Kitchen Essential

If you’d like to expand your knowledge of wine beyond where you get the best deal on Tassies, read on. If you remain firmly committed to the hops fraternity, you may want to skip to one of the other stupefyingly interesting sections. For instance, it is very dangerous handling heavy machinery in any shape, form or size after a wine tasting (a dedicated driver is a valuable asset) and a few other details that you may want to indulge us sharing with you. One thing is certain, if you do study this section you will know so much marvellous and interesting wine terminology, if you don’t impress anyone you’ll definitely confuse the pants off someone! Before we get serious — with wine, too, you only learn through experience. Take note of what exactly you’re drinking. Not all wines will cause your face to scrunch up as if someone has just poured a bottle of vinegar down your throat. If you’re lucky you may even find a wine that leaves you with a blissful little grin, like few other things in life ever will. Continue Reading »

You may never set the table like this (you probably don’t have enough matching cutlery anyway) but should you happen to be invited to one of those really fancy restaurants where you are faced with a dazzling display of silverware and starched white linen as the maitre d’ pushes in your chair, at least you won’t make a fool of yourself when it comes to using said silverware to deliver delicate morsels to your mouth for mastication, swallowing and digestion and whatever follows that.

With formal 3-5 course meals, the dinner place-setting is used from the outside in. When you sit down at a formal table, the side plate on your left is yours. There will normally be a butter knife on top. You will use this knife to butter your bread or roll which you don’t cut, by the way, but break (gently, you’re not a caveman). Continue Reading »

We are all faced with situations where we need to save face, join the party, be the party or simply leave the party. The trick is to know when to do what. Read the etiquette section for tips on when not to be late (ever, according to our publisher!) and more about formal table settings to know which fork to stick in what and not be completely flustered by the mere sight of it. The wine section will help you fake it with the best of them. Then we give you the cocktail recipes for fun, hangover cures for necessity and cigars for style. Continue Reading »

Don’t use these in the microwave

Metal or anything with metal trim or decoration. This includes pie tins and your dinner service if it’s got any silver or gold bits. Metal causes sparks in the microwave.

Hard plastic (melamine) and some Tupperware - these may absorb microwaves so food doesn’t cook properly in them.

Glued containers - dishes or containers that have been repaired with glue, or have handles glued on should not be used as the glue will melt and leave a huge mess. Continue Reading »

A modern miracle, the microwave’s potential is hardly ever met in the mere mortal’s kitchen. It stands in the corner forlornly hoping its owners will use it for more than pizza leftover warm-ups. As we are also maniacal reheaters, we went in search of the holy grail — or in this case the Best Kept Microwave Secrets.

In many instances the general reluctance to make the most of your microwave oven may well stem from a secret fear that it will blow up and take you and your home along with it. So let’s start with some golden rules: Continue Reading »

Decanters and carafes

Decanters are usually stoppered to prevent loss of bouquet from fine old red wines. Spirit decanters which often come in pairs may be simple yet elegant in shape, but are more often made of deeply etched glass. These too need stoppers. Silver tags hung round the necks identify the contents.

Robust young red wines benefit from exposure to the oxidizing process of air and are frequently served in a carafe, which has no stopper.

Cutlery

The price of cutlery varies enormously according to he material it is made from and the quality of the finish. At the lowest end of the scale is stainless steel cutlery, although this rises in price depending on the quality of the steel and the degree of workmanship. Stainless steel is extremely practical and suits informal meals, but it is not always appropriate for more formal occasions. Continue Reading »

Among the ’special’ dishes or sets of dishes you might like to acquire are those for a particular food. The following are the most usual.

Artichoke plates

These round dishes, embossed with a raised design of artichoke leaves, have a circular depression in the centre for the artichoke and a dimple for melted butter or french dressing.

Avocado dishes

These come in exactly the right shape to hold half an avocado, and are made from glass or fine bone china embossed with leaves. Continue Reading »

Leave yourself plenty of time as there are always little jobs to do to ensure that everything looks perfect. First decide which accessories you are going to use. Sometimes a cloth or napkins need ironing, using a little spray starch to give a fresh, crisp look. Silver and glasses may need polishing, mats may need a wipe over, flowers may have to be picked and so on.

Lay the table with the cloth or mats first. Count out the cutlery you need and set this next. Then come the glasses, well polished and sparkling. Count out the pieces of china you need for all the courses and stack ready in the kitchen, other than those you need for the first course and any side plates, which will go directly on the table. Continue Reading »

Barbecues Parties

These are the ideal occasions for using some of the extremely attractive disposable tableware now available — plates, napkins, throw-away glasses or cups and even brightly-coloured plastic cutlery. A barbecue is by nature an informal, family affair, where children can help cook and serve the food, so don’t use precious dishes or plates that might get broken. Stick to very practical, hard-wearing dishes and kitchen utensils. For a large number of guests arrange chairs and small tables around the garden and cover with very brightly coloured paper table-cloths, and use plates, napkins, cutlery, cups or plastic glasses in the same bright colours. For evening barbecues, place garden flares around the garden to give plenty of light. Set up a sturdy table near the barbecue where sauces, mustards, dips, bread and suitable drinks for both adults and children can be placed. Have a pile of plates ready so that food can be served as soon as it is ready. Continue Reading »

Canework and rush

Canework should be vacuum-dusted using a rubber upholstery nozzle. Old and grubby cane can be cleaned using a soft brush and a minimum of warm, slightly soapy water. Do small sections at a time; wipe away any soap traces with a clean damp cloth and pat dry with a colourfast towel. Rush seating should be similarly vacuumed. Avoid using water unless advised otherwise when purchasing.

