Glaswegian Advent Calendar

Glaswegian Advent Calendar

Butterbean Gratin

350g Butter Beans (if dried, soak overnight)
1 onion chopped
2 cloves
1 celery stalk chopped
2 carrots chopped
1 bay leaf
1L water
bunch chopped parsley
75g butter
1 tbsp plain flour
300ml milk
125g grated cheese
100g breadcrumbs

Put water, beans, onion, cloves, celery, carrot and bay leaf in pan and bring to the boil. Cover & simmer for 1 hour 15 mins.

In small pan, melt butter & take off heat. Stir in flour then milk & thicken over low heat. Add half the cheese, all parsley. Season slightly.

Drain the beans and combine with sauce in a large ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and remaining cheese, season and place in hot oven (200C) for 15 mins until browned.

(recipe from back of Asda butterbean packet!)

Easy White Bread Recipe

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/sep/10/bake-your-own-bread

"Dan Lepard's failsafe white bread recipe

You can conjure an impressive loaf with little effort and barely any kneading. Toss in up to 200g of cubed cheddar, crispy bacon, or well-drained pitted olives and some chopped herbs and you will have one of those "wow" breads you see in magazines.
Takes three or four hours.

400g strong white flour, plus more for shaping
1 tsp dry instant yeast, from a sachet
1 tsp fine salt
300ml warm water
oil for kneading

Put the flour, yeast and salt in a bowl, pour in the water (and add any optional extras) then stir into a sticky mass. Cover the bowl with a cloth and leave for 10 minutes. Lightly oil your worktop and hands. Knead the dough for 10 seconds and return it to the bowl. Repeat twice more at 10-minute intervals, then leave in the bowl for 45 minutes. Wipe the worktop, dust it with flour then pat the dough into a rough oblong. Roll it up tightly, pinch each end to keep it neat then place seam-side down on a floured tray. Cover with a cloth and leave for 45 minutes or until the dough has expanded by a half. Flour the top of the dough, cut a slash down the middle and bake at 220°C/fan 200°C/425°F/gas 7 for 35-40 minutes."

Cheese Review - Danish Blue

Very tangy Blue cheese. I found it heftier than Roquefort, despite it being supposedly milder.

8/10

Cheese Review - Ossau-Iraty

Very nice, mellow, sheepy-cheese. Like some Swiss ones I've tried but creamier and actually has some flavour!

8/10

Cheese Review - 2

St Agur
A blue cheese, so a lot like the other blueys. Aged in cellars rather than caves.

As it says here, is creamier & milder than Stilton, and less salty than Roquefort.

Veggie Shepherd's Pie

adapted from
http://www.veggiefoodguide.co.uk/in/show.php?id=12

Ingredients:

3-5 medium size potatoes
1 small onion
2 small cloves of garlic
5-6 medium sized mushrooms [note: works fine without em]
Half a small packet of quorn mince (or substitute)
1 tin tomatoes
2 veggie stock cubes
Dessert spoon light soy sauce.
Tablespoon olive oil
Pepper to taste
Tsp nutmeg
Tsp paprika
Enough med/strong grated cheddar to cover top of mash
Margerine

Chop onions and saute in oil with crushed garlic on low heat.

Peel potatoes and chop into smallish pieces.

When onions transparent add quorn and lightly fry until lightly browned. Alternatively, and the way I did it, simmer the frozen quorn mince in vegetable stock for the recommended cooking time first and skip the frying of it - then add it into the mix after the line ending 'paprika' below.

Boil kettle for water for potatoes

Add tomatoes, mushrooms and stock cubes.

Stir in pepper, soy sauce, nutmeg, paprika.

Simmer on low heat, adding water if needed.

Put potatoes in pan with water and boil on medium heat until soft enough to mash.

Mash potatoes with marge and seasoning. Add blob of mustard if you want.

Fill an oven dish (enough for two/three) with mince to halfway. Cover with mash. Cover with cheese and cook in oven on Gas mark 5/6 or 190% until cheese browned.

Cheese Review - pt 1

Roquefort - 9/10
Like an oily salty stilton. Aged in caves. Unsettling texture (bat shit?) but spreadable. Very nice.

Bleu D'Auvergne - 9/10
Another bluey, very close to stilton, but milder.

Demi Pont L'eveque - 4/10
One of those gooey French creamy cheeses that smell a bit sweaty. Half of this is rind, which I'm not sure you can eat so went in the bin. Not massively unpleasant but boring processed dairylea tastes better.

