Category: christmas pudding

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cheese christmas pudding cookbooks food pistachio

december round-up

my december 2013 turkey

You possibly don’t want to hear about December again but let’s shoo the last knockings of it out of the door. There were a few posts to talk about this month but even more in the way of nibbles, goodies and gewgaws I sampled.

Potatoes: I started on an introspective note, discussing why I like potatoes so much as a way to pay tribute to my mum.

Speaking up for Sprouts: I also put forward the defence for the green December beacon, the humble Brussels Sprout, and gave it a little more life with potato and cream.

Best Cookbooks of 2013: I also carried on my annual tradition of running through the top cookbooks of the year. Slim pickings for me this year so I presented a crowdsourced list instead. Pitt Cue was top of the shop so it’s ended up on my shelf. I’ll let you know how I get on with it later in 2014.

Waitrose Christmas Desserts: Waitrose pulled out all the stops with their Heston festive treats: their mince pies with clementine sugar were by a million miles the best mince pies I’ve ever eaten. It’s worth saying that I’m not usually fussed about mince pies at all; and these things were completely different beasts, all cakey and sweet. Better than can be said for the “hidden chocolate” Christmas pudding, which was kinda boring and nothingy. To finish on a high, the infamous Heston box of chocs were intriguing and delicious, particularly the Earl Grey tea one which tasted different with every chew.

Aldi Christmas Pudding: On a related note, Aldi sent me their 12 month matured Christmas Pudding. It was super-average. Nothing is beating the hidden orange, it seems.

Image copyright Garner’s pickledonionlovers.com

Garner’s Pickles: Garner’s sent me a sample of their pickles. There’s an odd North-South thing in my house; Mrs. Spud originally from the North refers to pickled onions simply as ‘pickles’ and I always wonder if she means generic pickled things. As far as I’m concerned pickled onions are called just that. December always meant Grandad had a batch of his eye-watering onions ready to munch on Boxing Day with cold turkey. Garner’s Sweet Pickled Baby Onions (pictured) were particularly good, a perfect balance of crunch, sweet and sharp. I also received a few others in the range, notoriously the pickled eggs which I immediately dispatched to my brother’s so a true connoisseur could enjoy them. “Yummy” was his one-word review. What more can I say! Not a favourite of mine.


Sage Appliances Heston Fryer: Did you think I’d had enough of fryers? Nope, I’m currently trying out the Sage Appliances Heston deep fat fryer and early reports are good. A more detailed writeup on this in January.

Bill’s Restaurant Hamper: After last month’s disappointing John Lewis hamper I was anxious about opening another. The one supplied by Bill’s Restaurant brought a massive smile to my face. Bespoke produce all sourced and branded by the restaurant, and each one a joy. The fudge was packed with Christmassy flavours, the toffee cookies snappy and sweet, and the chutney was fruity and punchy. Not a duff job among them. I’ve not heard of the brand before but I’ll definitely pop along to one this year to find out more.

Castello Cheese: Castello sent me a range of cheeses, but they were the sideshow to their invite to test a “molecularly paired cheeseboard”. You had me at “molecule”. They had a flavour expert, Danny Hodrien, break down the flavour profile and pair them up with some unique partners. So I tried their creamy white (Brie-style cheese) with blitzed pistachio and fennel dust, and that was very interesting. The cheese and quite tangy yet smooth, and the nut-seed combo helps both flavours linger on in the mouth. Surprisingly good. I tried some of the cheese on their own and the Castello Blue is very tasty, not pungent but very savoury. There are a number of other combinations they’ve asked me to try, and I’ll be digging further into how they can influence my cooking.

And I must mention my favourite foodie Christmas present of this year: the Sgt. Peppermill. Thanks Mrs. Spud!

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christmas pudding food oil

november round-up

This is a round-up of bits and pieces, favourite things from November 2013 and other odds and end I’ve been sent to cast a critical eye over.

Roasted veg chilli: the month kicked off with something a little different: BigSpud on video! In co-promotion with VoucherCodes, watch me cook a vegetable chilli.

Frying Tonight: I tried out a couple of fryers, a Delonghi deep-fat fryer and a Tefal ActiFry. I’ve genuinely been bowled over by the ActiFry, it makes a real satisfying chip. Since the test I’ve probably used it 5 times and enjoyed it thoroughly. A properly useful kitchen gadget.

Filippo Berio: What a stunner this is. I do like Filippo Berio’s oils usually, but presented in a gorgeous 1L tin like this really makes it a great gift for a foodie. (Available from Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco RRP £7.49)

Waitrose Christmas Cake Kit: I didn’t realise until this arrived but I’d seen this before. Exactly the same, but with no Norfolkian glare. It’s pretty poor value, given that you have to buy the eggs, butter and alcohol yourself which gram for gram are the most expensive parts. The final product is fine, no more than that. I don’t know who wants this product.

John Lewis Non-Alcoholic Hamper: I had the courier from hell trying to deliver this thing. Over two weeks they held on to this, calling me a liar, being insulting on the phone and generally treating delivering a package as the biggest inconvenience in their day. I’ve had two things from John Lewis in the last few weeks and they use the same courier each time, and it’s put me off using them to deliver anything to me.

