Vegetables - Retro Food For Modern Times

Category: Vegetables

26
Mar
2023

Let’s Get Lit – March 2003

categories: 20 Years Ago Today, Bread, Pasta, Sangria, Seafood, Soup, Tomatoes, Wine

Hello friends and welcome to March 2003! Avril Lavigne was topping the charts with I’m With You, Bringing Down the House was #1 at the box office and U.S. troops invaded Iraq looking to seek and destroy Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction. No wonder, when reflecting on the events of twenty years ago, we here at Retro Foods for Modern Times felt we might need to get a little boozy! This was the theme for our menu which came from the March 2003 issue of Delicious Magazine!

March 2003 – The Menu

Sangria

As if we could have a boozy menu without a starting drink! I love Sangria which despite being Spanish in origin always reminds me of our 2017 trip to Portugal where we would have a pre-dinner sangria most days!

Happy times! Here’s the one from Delicious!

Sangria Recipe:

Beer Bread with Pastrami and Relish

Due to time constraints, I didn’t make this but doesn’t it look amazing?

Spaghettini Alle Vongole

OMG, this was so good. And also when I really wished I had made the beer bread so I could mop up all the delicious sauce left in the bowl. I had never eaten Spaghettini Alle Vongole before and although this took a bit of effort to cook, it was worth it!

Spaghettini Alle Vongole Recipe:

Citrus Salad with Cointreau Cream

To finish out the meal, we have a Citrus Salad with Cointreau Cream. For an alternative dessert, but one that still uses Cointreau, you could sub in last week’s White Lady which also came from this magazine!

My Nigella Moment – Salmorejo

For first-time readers, this refers to the moment at the end of Nigella Lawson’s cooking shows when she sneaks back to the fridge to have another bite of something delicious. In the context of these Twenty Years Ago posts, it is something contained in the magazine that does not fit with the overall menu theme but I’m sneaking it in either because I made it and it was really good, or I just didn’t have time to make it but it was the most appetising thing in the mag!

This was a difficult one. I was torn between two recipes that really appealed to me. One was a pink grapefruit tart. However, as we already had a dessert containing grapefruit I decided to go with the other recipe from March 2003 which caught my eye – salmorejo.

Salmorejo is a cousin of gazpacho. Gazpacho is one of those things that I thought I would hate. Cold tomato soup? Yeccchhh!!! That is until I tried it. And from then on it was love! I will note that even though I am a garlic lover, 4 cloves of garlic was too much for this! Two would, I think have been plenty!

It looked exactly as it did in the picture too!

Salmorejo Recipe

Delicious Magazine certainly delivered on our ask for a boozy menu. We had red wine and brandy in the sangria, beer in the bread, white wine in the spaghetti and Cointreau in the dessert!

Let me know if you would like to contribute a theme to my list. I’m happy to take on any challenge!

05
Mar
2023

Thai Cucumber Boats

categories: 1980's Food, Cucumber, ThaiLand

Hello friends! Today we are eating Thai Cucumber Boats from Vogue Entertaining Oct / Nov 1989. This recipe comes from an article about Thai Cook Joe Bangkok. Apparently back in 1989 people couldn’t be arsed learning how to pronounce Asian people’s names properly. I mean why bother when you can just give them some rubbish Anglicised nickname? Welcome to 1989, the year the Berlin Wall came down, the Velvet Revolution happened in Czechoslovakia, tanks ran over protesters in Tiananmen Square and casual racism was alive and well in Sydney! But enough sniping, there is a whole lot to be happy about with these Thai Cucumber boats!

These are pretty much my perfect idea of hot-weather food. A couple of these with an ice-cold beer on a hot summer night is pretty much my idea of heaven!

Thai Cucumber Boats – The Recipe

To make it even easier, I used rare roast beef from the deli and did not sauté the onions as per the recipe. My version means there is no cooking involved in this recipe! Perfect for summer! I also sprinkled some chopped-up peanuts over the top of my boats for some extra crunch!

Of course, you could just slice up the cucumbers and place the rest of the ingredients on top. TBH, cutting the cucumbers into boats was fiddly and took quite a bit of time. However, then you would lose the delightful retro kitsch of the boat!

Also, keep the scooped-out bits of cuke for another day!

The Perfect Soundtrack For Your Thai Cucumber Boats

I am currently reading The Shards, the new novel by Bret Easton Ellis which is set around the same time as this recipe was originally published. Now, whether you love or hate BEE is not a topic for discussion here. What I do want to mention is that the book is absolutely crammed with musical references. So much so that I was inspired to make a playlist so I could have the soundtrack playing while I was reading I went to Spotify only to find that many people had already done just that.

