It all tastes the same at 34,000 ft.

As I tap away this week I am at 34,000 ft sitting on a rather lovely new Airbus (it’s only 2 weeks old I have just been informed). I ‘m not the best flyer and I am still undecided as to whether or not this is a comfort. I’ll let you know if we arrive in one piece….in fact if you’re reading this we did!

Although I love a trip abroad as much as anyone I can’t help but feel that the magic of the actual journey to said destination has disappeared somewhat as I have become older. A full night’s sleep the eve of the holiday would always be impossible, way too excited. The Mother was (and still is) a bit of a panicker when it comes to getting to the airport on time. I can remember being bundled into a freezing car in what felt like the middle of the night to embark on the holiday adventure. Hours of fun would ensue at London Gatwick airport whereby my brother and I would try to persuade the parents into purchasing some kind of duty free item. Normally batteries. The Discman took about 8 AA’s if I remember correctly and we couldn’t possibly run out. Someone would get lost, at least once. We would all have fallen out with each other and made up at least twice before boarding time. Where we would then inevitably visit the wrong gate first.

The real fun began when we slipped into our seats aboard our 747 or whatever craft it happened to be. As soon as you walked down that corridor you would be able to smell the inflight meal.  Sweating food sitting in its little aluminum tray, ready to be peeled back for inspection. For me, the magic was in discovering what the food would be. All those little sections in your tray each brimming with some equally inedible but brilliant food item. There were always carrots too I’m sure, regardless of the time of day.

Then the swaps would commence. “Are you eating that sausage, I’ll give you my roll for that if you want?” “Gimmie your chocolate as well and you’re on.” We normally had two rows behind each other and so the trading would start until we all felt we’d had a pretty decent meal.

The rise in air travel and the emergence of budget airlines has seen the end of the short haul inflight meal and while I never was a fan of the food I miss the occasion of it all. The anticipation and surprise, the smell, the condensation, the swapping. I tend to make do with a bag of mini cheddars and a warm white wine now, but I always remember the good old days. Love them or hate them inflight meals signaled the start of what would surely be a wonderful holiday. 

And if you ask me everything tastes the same at 34,000 feet anyway….Apart from the egg sandwiches. I’d give them a miss if I were you.

The glory days...

The safest option.

The "egg" sandwich. So generously filled. 

 

Steak night

I was in the garden enjoying the sunshine and chatting with the Mother this week when she turns to me and says, “You’ll probably meet your next boyfriend in the supermarket, most people meet their partners in the supermarket.” I am not sure which alarmed me the most, the fact that this was clearly based on no actual statistics or scientific research (I would hope) or that my social life was apparently so dire she thought that the supermarket was my only hope. She did have a point though- I usually went to at least one supermarket everyday. Testing recipes usually requires a daily shop and there’s always some strange ingredient you can’t find, or forget to buy. I don’t think she had really thought through the logistics of this plan either. Namely because 95% of the time the Mother came to Morrison’s with me, we never spoke to anyone during our trips, apart from the butcher (he was well over 60 so don’t go getting any ideas) and it was almost always full of women or OAP’s. I was doomed.

Moving on, cooking for just one is one of the many benefits of being single. You can have whatever you want to eat whenever you want it without having to consider anyone else. Feel like a bowl of ice cream for dinner? Go for it, bacon sandwich? Why not, fish fingers and beans? Sure. In my experience men want a proper meal each night, and you can’t just fob them off with a sandwich for tea.

In fact I’d say some of my best recipes have been invented when I am just cooking to please myself, there’s much less risk too. If it doesn’t turn out as expected nobodies dinner is ruined and there is always the backup of toast. That is another great dinner for one. Toast. What a magical invention. I like to cut each slice into fingers and spread each one with a different topping. If you eat them without looking it’s like a toast lottery. Ok maybe the Mother is right, I need to work on the social life.

The ultimate treat when cooking just for one has got to be a nice piece of steak. You can afford to get a really great cut when it’s just you and why not. Eaten with chips, peppercorn sauce and a nice glass of wine it’s the perfect night in! I like my steak hardly cooked at all so I tend to go for a fillet. The best thing about this recipe is the sauce is made while the steak rests, so it’s really quick, and there’s no one there to nick your last chip! Give it a go next time you’re lucky enough to be home alone.

