Halloween

                                                              Clarrie's spooky pumpkin

Last Halloween I was in Spain which was a truly magical experience. Dia de las brujas; day of the witches, is about honouring the dead, and far from being a commercial holiday it is a spiritual festival of which church and religion play a large part.

That said, it is also huge fun. Children and adults gather at the town hall at 8pm, everyone is dressed in spine chilling costumes and when the band strikes up the procession around the village begins. Houses are adorned with lanterns, crosses and pumpkins which is an invitation for children to knock for treats, everyone participates so not much 'tricking' takes place.

After the procession the village bars hold Halloween parties with cakes and treats for the children while mum and dad enjoy a drink.

The following day is all saints day where families gather at the graves of their deceased relatives bearing gifts of holy water, flowers and a picnic. This is in order to rejoice with lost loved ones, a joyous occasion, not a morbid one. Families beautify the graves with wreaths and lanterns and then all eat and drink together.

I could be scathing and bemoan the fact that here in the UK Halloween has become yet another hugely commercialised affair, but hey, I love it!

My friend Clarrie has designed some fabulous pumpkins with her children, and let's face it I'm all for creating things with children, anything to drag them away from their damned computers!

My friend Carron also sent me photos of her designs and some ghoulish recipes.

Ghoulish meatballs and snake pasta

Recipe
500g good quality minced beef
40g fresh breadcrumbs
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 free range egg

For the sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 x 400g tins of tomatoes
2 teaspoons caster sugar

300g tagliatelle

For the dressing
1 bag of mini mozzarella balls
Small handful of pitted black olives, sliced thinly

Blitz meatball ingredients in a food processor
Shape into balls and gently fry in olive oil until lightly browned
Combine sauce ingredients and pour over meatballs, simmer gently for 25 minutes
Cook pasta according to packet instructions, drain
Divide pasta into bowls, spoon sauce and meatballs on top
Sit mozzarella balls on top of meatballs, add sliced olives to create eyeballs

Jack skellington on a stick

Recipe
300g cake, maderia, ginger cake, whatever your children's preference
2 tablespoons raspberry jam
300g white chocolate, broken into pieces
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
Writing icing and silver cake balls to decorate

Break cake up into fine crumbs

Add jam and mix together
Divide into 12 portions and roll into balls, chill for 30 minutes or freeze for 10 minutes
Melt chocolate, stir in vegetable oil to loosen, cool slightly
Dip pop stick in chocolate then into cake ball to create a seal
Place pop cakes in a weighted bowl to stand upright

Now dip pop cakes into cooled melted chocolate and twirl until completely covered
Return cakes to weighted bowl to stand upright, allow to set for 20 minutes
Decorate cakes with writing icing and silver cake balls

And after all your hard work, sit back and relax with a scary cocktail

Recipe
2-3 tablespoons clear honey
500ml apple and mango juice
250ml orange juice
Juice 2 large limes
A large dash of tequila
A large dash cointreau
Coloured sugar to decorate glasses
2 tablespoons Grenadine syrup
Jelly snakes
20 ice cubes

Put juices in a blender with ice cubes and blend into a thick slush

Half fill sugar rimmed glasses, add alcohol and lightly swirl with a cocktail stick
Top with remaining crush

Pour some grenadine over the top of each drink and garnish with jelly snakes

'When witches go riding and black cats are seen, the moon laughs and whispers 'tis near Halloween'

Happy Halloween
Love Donna xxxxxxx

Convenience Foods. Killing The Culture Of Cooking

                              1969-a mum doing her best in her tiny kitchen. (Courtesy Daily Mail)

Further to yesterdays post when I talked about how we have succumbed to children's faddy diets, I felt I should share some photos with you. These photos accompanied an article in the Daily Mail entitled 'Austerity? We don't know how lucky we are!'

These photos are most disturbing given the fact they were taken less than half a century ago. Today, when it seems few children go without a mobile phone or playstation, yesterdays austerity seems hard to imagine.

