.


Augh.


Let's ignore the writing style that oozes braggadocious smarm and reeks of self-satisfaction.


Let's ignore little gems like telling the reader if they want to use this cookbook they should get a scale that weighs in fractions of a gram (since getting the book I've checked every kitchenware department I've come across and cannot find one that measures such minutiae...one gram, not a problem...less than that, I'd have to special order it in.


Aye, there's the rub.


Every cookbook review I do includes several recipes reviews, with each recipe blindly followed, you'd think I were a sheep crossed with a Disney-prodded lemming.  There's no question that the book had a lot of recipes...the question was which recipes intrigued me enough to try them?


Apparently each recipe I found interesting required me prepping ingredients at least a month in advance, or scouring my local shops for ingredients they hadn't heard of.   And those ingredients I could find made me balk at the pricetag.


Don't get me wrong.  I'm all for authenticity, but this book really made it clear to me that this book--and many others are really written for those in major metropolitan areas (and yes, I do live in a CMA of more than half a million people...but that's not big enough to carry some of these ingredients).  Home cooks who would like to try these recipes who don't have easy access to more exotic ingredients would have to order them in or try and make do with what they have, not really knowing what the called-for herbs and spices really taste like.


Needless to say...the book is still untested...and probably will remain so.


In the meanwhile...the book did trigger something.


Although his harissa recipe called for spices I couldn't find, the idea of harissa grabbed me.  After looking up other recipes and playing with the flavours, another idea grabbed me.  


Maple-harissa chicken wings: the smokiness of the spices matched maple syrup's smokiness.  Sweet and hot are generally a good combination.  It's a spicier version of honey-garlic and a smokier version of sweet thai chilli.


The wings also gave me an opportunity to try out Alton Brown's chicken wing preparation technique I saw ages ago --essentially render the fat first by steaming the wings and then roast the wings on a cookie rack.  It's a bit labour intensive but the end result isn't too bad.


The sauce is sweet, hot and smoky.  It may be too hot for some, and if you find it so, add a bit of roasted pepper or tomato paste to the pan with the maple syrup and balance flavours to taste.  




Maple Harissa Chicken Wings

Yield 750g/1.5lbs


Ingredients
750g (1.5lbs) chicken wings, split into drummettes and wings


For the sauce
For the Harissa
0.5tsp (2.5ml) coriander seeds
0.5tsp (2.5ml) caraway seeds
0.25tsp (1.25) cumin seeds
2dspn (20ml/4tsp) lemon juice
5 dried chillies, soaked in boiling water for 45 minutes
2 garlic cloves
0.25tsp (1.25ml) salt
1Tbsp (15ml) olive oil


3Tbsp Maple Syrup (to taste)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
1-2 tsp (5-10ml) tomato paste or minced roasted red peppers (optional, to taste)


Method


Preheat the oven to 225C/425F. Lay a tea towel or a double layer of paper towels on a baking sheet. Set a cooling rack over top the towels and set aside.


To cook the chicken wings, set about 2-3cm (approximately 1") of water to boil in a large pot. Lay the wings in a steamer basket and set in the pot. Lid the pot and let steam over medium heat for about 10 minutes.Remove the wings from the basket, place on the cooling rack, and pat dry. Let the wings cool. Remove the towels and line the tray with tin foil. Roast for 40 minutes, turning the wings once.


Start the sauce while the wings are roasting.  Toast the coriander, caraway and cumin in a dry pan, over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the seeds have darkened and have released their aromas, remove the pan from the hob and tip the spices onto a plate to cool (five-10 minutes). Grind to a paste the toasted spices with the rehydrated chillies, garlic, salt, olive oil and lemon juice.


In a small saucepan, over medium-low heat, mix the harissa with the maple syrup. Taste the sauce--if it is too spicy for you, you can temper its zing by adding some tomato paste or finely chopped roasted red pepper. Balance flavours to taste.


When the wings are done roasting tip them into a bowl and pour the sauce over top. Toss the wings so they are evenly coated.


Notes

• If you don't want to make your own harissa, use about three-four tablespoons of bought sauce.

• You don't have to cook the wings in above-prescribed manner--if you prefer to bake or fry the wings, please do.

cheers! 
jasmine
I'm a quill for hire!

