Dame Starry

Oh dear, I make them too......

DS x.

The Christmas countdown has begun - don't leave it all until the last minute!

EHV_Emmetts

My Grandmother used to make bread and butter pudding, which in itself was delicious, but she always sprinkled sugar over it, this mean I couldn't eat any. So she would always make mine without the sugar on top - YUM-YUM.

Chevyman

Useful website for anyone seeking guidance on seasonal food:-

eat the seasons | seasonal food

"One appears to have dropped one's monocle in the soufflee"

Why not visit the Festive Fayre section?

Chevyman

DEVILLED CHICKEN LIVERS



Serves two

Ingredients

250g chicken livers
Flour for dusting
25g butter/margarine plus extra for spreading
2tbsp olive oil
2tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Tabasco Sauce
4 thick slices rustic bread

Method


Pick over the livers, discarding sinew and any green or blemished bits. Pat them dry and then dust with flour seasoned with pepper and salt.

Shake off any excess flour.

Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan and fry the livers in batches, browning them quickly but allowing to remain pink yet tender inside.

Return all the livers to the pan, add the balsamic vinegar and Tabasco Sauce.

Put on your toast.

Quickly stir as the vinegar bubbles up into the livers while the bread is toasting.

Butter the toast and pour the livers and their juices on.

"One appears to have dropped one's monocle in the soufflee"

Why not visit the Festive Fayre section?

Gazza

I'll try that one!

There's a similar recipe for calf's liver and balsamic in the blue River Café book, it's excellent.

Chevyman

I've got one for Indian grilled liver somewhere. I must dig it out and put it on here.

"One appears to have dropped one's monocle in the soufflee"

Why not visit the Festive Fayre section?

Dame Starry

I only really like lamb's liver braised with bacon and onions.........I tried calves' liver once because James Martin said it was the best - but I can't say I was very impressed.
He's not always clever - when I asked him about seasoning home-made sausages, he didn't know. Mind you, it's nice to know he doesn't know everything I suppose!

Yesterday, I made 14 x quarter-pounder burgers (plus a little one with the left-overs) and a dozen pork sausages - well, eleven and a half really - for the freezer.

Bad news this morning - my new cooker has sold out AGAIN and I have to wait for it to come back in stock yet again............thank goodness I'm blessed with a lot of patience and a strong belief in fate!

DS x.

MB

I only just read that it burnt down this year and they are rebuilding. Apparantly both Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver trained there - possibly the basis for their current approach. These are the women responsible -
Here's an article about them:

Emine Saner talks to the River Cafe's Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray | Life and style | The Guardian

Chevyman

Drooool I love that too.

Bad news on the cooker. Hope you get sorted soon

"One appears to have dropped one's monocle in the soufflee"

Why not visit the Festive Fayre section?

Chevyman

I am sad to read this. Those two ladies ran a fine establishment. They put everything into it and, through training as you point out, gave a lot back to the industry

"One appears to have dropped one's monocle in the soufflee"

Why not visit the Festive Fayre section?

Gazza

My, the River Café fire totally passed me by! I was there a couple of years ago and it's a fine place indeed.

The blue book has certainly influenced the way I cook, particularly in the approach to cooking Italian sauce bases.

I specify the blue book because the yellow one pre-supposes you have a wood-burning stove which is a bit daft.

EHV_Emmetts

I bought some of those Quorn burgers and sausages. The problem is that they take ages to grill. The grill on my oven is at maximum level, so much so that I can only hold the grill tray whilst wearing oven gloves, and they've been under it for 10-15 minutes each side - and they STILL aren't cooked.

Dame Starry

First: have you put any oil on them?

According to the instructions, they shouldn't take long to cook at all!

Having never used Quorn, I wouldn't know what to expect. If you haven't put oil on them, then they might not brown under the grill.

DS x.

EHV_Emmetts

No, I haven't put any oil on them. Oops, that's probably the reason then.

Thanks Dame Starry.

(Typing this with burnt fingers - )

Dame Starry

Meat will brown under the grill because it has natural fats and/or sugars in it. Quorn is a fungus which, IIRC, is about 98% water - so you'll just dry it out.
If you oil it - it will help protect the Quorn from drying out and also make it go brown.

Your bangers were probably cooked, but just not brown.

(Cold running water for burns!)

DS x.