This aside, I can only describe this hamper as disappointing. All the chosen products are fairly bespoke and off the beaten track but mediocre and not deserving of a luxury brand like John Lewis. The shortbread was dry and not sweet enough, the nuts just ordinary salted peanuts, the fudge chalky. Couple that with a £60 price tag and it’s not an attractive package.

Aldi Mince Pies: the Christmas catalogue from Aldi this year has got some really tempting and interesting offers in. I’m always pleased to see this underdog scoop the taste test awards, such as their mine pies coming 1st in a Which? panel.

Unfortunately the ones I received were anaemic affairs, powdery underdone pastry and mince that tastes of raw alcohol. Disappointing and even mince pie fiend Mrs BS didn’t want another one.

Sainsbury’s Pasta Range Launch: at an event hosted and catered by Francesco Mazzei, we were treated to Sainsbury’s new pasta ranges prepared by our host. The new pastas were prepared as crab spaghetti, chicken risotto and other delicious meals. The range are all bronze-died and of exceptional quality. At home I’ve particularly enjoyed the flavour and texture of the linguine. I tossed mine simply cooked with some porcini paste for a light lunch, and it was superb. I think it’s worthwhile spending more on pasta to really appreciate it al dente, and I’ll definitely be putting this in my basket.

Borderfields Oil: At a recent event Cyrus Todiwala was espousing the benefits of this healthy British oil, so I was very pleased to receive some. It’s very tasty, creamy with a peppery finish.

Danny’s Thanksgiving meal: I have saved the best for last. To coincide with Thanksgiving ol’ FoodUrchin Danny was asked by Great British Chefs to lay on a seasonal meal, with wine pairings from Corney & Barrow. And in spirit it was on-topic: pumpkin, turkey and apple pie, all presented with passion, perfection and pleasure. Danny’s pumpkin & pasta was sweet but given a savoury richness from a sage beurre noisette; the turkey was served as a ballotine with a potato rosti (pictured above) and dessert was a perfectly-judged apple cake topped with a crumb topping. I think Danny was a little nervous serving potatoes to me but he needn’t have worried; perfectly crisp but tender inside. And the red wine thyme jus to accompany it was delicious. All the food was excellent but the company more so, featuring fellow Essex guests such as Becs. excellent banter as all good dinner parties should be. Danny and Mrs FU were superb hosts and kept the tone fun and light.

The wines were interesting, but the one that tickled me was the dessert wine (which I am always a sucker for) “Sticky Mickey” Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc 2013. We definitely didn’t take the Mickey out of that name…!

Quite a busy month then. And we’re now into December…

All stuff I receive is disclosed and I always give honest reviews.

Categories
chocolate christmas pudding food ice cream jam marsala panettone

winter christmas pudding bombe

winter pudding bombe

I really enjoyed Jamie Oliver’s Family Christmas, a programme which dealt with making Christmas as easy and stress-free as possible. There was plenty to enjoy and loads of bits that I took from it, such as his roast potatoes. However I was drooling at the sight of his winter pudding bombe, and thought it looked absolutely fantastic. I had to make my own. It’s a spin on Summer pudding, with panettone as the bread base, filled with ice cream and preserved fruit, then topped with melted chocolate.

I didn’t fancy faffing with glacé fruits and went straight to a shortcut: leftover Christmas pudding. I used Sainsbury’s Basics Christmas pudding, which sounds absolutely rotten but I’ve used them before and been completely happy with them. I wasn’t disappointed. I also managed to find a chocolate chip panettone which was a really nice touch; chunky bits of choc punctuating the beautifully bland ice-cream. But to my surprise it’s the jam that makes this. Such a vibrant flavour sings out loud when you’re chewing through it, it’s quite exciting. If you have any of these bits laying around, I really recommend you make one – takes no time at all and can be left quite happy in the freezer until required.

Winter Christmas pudding bombe:

5 – 6 slices panettone (I used a chocolate chip one)

500ml good vanilla ice cream

300 – 500g Christmas pudding (I used 4 x Sainsbury’s Basics ones)

3 – 4 tablespoons fruity jam (I used raspberry)

Some good splashes of marsala wine

125g melted dark chocolate

  1. Leave your ice cream out of the freezer for 30 mins beforehand to let it soften.
  2. Lay some clingfilm in a bowl with plenty of overhang so you’ll be able to cover it over the top afterwards. Layer the panettone in a mixing bowl, overlapping slightly but don’t let it get too thick. (Make sure your bowl can fit in your fridge!)
  3. Spread a thin layer of jam all around the bread.
  4. Spoon in half the ice cream, then top with broken up Christmas pudding. Add the remaining ice cream.
  5. Top with more panettone, then drizzle marsala all over the base and down the sides for a little Christmas cheer.
  6. Wrap the cling film over the top, then cling film again. Take a plate and press down on it to squish it all together. Leave in the freezer until needed.
  7. When serving, remove to the fridge for an hour to let the ice cream soften. melt some chocolate in a bain marie and pour over the top.

Jamie’s own recipe can be found here.

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