This discussion reminds me of a strange situation I experienced when I was teaching English to 12-14 year-olds in that département of la Vendée where @Obelixx currently lives. Those kids had to do some "show & tell" exercises as part of their English class. So, at the first class of the day one morning a team of 2 or 3 of them organized a "typical English breakfast" just ... for me. I sat at the teacher's desk and they served me Corn flakes, (cold) tea and even (cold) fried egg and bacon. That was at the same time an embarrassing and interesting situation.
Oh dear @Papi Jo. Cold bacon I could just about manage in a baguette sandwich with lettuce, tomato and a good mayonnaise bot not with cold egg.
This teacher is a professional chef who has spent years in kitchen in France and the USA and other countries and now teaches in the HORECA school of the lycée de Notre Dame du Roc. The section does secondary school age plus college and mature students and has a proper restaurant where they can practise. He's already told them the English have a full breakfast, a light sandwich lunch, tea and then supper. Wrong on so many levels and no mention of all the cuisines we've absorbed and adpated nor all the takeaways.
I find it a challenge to cook traditional British so have been having fun exploring English regional cuisine then Irish, Scots and Welsh.
@tuikowhai34 I love serving British food to the French and before them the Belgians and they do love gently spiced dishes and wicked British puds. When I have British guests I've always given them something Belgian and now French altho when senior SIL is here I roll out the spices cos she thinks she doesn't like curry.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Yes @Obelixx The French have this misleading idea that we eat a full English every morning etc. etc. No idea and no desire to find out.
I taught here over a period of 32 years - now retired. From time to time I did a cooking session. I hope over the years the word "pudding" has a new meaning.
Last time we had guests, I did a Rajasthan Lamb Curry from Reza's site - they loved it.
My MIL who was of stalwart South Italian descent, thought my explanation of marinated chicken in Chinese spices sounded disgusting. She breaded her plate as well !!
Liver & onions with mashed potato, breast of lamb, rolled with stuffing. Belly pork with crackling and apple sauce. All from my childhood, but they used to be cheap cuts, not so much these days, and I recall you saying you can't buy the pork with the skin still on.
Cauliflower cheese, and we had 'macaroni' cheese, made with 'drainpipes', not small macaroni,onion and sliced tomatoes for a weekday meal.
Lemon meringue pie, fruit trifle or individual sponge puddings, chocolate or fruity, with custard.
But mum loved cooking and she adopted many foreign dishes while I was still a child, it was my gran, born in the 1890's, who was the traditional cook, so going back a way.
I remember hearing a story from someone who lived in Hong Kong or Singapore or somewhere like that way back in the day. They had an urge for egg and chips and explained the recipe to the waiter. They were ceremoniously presented with five fried eggs and a potato cut in half and fried. A Santa on the cross moment😊
I have a recipe book called 'British Food'. Some of them don't seem to be all that specific to be honest, but it has, for example: Cock-a-leekie soup, Scotch Broth and London Particular. Bubble and Squeak, Pan Haggerty, herrings in oatmeal. Irish stew, Gloucestershire Squab Pie, Barbecued spare ribs, Salmagundi, rabbit in the dairy, faggots. Creamed fish pie, Kedgeree Clapshot, Stump Eton Mess, Whim Wham, Dundee cake, brandy snaps Boxty bread, chelsea buns. Cornish Fairings traditionally use golden syrup but I make mine with agave syrup and that works fine - can you get that there?
Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Ooooh! Eton Mess @raisingirl !! I have Pan Haggerty and Lancashire Cheese and Onion Pie and variations on Champ and Colcannon. I had my worst ever case of food poisoning after eating Stoemp in a Dutch café in Utrecht so not going near Stump.
I have Cranachan but not Whim Wham. Added now.
Clapshot includes swedes and a) I don't like them and b) they are rarely available here and not in May.
I can get Agave and Maple syrup here.
I have yet to find yellow or green split peas which is a pity as the Vendée has its own ham.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Posts
PS I made mince pies for my neighbours at Christmas - superbement délicieux. But I imagine that this could be a bit long and boring for quick minds.
This teacher is a professional chef who has spent years in kitchen in France and the USA and other countries and now teaches in the HORECA school of the lycée de Notre Dame du Roc. The section does secondary school age plus college and mature students and has a proper restaurant where they can practise. He's already told them the English have a full breakfast, a light sandwich lunch, tea and then supper. Wrong on so many levels and no mention of all the cuisines we've absorbed and adpated nor all the takeaways.
I find it a challenge to cook traditional British so have been having fun exploring English regional cuisine then Irish, Scots and Welsh.
@tuikowhai34 I love serving British food to the French and before them the Belgians and they do love gently spiced dishes and wicked British puds. When I have British guests I've always given them something Belgian and now French altho when senior SIL is here I roll out the spices cos she thinks she doesn't like curry.
I taught here over a period of 32 years - now retired. From time to time I did a cooking session. I hope over the years the word "pudding" has a new meaning.
Last time we had guests, I did a Rajasthan Lamb Curry from Reza's site - they loved it.
My MIL who was of stalwart South Italian descent, thought my explanation of marinated chicken in Chinese spices sounded disgusting. She breaded her plate as well !!
They had an urge for egg and chips and explained the recipe to the waiter.
They were ceremoniously presented with five fried eggs and a potato cut in half and fried.
A Santa on the cross moment😊
Cock-a-leekie soup, Scotch Broth and London Particular.
Bubble and Squeak, Pan Haggerty, herrings in oatmeal.
Irish stew, Gloucestershire Squab Pie, Barbecued spare ribs, Salmagundi, rabbit in the dairy, faggots.
Creamed fish pie, Kedgeree
Clapshot, Stump
Eton Mess, Whim Wham, Dundee cake, brandy snaps
Boxty bread, chelsea buns.
Cornish Fairings traditionally use golden syrup but I make mine with agave syrup and that works fine - can you get that there?
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
I have Cranachan but not Whim Wham. Added now.
Clapshot includes swedes and a) I don't like them and b) they are rarely available here and not in May.
I can get Agave and Maple syrup here.
I have yet to find yellow or green split peas which is a pity as the Vendée has its own ham.