Guinness-braised apples with Dubliner crumble and Guinness caramel sauce

I suppose if I were to subtitle this post it would be: an oopsie made better.

A few weeks ago I began thinking about my March posts. I rarely put that much forethought into this blog (hate to break it to you), but to me March means St. Patrick's Day, which means finding a new Guinness recipe to try. Stephanie at Little Mushroom Catering mentioned a Guinness-braised apple appetiser she makes and shared her recipe. It was quick and more importantly...easy.

A number of things were flung my way between receiving Stephanie's note and yesterday--work, fun, a nasty tummy bug--so I didn't have a chance to play with what she gave me until yesterday.

I'd already decided to turn her nibblie idea into a dessert and settled for a good, old fashioned crumble with oats and cheese. Sounds great, right?

Well...I'll blame fatigue...or hunger...or the cats.

When I mixed the Guinness braising liquid, I mixed twice as much as I actually needed. Was I sensible and only use half, with hopes of using the other half for something else?

Nope.

I poured it all in.

I suppose I hoped that evaporation would take care of things and reduce it all down to a thick, lovely sauce.

I suppose evaporation woudl have taken care of things and reduce it all down to a thick, lovely sauce if I didn't strew the top with crumble...and then again with cheese.

Dubliner cheese melts in the heat, obliterating any little vents the liquid could use to make a sweet, steamy escape.

Hrrm...I tried the crumble--the apples were tender, sweet with a smoky rich flavour and the cheesy topping contrasted nicely against them. The only issue was the lake of slightly thickened, apple-y and Guinness-y sauce that treated the crumble like a baking-dish wide barge.

I had no problem serving the liquide as a sauce, but there seemed to be too much for pouring purposes. Another taste and that ever so-happy-making little lightbulb went off.

I ladeled out most of the liquid into a saucepan and boiled it down by half and stirred in a couple of spoons of butter. Voila: Guinness caramel. Seriously good stuff. Seriously good when poured over the apples and the crumble.

I debated remaking this dessert in the intended fashion, and only post the "correct" recipe...but then you wouldn't have enough for the caramel. I decided to post the original recipe and the fix to the oopsie, if anyone was interested. I'll probably revisit this at some point, but I'm quite pleased with this version.



Guinness Braised Apples with Dubliner crumble and Guinness Caramel

Ingredients
440ml (1 can) Guinness
180g (0.75c+2Tbsp) Brown Sugar
1Tbsp Soft butter
salt
9 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced

For the Dubliner crumble topping
65g (0.33c) sugar
45g (0.33c) all purpose flour
3Tbsp rolled oats
3Tbsp butter
salt
100g (0.5c) grated Dubliner cheese

For the Caramel
Cooked Guinness braising liquid
2Tbsp butter

Method
Preheat oven to 180C/350F; butter a baking dish.

Whisk together Guinness, sugar and a pinch of salt. Set aside.

Tumble apple slices into the baking dish and pour the guinness mixture over top. Dot the top of the apples with little knobs of butter.

For the crumble:
Rub together the sugar, flour, oats, butter and a pinch of salt. Scatter over the apples and top with cheese.

Bake for 60 minutes or until the cheese melts and the top is golden.

Remove from the oven.

For the Caramel
Spoon off as much of the braising liquid as possible into a saucepan. Over medium high heat reduce the liquid by half, stirring occastionally. Stir butter into the thickenend liquide. Let cool slightly before serving.

To serve:
Spoon apples and some of the crumble into a bowl and pour some caramel over top. Serve with ice cream or pouring cream, if you wish.

Note:
To make life easier, but less caramelly, simply make half the quantity of braising liquid. It will slightly thicken while cooking, but you probably won't have enough to make the caramel.

If you cannot find Dubliner cheese, you can use cheddar (old, preferably), instead.

cheers!

jasmine

I'm a quill for hire!

Mmm...Canada: Maple Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

Mmm...Canada. We are so known for our fiercely spiced foods and peppers whose mere mention bring tears to our eyes and droplets of persperation to our brows.

Mmm...no.

As a nation, I fear we have a reputation for being spice-adverse, the old joke being KFC is too spicy for those of us north of the 49th parallel.