Most modern bamboo, cane and rushwork is `sealed’ during manufacturing stages with chemical agents. Be extra careful to make a permanent note of the furniture maker’s cleaning instructions. Continue Reading »

Basic Needs

Now for the stores required:

Flour—plain is essential; self-raising highly desirable; wholemeal a slight “extra,” but it makes wonderful scones. Baking powder and cornflour, which is used in many cake and biscuit recipes and also for fillings.

Bicarbonate of soda has its place in many scone and other recipes, and cream of tartar is often wanted for scones, too, and also for some toffees and sweets. Continue Reading »

Herbs, spices, flavourings, colourings and decorations are just as important
to good cookery as the basic ingredients

THERE are a number of things, apart I from basics- like tea and flour, which everyone ought to keep in their kitchen. They crop up, as apparently minor ingredients, in countless recipes, but they are important. They are as vital, in their way, as the contents of a sewing basket, and a cook will need them to work on the basic materials. If you have not got them at hand, you must either forgo the dish you intended to make, or make it imperfectly. Continue Reading »

The traditional Scottish recipe for this, the largest of the British and Scandinavian game birds, states that as soon as possible after the bird has been killed, the crop should be removed, the feet cut off and the bird then buried for a fortnight, by which time one should have forgotten where the bird has been buried. This implies that the caper is pretty ghastly fare, but this is an exaggeration, and similar defamatory statements are often made about the black grouse and its female counterpart, the grey hen, which I and many others consider excellent eating. Continue Reading »

Your choice of colour will determine the style and ambience of a table, so don’t rely on a quick decision. Colours can be used quite consciously to achieve precisely the effect you are hoping for.

It may help you to run through the colour palette, starting with the colour which appears on almost every table — green.

Green for freshness

For nature lovers, the fresh green of flowers and leaves brings life into the house, especially during the winter months. Therefore green is a welcome addition to the table, because besides its fresh appearance, it has another quality. Green lifts and emphasises other colours, especially its complementary colour, red. You can exploit this characteristic if you place big green leaves on the table and then lay a single, or just a few, brightly coloured blossoms on top (for example, rhododendrons orhydrangeas). Continue Reading »

It has become normal to expect that menu cards and seating plans are purely a matter of etiquette and reserved for official occasions, as they are thought more than a little excessive for a private dinner party. It would be a pity if this idea were to persist, because menu cards for a small dinner party or place cards for a tea party in your home can be a gesture which brings people closer together and, if you do it properly, a sign that you are in command of your role as a hostess. They also make an eye-catching part of the overall table decorations.

Imaginatively designed menu cards lead to anticipation of a delicious meal and afterwards your guests can take them home as an attractive memento. Continue Reading »

Serving

As long as there is sufficient work surface beside the hob, the oven or the free-standing cooker on which to put plates and serving dishes, there should be few problems.

Within the serving area there should be convenient storage for oven gloves, serving spoons, plates and serving dishes.

Dishwashing

This is often a part of the preparation area. However, if the kitchen is large enough, it may be worth considering a separate dishwashing zone, close to the eating area. This zone will accommodate the waste disposal unit or a rubbish bin and, ideally, a dishwasher. Twin sinks should be large enough to hold a grill pan.

The hob should be linked by a worktop to the sink. It should also have ample work surfaces on both sides of it. Kettle, tea, coffee, cups and saucers are best kept close to the sink. Toasters should be on a work surface or shelf near to the bread. Deep drawers for bread storage are preferable to bins on the work surface. Continue Reading »

It doesn’t matter whether you’ve led an eventful life or a quiet one — attaining 50 or 60 years of age is a perfect opportunity to remember countless little events. This is most enjoyable at home with your family or good friends of long standing who have been with you through the years.

It can be very interesting if you extract anecdotes and stories which you have never heard before from the older members of your family, using old photographs, letters or other souvenirs. Make the most of the next birthday or celebration to have a chat about the good old days, and use the decorations specifically to create a topic of conversation. Continue Reading »

Glimmer, glitter, glamour and gaudy colours — is this an American Christmas? You might think so if you were to visit a shopping mall in the run-up to Christmas, but Christmas is not as commercialised everywhere in America as that which you see in the shopping malls would lead you to believe. Americans do tend to go to town more on decorations, but it doesn’t have to be kitsch or tasteless.

If you’d like to try a different style of table decoration this Christmas, then why not American-style? Continue Reading »

Everyone has their own pet ideas on storing items that no standard kitchen unit could accommodate. For example, units don’t provide little hooks for all those rubber bands we can’t bear to throw away! So full marks to those British kitchen unit manufacturers who do look beyond merely what their Continental rivals provide, and actually try to see what the housewife really needs.

Recipes and recipe books are never provided for. Recipe cards or small notes are not easy to handle whilst making a new cake for the first time. A bulldog clip and a cup-hook attached to the underside of the wall unit solves this problem. Attach the recipe to the bulldog clip and simply hang it on the hook! Winchmore Kitchens have produced a recipe book holder which looks, when closed, like part of the pelmet concealing the strip light under the wall cupboard. When it is pulled out it holds the book — just like a mini-lectern. Continue Reading »

All cutlery should be washed as soon as possible in warm soapy water. Salt, vinegar, lemon juice and egg can pit and blacken cutlery. Water will mark it too, although only temporarily. If you want it to look good, it should be dried and lightly buffed by hand — even if it is machine washed.

Stainless steel

Don’t use a silver dip on stainless steel, it will turn it dull grey. There are special stainless steel polishes.

Silver and silver plate

Sterling silver and plate should be kept in a baize-lined box or drawer so that the pieces do not get scratched or rubbed. Storage for silver not in use should be airtight. Remove egg tarnish from silver spoons with table salt. Continue Reading »