Totem Tomatoes

http://www.garden4less.co.uk/proddetail.asp?prod=xTM269
These produce loads of tomatoes in a small space.

Marrow and Roasted Garlic Soup

from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/3292157/Readersrecipes-marrow.html

• 1 large head of garlic
• 4 fl oz/110ml olive oil
• 1 marrow (mine weighed about 3lb/1.5kg)
• 2oz/60g butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1.5 pints/850ml chicken stock (ideally homemade, otherwise half-strength stock cube)
• Salt and pepper
• 5 fl oz/140ml single cream
• snipped chives (optional)

Heat the oven to 400F/200C/Gas mark 6.

Break the garlic into cloves, leaving on the skins. Put the oil in an ovenproof dish and turn the garlic cloves in it until they are coated. It may seem a lot of oil, but any less and you risk burning the garlic. Roast for 15 minutes. [note: They were a bit overdone when I did this, maybe try 12 mins] Cool slightly, then press out the pulp and mash it. Discard the skin and any hard or coloured bits of garlic. If one or two cloves burst in the oven, they will have to be thrown away, too, unless you can salvage the soft, creamy white part. Strain the oil and use it for other cooking.

While the garlic is cooking, peel, deseed and chop the marrow. Melt the butter in a large saucepan and soften the onion without letting it brown. Add the marrow, stock, garlic pulp, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer gently until the marrow is soft. Cool, liquidise until smooth and sieve. Reheat gently, without boiling, and stir in the cream [Note: Don't overdo it! + if freezing any, do before adding cream]. Scatter on a few chives before serving if you like.

Jolokia comparison

Jolokia chilli comparison

Easy Courgette Recipe

From www.twowests.co.uk/weblog/archives/2006/07/growing_courget.html

"What you do with large courgettes is you cut them lengthwise in half, scrape out the seed and seed fiber with a spoon. Then you get some tomatoes and onions or salsa, or precooked rice, or anything you like cept peanut butter and you stuff the hollwed out inside of your courgette. Then you add olive oil or butter if you insist to your stuffing as a drizzle and then you put the other half back on top and bake at about 375F for about 45 minutes or until its done. Its done when poking it with a fork is really easy. You have enough courgette to feed about 4 people if its 12 inches long and you stuffed it astutely so what you do is ask some friends over who like wine and tell them to bring something you have never tasted before. You then drink wine and have supper and drink more wine. A proper ale is okay too but it is illegal to have stuffed courgette with an american brand of beer."

Big Fish, Little Fish, Cardboard Box

...is a dance to this tune

Used a lot at UK holiday camps (eg. Haven, Park Resorts).
Quite surreal when you've had a few drinks.

This is how you do the first part of the dance - link
Here's Bob the Builder's version - lyrics altered though (shame!)

60s dance crazes illustrated

http://www.sixtiescity.com/Culture/dance.shtm

Arthur Worsley - Ventriloquist

Arthur Worsley - Ventriloquist act - via WFMU

Veg soup recipe

Veg soup recipe

Makes 4-6 bowls

* Splash of Olive Oil

* 1 Onion, finely chopped

* 1 garlic clove, finely chopped

* 1 celery stick and/or carrot, chopped

* 1kg vegetables (cooked or uncooked), chopped

* about 1.5L vegetable stock or water

* salt and pepper

- Heat oil in a large pan, add the Onion, garlic and celery and/or carrot and cook gently, covered, for 5 to 7 minutes

- Add the vegetables, stir around and cook for five minutes. Add enough stock Or water just to cover, plus some salt and pepper then simmer gently for 10 minutes, if using cooked vegetables, or about 20 minutes for raw vegetables.

- Allow the soup to cool a little and then blitz to a creamy smoothness with a hand-held blender or in a liquidiser. Adjust the seasoning. Reheat in a clean saucepan to serve.

Chilli Notes

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080211185645AAApyCz

http://www.chillies-down-under.com/pickling-chillies.html

saving chili seeds

http://www.g6csy.net/chile/growing.html

http://www.canningpantry.com/pickling-chili-peppers.html

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070509043514AAlTlqa

Belle Isle Middle School being pulled down

http://www.leodis.net/display.aspx?resourceIdentifier=20081016_167554&DISPLAY=FULL

http://www.leodis.net/display.aspx?resourceIdentifier=20081016_167556&DISPLAY=FULL

http://www.leodis.net/display.aspx?resourceIdentifier=20081016_167559&DISPLAY=FULL

ARMCHAIR THRILLER

ARMCHAIR THRILLER

Gordon Ramsey's Brussel Sprouts

http://www.channel4.com/food/on-tv/cookalong-live/cookalong-live-the-series/week-7/how-to-cook-brussels-sprouts_p_1.html

First make sure you prepare the sprouts properly by trimming the base and removing any grubby outside leaves

Next chop them in half, this makes them prettier to serve and quicker to cook.

