Visiting London in Winter

The Joys of London in Winter

There’s nothing like spending a few days in London when the weather is wet, cold and miserable at the end of January. Although, I’ve been told, the weather continued with rain, hailstones and thunderstorms in Bristol, while I’ve been away, in London, we had one night of rain. We did have quite a brisk, northerly wind but, it was really quite pleasant…..for January!

My first grandchild is now 2 months old and it was delightful to be able to spend time with him. He is just reaching the stage of responding to chatter. He smiles and gurgles when I talk to him. It is wonderful to be able to spend time playing with him when I never had the time to play with my own children when they were babies. But, as someone once said to me – before you can enjoy being a grandmother, you have to serve your apprenticeship.

After I had spent a few days with my daughter and her son, I spent the weekend with my elder daughter who, although expecting a baby in May, is still free to enjoy some of the delights London has to offer.

We visited the Manet exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts on Piccadilly. This exhibition, titled ‘Manet Portraying Life’ has stepped away from previous ones to ‘focus on his practice as a portrait painter’ and, while many of the pictures exhibited are well known, most of the works were new to me. The exhibition started on 26^th January and will be available until 14the April 2013. Well worth a visit if you are planning a trip to London.

There is also an exhibition of the work of Constable, Gainsborough and Turner – the making of Landscape which is available until 17^th February. While Constable and Gainsborough don’t really stir me, I do love Turner. I don’t think I will be able to visit that particular exhibition but, I’m sure Turner will be around again frequently.

Of course a visit to London would not be complete without some foodie experience. This time we decided to explore Dishoom – A Bombay Café in London. The restaurant had been recommended to us some time ago but, circumstances got between us and this gourmet delight. There are two of these restaurants – Dishoom Shoreditch – 7 Boundary Street E2 7JE and Dishoom Covent Garden – 12 Upper St Martin’s Lane, WC2H 9FB. Their website – www.dishoom.com can give a great more detail than I can but, if you like Indian food this is so different from your local Indian takeaway food [though I do like that too], and well worth a visit. The best samosas I have ever tasted, even in India! And do try some of their drinks, the chai is amazing. The service is charming and attentive.

Of course, for me, no trip is complete without a journey on one of the London Clippers. This time we returned home in the dark. The London skyline is lit up and the view from the river day or night could beat that of any city anywhere. Even now, after all these years, I still get a thrill from gazing at it.

It is good that the trains are running normally again. While I was not surprised that the snow affected the train timetable, it was a definite pain that trains into Paddington [my line] were cancelled or seriously curtailed by a fire in a signal box [or something like that – it was never quite clear. We were told at first, it was a rock on the line !] in mid December.  It did seem to take several weeks for the service to return to something like normal. I can catch a bus and it is a lot cheaper but, it is so much slower and is definitely not as comfortable or as convenient.

When I returned home, I had several parcels waiting for me of my last seed orders – tomatoes, peppers, chillies, pumpkins, squashes and some herbs. The pepper and chilli seeds should really be sown now for the earliest crops but, although I have an excellent propagator, I don’t have anywhere suitable to grow on the young seedlings which will give them enough warmth with the necessary light so, I will wait until mid February before I set up my propagator.

Late January and wow! It's winter - also potatoes and Leeks

Well, winter for the South West!

The snow has brought the South west to a standstill – few flights from Bristol airport [though a few], few trains running [though a few], part of the M4 closed in Wiltshire, schools and colleges closed, no buses running in Bristol – the list could go on. Bristol is in an ‘amber alert’ area with nearby Forest of Dean and South East Wales in a ‘red alert’ area for snow disruption.

I’m sure there will be lots of communities around the world who would sneer at us for allowing 4inches [12cm] of snow to allow our lives to come to a standstill but, this only happens here for a few days every 8 – 10 years or for a prolonged period every 25 years or so. It would be a profligate council or country which spent multi millions on dealing with a weather situation which happens so rarely. So, let the children have a day or two off school and enjoy the snow; allow their teachers and their parents to stay at home also and support them where necessary – it will only be for a short time.

