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Are you veggie, Geoff? If so, I didn't know that.
You can get very good vegetable lasagne, too. A favourite of mine, and also something you'll see often in Italy, is lasagne with spinach and ricotta cheese (also cannelloni). Sometimes, the pasta itself contains spinach, and so it comes out green. Delicious! :)
Marco.
I like to tamper with the classics. My personal touch. It's the artist in me. Lol
I fully agree, and that's what cooking is all about: experimenting and adapting dishes more to your palate. It's the only way you'll learn! However, bastardising something beyond all recognition is a step too far (not that I'm saying you're doing that).
Do you like a good minestrone soup? :)
Marco.
No. Just don't eat red meat, apart from bangers and corned beef occasionally. I don't like it. Never did, even as a kid. Fish and poultry are fine though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
I sometimes buy spinach and ricotta tortellini and don't mind that.
Oh. And I'm a good cook too. The family enjoy my cooking best and I can turn my hand to just about anything. Not that I've attempted everything (yet :)).
Not sure Ive had good minestrone. Not keen on the tinned stuffQuote:
Originally Posted by Marco
I like yellow split pea. Mine made from ham A classic to my palate. My soups are usually good but never tried that. Probably because the tinned ain't good
Mum was great at soups. French you see! :D
Any tinned soup is always going to be a pale imitation of the real thing. Honestly, try making some home-made minestrone soup, next time you're in a soup-making mood. I'll give you a good recipe, if you like (one of Del's).Quote:
Originally Posted by struth
There's lots of pasta in it [making it more like a meal] and it's very tasty! ;)
Marco.
Nice one. PROPER French onion soup (with home-made cheese croutons), and a classic consommé [which is a bastard to make right], are amongst my favourite soups.Quote:
Originally Posted by walpurgis
Marco.
She used to make real, French, 'cream of chicken' soup (with real cream). Mmmm. It was lovely! I can almost taste it now. :)
Sure. I will give it a go. Ive made tortoloni soup. Or xmas soup as some called it. Was a lot of work. Used to get it in a little Italian restaurant in Edinburgh I frequented a lotQuote:
Originally Posted by Marco
If it's the one I'm thinking of, that's more like a clear broth with tortellini in it [not tortelloni, as they're much bigger]. Minestrone is very different, quite tomatoey, and contains red wine, chicken stock and lots of different veggies (with small, soup-sized pasta). It's very rich tasting and wholesome.
I think you'd love it! :)
Marco.
They were quite decent size. Think ravioli
Yes, did it look like this:
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/102...924/8dP7o9.jpg
That is a very traditional soup, eaten all over Italy, called tortellini in brodo. It's delicious! :)
Marco.
Very similar Marco although darker stock. Loved it with Parmesan
Ah I see, that's cool. TBH, I'm not a big red meat eater either. Apart from lamb, which I really do enjoy, the rest I could happily live without. I enjoy the occasional steak and roast beef, but much prefer chicken (indeed all forms of poultry), pork, and also veal. I like game too (venison, wild boar, etc), but only have it very occasionally.Quote:
Originally Posted by walpurgis
With Del being veggie, we also eat LOADS of vegetables and salads, together with rice, pasta and noodles. Some of Del's home-made vegetable curry dishes and Chinese stir-fries (all done in a wok), in particular are to die for, so in all honesty if for some reason I needed to give up eating meat for a month, I wouldn't find it a major sacrifice! :)
Marco.
No worries, interesting. It looks like a simple soup, but to do it right takes quite a lot of work, not just with making the tortellini from scratch, but getting the right depth of flavour into the broth! :)Quote:
Originally Posted by struth
Traditionally, all sorts of 'dodgy bits' from a cockerel (not a standard chicken) go into making the stock... ;)
Marco.
"brodo" presumably being Italian for broth?Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
I like words and often see parallels in various languages. English being such a 'mongrel' of a language is derived from so many others.
love tortellini.. used to make it all the time in different guises. Usually shop bought pasta tho as its not easy to make. very fiddly for big fingers:lol:
Yup, 'brodo' means broth. The majority of the Italian language, however, is derived from Latin.Quote:
Originally Posted by walpurgis
Marco.
Indeed, but shop-bought is simply not the same animal - not even close! Mum used to make it all the time, and her home-made fresh pasta was legendary!Quote:
Originally Posted by struth
We rarely have time to make it (perhaps on a special occasion, such as Christmas), so usually stick to having high-quality dried pasta (De Cecco is amongst the best available: http://www.dececco.it/gb_en/ ), with home-made sauces :)
Marco.
YES THATS WHAT I GET. GOOD QUALITY DRY STUFF. oops... still like to make spaghetti and lasagne myself tho. Make the sauces myself too.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
used to get these big bags of dried italian stuff that lasted an eon lol
Nice one, mate. Have you made risotto? Now that is a very tasty and healthy dish. Takes a little time and effort, though.
Del does various ones, including porcini mushroom, asparagus, pea, fresh basil and tomato, and also seafood.
Marco.
No, Im not keen on it. Not into seafood or mushroom which doesnt help. Not big on rice in general although I do like my rice pudding a couple of times a year just for old times sake(mum made it regular for me)Got a nice spaghetti drying unit made of perspex . quite nicely made and still got my old pasta machine although neither get used enough these days. Reminds me of using a wringer for the washing when I was young:eyebrows:Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
Lol... Before my time, mate. As far back as I can remember, we always had some form of (at least semi-automatic) washing machine, although in the old days it was a twin-tub! Even from my earliest memories, during the late 60s, the house was full of all manner of electrical appliances. My mum would've insisted on it.
