County Down Beef

In Northern Ireland, supermarket meat origin labels can be confusing; where precisely the meat is slaughtered, and where it is packed.

I saw this yesterday in a very large supermarket at Knocknagoney, County Down.

With this in mind I think it's best to purchase red meat at one's local butcher.

Recently I visited my butcher, saw a fillet of beef behind the counter, and a good, thick slice was cut for me.

That evening I fried the steak, roasted a few potatoes, fried an onion, and had it with béarnaise sauce.

Needless to say, the steak was really tender and juicy, as you can see in the image.

Echlinville Apples

I spent an absolutely delightful day at Island Taggart on Wednesday, 11th September, 2019.

There were thirteen of us, National Trust volunteers; so we were ferried out to the 85-acre island in three or four sailings.

Taggart is a mere hop, skip and jump from the mainland; in fact it's almost opposite Simmy Island.

We picked fruit from the old Echlinville apple tree in the original orchard beside the derelict farmhouse at the top of the island.

Or, rather, obtained it by a degree of agitation with a long wooden pole.

The tree is quite large.

We also tidied around the apple and pear trees of the new orchard, in a small field near the said farmhouse.

It can be exposed here, so we erected wooden poles and supports for several of the small trees which had bent over due to the strength of the wind.

At lunchtime I picked some blackberries and, with three apples, the intention is to make an apple and blackberry crumble.

Mrs D's Chutney

What a fine February day it is.

The lark's on the wing; the snail's on the thorn, as Jeeves once remarked.

I happened to be collecting an item in Boot's local pharmacy and, striding past Warwick the butcher, I glanced into the window display.

Mrs Darlington's jams and chutneys were on display and I can tell you that the beetroot chutney is very good indeed.

So good that I bagged the raspberry jam and another jar of chutney.

Mr Warwick greeted me with a "ahh, Lord Belmont".

Now I'm wondering how many of the local populace recognize me?

The Green Book

There was something happening yesterday morning at a local sports club of mine, CIYMS, or "CI" as we call it.

There were cars lining the road, some with Irish registration numbers.

The time was about ten twenty-five.

I was meeting my aunt for coffee and a Chelsea bun at S D Bell's Leaf & Berry tea-room.

I don't think Bell's has changed very much in its traditional character for - shall we say - fifty years.

Indeed it has tripled in size, with a few flat-screen televisions, a shop, and so on, though essentially it remains a thriving, popular place.

In the afternoon I swam the customary eighty lengths of my health club (Bannatyne's), wallowing in the hot tub adjacent to the pool thereafter.

Self at Campbell

The club has undergone major renovation recently, though the swimming-pool, sauna, jacuzzi, steam-room and changing-rooms haven't been refurbished at all.

Now I have to admit that I do enjoy a good Chinese meal, particularly the sweet-and-sour prawns or chicken.

I've been making my own for about a year, and this was one of my better decisions.

I buy battered chicken pieces and those handy pouches of egg-fried rice.

The sauce is easy and quick to make: wine vinegar, stevia brown sugar, pineapple juice, tomato ketchup, cornflour paste to thicken; onion chunks, garlic, pineapple chunks, finely-sliced red pepper or carrot.

Of course the quantity of these ingredients and the method matters.

I consider the quality, viscosity and taste of the sauce to be essential, so I have it precisely to my liking, and judge restaurant sweet-and-sour sauces by my own.

I've more or less stopped drinking now, unless you count the odd half-glass of wine.

My aunt had recommended a film when we were at S D Bell's, The Green Book.

The intention had been to go and see The Favourite, though my aunt's thumb's-up to The Green Book was so good that I climbed into the jalopy and made a bee-line for Queen's Quay in Belfast, viz. the Odyssey Pavilion, where there's a cinema.

This pavilion, as they call it, is a ghost-town these days, because all the restaurants have closed, apart from about two.

There is one bar at the front entrance, the W5 science museum, and the multi-screen cinema.

The splendid IMAX theatre was closed down many years ago and appears to be in moth-balls.

What a shame!

Still, I did enjoy The Green Book, a really lovely film about Dr Don Shirley, an eccentric black-American concert pianist and his journey to various American venues in the Deep South with his bodyguard/driver, Tony Lip, a gruff, no-nonsense Italian-American bloke.

Remarkably I counted a mere six couples in Screen Seven, a number that certainly doesn't reflect the excellence of the film.

If you get a chance, do and see it.

