Bubble and Squeak Soup

I'm not very keen on sprouts but am proud of the fact that I will eat almost anything, and after all ... those little green blighters are the epitome of festive fare.  This week I searched my books for a recipe that I tried a few years ago but seemed unable to find again.  I searched the internet and my cupboard full of books and am thankful that I finally found it on an old newsletter from 2005 from Riverford. 

In my mind it is the best thing to do with brussel sprouts and is very tasty.  So go on ... give it a go and revolutionise your view of sprouts.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

4 rashers streaky bacon, rind removed and cut into small pieces

500g potatoes, diced

300g brusssel sprouts, chopped

1.5 litres chicken stock

25g parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

Method:

Heat oil in a large pan.  Add onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened. Add the bacon and cook for a further 3-4 minutes until it begins to brown. Add potatoes and cook for 10 minutes.  Add stock to cover and simmer for another 10 minutes.  Add chopped sprouts and simmer for another 10 minutes or until cooked.  Liquidise or pass through a mouli. Add more stock if required.  Season and sprinkle with parmesan.

I really hope you do try it and even more that you enjoy it

Some Like it Hot - Bhutanese Chilli Cheese

I have always considered chillies to be a spice used for flavouring and not the main body of a dish.  How wrong I was!  Having been to Bhutan and eaten their national dish 'Ema Datse' I am now a convert to eating chillies as a vegetable.

We loved the variations of this daily dish and I looked forward to recreating it at home.  I am not a chilli connoisseur and am restricted from being able to buy a particular variety. I have made do with a variety pack from my local supermarket which has a combination of both red and green chillies.

While on holiday our guide talked us through how to make it and then I resorted to my guru Google to read other people's attempts. The recipes I found used 1/2 lb chillies which seemed an excessive amount to me.  The first time I made it I used 10 chillies which our guide informed me was too many for two people.  He advised 5 chillies so I have now amended the recipe. The first recipe I read used an equal quantity of cheese to chilli and this seems like a good rule to follow.  As with all my recipe interpretations it will often change on a daily basis but the basic principles are the same.

So this is my version of Chilli Cheese:

Ingredients
5 large chillies (weigh them to calculate how much cheese)
Feta cheese and gorgonzola (if you want it richer then put in as much as you like and to                                                 hell with the weighing!)
1 onion, sliced
handful cherry tomatoes, quartered, or 2 whole tomatoes cut in to wedges
handful sliced mushrooms
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
3/4 cup water
2 tsps olive oil
1/2 tsp coriander

Method:

• Slice the chillies length ways into strips and deseed to your preference of heat.  I like to leave most of the seeds other than perhaps one, but I do like it hot. Boil the chillies and onion in the water with 2 teaspoons of oil for 10 minutes.
• Add the tomato, mushrooms and garlic and simmer for 2 minutes.

• Add the crumbled cheese and simmer for 2 minutes
• Add the coriander and cover, turn off heat for 2 minutes.

Serve over rice and enjoy. I have made this weekly since our return and as with most of my recipes it is already evolving.  Yesterday I added sliced peppers and left out the mushrooms. If you have no other vegetables it's just as tasty with only chilli and onion. 

As in life, there are no rules ... just try it and see what works for you.

I wish I had the choice of chillies that abound in Bhutan and when I look at the meagre packets of dried chillies available in the supermarket I dream of being back in the markets of Thimphu:

Let me know how you get on with livening up your taste buds

A Bhutanese Welcome

Our arrival in Paro, Bhutan was to set the feel for the rest of our stay.  There was no rush as the plane landed and we spilled down the steps to gaze around in awe at the beauty of our surroundings. No other airport I've been to has allowed photography on the tarmac and the photograph of the King and Queen made us as welcome as the Bhutanese people.

Our start was calm as we absorbed the environment and even appreciated the airport building.  Despite the queues for immigration I embraced the Buddhist calm and for once did not get agitated by queuing.

We were whisked away to our hotel to dump our bags and head straight out to explore the sights of Paro and were immediately captivated by the charm.

our hotel centre right ... Gangtey Palace

Our first Bhutanese Stupa was one of the oldest in the country and the sun and spirit was perfect to warm our bodies and souls.

We enjoyed the sights but also loved the small details.  Prayer flags continued to be an attraction and I wanted to see them from as many angles as possible.

What an amazing place and our trip has only just begun

Flying High

We had thoroughly enjoyed all we had seen in Kathmandu and would have loved to spend longer in some areas but we were excited to fly over the Himalayas to reach Bhutan.  We were advised that the best seats were on the left hand side of the plane and that tickets are allocated on a first come first served basis ... no advance check-in!

Our travel rep was as keen as we were that we would get good seats and he got us to the airport at 6.20 am for a 9.25 flight.  Such dedication paid off and we had prime window seats.  I am not new to travel and flying but I have never seen sights so amazing as flying over the mountain ranges and Mount Everest.  

We had clear blue skies and perfect fluffy white clouds.  Usually this is uplifting in itself but to find that there were snow capped mountain peaks on the horizon was positively exhilarating. Mountain tops sandwiched between brilliant blue was a surreal sight.  It looked more like a mountain reflected in a lake with clouds reflected from the sky.  

Truly a magical wonderland

Mount Everest was even more impressive than I had imagined and it is astounding to think that anybody climbs this phenomenal mountain.  How can a puny mortal scale this majestic peak and ascend into the heavens?

The comparison is hardly worthy of great literary acclaim and I would hate to demean the majesty of such splendour, but to me the view of this mighty mountain was like an iced Christmas cake.  This must be the most incredible flight that I am ever likely to take and it fills me with excitement and anticipation for the adventure ahead in Bhutan ...