                       1971, A mother cooking over the living room fire. (Courtesy Daily Mail)

                        1970, a young boy wondering what's for tea. (Courtesy Daily Mail)

It's a real bugbear of mine when I hear parents claiming their children will only eat particular foods, it's strange isn't it, that those foods all seem to be convenience foods? Convenient for the parents who can't be bothered to cook.

Back in the 1990s when my son Bert was a young boy I had many of his friends home for tea. Most of the children I entertained couldn't use cutlery, would only eat finger food, expected to be able to sit in front of the TV or walk around whilst eating, refused to eat anything they didn't recognise and then wanted crisps and sweets because they were still hungry.

Clearly their parents were pandering to these demands! However, I never placed the blame on these children, they, after all, didn't understand the health consequences of their eating habits or realise that consuming this junk food was addictive.

How quickly our relationship with food has changed! As these photos depict, in the 1970s many families were still eating very basic meals, cooked from scratch. Women didn't have all the mod cons which we have at our fingertips today and cooking was a chore, nevertheless many women were resourceful and delivered wholesome family meals to the table.

Whilst I can appreciate working parents are often tired when they get home in the evening, I often found myself in a Tesco express en route home from work grabbing items that would be quick and easy to cook, I can't sympathise with parents who are prepared to feed their children on junk and then lay the blame on them.

Eating properly is a lesson in life that has to be taught to children. I didn't like brussel sprouts and would push them around the plate, but I was always reminded of the starving children in Africa. With perseverance I grew to like sprouts, other foods such as spam, which I just couldn't take to, would be omitted from my plate but I wasn't given an alternative, there were two choices, take it or leave it.

I can imagine some of todays generation would disagree with that kind of parenting considering it to be too harsh. Ironically there is a new term for parents who are too soft to impose rules or boundaries for their children, it is called loving neglect. This applies to lazy liberal parenting where parents use the guise of letting their children 'express themselves' rather than teaching them acceptable behaviour.

Giving children choices increases their expectations, the more numerous the options, the less satisfactory the end result. In our overflowing options world, children who are given choices and asked their opinions about everything grow up feeling entitled. Children who are practiced in the wants and needs of others learn to live in the condition of thank you.

We must be willing to have faith in children's ability to survive disappointment and frustration and not to give in to our first impulse to give the child what he wants. There is no better place to start than at the family dinner table. Whilst facilitating this great chaotic democracy of letting our children eat their way towards obesity, chronic illness and low self esteem, we have forgotten that we are the adults, we should be responsible for making decisions about what is good or not good for our children.

Eating habits are learned behaviours; they are not intuitive. What your children learn to eat at home in early life sticks with them well into adulthood.

We need to take back the reins where parenting is concerned and never more so than in what we feed our children. Not only is our lazy convenience food diet detrimental to our health, it is creating a society of children who are needy and feel entitled and have no understanding of food poverty, which even in the UK is still at a shocking level.

I would be interested to hear your opinions on this subject, please comment in the comments section below.

'The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.'
-Samuel Johnson

Love Donna xxxxxxxxxx

          

Looking At Food Through A Spiritual Lens

                                       A typical family gathering, Frank's bar, Jacarilla

One of my favourite writers is the widely acclaimed author, journalist and activist, Michael Pollan, the Pollan family have now collectively written a book, The Pollan Family Table, sharing healthy, nutritious recipes, but more importantly, conveying the message about the importance of eating with family.

That elusive thing, 'The family dinner' which so many of us find little time for in our splintered world, is addressed in this new cookbook. The Pollan's believe the simple act of sharing a meal can be transformative, building and sustaining bonds. As I've said several times before, I grew up in a home where we always sat at the dining table for our meals, it was an hour in our day when we shared as a family much more than just food, it was emotionally nourishing and one which still holds fond memories for me.

