Monday, December 25, 2006
Festive Food
December 25th.15.40
As promised, having just finished a Christmas lunch, I will reveal what I/we ate. Turkey. I really think that turkey is a very dull and uninteresting animal and I would rather eat beef or lamb, but it always turns out exactly as you expect and in that respect it doesn't let you down. The pleasure of the meal therefore depends on other factors, such as the quality of the wine and the amount consumed, the quality and variety of the vegetables, the quality of the bread sauce and the company. Since I was working this morning, I cooked the bird in the middle of the night after staggering back up the hill. The stuffing was a concoction I produced in a semi-inebriated state and was made of sausage meat and sage and breadcrumbs and onion. Sounds ok but actually quite disappointing. Next year I propose to make chestnut stufffing. There was some cheese and crackers but everyone was too full for pudding. Yesterday there was an even better meal- roast beef followed by apple crumble! What a treat. Tomorrow , cold turkey. The day after tomorrow, cold turkey. The day after that, cold tur......... Next week, turkey soup.
So no real surprises. The food police may have threatened to bite the cat in Penarth, but they could hardly be further away at the moment, having gone international, and are now investigating sky diving and the ?boxing day races with a chafed groin in New Zealand. Sounds like a fantastic holiday rather than work.
I have decided that after watching Nigella Lawson's advice on the Christmas dinner, that she is totally lacking in sex appeal. She has become the darling of the TV reviewers but in my view her pretence at 'naughtiness' by cooking something in a different way from her mother is downright pathetic and the sight of her draining the parsnips in her silken dressing gown is a complete turn-off. I don't know why the sight of anyone doing a fairly ordinary job in an adequate way should turn them into 'celebrities' but the bunch of TV cooks is the biggest group of 'unwatchables' currently available. One of them is actually so obnoxious that he is on my list of most hated performers that force me to reach for the off button as soon as I see them. This list used to be my elimination list but in the end it became too long and I could never remember who was at the top of the list. One day I will publish the list but at the moment I am trying to be more positive and list only things to celebrate.
Askintoo made a comment on my last blog but it was just more advertising and I wiped it off possibly before anyone saw it. I thought the slow bowlers would get more comment but perhaps nobody watches cricket who reads this blog. I have realised that Google often alters its logo for special occasions and it different again today and has been different for the past four days. Yuo would have to log on every day to realise that this happens.
I am planning to try a Sarah Paretsky thriller to see if she eats proper meals but as I recall she's another who is more into booze when she's on a case. With any luck there will be a bit of time to get to the allotment in the next week as work should be relatively light. I( look forward to a bit more daylight.
As promised, having just finished a Christmas lunch, I will reveal what I/we ate. Turkey. I really think that turkey is a very dull and uninteresting animal and I would rather eat beef or lamb, but it always turns out exactly as you expect and in that respect it doesn't let you down. The pleasure of the meal therefore depends on other factors, such as the quality of the wine and the amount consumed, the quality and variety of the vegetables, the quality of the bread sauce and the company. Since I was working this morning, I cooked the bird in the middle of the night after staggering back up the hill. The stuffing was a concoction I produced in a semi-inebriated state and was made of sausage meat and sage and breadcrumbs and onion. Sounds ok but actually quite disappointing. Next year I propose to make chestnut stufffing. There was some cheese and crackers but everyone was too full for pudding. Yesterday there was an even better meal- roast beef followed by apple crumble! What a treat. Tomorrow , cold turkey. The day after tomorrow, cold turkey. The day after that, cold tur......... Next week, turkey soup.
So no real surprises. The food police may have threatened to bite the cat in Penarth, but they could hardly be further away at the moment, having gone international, and are now investigating sky diving and the ?boxing day races with a chafed groin in New Zealand. Sounds like a fantastic holiday rather than work.
I have decided that after watching Nigella Lawson's advice on the Christmas dinner, that she is totally lacking in sex appeal. She has become the darling of the TV reviewers but in my view her pretence at 'naughtiness' by cooking something in a different way from her mother is downright pathetic and the sight of her draining the parsnips in her silken dressing gown is a complete turn-off. I don't know why the sight of anyone doing a fairly ordinary job in an adequate way should turn them into 'celebrities' but the bunch of TV cooks is the biggest group of 'unwatchables' currently available. One of them is actually so obnoxious that he is on my list of most hated performers that force me to reach for the off button as soon as I see them. This list used to be my elimination list but in the end it became too long and I could never remember who was at the top of the list. One day I will publish the list but at the moment I am trying to be more positive and list only things to celebrate.
Askintoo made a comment on my last blog but it was just more advertising and I wiped it off possibly before anyone saw it. I thought the slow bowlers would get more comment but perhaps nobody watches cricket who reads this blog. I have realised that Google often alters its logo for special occasions and it different again today and has been different for the past four days. Yuo would have to log on every day to realise that this happens.
I am planning to try a Sarah Paretsky thriller to see if she eats proper meals but as I recall she's another who is more into booze when she's on a case. With any luck there will be a bit of time to get to the allotment in the next week as work should be relatively light. I( look forward to a bit more daylight.
# posted by Bob @ 7:39 am 