Steak, chips & peppercorn sauce

Serves 1 Takes about 45 minutes

1-2 baking potatoes, (depeding on hunger) skin lefto on & cut into chunky chips

1 tsp olive oil

1 tsp vinegar

pinch chilli flakes

salt and lots of fresh black pepper

knob butter and a splash of oil

1 steak of your choice

good splash brandy

175ml beef stock

2 tbsp extra thick double cream

watercress, to serve

1 Turn oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Cover chips in cold, salted water in a small pan and bring up to the boil. Turn off immediately and then drain and steam dry for a few minutes in a colander. Toss in a bowl with the oil, vinegar, chilli flakes and lots of salt and black pepper. Tip onto a baking parchment lined flat baking tray and spread out in a single layer. Cook for 30-40 minutes, turning half way though until really crispy and golden.

2 Meanwhile, take your steak out the fridge about 20 minutes before you cook it to come up to room temperature. Season it with salt and pepper. About 10 minutes before your chips are done heat the butter and oil in a pan, you want it nice and hot and the butter to be foaming. Cook the steak for about 2 minutes each side then brown around the edge too for about a minute for quite rare, adding an extra 30 seconds for medium and as long as you want for well done. Remove and rest in a warm place while you make the sauce.

3 Tip in the brandy and set alight to burn off some of the alcohol then add the stock and reduce by half. Finally stir in the cream and pepper with a little salt and stir until smooth. Plate up with a bit of watercress, should you wish, and eat. 

I don't go baking

After chatting with a friend this week I became aware that although the name of my blog suggests I will regale you with tales of my baking, thus far, I have not delivered. So the theme this week was an obvious one- I’d better bake something. While I love cooking, and am well aware of the current trend for baking, I wont lie, cakes aren’t exactly top of my to do list. I think it’s mainly because I don’t really like eating them. I’m selfish like that. I will always choose a starter over a pudding and reach for crisps, not chocolate, in a moment of hunger. Salt wins over sugar every time in my opinion. Good news for anyone sharing a dessert with me, it’s pretty likely you’ll get the lions share. I do however, always make a cake for Birthdays, If you know me, and it’s that time of year, then you’re probably getting a cake.

Secondly, I hate the mess. Now, anyone who knows me or indeed has seen me in the kitchen will tell you I’m not the tidiest of cooks. I feel it’s largely due to my clumsy nature. Being clumsy with a bag of onions, not such a problem, but when you chuck flour, eggs and soft butter into the mix….then, we have a problem. I not only cover myself in cake mixture, but everything I touch. I’m like the opposite of King Midas. There are always so many bowls to wash up after too, it’s quite a commitment…and a massive turn off.

So what to bake? - I suddenly had writers, and bakers block. Maybe I could just change the name of the blog? I don’t go baking…but I wasn’t sure it had quite the same ring to it…

Then it hit me, BREAD, that was baking! I not only love eating bread, but love making it too. I think the thrill of seeing something come from relatively nothing coupled with the smell of freshly baked bread should be enough to put a smile on anyone’s face. There would still be the mess, I had to accept this, but at least I could enjoy the fruits of my labor post clean up. Having said that, I still felt like I was copping out a bit, so I decided on a sweet creation, maple pecan and cinnamon swirls. These are what the love child, from an illicit affair between a Chelsea bun and a pecan Danish, would look like. I may not like cakes, but I could happily eat these all day long.

If you’ve annoyed anyone this week I really would urge you to knock up a batch of these this weekend, instant forgiveness - I promise you.

Maple pecan and cinnamon swirls

Makes about 14 small buns

For the dough:

450g strong white flour

50g soft brown sugar

14g fast action yeast

150ml warm milk

50ml warm water

50g melted butter

1 tsp almond essence

1 egg

For the filling

50g soft butter

50g soft brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla paste (with seeds)

50g pecans, roughly chopped

For the topping

5 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp almond extract

a few pecans, roughly chopped

100g icing sugar mixed with a splash of water to form a runny icing

1 Mix tall the dough ingredients in a large bowl or food processor fitted with a dough hook, knead for 10 minutes by hand or about 6 in a machine, until the dough is smooth. Shape into a ball and leave to rise for about 2 hours, or until doubled in size.

2 Push back into the bowl with your fist then on a lighly floured sheet of baking parchment roll out to a long thin rectangle, about 50cm long. Mix all the filling ingredients, apart from the pecans, together, spread this onto the dough. Scatter with the pecans. Roll up from the widest end, so you have a really long swiss roll type creation. Use a little water to help it stick the dough together if you need to. Cut into about 14 slices. Arrange cut side up in two well oiled round cake tins.

