What we cooking this week BMN?

[quote DeegeeDee]@JingsMahBucket I bought 3 Julie in one box and same for East Indian totalling £26 including £6 postage. Eek! Better to be good or I won't live it down with the family.[/quote]
@DeegeeDee - bought the Julies first and they were really good. They post them unripened so you'll have to wait probably a few days before you can get your teeth in

East Indians are trickier - they send them unripened too and often they ripen with black spots on the skin. It's a balance between allowing them enough time to ripen (and for that heavenly flavour to develop) and not letting them go off. I find this happens even when I bring East Indians back from my mum's tree so it's not a fault of the seller.

Your dc will thank you for the mango education 😂

Thanks @Maggiethecat _ due in tomorrow. Hope they make it with the storm due this part of the country.

I generally buy mangos from the local ethnic food shop, rather than the large supermarkets. Dominican mangos seem to be the best we have come across.

@DeegeeDee - good luck!

@Starseeking - discovered Dominican mangoes this summer and they are very good (prefer them to Alfonso, Kesar) and cheaper than the Jamaican ones mentioned up thread.

I'm going to be making Maggies rum and banana cake later.
The fruit has been in the rum overnight. Woo hoo

Oh lovely @EchoNan. I can almost smell it!

I’m making either carrot cake or fruit mug cake - depends what the offspring fancy. I’ve only one loaf tin though so I’m only doing one ( I know they’ll say “BOTH”). It will be one for this weekend and I’ll do the other next Friday for next weekend. Really need to invest in a second loaf tin!

One of the Caribbean stalls in Leeds Kirkgate market had the best mangos last week. They're probably gone now as they were THIS close to being overripe - the lady carefully wrapped each one for me and nestled some paper in between so they wouldn't bruise. I'm terrible at cutting mangoes (I didn't grow up with them in the states) so I do my best and just eat them over the sink 😹

I also got my hands on some decent tomatoes so tonight I'm having the food I grew up with every summer in Mississippi. My mum and gran used to call it "garden supper" and we usually had cornbread with it as well, but I'm out of the right kind of cornmeal- I have just about enough for the fried okra. I'm going to order some more tonight.

Anyway -

-sliced fresh tomatoes with lots of salt and pepper

-sliced cucumbers and onion in white vinegar and a little sugar

-fried okra (sliced into rounds, lightly dusted with cornmeal, and shallow-fried)

-stewed potatoes and onions (just potatoes and onions sauteed for a bit and then cooked with water just until the potatoes start to break down)

-black-eyed peas (would be purple-hull peas back home and my thumbs would still be sore from shelling a bushel of them. They would be cooked with "fatback" AKA salt pork if I still ate meat. These are served with a carefully hoarded tablespoon of my auntie's "pea relish"- other people sometimes call it chow-chow, basically it's just a sweet and sour spicy tomato chutney. I bring home at least two jars whenever I get to the states, which hasn't been for a long time now so I'm down to my last little bit.

Sounds very nice @Wroxie wonder of there are other expats around who may know where you can source the finer ingredients. Can confirm the mangoes have arrived, lovingly wrapped. Look soft but don't smell ripe so going to give them 24 hours....

@EchoNan - mouth watering at your banana cake - can never get enough!
@Orchidflower1 - a second (or even third) loaf tin is so useful to make use of your oven (plus they’re not such big cakes anyway).

@DeegeeDee - 24 hours 😂
Putting them in a paper bag with bananas may help to ripen quickly

Ta da! Drum roll!

That cake is just the [email protected]

I took it out of the oven a while back, it's still slightly warm. I've had a huge slice. So has DH. I thought I'd do a test run.

I'll make two more in the morning for the cricket team crew, as this one isn't going to last the night.

Maggie thanks for that taste of heaven, and a foolproof recipe.

@EchoNan - wicked!!!

I'm loving reading this thread.

@Wroxie the garden supper sounds fantastic, especially the cornbread - I've struggled to get cornmeal recently.

Afraid I'm letting the side down currently - my house is up for sale so I've got constant viewings so I'm living off ready meals/takeaways and quick things so we can keep the kitchen pristine and ready to show at short notice. As soon as the process is over though, I want a proper day in the kitchen - apron on, hair wrapped up and do a big pot of rice and stew, a proper slow cooked lasagna and a home baked cake!

@PompomDahlia Good luck with the house sale. I've moved so many times! Some really strange people about when I've done viewings in the past. I hope the Estate agents are filtering the chancers out a bit better these days.

Keep thinking of your great cooking day ahead!

Sunday roast here today by request as it's not so hot. Roast beef and yorkshire puds and trimmings. Home made apple crumble with custard or cream to follow. We get fat day.

Whoever invented dishwashers should be made a saint!

Good luck with the move @PompomDahlia.

I’ve got half a cow in the oven at the moment - I jest not. It will be a roast later, curry tomorrow, salad weds and a variety sandwiches for Mr orchid for most of the week!

Later in the week we’re probably going to have baked eggs one day and jacket potatoes another to offset the meat heavy beginning! Hoping to track all of it on weight watchers. I had a sneaky early weigh in and I’m one pound down. Only a pound but I’m a bit of a tortoise at shifting the pounds!

Have a lovely Sunday all.

@EchoNan I’m going to do my roasts with fry light - not sure how that will go down with the rest but they’ve got strawberry gateaux for later so I’m sure they’ll survive…… I’ve got skyr and the inside of a passion fruit!

@Orchidflower1 They won't notice! I do a drizzle of rapeseed oil, we are lucky to have a farm with a little shop, just ten minutes drive away. I buy it there and whatever veg is in season.
I've made a strawberry trifle, and having strawberries myself. Mr.Echo has prepped all the veg, and is chef for the day. He's a bit envious of the sound of half a cow at the Orchid household lol!
Good luck on the diet. A pound is a good bit to move, stay with it. Well done you!

Ah thank you @EchoNan.

Lamb meatballs and spaghetti for me today! A culture mix for both dh and I. He’ll season the lamb mince and I’ll add my Scandinavian touches like lingonberry jam.
It works. I promise

Orchid. Where do you live?! Scrap the meatballs I’m coming to your house!

I'm coming for the lamb meatballs!
( off to look up lingonberry jam )

@Lndnmummy 🤣

Does the jam work kind of like a gammon and pineapple/ sweet and sour kind of taste contrast?

I’ve only ever seen it for sale in IKEA- I’ve been curious to try.

Mr Orchid has egg Mayo sandwiches today as despite there being a bit of beef left, youngest orchid has grown cress and wanted us to eat it! Tbh I think mr orchid was glad of a change!

[quote Orchidflower1]@Lndnmummy 🤣

Does the jam work kind of like a gammon and pineapple/ sweet and sour kind of taste contrast?

I’ve only ever seen it for sale in IKEA- I’ve been curious to try.

Mr Orchid has egg Mayo sandwiches today as despite there being a bit of beef left, youngest orchid has grown cress and wanted us to eat it! Tbh I think mr orchid was glad of a change![/quote]
Yes exactly like that. Best with potatoes or mash. It’s nice!