We even always owned our own TV (black and white or otherwise) - nothing was rented! :)
Fair do's if you don't like rice. I love it (preferring it overall to potatoes), but not so many folk know how to cook it properly, and if you haven't tasted it done right, then that can significantly influence your opinion of it [and especially that of risotto]! ;)
Marco.
had a washer, but it had a wringer on top that swivelled over the sink. Did a grand job although could be hard on buttons and your fingers :D we had an automatic in house but mum hated it and got it removed and stayed with her old one for years till they improved to the front loaders. When I maake rice its usually Basmati as I like it, and jasmine rice. but still prefer potatoes or pasta. We were one of the first British families to use pasta a lot I think. Remember my friends wondering what the hell it was:DQuote:
Originally Posted by Marco
I remember when an electric mangle was really posh. Most were hand cranked! :DQuote:
Originally Posted by struth
A bit like this##
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BrSIvJ21dFA/hqdefault.jpg
Yup! :)
Can't really comment on the efficacy of the twin-tub, as that wasn't my domain! I just 'miraculously' found washed and ironed clothes in my drawers, delivered daily by the 'washing & ironing fairy' ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by struth
Cool... We keep stocks of various different types of rice, for different types of food, including arborio, basmati, jasmine and Thai-scented.Quote:
When I maake rice its usually Basmati as I like it, and jasmine rice. but still prefer potatoes or pasta. We were one of the first British families to use pasta a lot I think. Remember my friends wondering what the hell it was:D
Marco.
Dem's da dark ages! Did you have an outside loo, too? :eyebrows:;)Quote:
Originally Posted by walpurgis
Marco.
my mum grew up with one and an outside wash house. Monday was wash day and took all day. all the women would aid each other with sheets as they were boiling hot. Changed days indeed. Glad it wasnt me. Gran's loo was downstairs and shared between the 2 flats on the level above. Just a loo tho, no bath. lovely granite flats those in Aberdeen. sell for a fortune now
Yes, those sorts of houses have lots of character. I like them - bit like the old Glasgow tenements :)
Couldn't ever imagine a shared loo (or an outside one)... Must've been baltic in the winter!! :eek:
Marco.
Chicken with green pepper and black bean sauce and pancake rolls, knowing this take away there'll be enough for lunch tomorrow:)
My nan lived in shepherds bush ( London ) had one outside loo in back yard and one tin bath. These housesQuote:
Originally Posted by Marco
now sell for around a million !, having become a very popular area for bbc and professional types.
Presumably, they now have inside toilets? ;)
Marco.
One would hope so ! Do remember using the loo in backyard but never the tin bath, sometimes you just
miss out on things in life I suppose.
potato daphunaise and beef olive:eyebrows:
Nice spelling of 'Dauphinoise'... We call them 'dolphin nose' :D
Oh, and I don't want to hear about your 'beef olives'! [Hate it when they float and don't flush] :eyebrows:
Marco.
was cooking at time lol. they were nice, and deffo floated my boat ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
Excellent. I went out with my dad for lunch at the local Portuguese restaurant in Wrexham.
We both had a big bowl of home-made vegetable soup (with crusty bread) to start, then piri-piri chicken with roast potatoes, rice and salad, followed by home-made chocolate mouse, washed down with two Portuguese beers and two espressos.
Guess how much? £7.50 each - INCLUDING the drinks! :eyebrows: And the restaurant is 5 mins from my house. For that price, and considering the quality of the food, which is excellent, it's not worth the hassle of cooking or washing up!!
So for tea, I'm simply having a bowl of Del's (rather lovely) spicy tomato and lentil soup. I love eating soup during the autumn and winter months :)
Marco.
Crikey, sure you didn't get someone else's bill?
Lol - nope, we've been umpteen times. Luckily, there is a sizeable Portuguese community in Wrexham, so there are quite a few cafes and restaurants, which cater for that, serving authentic food at prices locals would pay in Portugal.
Not only that, they also sell good quality Portuguese table wine in boxes, which you won't find in any shops here, for £10.50 for 5 litres! Great for an 'everyday slurp', or used in cooking, as it's very smooth and full-bodied. There's also a white from the same producer.
AND... They also sell top-notch bottled Portuguese wine (stuff that if it was sold in a classy independent wine merchant would sell for around £10-15 pounds a bottle), for a FIVER!! Obviously, the owners bring the wine back in large quantities from trips to Portugal, most likely bought dirt cheap from local supermarkets over there, but however you cut it, it's still a bargain.
Yes, it's a real hardship living round here... :D
Marco.
Two please, delivered.Quote:
Originally Posted by struth
Was good
You've got it sussed :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
Enjoy your dad Marco, I miss mine.
Homemade butternut squash and carrot soup with crutons, followed by chicken tikka masala with patna rice, leeks, french beans, sweetcorn, brocolli and asparagus.
Oh I do - don't worry... He's 84 now, but still behaving like he was 20 years younger! ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by JohnJo
Marco.
Yup everyone should look after their parents. Few do though these days and just bung them in a home Nice one Marco. My dad would have been 96. Died 40 years ago
Cheers, mate. We've always been close. He was round at mine last night too, watching the Celtic game, but we'll skim quickly past that one... :doh: Nothing that wasn't expected, though.
No chance of him going into a home, if or when that time comes. He'll be cared for in his own house by Del and I and/or any professional carers who might need brought in. However, he's a long way from that at the moment. He's been spending the last week shifting tons of soil and bricks, whilst landscaping his garden!
Marco.