My favourite is this one (pictured below) which lists every song in the order it is mentioned in the book. If you like 80s pop / punk / new wave you will love this playlist. Mind you, there is also a lot of garbage on there too! But I can heartily recommend, on your next hot summer night, make these Thai Cucumber Boats, put some beer on ice and crank up this playlist. It will take you right back to the 80s!

As for the book, I am about 5 hours into what is a 23-hour-long audiobook so I’ve got a long way to go yet!

Hopefully, the good weather holds and I can have another evening with the Thai Cukes and The Shards playlist soon!

Have a great week!

15
Jan
2023

Moscow Potatoes

categories: Posh Food, Potato, Sour Cream, Starters

Hello, friends, we are back from our hols – more to come about that later! Never have I agonised over a post as much as I have over this one. Not because these Moscow Potatoes weren’t fabulous. They were delicious and tasted like something special even though they are made from only four ingredients! My dilemma was about whether this might be seen as me taking a pro-Russian stance on wider world events. So just to be really clear, this is not a political statement, this is a food blog.

Moscow Potatoes6

The recipe for Moscow Potatoes comes from the February / March 1990 edition of Vogue Entertaining which is the same magazine that brought us the flowery delights of a rose petal salad. For this one, we are turning away from flowers and turning the usually humble spud into a ritzy item. It’s the culinary version of the plain girl taking off her glasses and becoming a glamour puss.

I had some of the salmon caviar left over from making the Oysters with Caviar so it made sense to give the Moscow Potatoes a try. We had these as a little starter before our New Year’s Day dinner of Tomahawk Steak with a coffee spice rub and a caesar style wedge salad. This was a delightful way to welcome in 2023! I served these on a plate meant for deviled eggs and I think they looked adorable! You will see I left some of the potatoes un-caviared in case people did not like it. In the end, I had to add some of the gorgeous salmon caviar pearls to the plain ones as no one wanted them!

Moscow Potatoes – The Article

The recipe for Moscow Potatoes comes from a feature called “Fed in The Clouds” . It is about Alan and Elizabeth Crompton Batts who are as posh as they sound. He was a food writer, and chef and owned a PR company that was involved with a LOT of very famous London restaurants including Chez Nico, Tamarind, and Christopher’s. He was also at one point the manager of The Psychedelic Furs whose song Pretty in Pink is in my Top Ten of best-ever songs. Her family used to own The Ivy. In short, these two are food royalty!

1990’s Power Couple, Alan and Elizabeth Compton Batts

Although I had never heard of either Alan or Elizabeth Crompton Batts before starting this post, and coming into this wanting to be a bit mocking about the whole 80s excess of it all, I was actually very sad to read that Alan Crompton Batts passed away in 2004 at only 50 years old. This meant at the time of this article in 1990, he was 36 and had already achieved everything I mentioned before! This took my breath away. What an absolute powerhouse!

Their menu is also amazing and I”m sure we will see more from the Crompton Batts’ in future posts.

In the meantime though, let’s find out how to make Moscow Potatoes!

Moscow Potatoes – The Recipe

You will see from the pictures that I swapped out the mint for some chives. I think you can go your own way on this. Dill would also be amazing.

Have a great week!

13
Dec
2022

Stilton and Leek Soufflé – Hercule Poirot’s Christmas

categories: Blue Cheese, Dining With The Dame, Leeks, Poirot, Soufflé

Hello food lover and crime readers! Welcome to a festive edition of Dining with The Dame. Today’s menu contains a Stilton and Leek Soufflé inspired by Agatha Christie’s 1938 novel Hercule Poirot’s Christmas. It makes me wonder – of all the people who received this book as a Christmas present that year, who would have guessed that within 12 months the world would be plunged into a second and terrible world war? Ok, sorry, that was not a very festive way to start this post. But really despite being set at Christmas, this is not an overly festive novel!

Before we move into that, let’s briefly talk about the wonderful combination that is leek and blue cheese. I first came across this many years ago at a pizza restaurant not far from my work. They had a lunch deal which was two slices of pizza and a drink for a very small amount. My favourite slice of pizza was a leek and gorgonzola. I ordered it every week for years!

I realised the minute I took the soufflés out of the oven that I had left my copy of Hercule Poirot’s Christmas upstairs. There was no going to get it, the soufflés were falling by the second!

Hercule Poirot’s Christmas – The Plot

Simeon Lee is a very rich old man. And, like many rich old men, he is what they might have called back in Agatha Christie’s day, an old curmudgeon. I can think of a few more modern descriptions but, it’s Christmas so we’re keeping it clean! He’s angry at his family primarily as none of his sons have given him a grandson to carry on the family name. He is also somewhat of a braggart and likes to talk about all his sexual conquests and how he likely has many sons “on the other side of the blanket”. Which is gross, partly because he speaks at length about this to his granddaughter and no one, not even a formally estranged adult granddaughter needs to hear that grandpa was a f*ckboy! Also, because cheating on your wife and knocking up numerous women is not cool. He also has some uncut diamonds in his safe which he likes to fondle whilst he reminisces about his younger days in South Africa, Think Monty Burns crossed with Gollum and maybe a Bond villain and you have my interpretation of Simeon Lee.