Yesterday, as this weather was predicted for us, I went to my plot to harvest some vegetables and to feed the birds. I brought home some leeks and sprouts which won’t last too long but, it was very apparent that the birds were pretty miserable. Even the magpies and pigeons didn’t move from the food until I was right beside them and only one robin appeared, willing to face the wrath of the pigeon to grab his bit of food.

At home I have set up a bird feeding station – I hope well out of the reach of my cats but, so far I’ve had few takers. I have noticed that a magpie has returned a few times. Perhaps that will encourage the others.

The speakers on my PC – now about 15 years old and pretty pathetic anyway, my son was disgusted by them – eventually gave up the ghost a couple of days ago. Following my son’s advice, I bought a new set which would be compatible with my PC from Maplin. I was amazed when they arrived the next day. The delivery driver reckoned that it was probably because the company was afraid of the snow causing huge pile-ups of goods to be delivered. I thought that possibly The Thompson & Morgan potato seed suppliers had a similar thought as I had my order delivered on the same day. I had hoped, vaguely, that they would have been delivered before now as I like to be in control of the chitting process especially for my first earlies I will plant in my polytunnel by mid February – of course I expect the weather to be kinder by then. If, like me you buy your potato seed from a seed supplier by post or on-line, be sure to remove all the packaging as soon as possible. If left in plastic bags or bundled up, they will rot. To chit them - set them out on tray [egg boxes are good for small quantities] with the 'eyes' upwards. They should be chitted in a frost-free, dry, light place, though out of direct sunlight. The 'chits' or sprouts should be shortish and sturdy, not long and spindly. All sorts of stuff my happen to our weather as a result of the melting ice-cap and the resulting push south of the Jet Stream but, I still believe that our weather system will stabilise and I really have to go with that.

Now is definitely the time to get your potato seed. Have a look at the Potato Council Site for growing advice and look on their Consumer Websites for advice on varieties. Alternatively look on www.allotment.org.uk for varieties which suit your taste and ground.

As I do every year, this year I am trying out a couple of new varieties. Last year, as my first early variety I couldn’t find my favourite – Accent, to buy as a seed potato so, I bought Emerald Vale instead. The red ants, in my polytunnel were definitely a contributing factor in my disappointment in the crop but, nonetheless, I was disappointed in the quality of the potato. If this was the best I could expect it would definitely be a waste of time, effort and tunnel space.

This year, I have managed to get, yet again, Accent. I now have them chitting and hope I will have excluded all the red ants from my tunnel – though! I’ll keep my eyes open!

For new varieties this year I’m trying – Epicure – a first early and well recommended. International Kidney – a 2^nd early. Yet again, I going to plant Mayan Gold. Although a complete waste of time last year, my memories of the crop the year before and how amazingly delicious it was will keep me trying for sometime yet.

I have created a page on the website for ‘Plant of the Week’. In it’s first week, at the start of the year, I thought I would start with Leeks as they are now very much a harvestable crop and also coming close to sowing time again. Do have a look at the linked website.

For using them, try Leek and Potato Soup, Leeks in a Cheesy Sauce and Sweetcorn and Leek Soup, definitely the best!

Sweetcorn and Leek Soup

8oz [225g] sweetcorn kernels (fresh, tinned or frozen)

2 good sized leeks – washed thoroughly and sliced

2 medium potatoes – washed, peeled and cut into small cubes

1 stick celery – washed and sliced

1 Tblsp. rape-seed or olive oil

1 oz [25g] butter

1 pt [570ml] vegetable stock

¼ pt [275ml] milk – you may use cream if you wish

Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

2 oz [50gm] cheddar cheese

Method

·         Wash and slice the leeks – if, like me you are using leeks from the garden or the allotment and they are a bit mucky, slice into short lengths, it is easier to remove any mud or grit.

·         Put the oil and butter into a large saucepan and heat gently.

·         Add the leeks and celery and sweat [cook gently without colouring – don’t allow the leeks to brown as this will make them bitter] until soft.

