My cherished second hand asparagus steamer
Ever since Gilbert told me that the easiest way to cook perfect asparagus is to use a steamer, I’ve wanted one. Until then I suspected that they were a bit faddish. Just another bit of kitchen equipment that we could do without. Gilbert thought the same until his sister sent him one for his birthday. To be polite, he thought he’d give it a whirl and was instantly hooked. It’s a well designed bit of kit. All you need to do is rinse the asparagus and snap off the woody ends. The asparagus stands upright in the steamer, with the...
read moreGuest spot: In praise of the Aga by Chris Nelms
Chris and Louise live in Wiltshire and are proud possessors of an Aga. We don’t have one, sadly, and are extremely envious. An Aga tends to be the hub of most happy houses that we visit. Our long term plans are to install one. When Chris wrote to me and described making friends with his Aga, I knew that it would be of interest. Danny, a romantic, has dubbed it a love story. Guest spot: In praise of the Aga by Chris Nelms Louise and I were fortunate to inherit a nearly new four-oven oil-burning Aga when we bought this house. We had no...
read moreFat and lean gravy boat (the Jack Sprat)
I couldn’t do without our fat and lean gravy boat. It’s cleverly designed so that the lean gravy is drawn from the base of the boat. The fat can easily be poured off from the fat spout. A few weeks ago I was struggling to skim the fat from a stew. There was no time to chill the dish in the fridge overnight and remove the fat easily. In desperation I thought I’d try using this gravy boat. The experiment worked. The gravy boat was immediately promoted from ceremonial mascot – merely gracing the Sunday lunch table, to...
read moreThe Old Lady Thing
Removing the lids from pressurised jars can be a problem. Growing up we watched, fascinated from the table, as my mother regularly knelt and banged an upturned jar on the kitchen floor to relieve the pressure. I always expected the jar to shatter. It never did. Occasionally she managed to open them without going round to the Strong Man that lived next door. Those were heady times. People took real risks to open jars and bottles. Our kitchen door jam was marked with a long length of small compressed ovals where she had held the lid of a ketchup...
read moreThe Larder. Home to our fridge freezer
There is a small larder in the cottage kitchen. It’s one of the rooms that I particularly liked when I looked round for the first time. Colin, the seller, was astonished and explained that if he had stayed it would have gone. They had plans to knock down walls, create more foot space in the kitchen. Thank goodness they moved away. The larder is the old fashioned kind. A real cold room. Built on the north east corner of the cottage it’s always cool as there is an airflow beneath the floor. It’s only five feet square but holds...
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