He gets his though, as on Christmas Eve, not long after calling his family together to announce that he is changing his will, Simeon Lee has his throat cut. However the murder takes place in a locked room. And the diamonds are gone!

Who is the guilty culprit?

Harry, the prodigal son. Did he return just to do his father in?
David, the son who has always resented the way Simeon ill treated his mother.
George, the pompous son scared his father was going to reduce his allowance.
Alfred, the son who has remained steadfastly by Simeon’s side, jealous because his father favours Harry
Pilar Estravados, Simeon’s granddaughter, recently arrived from Spain.
Stephen Farr, the son of Simeon’s former business partner, come to England from South Africa
Horbury, Simeon’s possibly shifty valet.
All in all, we have many people who potentially Simeon Lee dead.
And a second murder attempt
And way too much blood!

Good thing we also have Poirot on hand to discover who did it and to explain the significance of a bit of rubber and a small wooden item found on the floor near Simeon’s body!

Hercule Poirot’s Christmas – The Covers

We have some absolutely cracking covers here, and a fair number of them from non-English speaking countries, which is something I love! My favorite is the pulp fiction cover from I’m going to say the 1950’s which I have shown below in full. Just take a closer look at the lady in red. Yes, I know all our eyes are drawn to her cleavage but the expression on her face is not even remotely congruent with the sight before her! “Pffftttt…another dead body just in time to ruin the holidays” she seems to be saying. “And by the way, have you seen my breasts? They’re real and they’re spectaular”

The Recipe – Stilton and Leek Soufflé

You might be wondering why I chose a stilton and leek and soufflé for this post. I was thinking I could make some sort of pun on Simeon Lee and Stilton Leek. The more I tried, the more laboured it became until I trashed it. Sometimes, as per Kenny Rogers, “you gotta know when to fold ’em”.

Good lord, who knew wen starting this we were going to get a Seinfeld quote and a Kenny lyric?

Here’s the recipe. It is from a 1992 book by the Australian Women’s Weekly called Brunches and Lunches.

As mentioned, I love the combo of leek and blue cheese. However, if you are not a lover of blue, you could sub in a cheese of your choice!

Tresilian went round with the soufflé. It struck him, now that hi interest in the ladies’ toiletries and his misgivings over Walter’s deficiencies were a thing of the past, that everyone was very silent tonight. At least, not exactly silent: Mr Harry was talking enough for twenty – no not Mr Harry, the South African gentleman. And the others were talking too, but only, as it were, in spasms. There was something a little – queer about them.

Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot’s Christmas

Links to The Christieverse

Colonel Johnson refers to “that Cartwright case” when conversing with Poirot. This is reference to Three Act Tragedy.

Other Food & Drinks Mentioned in Hercule Poirot’s Christmas

Coffee
Hock I was not familiar with this name for Riesling but I feel this would work very well with the souffle!
Claret
Pear

January’s read will be the final novella in the Murder in the Mews Collection – Dead Man’s Mirror. And if anyone can get the pun on Simeon Lee and Stilton and Leek to work, please let me know!

01
Aug
2022

Death on The Nile – Roasted Potatoes and Artichokes

categories: Artichokes, Dining With The Dame, Poirot, Potato, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Hello crime readers and food lovers! I’m going to kick this one off on a very personal note. Middle Eastern Food is probably my favourite style and flavour of food. I love the largesse of the many plates of food, all designed for sharing that is so much a part of the cooking of this region. So I was hugely excited to read Death on The Nile. Surely we would get some hummus, flatbread, falafel, slow-cooked lamb, maybe some baklava to finish….I was so up for this. And was bitterly disappointed. There is not much food at all mentioned in Death on The Nile. Hence we are eating Potatoes and Artichokes. The potatoes and artichokes are not a bad dish, in fact they were really tasty! Just not what I was expecting!

Death on The Nile – The Plot

Linnet Doyle, a beautiful heiress, is honeymooning in Egypt with her husband Simon. The two should be in the realms of newly wedded bliss however their trip has been spoiled by Linnet’s former friend and Simon’s former fiancee Jacqueline de Bellefort who is stalking the couple. In an effort to evade Jackie, the couple embark on a trip down the Nile.

On a side trip to Abu Simbel, a large rock falls off a cliff, just missing Linnet. Accident? It could not have been Jackie, she was on the boat. However, a few days later, a drunken Jackie shoots Simon Doyle in the leg. That same night, Linnet is shot dead. Again, it could not have been Jackie, after the incident with Simon, she spends the entire night both heavily sedated and under the watchful eye of one of the other passengers.