·         Add the cubed potatoes and the sweetcorn kernels. Mix in well but don’t allow to stick.

·         Add the stock and black pepper and stir in well.

·         Bring to the boil, then simmer gently until the vegetables are well cooked and soft.

·         Add salt to taste and milk or cream. Bring back to the boil briefly.

·         Serve in a tureen or in individual dishes, Sprinkle over with the grated cheese – if you have a cooks blowtorch the cheese can be ‘toasted’ on top.

·         Serve immediately with warm crusty bread.

For my next plant of the week pages I think I will look at parsnips and potatoes. Do get back to me if you think some plant – vegetable, fruit or herb should have a seasonal priority.

This wonderful sunny snowy scene comes from my son's view from his house in Newcastle - how beautiful!

MidJanuary - Using stored Vegetables - Sweetcorn

 Using Stored Vegetables and Fruit- Sweetcorn

Although it’s still mid January, more-or-less, the continuing mild weather is prompting me to do something useful about the coming season. The forecast is predicting a bitterly cold spell in the near future but, with predicted temperatures of anything above freezing – I don’t really call that ‘bitter’. That’s not to say it won’t happen. It is still January and a long way from the end of winter. With the odd and destructive weather we’ve been having over the last couple of years, almost anything is possible. But, we must carry on and hope for the best, then deal with whatever is given to us! I keep trying to not do the hubris thing – hoping to hedge my bets!

I still don’t have my seed potatoes. I know it is early but, I do like to have them with me so that I can chit them properly and I will plant some of my Earlies in my poly-tunnel by mid February – I hope. I have done this for the last 4 years and although last year was disappointing outdoors for potatoes, the only issue which reduced my crop indoors was the nests of red ants. If I can stop their destruction on my crops this year I might just have to up-root and move my poly-tunnel. That would be a pain and I would be grateful for anyone’s advice on removing this pest [that wouldn’t also destroy my crops – non organic methods might be acceptable].

Well, as I feel it is almost springtime I am looking to organise my coming harvesting season – how optimistic is that?

A little freezer – given to me by my daughter and a fairly capacious fridge freezer in my utility room. I also have another reasonably sized freezer upstairs. As it is not so convenient to access I use it for storing stuff I don’t use everyday. Now I feel it has to be cleared…ish!

I have loads of tubs of soft fruit, in spite of the poor weather last year; lots of tubs of sweetcorn, it was an excellent year for sweetcorn, surprisingly and a first for me; a full drawer of peas. I’m just getting the hang of producing lots of peas for freezing.

I think today I will look at my excessive crop of sweetcorn and what can be done with it to add to and produce nutritious and tasty meals. While I accept there are lots of ways of using fresh sweetcorn from the garden or allotment, I am looking at ways of using the frozen stuff [which came from my allotment of course!]– these recipes can also be used with fresh and tinned produce.

Sweetcorn and Potato Bake

8 oz [225g] sweetcorn kernels – fresh, frozen or tinned

2 lb [900gm] approx. potatoes – floury potatoes are best – washed and peeled

1 large red onion

1 medium sweet red pepper

2 fl oz [55ml] milk

2 oz [50g] butter or 2 Tblsp rape-seed oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 medium tomatoes

6 oz [175g] grated cheddar cheese

Method

·         Prepare the potatoes, boil or steam them then mash with the salt, pepper and milk and half of the cheese.

·         Peel and finely chop the onion and seed, core and chop the red pepper.

·         Sweat the onions and pepper in the butter or oil until soft – don’t allow it to burn.

·         Add the sweetcorn and mix in well. [Most fresh sweetcorn is very tender and will cook quickly so doesn’t need prior cooking].

·         Add the mashed potatoes and mix all the ingredients – check seasoning.

·         Put the mixture into a greased ovenproof dish.

·         Slice or section the tomatoes and arrange around the edges of the dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

·         Bake in a moderately hot oven until the cheese is golden brown.

·         This is great as a lunch dish served with a crisp salad.

Sweetcorn Soup - this soup is quick, simple and slightly sweet. Will be very popular with children.