Cook the sprouts for 2 minutes in a pan of boiling salted water, lid on. By keeping their time in the water relatively brief, it prevents the sprouts becoming too waterlogged and also preserves their colour.

Make sure you drain the sprouts thoroughly. It’s important to get rid of any excess water so you can sauté the sprouts properly and pick up a bit of colour in the pan.

Drizzle them with olive oil and season with a little salt and pepper.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and when up to temperature tip in the sprouts.

Crush in the garlic and toss to spread evenly through the pan.

Add the butter and cook for 2 - 3 minutes. Letting the butter brown lightly adds a nice, nutty flavour.

Scatter in the flaked almonds and allow them to toast lightly.

Squeeze over a little lemon juice and serve.

CAN Cannibalism

CAN Cannibalism

Mussolini and On Time Trains

snopes.com: Mussolini and On Time Trains

Alexei Sayle Pirate Video

This is from The Alexei Sayle Pirate Video (Springtime, 1982)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=-XL9rGtZ8Uo

Remember getting this out on video at the time. Supposed to be rare now.

Scoville Heat Scale

The Scoville Heat Scale for Chilli Peppers and Hot Sauces
or this one which ranks more chillis

The World's Hottest Chilli, and here

Jim Flora :: Galleries :: Record Covers

Jim Flora :: Galleries :: Record Covers

Spooks Biscuits - DoYouRemember.co.uk forums

Spooks Biscuits - DoYouRemember.co.uk forums

House on the Rock - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

House on the Rock - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The life and crimes of the music biz

Simon Napier-Bell on the music industry | OMM | The Observer

Spon's House Improvement Price Book

Spon's House Improvement Price Book

The home improvement price bible

Definitive building contracts

http://www.jctcontracts.com/JCT/contracts/contract_pricing.jsp?familyId=15

Building Contract for a Home Owner/Occupier who has not appointed a consultant to oversee the work.

1970s and 80s 'still life' Christmas Cards

One thing I remember from my youth was the terrible 'still life' christmas cards that were around in the 70s and 80s - the ones where you'd have say a couple of candles in front of a few baubles, or a whiskey glass and cigar on a table in front of a roaring fire.

At the time I thought they were either naff or silly, but I remember them fondly now for some reason.

Anyone remember these, or know of anywhere on the web where there are collections of these? (surely there must be some 'ironic' collection out there?)

Snoopy Pancake Watch

Did this exist, and if so does anyone know where we might be able to find one?

It was a standard Snoopy child's wristwatch, Snoopy was flipping a pancake - the pancake was on one hand and the pan was on the other.

Roast Potatoes with Rosemary

via

Roast Potatoes with Rosemary

Serves 4

Ingredients: 4 Large Baking Potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 teasp Dried Rosemary, crushed
4 tbsp Olive Oil
3 Garlic Cloves, crushed (optional)

Instructions

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Cook for 10 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, Gas mark 6

3. Drain the potato well, return to the pan and add the olive oil, rosemary and crushed garlic (if used). Toss well to coat the potatoes thoroughly.

4. Place the potatoes on a baking tray and roast in for about 40 minutes, turning a couple of times during the cooking period, until golden brown and crispy on the outside.

A little more special to accompany a roast, especially at Christmas or Easter.


---- from elsewhere...

rosemary is lovely when add to your roast potatoes in the last 15 minutes of cooking time.

Roast carrots with thyme

wrap the carrots in tin foil, add butter and loads of thyme and let the flavour infuse

------------

from elsewhere...

I roast chanterey carrots in tin foil with butter, a sprinkling of sugar & a dash of white wine vinegar for about 1 and a half hours. I can assure you, theyre beaut!

