Life in lockdown

[sonnetpete]

Could you possibly offer a translation? Not sure if the restaurant is owned by Stallone or a cartoon cat.

Actually the restaurant is run by a really charming young French couple. Here goes with the translation...

Veal with Sea Urchin
Scallops with coconut and lemon
Smoked Cod with celery and oats
Goose breast with a blackcurrant jelly and parsley
Spiced cheese with chestnut honey
Lonlay Abbey beer with pear and ginger
Clementine orange with pumpkin and 'pollen'

That's a very literal translation BTW. The cheese with honey was our least favourite even though Pont l'Eveque is a lovely Normandy cheese. I can't remember getting a glass of beer with my pear and ginger either, it must have been some form of coulis.

 

[Archive-10]

Actually the restaurant is run by a really charming young French couple. Here goes with the translation...

Veal with Sea Urchin
Scallops with coconut and lemon
Smoked Cod with celery and oats
Goose breast with a blackcurrant jelly and parsley
Spiced cheese with chestnut honey
Lonlay Abbey beer with pear and ginger
Clementine orange with pumpkin and 'pollen'

That's a very literal translation BTW. The cheese with honey was our least favourite even though Pont l'Eveque is a lovely Normandy cheese. I can't remember getting a glass of beer with my pear and ginger either, it must have been some form of coulis.

That does sound rather good, although not too sure about the pollen. Do they do a similar menu every day or was that a special for New Year?
Regarding the beer, doubt you would easily forget an abbey beer, so must have been hidden in the pears!

 

[Archive-10]

Well, enough of food for now, well about three lines of text!
More clarity about the " new normal " as they are calling it here. As of Monday 11th, should the numbers allow it, we go from phase0 to phase1.
Phase1 allows more than one person in the car, some shops will open as well as bars and restaurants with a terrace. Social distancing rules have to be observed so I figure I´ll give the hardware store a miss on day one, couldn´t be bothered with the queue. More important is the fact that groups of up to 10 will be permitted as long as they conform with the distance rule. This can happen in a bar / restaurant ALSO PERMITTED IN YOUR OWN HOME! This means you can have friends and / or family round without getting a fine. A small slice of normality. Cannot wait for the 11th, may even light the BBQ or make a large paella on the gas ring outside.

OK, back to food. The last roast for some time, getting far too hot for a roast, about 30c today. Not bothering to show the chicken in the oven, etc, but will show the finished article with the shire pudding. Did not say Yorkshire pudding because I come from Hampshire and their just as good!


The secret to today´s delight was the stuffing balls. Home made with breadcrumbs, sage, onion, egg, pork sausage meat and roast chestnuts! Absolutely fantastic, and some left for tomorrow!

 

[sonnetpete]

That does sound rather good, although not too sure about the pollen. Do they do a similar menu every day or was that a special for New Year?
Regarding the beer, doubt you would easily forget an abbey beer, so must have been hidden in the pears!

The pollen was a dusting of something, obviously not very memorable LOL. That was a special menu for New Years Eve and it's the third one we've spent there. They begin service about 8:30, by the time Midnight comes along we are usually between first and second dessert and we get home about 1:30am. The village lights go off at midnight, not just the Xmas lights but the street lights as well. Having been caught out the first year, we make sure we take a torch with us so we can find the car afterwards.....nothing to do with how much drink has been consumed either, I'm strictly on fruit juice...

 

[Archive-10]

Well, the rules they are a changing!
As of 11th May, next Monday, all areas in phase 1 are allowed 50% occupancy on the terrace, rather than the 30% originally specified. Obviously the 2m rules still apply. OK for places with a big terrace, but no good for premises with limited space.
But on the whole another step forward.
The Gov in charge is asking for support to the extension of alarm for another two weeks, however the biggest opposition party has stated " NO ". Time for a Spanish, rather than Mexican, standoff.
Will have to wait and see what the next two or three days decide.

Now, what to do with left over roast chicken. Cold with salad? Warm with Poop? Oh NO!