3 Cover with oiled cling film and leave in a warm place until doubled in size, about an hour. Cook at 200C for about 16 mins, until golden and hollow sounding when tapped on the base. Cool on a wire rack.

4 Gentle warm the syrup and almond extract then brush onto the buns. Scatter with pecans and drizzle with the icing. Eat.

Get your Breville out

Things are better toasted. This is a fact. A panini press, an old school Breville sandwich toaster or even a pan topped with another pan can make the humble cheese sandwich into the stuff of dreams. Hell, I'd toast myself if I could.

For as far back as I can remember I have loved the toastie. My first memories of the wondrous thing were at a department store in my home town of Canterbury. It was called Perrins (I think) they had a café, and my brother and I could be bribed into a peaceful day of shopping with the promise of a toasted lunch. They were always perfectly cooked; strings of melted cheese hung from the inside (and your mouth) after each bite, the bread was golden brown and crisp on the outside with that strange crispy, bread crust border that can only be achieved with a sandwich toaster. It came with a simple side salad of cucumber and cress that seemed to work wonders with the richness of the toastie. I wept when that place closed down, well until my eldest brother bought his well-worn Breville back from university that summer. Happy days ensued.

The versatility of the toasted sandwich can prompt some great conversations; it always unearths some really strange combinations. I’ll admit I’m not always convinced on some of them (banana, bacon and peanut butter anyone?) I’m more of a fan of the classics- you can’t beat a good old ham and cheese toastie, especially if there is a nice bowl of homemade tomato soup on the side. I like to dunk. In the US they’re great at this, to be fair it’s called a grilled cheese sandwich, but it usually comes with tomato soup and it’s always amazing. Perfect lunch.

So, here's my gripe. Badly toasted products. I'll happily eat a cheese sarnie, should the mood take me. I will not however happily eat a cold in the middle, under melted, half-hearted offering. There is something about half warm half cold cheese that I just don’t trust. The texture in a bite of the un-melted next to the melted- Just. Not. Good. It's also totally unnecessary, anyone can get a toasted sandwich right, it’s hardly rocket science.

The worst offender from the lazy toasters came recently. Was I hungover? Yes. Was I at a train station? Yes. Did I have access to toasted goods? Yes. I won't name names, the Mother has taught me better, but it ended up in the bin on the high-speed train quicker than that bad boy goes. Which is pretty quick. I hate to waste food but this really went beyond my lowest expectation. The solution is so simple, just leave it in longer, I would have been happy to wait.

Why not get your Breville out this week and have a go, it’s sure to bring back happy memories or at the very least, a happy lunch. Here’s the recipe for my take on the ultimate toastie. The beauty of this is you can chuck in whatever takes your fancy, or is in the fridge. Just make sure if you use sliced tomato, don’t let it anywhere near the bread…you have been warned.

My A,B&C toastie  (Avocado, bacon & cheese)

Makes 1 Takes 20 minutes

2 big slices good white bread, I used sourdough (you need to pick a squareish variety if using a Breville style machine)

knob garlic butter

a good handful of grated melting cheese, use Monterey jack, cheddar, Gruyère, mozzarella, or a mixture of all of them.

3-4 slices grilled back bacon or thick ham

thinly sliced red onion

1 small really ripe avocado, sliced

lime juice, fresh coriander (optional)

1 Thinly spread both sides of each piece of bread with the garlic butter and lay side by side on a board. Season the inside with ground black pepper. Divide the cheese between the two. Keeping it closest to the bread will help it melt nicely. Top one with the bacon or ham, then the avocado, season it with some salt and pepper and a squeeze of lime and a little fresh coriander if you have any kicking around. Top with the red onion.

2 Carefully place the cheese-topped slice on top and press down well to seal. Poke back any stray cheese into the sandwich. Cook in a sandwich toaster or panini press until golden, crisp and melted. If the cheese hasn’t melted and your outside is as brown as you would like wrap in foil and pop in a warm oven for a few mins, also a good technique if you’re making a few and want them to stay warm.

3 If you don’t have a gadget heat a non- stick frying pan to medium/hot, pop the sandwich in and using another heavy pan press down cook until golden and then repeat with the other side. Eat.