Cherry crumble cheesecake

via http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/guides/baking/story/0,,2213424,00.html

" For the sponge cake base

1 large egg, warm or at room temperature

2 level tbsp caster sugar

1 tbsp golden or corn syrup

Zest of ½ lemon

4 level tbsp plain flour

For the cherry base

250g good cherry jam

One tin of black cherries, drained

For the crumble topping

100g plain flour

100g light soft brown sugar

½ level tsp cinnamon

50g unsalted butter

1 tsp milk

For the filling

800g full-fat cream cheese

200g icing sugar, sifted

25g cornflour, sifted

3 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

125ml double cream

Make the sponge cake base first. Line the inside of a 25cm round spring-form tin with a single sheet of buttered foil. Beat the egg and sugar with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Add the syrup and lemon zest and beat until very thick. Sift the flour, then fold this through the whipped egg until evenly combined. Spoon into the tin, spreading it evenly and carefully to cover the base thinly, then bake in a preheated 180C (160C fan-assisted) oven for 10-12 minutes until golden and firm.

Cut the tinned cherries in half, removing any stones, press dry on paper towels and stir with the jam. Spread this mixture evenly over the sponge and set aside while you get the crumble topping ready. Put the dry ingredients into a bowl and rub the butter and the tablespoon of milk through until the mixture resembles dry pastry crumbs. Leave at room temperature while you make the filling.

Beat the cream cheese with the icing sugar, cornflour and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs together in another bowl, then slowly beat the eggs into the cream cheese mixture. You don't want to aerate the mixture any more, so stop as soon as the eggs are barely combined. Stir in the cream until it disappears. Spoon the cream cheese mixture into the tin and bake for 20 minutes at 180C (160C fan-assisted).

At this point, open the oven door, pull the cheesecake out a little bit and sprinkle the crumbs over the top, then shut the door and bake for a further 30-40 minutes. At this stage only the very centre should slightly wobble. Remove the cheesecake from the oven, cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for 3-4 hours until firm and chilled. Flip the cheesecake on to a plate, peel off the foil, then upturn the cake on to a clean plate and serve.

"

Butterscotch banana cake

via http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/guides/baking/story/0,,2213421,00.html

"My mate Jason Warwick, a talented baker in Sydney, taught me his way to boost the flavour and colour of banana cake, by simmering all that soft banana flesh in a frying pan bubbling with rich caramel, perfect for this sweet loaf. The cake takes on a sunburnt bronze hue and has a strong banana toffee flavour. Don't limit this to a loaf tin: it works as well as a slab, especially if a few handfuls of chopped blond walnuts are tossed in and stirred through at the end. Don't be stingy with the baking powder; bananas are very alkaline when they are ripe and this is often the cause of a heavy, dense cake.

250g caster sugar

250g banana flesh, chopped into 2cm pieces

1 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tsp vanilla extract

175ml sunflower oil

2 large eggs

150g plain flour

75g spelt, rye or wholemeal flour

2 level tsp mixed spice

2 level tsp baking powder

½ level tsp bicarbonate of soda

50ml plain yoghurt

Butter a 20cm square tin and line the base with non-stick baking paper. Tip 150g of the caster sugar into a frying pan with 25ml water, bring to the boil, then cook over a high heat until the sugar turns to a dark reddish caramel. Add the banana pieces, butter and vanilla, and simmer until the bananas break up in the caramel and the mixture is thick.

Spoon on to a plate and leave to cool. Beat the remaining 100g sugar with the oil and eggs until thick and slightly aerated, then beat in the bananas and the yoghurt. Sift the flours, spice, baking powder and soda together two or three times (throwing the bran back in), then fold this through the banana mixture.

Spoon the mixture into the tin, heat the oven to 180C (160C fan-assisted) and bake for about 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Tried and tested

'Went down really well. Even better the day after baking'

"

Three Ginger Parkin Slab

via http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/guides/baking/story/0,,2213412,00.html

"To make fine oatmeal, I simply place 75g or so of rolled oats in the blender and whiz them together until fine, then repeat until I have enough for the recipe. Alternatively, you can buy fine oatmeal from a health-food store.

You might prefer to replace the plain flour with strong bread flour, as it makes the crumb a little sturdier, less likely to crumble and easier to butter.

Makes one large cake

100g unsalted butter

250g soft dark brown or muscovado sugar

125g golden syrup

125g treacle

150ml dark ale or porter

2cm piece of peeled fresh ginger, finely grated

150g fine oatmeal

2 large eggs

250g plain flour

3 level tsp ground ginger

3 level tsp baking powder

Butter a 20cm square baking tin and line the base with non-stick baking parchment. In a saucepan, heat the butter, sugar, syrup and treacle until the mixture is warm and the butter melted. Remove from the heat, add the ale, fresh ginger and oatmeal, whisk together and leave in the saucepan to cool for 5 minutes.