Decent sized frying pan, olive oil and chuck in loads of sliced mushrooms and ground black pepper. Then throw in some whole black pepper corns and wait until the mushrooms are well browned. Add cooking cream and allow to reduce. Then turn it off while you peel some spuds and cut them up into course chips. Put the fryer on!
Back to the mushroom and cream mix. Pull apart by hand the leftover chicken and chuck it in. Add uht milt, normal may be OK, but uht is better as will not curdle as fresh might do. Add more milk than you might think, put the heat up and let the fluid reduce by 50%. This ensures everything is piping hot and no germs ( or viruses ) can live in it! Turn it down to low.
Chuck the chips in the fryer and cook until just over golden brown. Chuck in a bowl and pour the mushroom, black pepper, cream and chicken mix over the chips. Should look something like this.....


Enjoy!

 

[sonnetpete]

Methinks your food presentation skills might need brushing up....

 

[Archive-10]

Methinks your food presentation skills might need brushing up....

Forget Gordon Blue and all these drizzels round the plate, one pea here, another two over there, oh yes, and put a carrot in that corner, taste and quantity is what counts!

 

[jeallen01]

Forget Gordon Blue and all these drizzels round the plate, one pea here, another two over there, oh yes, and put a carrot in that corner, taste and quantity is what counts!

"Never mind the presentation, feel the taste (and the quantity)"

 

[Archive-10]

Drizzle me this, drizzle me that, who´s afraid of the full fat cow, pig, lamb or chicken?

Only cat rhymed and I don´t cook those.

 

[sonnetpete]

Forget Gordon Blue and all these drizzels round the plate, one pea here, another two over there, oh yes, and put a carrot in that corner, taste and quantity is what counts!

I think you're confusing 'nouvelle cuisine' (which kind of faded away a while back) with good presentation. Have a look at these taken at the New Years Eve meal. There were six courses, plus appetisers and petit fours with our coffee, so there was no way we left hungry.

 

[Lazarus]

Forget Gordon Blue and all these drizzels round the plate, one pea here, another two over there, oh yes, and put a carrot in that corner, taste and quantity is what counts!

Yep. Quantity over ponciness everytime - a no brianer.

 

[Archive-10]

I think you're confusing 'nouvelle cuisine' (which kind of faded away a while back) with good presentation. Have a look at these taken at the New Years Eve meal. There were six courses, plus appetisers and petit fours with our coffee, so there was no way we left hungry.

View attachment 130256View attachment 130257View attachment 130258View attachment 130259View attachment 130260View attachment 130261

I do agree that there is a time and place for the arty farty dishes and they do look great, probably taste as good as they look. When you´re spending your 100€ per head in a swanky joint for your New Years Eve meal you expect such. That said unless there were a couple of bowls of veg and some sauce ( Poop ) I would have left hungry.
Regarding my presentation, it was a one course, one pan meal. Well, two if you count the fryer!

As you can see, cooked on the outside mobile gas hob. I do take your point that I could have removed each piece of chicken using tongs and placed them on the chips, then arranged the mushrooms in a nice pattern using a different pair of tongs of course. Then drizzled the sauce in a wavy line and done a loop of the bowl to finish.
By which time of course it would be cold!

I´ll try and improve with tonight´s individual toad in the hole!

 

[sonnetpete]

Obviously, we don't bother doing fancy arrangements on the plate when we cook for ourselves. It would have been difficult to present yesterdays leek and potato soup artfully on a plate for instance. We didn't pay over the top with our New Years meal either. I think it was closer to €60 each plus drinks. However, if you do go to a 'fancy' place for a meal, I'd expect them to make some effort to decorate the plate tidily and present it properly. Anyway, we enjoyed our fish and chips today....and no, there wasn't a chip in each corner..

 

[Archive-10]

Obviously, we don't bother doing fancy arrangements on the plate when we cook for ourselves. It would have been difficult to present yesterdays leek and potato soup artfully on a plate for instance. We didn't pay over the top with our New Years meal either. I think it was closer to €60 each plus drinks. However, if you do go to a 'fancy' place for a meal, I'd expect them to make some effort to decorate the plate tidily and present it properly. Anyway, we enjoyed our fish and chips today....and no, there wasn't a chip in each corner..

I totally agree with you. The soup runs off the plate far too easily, I always find a bowl a much better option. I´m glad there were more than four chips, and hopefully none on the shoulder! Also, any mushy peas?

 

[Lazarus]

I totally agree with you. The soup runs off the plate far too easily, I always find a bowl a much better option. I´m glad there were more than four chips, and hopefully none on the shoulder! Also, any mushy peas?

A man in my own image ......... Soup In A Basket!