The Pollan's kept readers like themselves in mind whilst compiling the book, they knew many readers would be busy parents and home cooks with little culinary experience, however, they wanted to reinforce the importance of sitting down together, essential for the formation of bonds.

Michael says: 'I have no research to back up this claim, but I'm convinced that when people eat from the same pot or platter, they share something more than food.'

Researchers have found that we in the UK are still catering for our families different tastes, we shop for different foods according to our children's fussy eating habits, this creates a situation whereby meals are being served individually, with parents eating separately from their children. Eating from the same pot is no longer something parents subscribe to, yet for generations, and before the option of nuggets and pizza became the norm, children happily ate whatever was put in front of them.

Whilst parents use the excuse that their children don't like certain foods (children of my generation weren't given a choice) we know the reality is that it has become a convenient way of life to stick children in front of the TV with a bowl of chips!

Family gatherings at meal times are still extremely important in many cultures, there is an old Italian proverb which says: 'He who eats alone suffocates.'

                                         Children and babies all sit at the family table

                                                     After dinner time to play

Spanish families still embrace one pot meals and often gather on Sundays to eat paella, children included! Paella is quite a time consuming dish to make and I have posted a recipe (see labels) which is thoroughly delicious. My next recipe is a much simpler, hotch potch version, ideal if you don't have a lot of time.

Cheats paella

Recipe
2 cups of paella rice, alternatively use risotto or long grain rice
2 onions, peeled and sliced
I/4 chorizo sausage, sliced
8 roasted pieces of free range chicken (these can be roasted up to a couple of days before)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 pint of chicken stock
1 teaspoon saffron, warmed in a small cup of milk (optional)
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Heat oil in a large frying pan, add onion and chorizo, cook for 3 minutes

Add saffron and milk (if using)

Add frozen vegetables and stir, add garlic

Add stock and rice, stir thoroughly just once

Add chicken pieces and cook on a medium heat for 30 minutes or until rice is al dente

Season with salt and pepper, take the pan to the table and let everyone dig in.

'In Ethiopia, food is often looked at through a strong spiritual lens. It is a daily ceremony from the preparation of the meal, the washing of hands, to the sharing of meals with loved ones.'
-Marcus Samuelsson

Love Donna xxxxxxx

The Meat Of The Matter

                                               A high street butcher in Steyning Sussex

Supermarket giant Tesco is engulfed in a crisis and is seeing its worst fall in UK sales as customers leave in their droves. As the UK's biggest retailer by sales and the worlds largest supermarket group, Tesco has over the years cemented its dominance by expanding massively, making it hard for smaller operators to compete against.

I live in what was once a market town, Tesco opened a superstore here and after months of disruption the infrastructure of the town was adapted to suit the new store. The sheer size of their main superstores gave Tesco immense power and they became aggressive at getting what they wanted at the best deals.      

However, word has it that we consumers are becoming disenchanted with superstores and out of town hypermarkets. With the virtual death of our once prized traditional high streets, we have come to realise that the 'under one roof' format of endless anonymous aisles is a totally different atmosphere to visiting our local shopkeepers.

Between 1995 and 2000 we lost roughly one fifth of our local shops including post offices, butchers, grocers and bakers. With it came a loss of community life and a place for meaningful interaction between people of different classes, cultures, ages and lifestyles. A hypermarket is not a conducive environment to make a meaningful connection with your neighbour.

With the cost of living squeeze of the past five years, where prices have risen faster than incomes, we are now seeing a change in shopping habits. Smaller discount chains Aldi and Lidl are becoming popular by offering high quality food at budget prices. The 'big weekly shop' consisting of everything from toilet paper to lawn feed is a dying trend, the excessive days of buy one get one free seem to be over with customers becoming more discerning about their choices.