Next beat in the eggs, one at a time. Sift the flour, ground ginger and baking powder together, then add to the saucepan and stir to combine. Spoon into the tin and leave while you heat the oven to 180C (160C fan-assisted). Bake for 50 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Leave to cool, then top with ginger water icing."

Tumbet recipe

via http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,,1813920,00.html

"Serve just as it is, or with grated cheese, or with some canned, drained chickpeas added just before it's done. Make sure the potato slices are considerably smaller than the other vegetables, so everything will be cooked at the same time. If there's any left over, it's excellent cold, perhaps with a handful of olives thrown in and accompanied by a leafy salad. Serves four.

2 large onions, peeled and cut into chunks

1 large aubergine, cut into chunks

2 large potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1cm cubes

2 red peppers, deseeded and cut into chunks

3 courgettes, cut into chunks

1 bunch parsley, leaves picked and chopped

3 large garlic cloves, chopped

6 tbsp olive oil

425g can chopped tomatoes

Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/gas mark 3. Put the raw vegetables, parsley and garlic into a large shallow casserole dish or roasting tin. Add the oil, tomatoes and seasoning. Stir well to combine, then spread the mixture out so it forms an even-ish layer. Bake, uncovered, for two hours, until the vegetables are tender. Give it a stir after an hour, and cover with foil if it's browning too quickly."

Fixed 4 Free

http://www.fixed4free.com

cucumber-mint raita

via http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/109803

1 large unpeeled English hothouse cucumber, halved, seeded, coarsely grated
2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup (packed) chopped fresh mint
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon plus pinch of cayenne pepper

Wrap grated cucumber in kitchen towel and squeeze dry. Whisk yogurt, mint, cumin, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper in medium bowl to blend. Add cucumbers and toss to coat. Season raita to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.) Sprinkle raita with pinch of cayenne pepper and serve.

Perfect Greek Salad

http://dkn.vox.com/library/post/greek-salad-recipe---by-popular-demand.html

Tomatoes. I highly recommend using medium to large sized tomatoes - The juicier the better!

Bell Peppers

Cucumbers.

Red Onions

Feta Cheese.

Kalamata Olives

The dressing. A traditional Greek salad dressing contains FRESH lemon juice, olive oil, dried oregano flakes, salt and pepper. DO NOT use vinegar to sub for lemons. Greeks out here in the city do that at diners and stuff just because it's easier...I never use their dressing. It just sucks in comparison and you'll have to trust me on that. The best part about the dressing is that you don't have to make it separately. I'll get to that later.

Instructions

The key to the veggies in a Greek salad is CHUNKS. So when cutting, think chunks. You'll see what I mean.

In one big serving bowl:

1. Slice your tomatoes in half across the belly. Remove the seeds. (I just take my knife and loosen the membranes first then stick my fingers in the seed holes to get 'em out.) Once you have removed the seeds, rinse the tomato again and cut it into bite-sized chunks, anyway you like it.

2. Slice your bell peppers across the belly to remove the seeds/stem. Cut the peppers into bite-sized chunks, as well, or you may simply slice them into strips as you may do for other salads.

3. Peel your cucumbers. (Or don't peel, it depends on the cuke but if the skin is rubbery definitely peel it) Slice the cuke in half, long ways. Take a small spoon and scrape out the seeds. Slice the cucumber into chunks that are about 1/2" to 3/4" thick.

4. Peel your onion and cut it anyway you like to make the layers into bite sized chunks.

5. Feta. Crumble enough feta on top of the salad to cover most of it in one layer. I found this is the best way to determine the right amount. If you've never worked with feta before, the best method for crumbling is to cut it into 3/4" slabs and go from there.

6. Loosely sprinkle olives over the salad - this all depends on how much salad you are making and how many olives you like to have in one serving.

Now it's time to dress the salad. This can be tricky depending on the size of your salad. I recommend doing a little at a time, tossing in between and tasting to see if you need a little more of this or that.

To taste:

• Drizzle olive oil
• Drizzle fresh squeezed lemon juice
• A pinch of salt
• A few dashes of pepper
• A few dashes of dried Oregano

Note: If you are bringing a large salad to a dinner party, picnic or potluck I do recommend making the dressing beforehand and putting it on at the last minute.