When simple meals taste great....

[BENIDORM]

Jonbar...I remember in the 1970's when we had a guest house that some of our guests would spread fish or fish fingers on buttered bread when we did the traditional fish and chips on Fridays, at the time I thought 'how uncouth'.
But tried it and yes it was quite nice....

Wicksey,
I agree with you, Mercadona being the best plaice to buy fish fingers.....

Sid, Yes why wait until you live in a residential home to dribble when you can do it now in the comfort of your own home...

Gerry,
Eat and drink what you enjoy , but do it with moderation and
you will probably live a long and happy life..at home....

Olive ,I remember my Mother saying the same, and for a snack we would have beef dripping on bread with loads of salt.... ...blimey..
Saludos,
Gordon

[jonbar.1]

Don't understand why so many people find it odd to have a fish-finger sandwich; McDonalds have been selling them for years, in the guise of "Filet o Fish"
Although they ruin it by sticking a slice of cheese on it.

[chrissiehope]

All this talk of healthy eating reminds me of a Woody Allen film from yonks ago (can't remember the name) where he is woken from a cryogenic sleep, and offered things like a cigarette, hot chocolate etc. When he says "but that's bad for you..." the reply comes "Oh, that was back in the old days...it's all desirable now..."

[Flashman]

Sleeper!

[Wicksey]

Olive ,I remember my Mother saying the same, and for a snack we would have beef dripping on bread with loads of salt.... ...blimey..
Saludos,
Gordon

Bread and dripping .... I remember that well. There used to be a very tasty brown jelly in the bottom of the old cup my mum used to collect it in ... delicious. Bubble and squeak was another favourite on a Monday with cold roast meat (and slathered in tomato ketchup). I understand it's quite fashionable now.

[Miro]

Not much into baked beans....but habas con jamón, that's another thing altogether. Always a favourite of mine at Llanjarrón restaurant in Torremolinos, for those who know it. Since being back in the UK, it's a treat we only enjoy a couple of times around this time of year, when the leg of Serrano that we get (from Lidl, for those interested) at Christmas time is down to the un-sliceable bits: ham chopped into small tacos, plenty of chopped garlic, broad beans, all fried quickly with a dash of red wine, and some crusty bread to dip - simple, and delicious

Having said that, I did enjoy the baked beans with my Full English today at Rita's Cafe in Liverpool, recently featured in the TV series The Responder: a truly authentic English caff, where all the meals are simple and taste great!

[chrissiehope]

Thanks Flashman - I knew someone would remember the title

[katy]

Pamela 1,
The butter we use is mainly from Germany and I prefer the salted version.
I often think back to when I was a child and my Mother always used Anchor butter, but I tried some recently and it just didn't taste the same or perhaps it's just me , my tastebuds packed up and left my mouth years ago... .

Saludos,
Gordon...

Have seen Kerrygold in CDS Supermarkets. I always used to buy President brand in Spain. French butters are quite good.

[patricia]

Not sure how true it is, but I read a long time ago about all the 'stuff' that goes into margarine so I switched back to butter. I actually use very little as we never usually butter bread or crackers. It tastes so much better so I can't see the harm in a modest amount of it (although my cholesterol results say something different to that). I don't like milk and my OH likes skimmed so our dairy fat intake isn't too scary. On a crumpet it just has to be butter, same with toast and marmite!

Its very true. Margarine should not be touched.

[patricia]

I remember that We always had roast on Sundays with delicious roast potatoes. The next day we had the left overs which was the juice from the meat usually beef called dripping, it was delicious. and mashed potatoes with plenty of butter, salt and pepper and peas.

[katy]

Remember Mum buying butter from CoOp. Cut from a big slab. I cant eat margerine prefer dry bread. Sunday roasts every week, feeling hungry now
I always seem to cook too many new potatoes and slice them the next day and fry in butter. I toss pasta in it. I'm slim and still alive

[fincalospinos]

I remember going to the shops with 10 shillings in my pocket, and I'd come home with a 10lb joint of beef, all the trimmings for Sunday lunch, 10 packets of fags, a couple of bottles of wine and a carrier bag full of sweets for the kids. Impossible to do that these days, bloody CCTV cameras everywhere

[spanish_lad]

Have seen Kerrygold in CDS Supermarkets. I always used to buy President brand in Spain. French butters are quite good.

that was about €6 last time i saw it.

The spanish butter in blocks in lidl is ok, we get the salted one for €2.05

[BENIDORM]

Butter prices have been all over the place this past couple of years, but whatever the cost we still buy it !
Mercadona seems to have had the most reasonable prices lately at 1.95euro , but it wasn't that long ago that it was about 1 euro, blimey.
We always use the con sal on bread , to hell with the calories etc. ..
Saludos,
Gordon

[BENIDORM]

And now that winter has arrived I decided to use my slow cooker to make some of my famous stews, only famous because they always taste different.
I worked my way through the freezer and tried to use all of the oddments which seem to get left never really understood why my wife saves tiny portions of veg etc, perhaps she likes my stews ?
Anyway it turned out really tasty and we got 6 meals out of it, all tasting different.
I do get a bit carried away with adding spices and herbs and my first stew this season tasted more like a veg curry than stew, never mind it was yum yum.
I do add turmeric to most meals I make, I've been taking turmeric and black pepper capsules for ages now and have to say that my aching knees have improved greatly, so I thought maybe I should keep adding turmeric and black pepper to my stews,yes I know how to live dangerously

As I'm doing more of our cooking lately can anyone suggest any other easy meals that an old museum curator could make quickly ?

Yesterday I'd had a really busy day and didn't feel like cooking and Pauline had gone on strike for better working conditions, so we went to our local bar.
6 very large glasses of vinto tinto ( Rioja ) and 6 large tapas, free of course in Granada Province,and the bill was 13.20 euros, I really sometimes wonder if it's worth cooking at home.?
And of course it's socialising and supporting the local economy, well that's my excuse.
Saludos,
Gordon the Museum Curator who is older than many of his exhibits..

[Wicksey]

I use my slow cooker to make my Christmas pud. Started doing this two years ago when I found a recipe in the Telegraph, I'd been put off trying in the past by the hours of steaming required. Now it's 12 hours on low and then I put the pud away in the cupboard for about 3 weeks to mature.

I like the change of seasons so that we can have some good old fashioned stodgey food. I get bored with salads after 4 or 5 months of them during the summer. I make my chili and spagbol in the slow cooker then freeze in batches. I can rustle up a lasagne pretty quickly using a pot of my bolognese sauce. We try to decide the night before what we'll have for dinner the next day in case something needs defrosting. A quick meal is fish (salmon or lubina are our favourites) with a microwaved baked spud browned under the grill and some veg.

You lucky lot in Granada with your free tapas. Sounds a bargain meal, although we couldn't manage to drink 3 large glasses of wine each

[spanish_lad]

Always a favourite of mine at Llanjarrón restaurant in Torremolinos, for those who know it.

GREAT PLACE!!! I always recomend it to anyone that comes over here, its a pain to park, but just park in the underground and walk there, its only 5 minutes.

We normally go for the fried aubergines with cane sugar, they bring it out like a little tower , some steak fillets and a salad. Even with a half bottle of wine or a bottle of water, its still under €20. Thats a "spanish" resurant. It gets super busy in the summer, you have a queue of people waiting for a table.