Upside Down And Ugly

First, let me just say that I, like millions of other people around the world, I cannot WAIT for the World Cup to start. Of course I'll be cheering for Mexico on Friday, but but what I'm really excited about is the England v USA game on Saturday evening. Being an English gal who spent most of her life in the US, I'd like to say I'm a little torn about who to cheer for, but I'm not. That game however, will be the only match that will see me cheering against the States. Unless of course England and the US are both in the final, which let's face it, isn't very likely.

We're going to watch over at my oldest childhood friend's house with her family and we're going to pig out on fish and chips. I'm going to make some red velvet and white chocolate cake balls to take along as treats, so we've got both countries' cuisines covered.  I've never made cake balls before, so if they turn out well, I'll post them. I think it might be fun to theme our coming weekly menus on the teams playing that day, but I might get a little opposition from my picky eater husband who doesn't like football. (I know, you're thinking "Tell us again why you married him?")

So anyway, the coming months promises to be exciting and interesting both for the footie and for the food. Historically, I'm not my most productive during the World Cup, but at least I can post recipes during half time.
Now, on with today's recipe....

It's such a shame that strawberries lose their vibrant red colour when they're baked, instead turning into something that looks like it should be bandaged and given antibiotics.

I actually made this upside down cake because I had a can of apricots that were taking up precious space in my store cupboard and I wanted to use them up. I had bought some fantastic vanilla beans at the London Foodie Festival and thought that the three flavours of vanilla, apricot and strawberry would make a lovely, summery combination and I was right.

This is lovely served either chilled or at room temperature and is delicious with ice cream.

Apricot, Strawberry and Vanilla Upside Down Cake
serves 8-12, takes 1 hour, 20 mins +cooling

1 can halved apricots in fruit juice
400g (14oz) fresh, ripe strawberries, hulled and halved
250g (1/4lb) unsalted butter, softened
250g (1/4lb) plain flour
4 large eggs, room temp
250g (1/4lb) golden caster sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 large vanilla bean
1/2 tsp good vanilla extract
1 tbsp flavourless veg oil
2 pinches, salt


Preheat the oven to 170C (340F) and grease a deep pie dish or casserole with butter.
Place the strawberries and apricot halves round-side-down in the bottom of the dish and heat the juice from the can of apricots in a small saucepan, reducing to the consistency of maple syrup.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer or with electric beaters for 4-5 minutes, until pale and fluffy.
Add the eggs in, one at a time and beat in well between each addition, then beat in the oil and the pinch of salt.
Scrape the contents of the vanilla bean into the bowl and add the vanilla extract, beating well to combine.
Sift in the flour, baking powder and soda and mix well enough to combine thoroughly, but not longer than necessary, so as not to toughen the final product.

Pour the fruit juice syrup over the fruit in the dish and scrape in the cake batter. Spread it out evenly, with a slight depression in the centre, to compensate for the rise.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean and there is no more bubbling.

Remove from the oven and allow it to cool completely before turning it out onto a large plate.

Put on an Astrud Gilberto CD and have a nibble in the garden.

Game On (The Barbecue)

I bought a couple of frozen pheasants from a game supplier at my local farmers' market last month and have been having a hard time deciding how to cook them.
Because pheasant season is October-February, most of the recipes that came to mind were decidedly wintry, which just did not appeal at this glorious time of year when it's sunny out and the garden is full of the colourful produce of spring, not parsnips, cabbages and swede.
I took them out of the freezer with a plan to roast them and serve them with some sweet potatoes and spring greens, but as the day wore on and hours working in the garden had warmed me through completely, I knew that the only way these puppies were making it to our dinner table was via the barbecue.

I decided on a very simple Thai marinade and rather than cooking whole, I jointed the birds and gave them just a few minutes on each side, fully expecting to title this post "Pheasant Fail". I mean, whoever heard of barbecuing pheasant? Thai pheasant? No? I didn't think so.

What resulted was absolutely fantastic, juicy and bursting with flavour. At only £5 for both birds, this was one of the best experiments I have ever done and will definitely be repeated again soon.
You could absolutely do this with chicken, but I might use a little less sugar in the marinade, as it would be likely to burn because it would need a longer time on the grill. I don't see any reason why poussins, quail or other small game birds wouldn't work just as well. If you do use game bird, be sure to warn the other diners about the possibility of finding shot in their meat. Nothing spoils a summer barbie like an emergency trip to the dentist.

Thai Marinaded Barbecued Pheasant
serves 4, takes 40 minutes

2 medium pheasants
4 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tbsp palm sugar
juice of 2 limes
large handful coriander (cilantro) chopped finely
1-2 large red chillies, finely chopped

Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a large freezer bag.

Remove the legs and separate into thighs and drumsticks just as you would with chicken, except the knee joint is a little fiddlier.
Remove the breasts and place the 12 pieces of meat into the freezer bag, seal and toss well to coat the meat well in the marinade.

Get the barbie going and when the coals are white, pieces on the grill for 2-3 minutes per side, depending on both the size of the meat and the heat from the coal. You want the outside to be slightly charred and the inside just cooked through. There is nothing drier or chewier than over-cooked pheasant, so take care not to overdo it.

I served ours with a simple salad of sweet corn, red pepper, coriander (cilantro), mint, lime, fish sauce, and a little garlic and I roasted the peeled chunks of sweet potato in the oven with just oil, salt and pepper for the about 40 minutes.

The combination of all these flavours and textures was just the perfect summer supper, with plenty of lip-tingling, finger-licking tang and spice. We ate outside with tall glasses of gin and tonic and extra lime wedges on the side.

MEGA YUM.