Le Croque Monsieur

The television happened to be turned on to the BBC show Eggheads recently, and Judith Keppel made a remark about the classic French sandwich, Croque Monsieur.

Now I have never tasted one, and if I ever did it must have been donkey's years ago.

As a consequence of the Keppel Factor I decided to acquire some thinly sliced cooked ham, Gruyère cheese, and white sliced bread.

My method is to spread one slice of bread thinly with Dijon mustard, trim the cheese slice to fit and put on top.

The ham slices are trimmed, too, and placed atop the cheese.

This is topped with the remaining slice of bread and put on a baking sheet.

Brush one side lightly with melted butter and toast in the oven at 230ºC for about five minutes or till lightly browned.

Turn the sandwich over and brush the other side with melted butter, and toast for a further three minutes.

Cut it in half and serve hot, wrapped in a small paper napkin.

Potato Farls

Like Ulster potato bread or farls?

I devour it like nobody's business.

I came across this delightful video clip of Rosemary demonstrating how she makes it:-

Wheaten Bannock

I do enjoy wheaten bread.

It's particularly popular here in Ulster, though many wheaten loaves or bannocks sold in the supermarkets don't enthuse me at all.

I decided to make my own.

I have been experimenting with various recipes and I think I've found a good one.

For this recipe I use a greased (buttered) baking-sheet.

Heat the oven to 200º C.

• 280g coarse wholemeal flour (the coarser the better)
• 20g rolled jumbo oat flakes
• 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 25g caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp treacle
• 270ml buttermilk

Measure the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them.

Pour the treacle into the buttermilk and mix in another bowl or dish.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the buttermilk and treacle.

Mix well with a wooden spoon.

With your hands make the mixture into a round and place carefully on to the baking-sheet.

Cut a deep cross on it.

Sprinkle the top with wholemeal flour (I often forget to do this).

Bake for about 40 minutes.

Remove from the oven, brush with melted butter and allow to cool on a cooling-rack.

Best Veggie Bangers

For the benefit of those of you who don't follow me regularly, I happened to be digging and shovelling at a little wood beside Greyabbey, County Down, during the week.

This wood is owned by the National Trust.

I was chatting with a fellow volunteer about a favourite topic, viz. food, and he apprised me of a certain brand of vegetarian sausages.

Geoff's wife and daughter are both vegetarian, though he is not.

However, he recommended Tesco Meat-Free Lincolnshire-style Sausages.

They are in the freezer section and are sold in packs of six.

Dear readers, I am not vegetarian.

I had a home-made rump steak burger several days ago.

However, I am not averse to trying healthy alternatives to pork sausages.

Accordingly, I purchased a packet of the said sausages.

I fried them gently in butter, fried a finely-chopped red onion, and boiled a few potatoes.

I had these veggie sausages with onion mash, tomato, and my home-made coleslaw.

I will understand if some of you are sceptical when I tell you that these veggie sausages are as close in texture and flavour to the real thing.

It is true, though.

I have consumed Quorn sausages, and the Tesco Lincolnshire-style ones are considerably better.

I am convinced that I could fool a few pals if I presented these bangers to them in a blind tasting.

In conclusion, readers, you must try them for yourselves and please do let me know what you think.

Vegetarian Ulster Fry

The Belmont GHQ Ulster Fry, made with Quorn butcher-style sausages especially for National Vegetarian Week.

The Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry Sauce was made today at Belmont GHQ.

Having obtained the requisite main ingredient, caster sugar is dissolved with some water in a saucepan.

The juice of a clementine and its finely-grated zest is added; and a glass of port.

Thereafter the berries are added and the mixture is simmered for ten or fifteen minutes, until the desired consistency is reached.

The sauce will be refrigerated till required.

The Belmont Hamburger

Having gone to a certain degree of diligence earlier, I present The uncommon Belmont Hamburger: Half a pound of lean Ulster beef, mixed with seasoning, garlic, and tomato purée.

The chips, comprising two Maris Piper potatoes, were personally chipped, and triple-cooked.

The sauce consisted of mayonnaise, mustard, a pinch of caster sugar, and fine raw onion.

The ancient nose-bag quivered with glee, and its performance was not inadequate.

Cod in Breadcrumbs

The dinner today has been a very simple, fresh cod loin, coated in fresh breadcrumbs, with mashed potato, the finest Ulster butter, and English asparagus tips.

The fish was shallow-fried in olive oil for several minutes. 

