Latest recipe tips

My recipe tips have been few and far between, I know.

So, my latest tip is that Cathedral City cheese have launched a number of nice frozen meals, via Iceland (and I don't know if others). What makes them special is they are normal things, like "Mac 'n' Cheese" or "Lasagne", or "Cheesy bites". Meals that are common and where the "cheese" is usually somewhat "incidental". But they have made them where the cheese is their distinctive Cathedral City cheese and so made that the key feature of the meal. And it so works, and makes them so nice.

I am impressed. They are really nice. The "Mac'n'Cheese", and "Mac'n'Cheese with bacon", especially so. The lasagne seems lacking in meat, but I have only tried one so far, so we will see. The cheesy bites are what they say, and lovely.

But there is, perhaps, a trick they are missing, or those buying these meals may be missing, so this is my recipe tip...

Marmite!

Oh my! The "Mac'n'Cheese" but with Marmite. I don't know what to say. That is amazing! Really. This is food heaven. ★★★★★★ out of 5 stars. What can I say?

(Thanks Ruth for suggesting it, and no idea how I did not work that out for myself, and thanks to my wife Sandra for making it).

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Today's recipe: Crisps from Makro

No recipe today, my wife is madly baking Christmas cakes all day, and I cannot get near the kitchen.

What I have is a stock of various crisps we got from Makro.

Makro and Costco are odd places, and we have both in Reading, so quite close to us. Usually worth going to both.

They each have very different things. Costco have loads of stuff, but lack some basic things like a good selections of crisps or alcohol. They have some, but nothing like what Makro have. Makro also seem to have way more of the catering style supplies, like if you actually want to ever buy Schwartz Bacon Flavour Bits, or 1.5l bottles of Southern Comfort, they are in Makro.

On the other hand, if you want a stupidly big Nerf gun, or any sort of decent TV, go to Costco. Just oddly different places.

Note, there are Marmite crisps in there. In fact that selection includes Marmite crisps, Frazzles, Wheat Crunchies, Worcester[not shire] sauce french fries, and Salt'n'vinegar chipsticks. That will keep me going for a while, I am sure.

As for 1.5l bottles of Southern Comfort, I have found a design flaw in my shelving which means it does not quite fit on the shelf, and will not even fit on an optic. Oh well.

Today's recipe: Chicken Korma Pot Noodle

Not actually a recipe, more of a review...

So, starts off looking like about the right colour for a Chicken Korma...

Now, I will mash it down a bit anyway...

Add water to the line...

Stir, and leave for a couple of minutes...

So that is the instructions properly followed, and no chilli flakes or marmite in sight.

The end result? Well, it tastes a bit chicken korma. It is a bit runny, so filling right to the line was probably not ideal. To be honest, a bit bland - I mean, I know a korma is often really mild as curries go but this has no spice to it at all. It is OK, but probably would not bother having again.

In fact, I did not finish it. Maybe it just lacks marmite.

Today's recipe: Curry Pot Noodle

Well, I have done a cheese on toast that involves bread, a toaster and cheese. I have done chicken soup that involves "a can of chick soup" and a microwave. So today's main ingredient is, you guessed it, an original curry flavour pot noodle.

But pot noodles are not without some controversy I think. For a start there are those that consider them to be some sort of inedible concoction from the bowels of hell, or some such. Mostly I like them, not all of the flavours though.

Another controversy is when to have one. Well, any time, and now is breakfast! Well, I say breakfast, which I guess is technically true, I have been up for about 5 hours so far, so getting hungry.

But what else is controversial?

The issue here is whether you make it as above, adding water, and leaving the noodles whole as long noodles that need a fork or some such, much like spaghetti, or do you mash them down a bit so the noodles are broken up as below. I do the later.

Then, do you add anything? Well, a good start is a few bacon flavour bits...

And, especially for the curry flavour pot noodle, I like quite a few chilli flakes...

Of course, you guessed it, a small amount of marmite...

And the original sauce...

Then hot water, but this is where again things may be a bit controversial...

There is a "fill line" and that works quite well, but some people like way less water making the final result extremely thick - i.e. you could turn it upside down and nothing fall out. My grandson likes pot noodles like this, and not just because he can easily knock them over. Make them "properly" and he'll look at you like you have lost the plot and don't know how to "cook".

On the other hand some people like way more water and it ends up more like a soup.

I like it just below the line...

Stir, and leave for a minute.

Delicious...

Today's recipe: Grilled cheese on toast

I do feel I should point out that (a) my wife does feed me, these are just snacks I make, and (b) I am not planning for A&A to open a restaurant or any food business.

The first step in this recipe is bread, obviously, but the choice of bread is perhaps not quite so obvious. I find that over the years I have preferred a particular type of bread, some times for years, and then decide I like something different. Brown, granery, white, all sorts. I'll even go through phases of not wanting any toast for months, very odd. The latest bread I particularly like is corn bread which I can get from Tesco.

Corn bread is a bit odd. I tried it without toasting it once, and it is a disaster, all stodgy. But toasted it is lovely. So start by toasting it...

Then butter...

Then marmite...

Then comes the cheese. Now, again, choice of cheese matters. I do rather like the smoked applewood with the paprika dusting...

I usually do this finely grated, but as I have some pre sliced cheese, I may as well use that. Have you tried grating pre-sliced cheese? Talk about lazy. At least I sliced my own bread.

The trick at this point is a little seasoning, and that is perhaps what makes this an actual recipe, for some stretched definition of the word...

Jamaican Jerk is great for cheese on toast, but seriously, how the hell does anything like this have an expiry date ?!?

Anyway, sprinkle on the cheese...

And grill until melted nicely.

Delicious.

Today's recipe: Chicken soup

As you may imagine, my culinary skills are limited, so for today's recipe, chicken soup, one starts with, you guessed it, a tin of chicken soup...

Which you microwave for 2 minutes...

Then add some bacon bits...

Then some chilli flakes...

Some salt...

And, of course, a dob of marmite...

And stir...

Delicious...

Today's recipe: Ryvita and soft cheese

Well, I am pretty sure that Ryvita is probably reasonably healthy...

The problem is what you do with the Ryvita...

I did not really get a body like this by eating healthily, did I?

So here's the recipe (if you can call it that)...

1. Starts off well...
   
2. But then loads of butter...
   
3. Ryvita and butter is all very well, but actually, it is quite nice to toast it, so the butter melts in to the Ryvita...
   
4. You want it to all soak in nicely...
   
5. Then you'll want the marmite, obviously...
   
6. On the Ryvita...
   
7. And maybe some soft cheese, this is quite nice...
   
8. Delicious :-)