And really, I think it's deserved. It's not been that long since the spice aisle's heat came from packets of powdered cinnamon, black pepper and cayenne and a bottle of Tabasco. Today they still contain cinnamon, black pepper and cayenne, but they also have pods and seeds found in various masalas, shelves varying pepper sauces and aisles that help shoppers explore Latin American, Caribbean, Indian, Vietnamese and other cuisines.

Mmm...Canada, a multicultural society has many benefits and a widened selection of foods and flavours is merely one.

Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce can be elusive in my part of the world, but can usually found in shops with an international clientelle or, if I'm truly lucky, in the mediumscarymegamart a couple of blocks away.

Personally, I love pairing their smokey fire with smokey sweetness, usually in a roasted sweet potato soup. But this being summer, turning on my oven isn't necessarily high on my list of priorities. This being summer, grilling is called for--even if it is via my cast iron stovetop grill pan...and when I grill...I sauce.

To balance the pepper's heat, maple syrup was my obvious choice. Simmered with a bit of mustard and tomato ketchup, as well garlic and shallot, and you get a gorgeous, glossy sauce that's perfect slathered on pork or chicken. Spice-adverse Canadians? Nah, not after this sauce.


Maple Chipotle Barbecue Sauce
Yield 0.5c
1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced
butter
180ml (0.75c) maple syrup
1 chipotle pepper with 1.5 Tbsp adobo sauce
2Tbsp tomato ketchup
2Tbsp dijon mustard
1Tbps apple cider vinegar
1.5 Tbsp soy sauce
black pepper

Sweat garlic and onion in butter until translucent. Add remaining ingredients and simmer over a medium flame until thickened and reduced by about half. Let cool.

cheers!
jasmine

I'm a quill for hire!

The Contraption: Slow Cooker Ribs in Barbecue Sauce

For better or for worse we are attracted to types. And for better or worse, types are attracted to us.

Give me a single, smart (verging on geeky), well-read, musical man who’s interested in politics, science and art and I simply swoon…I, unfortunately, collect men who would be better off with someone who will simply acquiesce to their officious, ill-informed prattle…or someone easily flattered when these men admit to researching conversation via Wikipedia. Really.

Yet there is one commonality amongst the men who like, love and would like to love me: ribs. An unreal weakness for saucy, juicy, spicy, sweet, tangy, meaty ribs.

Hmmm…I’m making a connection here…

Those who’ve tried my back ribs never seem to tire of them—Michael requested them weekly for several months; both he and the exbf chose them as birthday meals. Heck, even my father sent my Dear Little Cardamummy on a mission to find out what I did that made my ribs so much better than hers (that went over well, I can tell you).

I fully admit that my usual method leaves many rib aficionados cowering with horror: I boil rub-massaged slabs with an onion and a bay or two before giving them a lacquer-like sheen in the oven, courtesy of several brushings of barbecue sauce.

When a colleague told me of her slow cooker rib recipe, I was intrigued. Unlike other meat recipes, she didn’t have to pre-cook anything—simply dump and go. The fact they slowly blurbled away in cola before quickly painting them in sauce and tossing them on a grill won me over.

As a fan of Coca-cola ham, I know how tasty pork braised in cola can be. The fizzy drink’s mildly acidic qualities tenderizes meat; it’s caramelly clove-spiky flavour has a natural affinity with pork. In case you need yet another reason to avoid diet pop, I’ve read it works with any brand of cola, but only “regular” versions as diet versions can just ruin the dish.

I adapted this recipe as I wanted more flavour imparted into the meat during cooking, and mixed the cola with some of the barbecue sauce. The meat was tender-sweet and spicy. Grilling caramelised the sauce and left the ribs sticky and slightly smoky from the flecks of char. Needless to say, I was more than happy with my supper.

Quite honestly, after eight hours in the slow cooker, I couldn’t bring myself to toss the flavourful liquid or the cooked onions, so while the ribs were finishing on my stovetop grill, I simply tipped the liquid, onions and a spoon or two of barbecue sauce into a pot and reduced the liquid to a thick, burnished sauce that clung to the onions. A perfect accompaniment with the ribs or for later use as a topping for burgers or other hot sandwiches.

Barbecue sauces are as varied as the regions they come from. Teryaki and hoisin sauces are used on grilled meats in some Asian countries while Chimichurri is popular in South American countries such as Argentina, Bolivia and Uruguay. The US has several distinct regional sauces South Carolina mustard sauces and mayonnaise-based Alabama White sauces. My sauce has no true regional provenance, but combines Kansas City’s thick, sweet tomatoey sauce with a bit of Texan heat.

