All I am saaaaying, is give peas a chance...
I love peas. I could eat peas every day. In fact, there was a time last year when I was sneaking them into every dish ... pasta, frittatas, mash, salads, mashed as a dip ... eventually The Editor was forced to stage a veg-tervention (vegetable intervention) and I toned it down. Today there were peas on the menu! Hooray! And the 35 uninterrupted minutes (seriously) I spent shelling an entire two pounds of these little green beauties were bliss. Its such a peaceful exercise - around me the chaos of the kitchen, and I just stood there, popping tiny green globes from their snuggly pods. Such bliss.
And then I got completely distracted and overcooked them, but hey, just let me have my lovely tranquil pea-popping memories, ok? And I was distracted for a good cause - I was poaching a gorgeous piece of wind salmon and making an accompanying hollandaise sauce. The salmon arrived whole to the kitchen, but didn't stay that way for long. About six students stood by as the teacher explained how to behead, gut and clean it, and then asked for volunteers. Most people do not delight in gutting a fish, but me and one of my new friends could hardly wait. It is one of those tasks which is disgusting, yet highly satisfying (gross, but cool). As a child I loved any activities which involved making a mess - finger-painting was a favourite. I think gutting a fish is the grown-up equivalent. Brightly coloured mess everywhere and lots of washing up. The Hollandaise was a cinch - it's like my beloved Béarnaise, but more delicate and it made the perfect accompaniment to the rich salmon. My teacher loved it, and then so did the Editor, who popped by for lunch. (Great big yep - Ed).
I also made flaky pastry (a very time consuming exercise ... I am hoping it was worth it when I finally get to cook with it on Friday) and Apple and clove jelly (as in jam, not Aeroplane). I do not come from a culture of flavoured jellies and I am not sure what their purpose is but I am now the proud owner of two jars. I shall report on the uses I find for them over the coming weeks.
Today we learned how to cook: Mimosa salad (this does not involve alcohol as I had thought - it is a lovely salad sprinkled with finely sieved egg yolks which resembles the blooms of the mimosa tree), Spring garden salad with blue cheese dressing, Parmesan crisps, Italian beef stew, Beek and oxtail stew, Beef steak and kidney pie, Steak and oyster pie, Polenta, Colcannon, Potato parsnip and parsley colcannon, Rumbledethumps (it's just mash with cream and cabbage, but what a fantastic name for a dish!), Yoghurt and cardamon cream, Green gooseberry and elderflower compote, Sugared strawberries, Passionfruit and mango compote, White chocolate mousse with fresh strawberry sauce, and Ciabatta.
The Editor and I have two friends visiting from Dublin and I have just stuffed everyone with spanakopita (its culinary cocaine ... I cannot stop making it!), lamb chops, Greek salad, baby potatoes with lemon mustard dressing AND orange butter crepes with whipped cream. I think I need to go and lie down for a while...
I love peas. I could eat peas every day. In fact, there was a time last year when I was sneaking them into every dish ... pasta, frittatas, mash, salads, mashed as a dip ... eventually The Editor was forced to stage a veg-tervention (vegetable intervention) and I toned it down. Today there were peas on the menu! Hooray! And the 35 uninterrupted minutes (seriously) I spent shelling an entire two pounds of these little green beauties were bliss. Its such a peaceful exercise - around me the chaos of the kitchen, and I just stood there, popping tiny green globes from their snuggly pods. Such bliss.
And then I got completely distracted and overcooked them, but hey, just let me have my lovely tranquil pea-popping memories, ok? And I was distracted for a good cause - I was poaching a gorgeous piece of wind salmon and making an accompanying hollandaise sauce. The salmon arrived whole to the kitchen, but didn't stay that way for long. About six students stood by as the teacher explained how to behead, gut and clean it, and then asked for volunteers. Most people do not delight in gutting a fish, but me and one of my new friends could hardly wait. It is one of those tasks which is disgusting, yet highly satisfying (gross, but cool). As a child I loved any activities which involved making a mess - finger-painting was a favourite. I think gutting a fish is the grown-up equivalent. Brightly coloured mess everywhere and lots of washing up. The Hollandaise was a cinch - it's like my beloved Béarnaise, but more delicate and it made the perfect accompaniment to the rich salmon. My teacher loved it, and then so did the Editor, who popped by for lunch. (Great big yep - Ed).
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| Bert, the wild salmon (I am obsessed with naming things, in case you hadn't realised) |
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| The Editor's lunch |
Today we learned how to cook: Mimosa salad (this does not involve alcohol as I had thought - it is a lovely salad sprinkled with finely sieved egg yolks which resembles the blooms of the mimosa tree), Spring garden salad with blue cheese dressing, Parmesan crisps, Italian beef stew, Beek and oxtail stew, Beef steak and kidney pie, Steak and oyster pie, Polenta, Colcannon, Potato parsnip and parsley colcannon, Rumbledethumps (it's just mash with cream and cabbage, but what a fantastic name for a dish!), Yoghurt and cardamon cream, Green gooseberry and elderflower compote, Sugared strawberries, Passionfruit and mango compote, White chocolate mousse with fresh strawberry sauce, and Ciabatta.
The Editor and I have two friends visiting from Dublin and I have just stuffed everyone with spanakopita (its culinary cocaine ... I cannot stop making it!), lamb chops, Greek salad, baby potatoes with lemon mustard dressing AND orange butter crepes with whipped cream. I think I need to go and lie down for a while...
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