Food writer Tom Parker Bowles has written a new cookbook: Let's eat meat, in which he advocates a return to our butchers, who are the greatest source of expertise regarding cuts of meat which, he says, we have become nervous of trying. He says: 'Good meat comes from good farming practice, which means the animals aren't cooped up in dark sheds, fattened quickly and killed as soon as possible. In Britain we have some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world.' Sadly because of its mass availability on the supermarket shelves, we tend to see meat as an everyday food, as Tom says: 'You can certainly buy pork and chicken very cheaply, because it has been inhumanely produced. I would rather eat one free range chicken a week than five horrible, intensely farmed birds.' But there lies the problem, we have become used to just cutting up a chicken breast as opposed to going to our butcher for cheaper cuts, such as shin of beef, oxtail or breast of lamb, many people now wouldn't have a clue what to do with those cuts.

Country markets and independent grocers are proving popular once again as we seem to be putting our hearts back into the importance of where our food is coming from ie growers, farmers and suppliers who care.

                                      A stunning display at the Sussex produce company

The 1980s saw a surge in superstores and with it a change in how we viewed both shopping and eating. We became clockwork shoppers, sleepwalking an almost identical route through the aisles, barely registering where the products we were buying came from, or what they contained. Processed ready meals seemed innovative, cooking need no longer be a labour of love, a quick ping of the microwave and 'voila' chicken chasseur at the ready!

Increasingly the more initiated amongst us have come to realise the consequences of an intensely farmed, factory produced, chemically enhanced diet. Take your standard packet of supermarket mince which is perfectly red, hence we believe 'fresh.' The reason it is red is because the sealed meat packages have been flushed with oxygen and carbon dioxide gases, a standard industry procedure.

                                                      A typical processed ready meal

The good news is that apparently shoppers are now spending time reading food labels to make sure they are healthy and contain the right dietary requirements. More importantly we are becoming more compassionate regarding the welfare of the animals we eat. I follow compassion in world farming via the Internet and it has seriously affected the way I buy meat.

Hopefully what we are seeing in terms of Tesco's dire sales figures is a resurgence of small, independent businesses!

'If you go to the supermarket and buy a package of food and look at the photo on the front, the food never looks like that inside, does it? That is the fundamental lie we are sold every day.'
- Martin Parr

'Now that I know how supermarket meat is made, I regard eating it as a risky proposition. I know how those animals live and what's on their hides when they go to slaughter, so I don't buy industrial meat.'
-Michael Pollan

Love Donna xxxxxx

Olives.......Nothing Short Of Outstanding

What is it with olives that we Brit's don't like? Why would we rather eat crisps with our glass of wine or pint of beer? We polish off six billion packets of crisps per year, eating one packet a day can add up to the equivalent of drinking five litres of cooking oil per year, not to mention the high levels of sugar and salt each pack contains.

Go into any Spanish bar and you will more than likely be given a small tapas of olives to graze on whilst enjoying your drink. The Spanish actually eat around 40% of their olive crop which comes from around 30 million olive trees, producing 260 different olive varieties.

Although olives are commonly recognised as a high-fat food, in terms of their phytonutrient content, olives are nothing short of outstanding. Few high-fat foods offer such a diverse range of antioxidants and anti inflammatory nutrients. Olives have documented health benefits that extend to most of our bodies systems, the cardiovascular system, the respiratory system, the immune system and the digestive system.

Every time you pop an olive in your mouth you are doing something good for your body, counter that with the detrimental effects of that seemingly innocent handful of crisps and there you have one of the answers as to why the Mediterranean diet is a far healthier one.

Olive harvesting is a painstaking and time consuming affair. There is no mechanical system that doesn't bruise the fruit, a lot of love goes into the harvesting and once picked the olives spend three months being cured as they are too bitter to be eaten right off the tree.

                                                   My neighbour's harvest of olives

Jose Pizarro is the ambassador for olives from Spain and has many delicious recipes using Spanish olive varieties www.josepizarro.com/

I would love people to overcome their prejudices against olives, blitzed in a food processor with olive oil, garlic and your favourite seasonings, you instantly have a savoury tapenade to use as a dip or a topping, particularly good with fish. Marinated olives are another alternative, I love eating olives from small bowls which are swimming in pools of olive oil and lemon zest. Jose pizarro has a delicious recipe for olives stuffed with orange, a lovely combination.

