Cornish Pasties

 For those of you who have never baked a Cornish Pastie...why give them a try? They are a traditional dish in the United Kingdom and a favorite enjoyed every week. It's a good way to use leftover cooked beef, and they freeze well. Served with mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables and gravy it becomes not only a healthy meal, but and a good way to stretch the dollar, too. In fact, over the next few weeks, I will be including several recipes for budget meals. With the situation as hard as it is these days...we could all do with a little extra help with our pennies.

Shortcrust Pastry 

Two cups all-purpose flour

 3/4 cup Crisco

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cold water enough to bind

Method

Combine flour, salt and Crisco in a bowl and blend together with a fork. Add about 1/4 water or just enough water to bind it all together. You can do this by adding a couple of tablespoons at a time to be sure it doesn't get too wet. Turn the dough onto a floured board and knead gently for a minute using only your fingertips (the coolest part of your hand) - dust the worktop liberally with flour and roll out the pastry until it's about 1/2" in thickness. Using a small plate as a guide (about 6") cut rounds of pastry. 

Filling

About 6-8 oz cooked beef 

One small raw chopped onion

One small raw chopped potato

Salt and pepper to taste

Enough thick gravy to combine the filling (made or purchased - I use the gravy from the roast meat mixed with a little cornstarch)

1 beaten egg to brush on the pasties

How to make the pasties

Mix beef, onion, potato, gravy and salt and pepper in a bowl. Once combined, place about 1/4 cup of filling into the middle of the pastry circle. Dampen the edges and bring them vertically (so they resemble the photograph) be sure to pinch the ends together first so the gravy doesn't spill out. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or foil (in case the gravy spills out) and brush with beaten egg. Bake in a hot oven 400 degrees for approximately 30 minutes until golden brown. 

Note: Remove from the oven and place on a rack. Using a toothpick, pierce each pastie to allow steam to escape otherwise the pastie might get soggy...and we want them to be crisp. Good luck!

Food in the United Kingdom During the 50's

 Pasta was not known to the average British housewife

The word “Curry” was used as a surname

A takeaway was a math problem

A pizza had something to do with a leaning tower in Italy

Bananas and oranges would only appear at Christmastime

Crisps were plain, the only choice was whether we used a little blue bag of salt that was twisted in the bag, wrapped in greasproof paper

Rice was a milk pudding and never part of our main meal

A Big Mac was something we wore during heavy rainfalls

Brown bread was only something poor people ate

Tea was made in a teapot using leaves not little tea bags

Coffee was Camp… it came in a brown bottle

Cubed sugar was considered “posh”

Only Heinz made beans

Fish didn’t have fingers in those days

Eating raw fish was called “poverty” not Sushi

None of knew what yogurt was

Healthy food consisted of anything edible

People who didn’t peel potatoes were called “lazy”

Indian restaurants were only found in India

Cooking outside was called camping

Seaweed was not a recognized food

“Kebab” was not even a word--let alone a food

Sugar got good press in those days and was considered white gold

Prunes were only used for medicinal purposes

Surprising enough, Muesli was readily available, but it was fed to cattle

Pineapple only came in cans…we had never seen a real one, only pictures

Water came out of a tap, if somebody suggested bottling it and charging more than petrol…they would have been a laughed out of the room

BUT THE ONE THING WE HEVER HAD ON OUR TABLES IN THE 50’s WERE OUR ELBOWS!

Note: I cannot lay claim to this article...don't know where it came from but perhaps it made some people chuckle.

Best Fish and Chips in Denver

Okay, I understand that we all have different opinions of what fish and chips means to us...but I can honestly say (as an Englishwoman who knows her fish/chips) that every time I have eaten at GB Fish and Chips, I've thoroughly enjoyed it. You can eat it there or have takeaway. They also offer a wide range of other English items: Sausage rolls; Cornish pasties, English bangers and of course -- pickled onions! A wonderful assortment of beers is also available. The restaurant is located at 1311 Broadway, Denver.  

Clarks Shoes -- 200 Years in the Making

This year, Clarks Shoes celebrate their 200 year anniversary. I'm happy to say I have been a customer for more than 60 of those 200 years. I remember having my feet measured (length and width) over 60 years ago in a small town in England. Those shoes fit perfectly! Then, when I had a family of my own, I took my three sons to Clarks for their school shoes. Brown or black leather brogues for winter...sandals for summer. 

As the photograph suggests, I still wear Clarks Shoes. I've had these for many, many years and they still look and feel great. The leather and craftsmanship speaks for itself. Well done Clarks Shoes!

Chocolate Eclairs

 

These chocolate eclairs look very difficult (and impressive) to make but they are easy...once you know how.

Ingredients

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 eggs

Method

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Heat water and butter in a medium saucepan until a rolling boil. Stir in flour. Reduce heat to low and stir vigoroughly for about a minute or until the mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat. Beat in eggs, all at one time and keep beating until smooth. I use a mixer at this point. Drop 1/4 cup of dough onto an ungreased cookie pan, placing the dough about 3" apart. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Cool on a wire rack (and here's the secret my teacher taught me 65 years ago) pierce the puff with a toothpick or sharp knife to allow the steam to escape, therewise the eclairs will go flat! Once the eclair is cooled...slice open with a sharp knife and remove any uncooked dough filament -- next fill with heavy whipping (that you have whipped until it stands in peaks) plus 1 tablespoon sugar and a few drops of vanilla essense. You can also fill with Vanilla Pudding or ice cream. Dust with confectioners' sugar or drizzle with chocolate icing. This recipe yields 12 eclairs.

Chocolate icing: Melt 2 ouces of sweetened chocolate and 1 teaspoon butter over heat. Stir in 1 cup confectioners sugar and about 2 tablespoons hot water. Spoon over the eclairs. 

Bisquick Easy Cheesy Biscuits

 

From start to finish...15 minutes...what could be easier?

Recipe 

1 cup of Bisquick

1/3 cup milk

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/4 shredded cheese 

Method

Heat oven to 450 F. 

Mix ingredients with a fork and drop onto a slightly greased cookie tray. Recipe make 6 biscuits. Bake at 450 degrees F. for 13 minutes. Once out of the oven, brush with melted butter and 1tablespoon of Hidden Valley dried ranch dressing. 

The Memory Organizers

Mary Beth Benner is embarking on an exciting career. Her new business combines her previous jobs of working for the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club where she organized non-game events, tours and weddings at home plate, to becoming a 5th grade teacher. She loved both jobs…but, an entrepreneur at heart, she always wanted to be her own boss.

Unsure of how to proceed, Mary Beth consulted a professional career coach who confirmed what she already knew deep down...that she wanted to combine her passion of connecting with people to learn their unique stories with her love of teaching and organization. Mary Beth found her calling and joined The Photo Managers - a worldwide organization of professionals who help people organize, preserve, and share their priceless and irreplaceable photo memories.

From there she started her company The Memory Organizers and today, Mary Beth sees the joy and happiness on people’s faces when their old, disorganized and decaying photos are finally safe and preserved! She loves to be able help her clients preserve their legacy for future generations! As one prospective client blurted during a presentation Mary Beth was giving, “I could keep you busy for 6 months!!”

For more information about the photo management services Mary Beth offers, visit her website thememoryorganizers.com or reach out to her directly at marybeth@thememoryorganizers.com.