Barbecue sauce
Yield: approximately 1.5c

1 small onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil
250ml (1c) tomato ketchup
3Tbsp apple cider vinegar
30g (3Tbsp) brown sugar
3Tbsp molasses
0.5 tsp pepper
0.5 tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp dry mustard
1 Tbsp rib rub or chili seasoning mix
2 dspn (4 tsp) Worcestershire sauce
0.5 tsp salt
1tsp liquid smoke (optional)

Soften the onions and garlic in the oil. Mix in the remaining ingredients and simmer for about 20 minutes. Let cool to room temp before using.


Cola has been used in cooking in the southern US for ages. Sweet, spiky and slightly acidic, it pairs well with pork and adds to the rib’s smoky-sweetness. Use your favourite shop-bought barbecue sauce or make your own. After spending most of the day on low in the slow cooker, the ribs will be succulent. Serve with a warm onion relish by simmering the braising liquid until thick with the cooked onions and some extra barbecue sauce.

Slow cooker ribs in barbecue sauce
Adapted from Canadian Parents’ Crock Pot BBQ Ribs

1.3kg (3 lbs) baby back or side ribs
rib rub
125ml (0.5c) cola
375ml (1.5c) barbecue sauce, divided
1tsp liquid smoke (optional)
one onion,
sliced into 1cm rings

Remove silverskin and any excess fat from the ribs before slicing into ifour or five-rib mini-slab portions. Massage rub into the meat and let sit in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.

Mix the cola, half the barbecue sauce and liquid smoke together. Brush each of the slab sides with the sauce before spreading a couple of spoons’ worth of sauce on the bottom of the slow cooker. Layer some onions on top of the sauce, place a slab or two (depending upon the size of the cooker) over the onions, and then continue to layer the onions and the slabs. When done, pour the remaining sauce over top and set the cooker on low and cook for 6-8 hrs.

About 15 minutes before the the ribs are done. Heat up a grill pan or barbecue or oven (350F).

Brush the cooked ribs with plain barbecue sauce and grill each side for 8-10 minutes or roast in the oven for about 20-30 minutes. Serve with additional sauce for dipping, if you wish.

Notes:

Here's my recipe for rib rub, but you can certainly use whichever recipe or brand you wish.

I've tried these ribs a couple of times, once with my homemade sauce and again with a commercial hickory sauce; and both worked well.

cheers!
jasmine

I'm a quill for hire!

The World's Longest Barbecue: Chimichurri

Anita Stewart's "World's Longest Barbecue" interests me--not because it attempts to create a truly national feast, but because it essentially celebrates locavorism in a country made up of immigrants. There is a bit of a dichotomy there...

Sure, we have "quintessentially Canadian foods," such as butter tarts and doughnuts, but most of what's eaten goes beyond this.

Indigenous foods such as maple syrup, bison, blueberries and squash now sit along side various crops and herds brought over by waves of immigrants. Most of the meats we eat: chicken, pork and beef, along with carrots, apples, spinach, peaches and other fruits and vegetables, along with grains and cereals we eat on a daily basis were brought over by people who wished for a taste of home.

My concept of celebrating Canadian eating focusses on the breadth of dishes this country offers as a result of the creative and homesick cooks, combining a breadth of indigenous and new ingredients. It's also about what food helps us do: celebrate, commiserate, share and learn.

It's not in opposition to the "eat local" shadow cast by the event, as it's possible to adapt some home cooking to near-ish crops and herds, but I'd rather explore what I can do with a local base food and see what I can do to bring in part of the rest of Canada.

There are many ways to flavour a pork loin, but an Argentine-insprired chimichurri is my offerng. I use this vibrant green coriander leaf mixture as both a sauce and a marinade; I've also mixed with butter, cream cheese or mayonnaise for a sandwich spread. It's incredibly garlicky and a bit tangy and easily adaptable to your individual palate--apart from playing with the garlic and spicing, you can play with the parsley-coriander ratio, keeping to one cup of green.