 

[sonnetpete]

SWMBO doesn't care for mushy peas, preferring tartare sauce. Since we have no peas (mushed or unmushed) or indeed the ingredients for tartare sauce, she made do with a salad (please don't blame her, she was born in London) to accompany her fish and chips. I had nothing with them LOL. The meal comes frozen, in a cardboard box and we bung it in the halogen, not the box but it's contents....obviously it was my turn to cook...and wash up..

 

[Archive-10]

SWMBO doesn't care for mushy peas, preferring tartare sauce. Since we have no peas (mushed or unmushed) or indeed the ingredients for tartare sauce, she made do with a salad (please don't blame her, she was born in London) to accompany her fish and chips. I had nothing with them LOL. The meal comes frozen, in a cardboard box and we bung it in the halogen, not the box but it's contents....obviously it was my turn to cook...and wash up..

Good way to cut down on the washing up! Perhaps you could have made SWMBO some tartare sauce, relatively simple and you cannot burn yourself with this version!

Quick tartare sauce recipe

A must-have for fish and chips, fishcakes and a fish finger sandwich, tartare sauce is a cinch to knock up.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Archive-10]

Not too much happening in relation to lockdown today, other than the spats between political parties. It´s actually staring to sound like a Christmas panto, oh no it isn´t, oh yes it is! Well until something more concrete happens with the vote for the extension of the state of alarm tomorrow, just have to wait and see. On a slightly more positive note, the daily figures for new cases and deaths are still looking positive. Under 200 deaths in the last 24 hours, much lower than it has been, still 200 too many.

And so to tonight´s gastronomic delights! Toad in the hole again, but following the advice from ?? days ago, individual versions.
Mine

And for the misses

Someone added vegetables, let you decide who!

Then we both added this ( thanks Lazarus )

Mine looked like this!


End result was the same


No need for pudding tonight!

 

[Archive-10]

Well, the gov managed to get support for the continuation of the state of alarm. A close call as support for the continuation is dropping. I´m glad it was supported as if there were no rules as of next Monday I hate to think what would happen.
So de-escalation should start in a lot of Spain as of Monday ( a couple of the Islands have already started phase 1 ). Phase 1 allows the opening of most shops, but not shopping centres, restaurants, bars etc. Restaurants and bars with a terrace only, max 50% occupation but ensuring the 2m distancing rule. Some areas have stated they are not ready to start phase1 due to continued high contagion rates and lack of ICU capacity at this time. Some parts of Madrid, Catalonia and Castilla La Mancha. Not seen anything from Valencia yet, but the figures in Valencia look pretty good, so need to see if Valencia will apply to go to phase1 in it´s entirety or only certain areas. Hope to find out tomorrow.

So what´s to eat?

In my short distance travels managed to acquire a new out door paella pan, so am able to use the proper gas ring and stand which I have.
A good use for the chicken stock I´ve built up over the last two roasts, so no need to use ready made caldo or water.
Did not make the same mistake twice and ensured I had fresh tomatoes rather than the tinned stuff.

First, colour, or seal the chicken lumps ( two large breasts )

Then flash fry the tomatoes in olive oil

Then " toast " the rice in the remaining olive oil.

Now in the paella pan put the chicken, tomatoes, green beans, red ( or kidney ) beans, garlic ( essential ), saffron or paella mix, the bits of the red pepper you cannot slice nicely and 2 litres of chicken stock. Bring to the boil and give it about 5 mins to get the green beans cooking.

After the five to ten mins, sprinkle in the rice ensuring even distribution around the pan. Then top the dish with sliced roast peppers.
Cook on a high heat until the fluid is absorbed and only the bubbles can be seen on the top, reduce to low heat and continue cooking for about another 10 - 15 mins. Never stir the paella once the rice is in and never add extra water or stock! If the bottom burns slightly, don´t worry it tastes lovely and adds a crispiness to the dish!
Hopefully you will end up with something like this...


This is a mixture of the Valencian and Murcia variation of paella. In Murcia they don´t always add the beans, in Valencia they don´t toast the rice.
I have found I like the mixture of the two.
Enjoy!

 

[Lazarus]

Isn't Rabbit a common element of Valencian Paella?

BTW I don't like Paella Mix Seasoning - tends to contain Turmeric instead of Saffron. Decent colour, odd taste. Pah!