The result was moist, pearl white, flaky cod, coated in crispy breadcrumbs.

GM Dinner

The dinner with Godmother went well. There was very little left, except that far too much Eton Mess had been made.

There's a large bowl of the remainder in the fridge.

The classic prawn cocktail was great: shredded lettuce; king prawns and pineapple chunks in seafood sauce; lemon wedge. Very simple, really. I like the addition of pineapple.

Number One nose-bags were attached for the evening's main event: The Duck.

Godmother did like the slowly-cooked duck legs in an orange sauce, accompanied by lovely little new Jersey Royal potatoes, cauliflower cheese, and fine English asparagus tips.

I was so preoccupied with other details that I omitted to take a photograph.

As ever, the Eton Mess was yummy and a treat; very rich, of course, with all that whipped double cream.

We washed it all down with some burgundy.

Although it wasn't strictly necessary, I had lit a cheery little fire for the evening.

I am particularly fond of slow-cooking, incidentally. Meat becomes so wonderfully tender and easily digested, too.

Scotch Fillet

Belmont has done it again. The mighty gnashers have worked wonders. Mind you, the exquisite fillet of beef did not require my robust teeth.

My old, late pal, Bedford, used to send his lovely Duchess out for a Big Mac and a few fries; so, I ask myself, why, on earth, should Belmont not attach the old nose-bag for a dainty beef fillet, with chunky chips, the onion rings, a little coleslaw with celery, broccoli, and tomato?

There's a considerable spoonful of bearnaise sauce, for good measure.

Too late, my friends, for if you darken the threshold of Belmont GHQ instanter, the plate is empty and the noble earl is satisfied, in a gastronomic sense, at least.

Vegetable Soup

A very simple cream of vegetable soup, made here four hours ago, with an onion, three carrots, three sticks of celery, three potatoes, seasoning, water, milk, and cream.

I had it with some rustic bread.

It was, I have to say, delicious.

Copper Pans

The kitchen at Belmont GHQ has been treated to a new set of copper pans. They were on offer at at half-price in a local supermarket, viz. Sainsbury's, hence about £100 was saved.

The one in the foreground is a diminutive 14cm version.

Mind you, they have not been christened today: the celebrated (!) Belmont pasta casserole was cooked in a very large, heavy and ancient pot.

I'm rather partial to the said supermarket's Barber's Mature Cheddar coleslaw and, indeed, their large honey-roasted peanuts; so the opportunity was taken to purchase these, too.

Their Greenall's gin is on offer, at £15 for a litre. Have any readers tried this gin?

I AM very gratified to apprise readers that the new apple corer does a splendid job.

It's from Marks & Spencer (can you discern M&S at the side?). It cuts very neatly through the core, leaving minimal wastage.

I usually eat an apple a day (the Jazz variety).

The Belmont Stew

Timothy excelled today. A good portion of the Belmont Irish Stew was unearthed from the deep-freeze.

It was defrosted slowly during the night and - Hey, presto! - devoured forthwith on the umpteenth day of Pistorious's trial.

I had it with a boule, viz. the Marks & Spencer mature cheddar and red Leicester cheese version.

I had consumed a glass of red plonk, though felt like a Tanqueray & tonic; ergo, the second glass of red Shiraz was distilled back carefully into the bottle.

No matter. All is well.

Gorgeous Tits

Great news! I have a pair of lovely little blue tits, actively swooping in and out of the North Nest Box, creating a new nest.

I had a family of blue tits in 2013. I wonder if they are related...

I can see them flying directly in towards the box from the kitchen window, with green moss in their beaks.

*****

MY great pal A from Narrow Water always wonders whether my sauce is red or brown, regarding the evening fodder.

Well, A, I can apprise you that it is brown - no! - red; well, its matured, home-made red onion marmalade, actually.

I had a hefty dollop of it with my venison bangers earlier.

Haddock en Croute

On the menu tonight: Smoked haddock en croute, with a medley of vegetables; annihilated in the customary Belmont fashion.

The trusty gnashers performed akin to the cogs on full power at Patterson's Printing Press; the nose-bag remained steadfast.

Chicken Dinner

Having spent a fortnight on the Continent ~ or the Canary Islands, at least ~ I fancied some traditional, unpretentious, British fare today.

Thus, the elementary Belmont Chicken Dinner: Said fowl; mashed potato; broccoli; tomato; sage & onion stuffing; and lashings of farm-house butter.