Whilst in spain recently, my dear friend Hilde cooked dinner for us twice. Hilde was a cellist and has travelled widely throughout the world and eaten in many of the best restaurants, she is a true gastronome and an excellent cook. One of her dishes was chicken in an orange sauce, she had freshly picked the oranges that day from nearby groves and had combined the zest and juice with grand marnier, it was to die for. I decided to try and emulate this dish with a couple of twists and of course a jar of Spanish olives.

                                              Hostess with the mostess, the lovely Hilde

Chicken a l'orange

Recipe
8 pieces of free range chicken, I used a combination of thighs and drumsticks
1 large cup of freshly squeezed orange juice
2 teaspoons of orange zest
2 cloves of garlic
1 jar of olives
1 glass of grand marnier, cointreau or sherry
200ml chicken stock
Flour

Dredge chicken pieces in flour and season

Heat olive oil in a pan and brown chicken on all sides

Place chicken in a slow cooker
Combine orange juice, zest, liquor and stock and pour over chicken

Cook on low for 3 hours
Add garlic and olives and continue cooking for 2 hours (at this stage you can add other vegetables such as carrots or peppers)

                                     

The chicken will be moist and sticky, place chicken pieces on creamy mashed potatoes and ladle the sauce and vegetables over the top.......delicious.

'Don't call me a little olive until you've picked me.'
- Spanish proverb

Love Donna xxxxxx

A Great New Publication

                                            My article for Shorelines newspaper

You may have noticed yesterday that I mentioned I had been commissioned to write an article about the Woodmancote pub for a newspaper. Well, this happens to be a new chapter in my life and one I am extremely excited about!

One of my earliest memories is going to the library with my mother, my mum was an avid reader and would borrow several books a week. From a very young age I was allowed to choose books from the children's section and by the time I started infant school my reading was quite advanced.

I have spent a lifetime devouring books, as my mother used to say: 'A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.'

I was eight years old when I first read Anne Frank's diary and realised that not every little girl lived like myself with freedom, innocence and liberty. I learnt more about the history of China and the cruelty of communism through Jung Chang's words than I ever did whilst studying for my history O level. To kill a mockingbird had a profound affect on me, as did George Orwell's nineteen eighty-four. Reading forces you to think, so many people are absorbed in their own daily routines that they have nothing to think or speak about other than banalities.

To understand what I am thinking I have always kept diaries, I carry a notebook with me at all times, I document things that capture my imagination, a phrase, a quote, a statistic, for no other purpose than my own enjoyment. Anne Frank said 'I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.'

When I was approached by a friend to co write a food blog my writing took on a whole new meaning. Suddenly my words were out there in the ethers and people were communicating with me from across the globe. This gave me the courage to start my own blog and I took comfort from the wise words of Virginia Woolf: 'Communication is health; communication is truth; communication is happiness. To share is our duty; to go down boldly and bring light to those hidden thoughts which are most diseased; to conceal nothing; to pretend nothing; if we are ignorant to say so; if we love our friends to let them know it.'

And so, I have poodled along writing Donna's pink kitchen (which due to my nature has often gone off on a tangent) and happily have gained a loyal following, (thank you.)

A friend of mine who reads this blog regularly recommended me to an editor of a local newspaper. Fate is a funny thing, this editor was in the process of starting a new publication, he liked my writing and asked me if I would like to review a local pub/restaurant, I deliberated............for a nanosecond! This was all my Christmases come at once, going to a restaurant, eating great food, critiquing (move over Kate Spicer) and getting to write about it!!!!!!