So, who killed Linnet Doyle? Good thing Hercule Poirot is also on board the Karnak to solve the crime!

We have:

A love triangle that leads to murder
Stolen pearls and a missing stole
A dodgy maid
Shady business dealings
Kleptomania
Alcoholism
A rebellious young man with communistic leanings
And Colonel Race, who we last saw in Cards on The Table joins Poirot on the Karnak

Death on the Nile – The Covers

There is not a lot of variety in the covers for Death on The Nile. They are largely images of the Karnak or Egypt. Poirot features in a few and of course, we have a few “beautiful girl in peril” pulp-type covers.

But where I ask you is the crazy? I have come to expect a few totally off-the-wall covers and was unable to anything really oddball. I also could not find any non-English covers which also seemed odd given that this is such a well-known and loved Christie novel.

The Recipe – Roasted Potatoes and Artichokes

I found this recipe for Roasted Potatoes and Artichokes on Real Simple. It was nice but I thought I could do a bit better. So there is my revamped version. You can of course keep it (real) simple and use the OG recipe

Roast Potatoes and Artichokes

Print Recipe

A simple and flavourful side dished based on a recipe from Real Simple and inspired by Death on The Nile!

Author: Taryn Nicole
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Category: Side

Ingredients

Scale

500g chat or new potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil plus one more for dressing the cooked potatoes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
4 garlic cloves
I 275g jar of marinated artichokes
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Black pepper, freshly ground
5–6 sprigs of parsley, mint, chives or a combination of them

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Par boil the new potatoes in salted water until they are just tender. This will depend on the size of your potatoes but it took me 12 minutes.
Drain the potatoes and cut them in half.
Heat your oven to 180C.
In a bowl big enough to hold the potatoes mix together the olive oil, salt and paprika. Toss the potatoes through and then place them cut side down on a baking tray.
Put them in the oven and roast for 20 minutes.
Drain your artichokes and pat dry.
After twenty minutes and your artichokes and the garlic cloves to the baking tray with the potatoes. Cook for 15 minutes
Chop your herbs and add to the extra olive oil with the black pepper and lemon juice.
Remove the roasted garlic from the oven. Squash down cloves so the roasted garlic puree comes out and add this to your oil and lemon mix. Do this one by one and taste as you go so you can get the dressing to your desired level of garlicky goodness.
Once you are happy with the dressing remove the potatoes and artichokes from the oven. Place into a bowl and stir through the lemon / garlic / herb dressing.
Enjoy while reading Death on The Nile!

Notes

Adding some onion wedges with the artichokes would also work well here.

If you wanted to sprinkle a little feta cheese over the top of the finished dish would be delicious!

Any leftover garlic can be kept in the fridge for a few days and added to anything that needs garlic.

Dr Bessner’s bulk moved up and down appreciatively. “Ho, ho, ho, it was very funny that! Doyle, he tells me about it. It was a telegram all about vegetables – potatoes, artichokes, leeks – Ach! Pardon?”

With a stifled exclamation Race had sat up in his chair.

“My God,” he said. “So that’s it! Richetti!”

He looked round on three uncomprehending faces.

“A new code – it was used in the South African rebellion. Potatoes mean machine guns, artichokes are high explosives – and so on.”

Agatha Christie – Death on The Nile

If you would like to read of another instance where Artichokes were compared to weapons, click here.

Links to The Christieverse

Christie has a short story also called Death on The Nile. We will come to that one in due course.
Miss Van Schuyler says to Poirot that she has heard of him from a mutual acquaintance, Rufus Van Aldin. He was a character in The Mystery of The Blue Train
The death of Mr Shaitana featured in Cards on The Table is mentioned. It is said that it occurred a year earlier.
Poirot mentions a case in which a red kimono was found in his luggage. This refers to Murder on the Orient Express
Poirot also speaks of attending an archaeological site which references Murder in Mesopotamia

The Film

Of course, we were not going to talk about Death on the Nile without mentioning the Kenneth Branagh film of the same which was released this year. We saw it in the cinema and, although the reviews have been universally bad, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was not a fan of Kenneth Branagh’s Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express; this has not changed. But I thought the film looked beautiful. The scenery was spectacular and really made me want to go to Egypt to see those sights for myself. I also loved its over-the-top opulence. And I thought Gal Gadot and Emma Mackey were both perfectly cast.

Other Food & Drinks Mentioned in Death on The Nile

Lots of booze here and not much food!

To keep things neat, next up we are going to read the other Death on the Nile, the one contained in Parker Pyne Investigates. Will I get falafel and hummus this time round? I’m both doubtful and hopeful!