8oz [225g] sweetcorn kernels (fresh, tinned or frozen)

2 good sized leeks – washed thoroughly and sliced

2 medium potatoes – washed, peeled and cut into small cubes

1 stick celery – washed and sliced

1 Tblsp. rape-seed or olive oil

1 oz [25g] butter

1 pt [570ml] vegetable stock

¼ pt [275ml] milk – you may use cream if you wish

Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

2 oz [50gm] cheddar cheese

Method

·         Wash and slice the leeks – if, like me you are using leeks from the garden or the allotment and they are a bit mucky, slice into short lengths, it is easier to remove any mud or grit.

·         Put the oil and butter into a large saucepan and heat gently.

·         Add the leeks and celery and sweat [cook gently without colouring – don’t allow the leeks to brown as this will make them bitter] until soft.

·         Add the cubed potatoes and the sweetcorn kernels. Mix in well but don’t allow to stick.

·         Add the stock and black pepper and stir in well.

·         Bring to the boil, then simmer gently until the vegetables are well cooked and soft.

·         Add salt to taste and milk or cream. Bring back to the boil briefly.

·         Serve in a tureen or in individual dishes, Sprinkle over with the grated cheese – if you have a cooks blowtorch the cheese can be ‘toasted’ on top. Either way is utterly delicious.

·         Serve immediately with warm crusty bread.

Sweet-Corn Fritters

2 – 3 fresh corn cobs – cut the kernels from the cobs

4 oz [100gm] plain flour                                Pinch salt

2 tsp baking powder                                     Milk to mix

¼ tsp chilli powder                                       freshly cracked black pepper

Method

·         Sieve the flour, salt, pepper, chilli and baking powder into a bowl.

·         Add enough milk to give a creamy batter. Beat well until smooth.

·         Add the corn kernels and mix well.

·         Drop the mixture from a large spoon onto a hot, greased griddle or heavy flat pan.

·         When brown on one side turn and brown on the other.

·         Keep warm on a clean cloth/ teatowel.

·         Serve with fried or roast chicken and fried bananas.

Quick Sweetcorn and Ham Pizza

For the pizza base – I suppose you could use a bought prepared pizza base though, they are not to my taste. You can also make a yeast dough for the base but then it is no longer a ‘quick pizza’.

This base is for a scone mix and will work well for any savoury or sweet topping and is great for a quick lunch dish.

8 oz [225g] plain flour

½ tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 oz [50g] butter

¼pt [150ml] milk approx. or enough to give a soft dough

Method

·         Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl and rub in the butter until like fine breadcrumbs.

·         Using a round-bladed knife [or your hands, if you prefer] mix in enough milk to give a soft but workable dough.

·         Kneed the dough together then put out onto a floured board. Shape into a round and roll out until about ½ inch [1cm] thick. Try to keep it in a round.

·         Place the dough on a floured or greased baking tray.

The Topping

1 large red onion

1 sweet green or red pepper

1 oz butter [25gm]

2 good slices thick ham or gammon [not cooked ham though it will do, you may need more]

4 – 6 medium closed-cap mushrooms –optional – sliced.

7oz [200g] sweetcorn kernels, approx.

Freshly cracked black pepper

1 tsp chopped fresh marjoram or oregano if available [ it usually keeps going all year – a little]

1 tsp chopped parsley

4 – 6 oz [100 – 175g] grated meltable cheese. Cheddar is the most popular but Gruyère is definitely ‘the business’. Blue Stilton is also good.

Method

·         Melt the butter in a pan and sweat the onions and red or green pepper.

·         Chop the ham or gammon into pieces and add to the onion in the pan, fry gently.

·         Add the mushrooms [if using]. Add freshly cracked black pepper but not salt – there is enough in the ham/gammon. Add the herbs. Mix in well

·         Mix in the sweetcorn kernels and spread the mixture on top of the pizza base.

·         Sprinkle the cheese on top evenly.

·         Bake in a hot oven - 220°C or No 7 gas until the top is golden brown.

·         Serve immediately with a crisp salad.