Traditional Christmas Cake

It is the first week of a new month and as Christmas is fast approaching it seemed only fitting that I should feature a Christmas Cake. I shall endeavour to revert to my usual fare in another week.

I have been making Christmas cakes for as long as I remember and over the decades I have tried many recipes.  I wish that I had made a record of my Nanna's cake but I never thought there would be a time that I would need it. In the last 10 years I have alternated between two recipes but they never seemed quite right.  Two years ago I tasted my friend Chris' cake which was a recipe handed down from her mother, and I realised that it was much better than the ones I had been making.  She graciously gave me her family recipe and I determined to make it a tradition in our home too.

However, I seem incapable of following a cake recipe to the letter and just had to make a few adjustments to suit my own tastes.  Here I shall list her recipe and let you know the changes that I made.  Feel free to try it yourself and enjoy it as it was made 50 years ago, or as you prefer it:

Christmas Cake

as made by Sylvia Fripp (1928 - 1960)

Ingredients:

10 oz plain flour

8 oz butter

8 oz soft brown sugar

1 lb sultanas

1 lb currants - I substitute half the currants with a mixture of additional cherries/raisins                          and cranberries (and this year a few apricots too)

1/2 lb stoneless raisins

1/4 lb glace cherries

1/4 lb mixed peel

1/4 or 2 oz ground almonds - I used 6 oz almonds (mixed ground and flaked)

4 eggs

grated rind of 1 lemon and 1 orange and half of the juice

1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda mixed with a little warm water

pinch of salt

1 tsp mixed spice

1 Tbs black treacle

1 Tbs rum, sherry or brandy - I use 120 ml Amaretto

(I also add 1 Tbs cocoa powder)

Method:

Now this is where we tend to be left to our own devices as my friend's recipe only detailed ingredients ... I guess assuming that we all know how to bake!

I am not a great baker and wish I had paid more attention to my Nanna as she baked, rather than just eating the finished article.  So what follows is my rambling process which turned out ok last year and I have still to sample this years efforts.

• Firstly I put all dried fruit in a large bowl and added the alcohol, then cover it and allow to soak overnight.  I also add the zest and fruit juice at this time.
• In an attempt to be organised I then grease and line my chosen tin.  I always like a square cake as it's easier to cut even slices.  In addition to making a large cake for myself, I use the same quantity to make a smaller round one and a much smaller loaf tin for a single person with a small appetite!
• I use a food processor to cream together the sugar and butter until pale and fluffy.
• Then beat in the eggs singly. If it starts to curdle add a small spoonful of flour.
• I find it quite hard to mix in the fruit evenly so have discovered it is easier to get an even coverage by mixing the soaked fruit with the flour before then folding it all into the better mixture.  I add the other ingredients and mix well ... this is the time that any other family members are encouraged to stir the mixture and make a wish. This year I had to make wishes for us all as nobody else was present in the house.
• Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin. I also provide additional protection by applying a double layer of tin foil around the outside of the tin, secured by string.
• Place in a pre-heated oven at 150 degrees Centigrade for one hour and then reduce the heat to 130*C for a further 2 hours.  I am always worried that the top will burn and I add a layer of folded grease-proof paper for the final hour.  I check it regularly from the third hour and if a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean it is cooked.  If still wet cook for further 20 minutes and test again.  
• Allow to cool completely in the tin before turning out and removing all paper. I wrap it in grease-proof paper and tin foil and place in a cool room to store.  In the following weeks or months prick the surface with a cocktail stick and add more alcohol to keep the cake moist and tasty.
• In the two weeks before Christmas cover with marzipan and icing to your taste ... we hate icing so only cover it with marzipan.  It may look strange but it suits our tastes and after all it is the taste that matters!

I hope that you will try this recipe and that you enjoy it as much as we do. It's good to know that Sylvia's memory lives on in the people who enjoy her cake.

Step up to Swayambhunath

365 steps to rise to the stupa above Kathmandu ... and we cheated and took the back door

We had thought we'd climb the steps but I guess our guide wasn't too keen as he didn't give us the choice.  The views from the top were were phenomenal, both of the stupa and temple and the surrounding Kathmandu valley.

The surrounding valley spread out below us and made us believe that the valley really could have grown from a single lotus flower rising from a primordial lake.  The magnificence of the stupa behind us, the mountains on the horizon and the green valley spread below us made this a memorable place.

The temple is also known as the monkey temple ... the monkeys certainly seemed to think it was their temple:

Next stop stunning views of Mount Everest ...

Photography Forbidden

Our visit to the house of the Living Goddess showed us amazing carving and architecture but did not allow us a glimpse of the Kumari.  Even if we had caught a sight of her we could not have taken any photographs.  I cannot imagine the existence of a young girl secluded away from her family and public life from the age of about 3 years until puberty. What life would she then have when leaving such seclusion and an unnatural childhood?

Despite my qualms about the purpose of this 'house' I appreciated the workmanship and the peaceful haven that this oasis in the busy city provided.

Spirituality was present in the streets and in the Temples and there were so many photo opportunities from people to places.

The carvings were detailed and told of myths and legends that cross different belief systems.  We first saw Naga and Geruda in Cambodia and we saw them again here ... they have even featured in my science fantasy television programmes recently.

In addition to the splendour of ancient buildings I was fascinated by daily life and the hustle and bustle of street life.  It's nothing like my local high street:

Can the rest of our day's sightseeing continue to fascinate?  what will be next?