For the loin, put some of the sauce and put it a zippy bag and let the pork marinate in it over night. After cooking, place the cooked meat in a tin foil pocket with a couple of spoons of chimichurri (not the marinating liquid, but some from the quantity made), seal the ends and let the meat sit for about 10-15 minutes before carving.

Oh, and the weird shape to the loin? No, local pork producers do not raise pigs to have their various bits shaped to look like flowers when cut. I don't have a barbecue, but I do have one of those table-top grills. Makes for very pretty slices.

Chimichurri
4 cloves garlic
1/2small onion, roughly chopped
1/2c flat leaf parsley
1/2c coriander leaf
50-60ml red wine vinegar
100-125ml olive oil
1tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1tsp black pepper (or to taste)
1tsp salt
juice from half a lime

In a blender, add the garlic and onion and chop finely. Puree in the the herbs in by handfuls, alternating with oil and vinegar. When all the leaves, oil and vinegar are combined, blend in cayenne, pepper and salt. Adjust seasoning to taste. Before using, add lime juice.


cheers!
jasmine

What I'm reading: Home Land by Sam Lipsyte

I'm a quill for hire!

Mayonnaise and tartar sauces

For reasons which I'll explain at another time, I...umm...encouraged my cold to return

It's not as bad as it was last month but the right side of my head is back to feeling like it's filled with panna cotta.

Anyway, so not to leave you without a foodish post for an inordinate amount of time, I'm leaving you with the mayonnaise recipe I used as the base for the sauces for last week's fish cakes post.
Basic Mayonnaise
makes about 300-325ml
2 egg yolks
125ml canola oil mixed with 125ml peanut oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar, warmed
salt and pepper

Whisk together the yolks with some salt and pepper. In a thin but steady stream, slowly pour in the oils while whisking. When you've blendeded everything together, give it a taste and adjust seasoning. Whisk for another minutes or so.

Tartar Sauce variant: add chopped capers, chopped cornichons or cucumber relish with a squirt of chilli garlic sauce to the mayonnaise.

cheers!
jasmine

Playing ketchup

If you ever have dinner with my parents, you'll inevitably be asked "do you want ketchup?"

It doesn't matter if you are having hamburger or roast turkey, the question will be asked by My Dear Little Cardamummy. If your plate arrives without ketchup, my father will ask my Mum why she didn't give you any ketchup.

Quite honestly, I think they substitute "ketchup" for any sort of flavouring condiment: mustard, pickles, barbecue sauces, gravy, (etc). But they do seem to go through an awful lot of squeezy bottle ketchup. An awful lot.

I've never had anything but store-bought squeezy bottle ketchup, either in squeezy bottles or in little packets. I'm not a big fan--far too sweet for my liking.

When I went on my canning and preserve-making spree this year--and asked our lovely Dana for some advice. She pointed me to homecanning.com's pages for advice and recipes. And there, while perusing, I found a recipe for tomato ketchup.
Well...it was tomato season...so why not? As per my other canning adventures, I made a half-batch of ketchup.

It's a very easy process, in line with making tomato sauce--different spicing of course. Unlike storebought ketchups, this one is thickend the old fashioned way...by reducing the volume insted of using thickeners such as cornstarch.

My word...it takes a long time. And it's quite messy. Well, no...ketchup isn't messy, I'm messy. I suppose it's a good thing I didn't take my camera over...no evidence as to the reddish-orange splotches and spills all over my mum's nice white tiles.

Even my mother was getting tired of waiting. Her seemingly unending aria of "Is it done yet? Is it done yet?" came in through the doorway. I turned it into a duet, with my counterpoint of "No, it's not. No, it's not."

The diva she is (hey, I had to get it from somewhere) made the declarative statement while stomping her little feet "This takes too long and it's not worth it."

I looked at her and said "Let's see how it tastes." She harrumphed.

Well...a week later we tried it.

"Oh! This is so much better than what we get in the store. I'm glad we did this," was my Mum's response.

"It needs more sugar, " declared my (diabetic) father.

It is good ketchup. It's not too sweet and you can taste the cloves and allspice (and the hot chilli pepper I tossed in). It has pizzazz and personality. In fact I call it "the good ketchup," to be used only when it can show itself off and not just for any old hamburger or Milk Calendar Recipe.

I'll be using it judiciously this year--next year I'll make a whole batch.
cheers!
jasmine