Posted on 12/15/2017 4:39:44 PM PST by Jamestown1630
While enduring a ‘bug’ this week that left me unable to do much but sleep or sit in front of the TV, I happened upon Clarissa Dickson Wright’s series, ‘Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner’, which you can find on YouTube, and which is a really interesting history of how our 'three squares', and the ways we partake of them, have evolved over time.
In the Lunch episode, she featured a pasty (yes, no 'r') crust design, executed by food scholar Ivan Day. This was so beautiful, I had to find the design, and know more about it.
On the way, I found some interesting stuff – including Day's great website on historic food:
http://www.historicfood.com/portal.htm
The pasty design seems to have been derived from Edward Kidder’s ancient ‘Receipts of pastry and cookery, for the use of his scholars’, published in 1720 (you can still buy a copy on Amazon ;-):
http://www.historicfood.com/Edward%20Kidders%20Lamb%20Pasty.htm
I’m not personally a fan of British pasties; but it seems to me that we could decorate our sweet or savory pies just as beautifully – it just takes practice, and starting small! And you don’t need cutters to do this; just find a design, make a cardboard cutout of it, and find a sharp knife to cut the pastry to each of the shapes; then do some detail on the pieces.
Food52 has a lot of starter ideas for ‘fancying up’ your pie:
https://food52.com/blog/8744-9-ways-to-fancy-up-your-pies
-JT
Thanks! No, I won’t forget the sauce and extra butter. She will go nuts.
The closest I’ve come is Zurich on the Bahnhofstrasse at Christmas, which is really nice, but even the Swiss who had been say NYC is better.
Sorry to distract you with my response here, but I need to say that I have only spent 2 days in Chicago and I loved it. I wasn’t hanging out in the murder neighborhoods, just like I don’t hang out in east LA or Compton here. I do love big cities, even though they can make you feel small and insignificant sometimes. We rented an old three story house with walking distance to lots of places and the train. We could walk and get around so easily. The food, oh the delicious food. It was a great weekend.
Pannetone!!! Haven’t had any in years. What I did with it, make French toast out of it. Thick sliced with some maple syrup (lightly) on top. Used to serve with a chicken and apple sausage on the side, just browned up in a pan. A delicious bite!
No distraction...for now just washing==big mixing bowl...it is huge institutional sized 24” bowl, hardly EVER use...maybe prior to the previous solar eclipse we had in 2017...when was that 2000? LOL. Also washing mixing bowls for mixer, etc...usually use hand mixer and smaller bowls ;)
Stuff has been hidden in back of closet cupboard—daughter was like wow had no idea you had this stuff mom—she is a baker/decorator and I live a stone’s throw from Wilton...Mothership of all things cake baking/decorating :)
Glad you had a nice time...Chicago is a wonderful place to visit during holidays or spring/fall as long as stay out of Thugtown LOL message was more for the usual suspects who feel it would be just fine if Kim was to to nuke California or Chicago because they are areas controlled by democrats.
I grew up here in DuPage county—it used to be the most republican county in the country...and I feel that dems have taken over and took it from me :(
Anyway, going to keep moving in the kitchen :)
LOL well, not really hiding...
schools done this afternoon, so I am guessing tomorrow and over the weekend is when well-wishers will stop by or I will drop over to their houses...we are having a very nice temperate winter, so easy to stroll down the block :)
You bring up a good point, it is important to consider that they may want to do the giving...
And Merry Christmas to you, CottonBall :)
Not this time. We’re going down to meet our friends in Maryland, right outside Baltimore. We plan to do an evening tour of Mt. Vernon; can’t wait.
Merry Christmas to all my friends on the Cooking Thread!!!!!!!
Just beautiful. I’ve done brunch at Brennan’s, of course, having the Bananas Foster for dessert. How I love New Orleans.
Merry Christmas to you, Liz!
Me too.....I ate dinner at Brennan’s.......in Texas.
I’ve been to large cities here and abroad.
I can say without hesitation, NYC has a vibrancy....a verve.....no other city has.
French toast would be lovely with it! Especially after the holidays when everybody is tired of it and it gets a little bit stale. It would add an extra special flavor to the French toast. Thanks for the idea.
PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE Packed w/ Reese’s, chp Butterfinger bars and LOTS of peanut butter.
ING 2 c sugar ½ c h/cream tsp vanilla cup p/butter ½ cup ea chp mini Reese’s, mini Butterfinger bars.
PREP Foil 9 “ pan; ½ chp candies on bottom. METHOD Heat/stir sugar/ cream on med. Boil 2-3 min. Offheat stir in vanilla, p/butter. Pour over candies. Press rest candies on top. Cool on counter then fridge to cool completely.
I think the world agrees with you.
Would you say maybe London (of the past) would be second? Not sure how Londanistan fares any more.
Merry Christmas right back atcha! The back porch of Mt. Vernon is my favorite part, that view of the river. Enjoy.
I ate breakfast at Brennan’s with my precious Dad, the one weekend we were in NO, the weekend I told him I was going to get married. I hadn’t told him yet at Brennan’s, so he was still able to enjoy that meal. LOL. And yes, bananas foster en flamme for dessert.
When we walked in the door, I was surprised to see my favorite painting from second grade actually (I loved it from a pirate book) hanging there. It’s a romantic painting showing the foreground the deck of a ship with a distress flag flying, and some pirates semi disguised in women’s clothing waving to an arriving innocent ship in the distance. Hidden behind the deck railings are their guns and knives. It tells as much of a story as a video would, but it’s one frozen moment in time.
I think you have to experience NYc to know what I mean......the buildings, the vistas, the excitement..... the sheer power of the city envelops you.
You are trying to kill us, Liz.
Wondering what would happen if instead of butterfinger you used maybe Twix or ?? Still, how bad can the butterfinger be in those? I think the reason they used that candy was for crunch. Hmmm.
My fam would go for those. There is no reason not to make them.
This thread is rolling along so nicely, I think we’ll just leave it until next week.
Maybe some of us would post some Christmas leftover recipes; I’ll re-post a couple of mine:
This turkey casserole at ‘BigOven.com’ originally comes from a 1960s edition of ‘The Joy of Cooking’; it was made for me by a friend in the 1970s, and I’ve repeated it many times:
http://www.bigoven.com/recipe/turkey-or-chicken-casserole-with-vegetables/22145
And here is a ‘copycat’ version of the deviled ham that comes in the can with the red devil; some recipes also add capers and a shot of your favorite hot sauce:
Deviled Ham
1 pound smoked ham, cooked and ground
2/3 Cup mayonnaise
1 T. minced onion
½ tsp. powdered garlic
1 T. Dijon mustard
1-1/2 T. relish (sweet or dill)
Process all ingredients together in food processor until it forms a paste. Good for sandwiches, or as a gougere filling.
You’ll love it. I buy it only when it gets marked down after Christmas and only use it for French toast. I slice thick about an inch.
Good idea.......still some Christmas nostalgia lingering.
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