|
|
Also, I have several venerable cookery books with recipes mentioning ingredients which are long gone from the shelves of grocers, and one useful little volume of wartime recipes which has phrases in it such as 'if a fresh egg is unavailable...' and 'ask your neighbours for the peel of oranges distributed to their children...' or 'If you have no sugar, dates or other dried fruit will do...' and yes, I remember those times, and here's another recipe, not from the book, but from my stepfather's batman).
Oh, and don't hesitate to ask if you wish a really plain and featureless recipe such as 'manse pudding' or possibly, 'curate's egg'?
Banana Spread.
Take some parsnips and peel them and cut into small pieces. Boil until tender, then mash them thoroughly with sugar. (The Officers' Mess always had enough!)
This can be spread on bread or added to custard.
I remember it as being tasty, but then (around 1944) never having encountered a banana in the skin, I had nothing to compare it with. When, in 1946 I did meet my first banana, I don't remember being impressed by any great difference, so it was probably quite a good approximation.
(I will try it, sometime!)
|
|
|
Faux Ginger
You will need the same weight of sugar as an unprepared marrow (Naturally, you'll want the marrow too...); 1 oz of ground ginger; 2 lemons.
Take the rind off the marrow and remove the seeds and pith. Cut the marrow into small cubes of between ½" and 1".
Pare thinly the zest from the lemons and extract the juice.
Put ingredients into a pan (stainless steel, enamel etc. - not aluminium!)
The recipe I have for this doesn't mention water - it just says 'and boil all together till clear'. The marrow may generate sufficient liquid for the purpose, so I shall try it before you get this.
Put in screwtop jars while still hot, allow to stand a minute with the lids loosely in place to permit the spaces under them to saturate with water vapour. Screw down tightly. This makes a fairly good approximation of preserved stem ginger.
Allegedly.
|
|
|
Eat this recipe after reading: it may still be an Official Secret.11
11 Or drink it.
Lord Mountbatten's receipt for lemon cordial.12
12
Ingredients:
3 lemons
2¼ lbs white sugar
4 heaped teaspoons of citric acid crystals;
2 heaped teaspoons of tartaric acid crystals;
1 heaped teaspoon of Epsom Salts crystals
1 quart of water
Method
Pare thinly the zest from the pith of the peel.
Cut lemons and extract juice
Add juice to zest (or vice versa)
Bring water to the boil and dissolve solids in it.
When all the solids are in solution, add the juice and zest.
Cover and leave in a cool place for 24 hours
Strain into bottles, seal them, and keep refrigerated.
To serve, add water as you would for a bottled cordial.
Variations
Four limes may be substituted for the lemons.
With both the lemons and the limes a fine cheese grater may be used - my preference is for the smaller oval-shaped cutters.
And, I prefer to use 2.5 pounds of sugar.
Taste-alike of wartime MoF 12a orange cordial syrup
12a Ministry of Food
Take 4 juicy oranges
2½ lbs white sugar
4 heaped teaspoons of citric acid crystals;
2 heaped teaspoons of tartaric acid crystals;
1 heaped teaspoon of Epsom Salts crystals
1 quart of water
Method
Pare thinly the zest from the pith of the peel. A grater is preferred, but a sharp knife skilfully used is traditional.
Cut oranges and extract juice
Put all the ingredients in a covered pan and simmer until all the zest is tender.
Comminute everything in a liquidiser/juice-extractor until it passes through a fine sieve.
Bring back to the boil, allow to cool a bit, then bottle the gunge.
Elderly friends and relatives will be impressed, especially if you can find pint or half-pint medicine bottles with corks.
Authentic-looking labels would be a nice touch: I expect pics of the original ones may be found somewhere on the WWW, and stolen...
Back to beginning
|