Martin Shelley was previously the editor of The Em's newspaper, a paper local to the people of Emsworth and Westbourne. Due to a conflict in interests between himself and other contributers, Martin felt the time was right to offer the people of Emsworth and Westbourne a level playing field of information. In terms of national publications we have a wide choice, I for one never stick to one newspaper as I don't want to be biased. Local papers can often fall into the trap of having parochial attitudes if the contributers are a closed shop and no one dare tread on their toes.

Mahatma Gandhi said: 'I am a lover of my own liberty and so would do nothing to restrict yours.' I hope that the people of Emsworth and Westbourne will embrace Martin's publication and do not prove to be like many people who do not really want others to have freedom of speech, they just want others to be given the freedom to say what they want to hear.

                                               Shorelines, a great new publication

Having successfully contributed to Shorelines I am looking forward to a long and happy career as its food writer (amongst other things.)

And finally, I have never been able to work out my comments section at the bottom of this page. So many of you have emailed me to say you cannot comment.....well, thanks to another friend, it has finally been sorted and you should ALL be able to comment! I look forward to hearing from you xxxxxxx

'I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it.'
- Voltaire

Love Donna xxxxxxx

A Hidden Jewel

                                               John Miller, owner of The Woodmancote pub

You know by now one of my greatest bugbears is corporate chain pubs. I dislike the impersonal touch and service with a scowl, and don't get me started on their vast menu's of microwaved fodder!

Sadly here in Britain we are witnessing the gradual decay of our former drinking houses, despite their longstanding history as a British institution. One such pub which nearly suffered the fate of demolition is The Woodmancote pub, situated between Emsworth and Chichester. Fortunately John Miller and Jim Pagent came to its rescue and bought the freehold in 2012.

John and his partner Jim were enjoying a very successful career in Spain running restaurants, upon returning to England for a holiday they decided this 'hidden jewel' of a pub deserved rescuing. What happened next was nothing short of a Cinderella story. The pub underwent a total refurbishment and now houses a snug, a zoo, a restaurant and a bar, replete with quirky objects d'art, convivial staff and a stunning menu of home cooked food.

I had arranged to meet manager Melody as I had been commissioned to write an article for a local paper. When I arrived at midday the pub was already filling up, Melody showed me around and then we spoke about the good quality local produce that the chefs use on a daily basis for their menu. I then got chatting to regulars Gloria and Malcom who love the pubs transformation and waxed lyrical about the delicious home cooked food and gregarious owners John and Jim. 

                                                     Regulars, Gloria and Malcom

I didn't have to wait long to meet John who sashayed in bemoaning he looked a 'mess darling.' What I loved about John was his philosophy, he says: 'The pub is like one's home. Thats how you run a successful pub, you welcome your guests as if they were walking into your home.'

                                  John giving me a very warm welcome in his queens' chair

I was hard pushed as to what to order to eat, homemade double crust steak and ale pie? Treagust sausages and Woodies ale and onion gravy? A traditional ploughman's? In the end I opted for a 'lite bite' (dont be fooled, this was a very generous sandwich!) A hand carved gammon ham sandwich on delicious bread, with hand cut chips and salad. Whilst eating I noticed customers were buying food to take home, homemade raised pork pies, sausage rolls and cakes were flying out the door!

After eating my thoroughly delicious lunch I asked John if it was ok to take a few photos, there are certainly lots of fun and quirky things dotted around......

                                                    A sculpture with a difference!

         

 
When my bill arrived it was presented in a dancing shoe in true theatrical style

  
 Orwell wrote: 'Everyone is equal in front of the bar, regardless of age or sex. The pub is a place of serenity, a haven for thought and conversation.' Beer writer Pete Brown found when researching for a piece about community pubs that the decline in once - proud boozers was invariably down to publicans who don't understand the business or - more often than not - publicans who just don't understand people. Without doubt, John and Jim know their business and I would like to thank them for inviting me into their 'home.'

'There is nothing which has been yet contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced as by a good tavern or inn.'
- Samuel Johnson

Love Donna xxxxxx