English Journal Excerpts, Part 4

"Nobody puts Baby in the corner!"

A statue of the Queen Mother sits above a memorial dedicated to her life.

The Angel of Christian Charity, a/k/a Eros, poised atop Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain at Piccadilly Circus.

Excerpts from an English Journal,
Part Four

March 9: It’s off to London in a little while. It looks to be a really long day but I’m sure it will be worth it. First, we will take the bus to the train station. Unfortunately, the bus stop around the corner is closed for street repairs so we have to walk to the church to get aboard. It’s a beautiful day again, a little windy, but it should be a pleasant walk even if it is a bit chilly.

It takes just 35 minutes to get to London. I’m excited about seeing a real live play for the first time. I’m excited about seeing London too but I think seeing a stage production will be the highlight. I have to go downstairs to breakfast now so we won’t miss the bus. More later.

Evening: We’re back in Chelmsford and boy am I tired! We took the bus to the train, the train to the city and the tube to Holborn Station in Central London’s West End District. From there, we walked to Drury Lane to the Aldwych Theatre where we bought tickets to the 7:30 performance of “Dirty Dancing.” (******* asked me to choose three and this one was my first choice.) By then it was after noon so we had a light lunch. Then we walked some more. And walked. And walked.

We saw lots of the “touristy” things, including Coventry Gardens, Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Buckingham Palace, St. James Palace, Royal Opera House, the Queen Mother’s memorial, etc. etc. The UK has so many beautiful places and so much fascinating history that it would be impossible to see and learn everything properly in just a few days. I’m not sure you could do it justice even in a few weeks.

Coventry Gardens was my favorite place (or was until we went to the theater). I bought some pretty hair ornaments and cute flip-flops for ***** and ******** at a little shop there. The street performers were impressive but it was too cold and windy to linger outside very long even though there were a number of very gifted performers who braved the weather to share their talents for tips from the audience.

It was sunny most of the time but as the day wore on, the wind got nastier and colder. Being so near the River made it even colder I’m sure. I wore dress slacks because we were going to the theater but thank goodness I had the foresight to wear pantyhose beneath them. That helped as did the layering of blouse, sweater and jacket, but my hands nearly froze despite my gloves. If I did this very often, I’d have to buy some thicker ones for sure.

We stopped at Bella Italia about mid-afternoon for tea to rest a bit and warm ourselves up. After a little more sightseeing, we’d both had enough of the walking and the increasingly bitter wind so we went on to Bistro 1 on Southampton to relax and have dinner. It was near the theater where we planned to wind up the day and we didn’t want to walk very far to get to there after we ate.

We both ordered starters (appetizers) of Honeydew Melon & Mango with Mixed Berry Coulis. For the main meal, I had the Pancake (crepe) filled with Goat’s Cheese & Creamed Spinach, served with Rice and Salad and ******* had Homemade Fish Cakes with French Fries, Salad, and Saffron Cream Sauce. He had Stuffed Apricots for dessert while I enjoyed some very good Tiramisu. My whole meal was excellent, especially the crepe, and ******* liked also liked his food.

Everything we were served ranged from very good to wonderful. Best of all, it was reasonably priced, unlike many restaurants in London. The entire meal, tip and all, was £27.80. Even lesser quality meals in London usually cost much more so it was a pleasant surprise to find something both good and affordable. I also learned that restaurants and pubs here are not familiar with Margaritas, or at least the ones I’ve visited for far haven’t.

It was on to Aldwych Theatre and “Dirty Dancing” from there. We had great seats and it was a fantastic performance. Not only was the scenery outstanding, the singing and acting were incredible. The talent was amazing and in my opinion, this show was better than the movie. And the movie was wonderful. Too soon it was time to brave the wind once again and walk back to the tube, but somebody up there liked us. We arrived at each place just before time for the connections we needed departed, both the tube and the train, so thankfully our wait time was minimal.

When we got to Chelmsford, it was late but dozens of taxis were lined up at the station and we didn’t have to linger there either. We got one to take us home straight away and arrived here shortly after midnight. We’ve just had hot chocolate and I’m more than ready to call it a day. I finally got thawed out on the train. I just hope I’m not too tired to sleep now!

This isn’t part of my journal notes but I learned later that the Aldwych Theatre is reputed to be haunted. I didn’t see any ghosts but it seats 1,200 so I might have missed them in the crowd. It’s had a star-studded history since it opened in 1905, including a 1948 production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” directed by Sir Laurence Olivier with his then wife Vivian Leigh as Blanche Dubois. She later won an Academy Award for this role in the film version.

Since 2000, it has hosted a mixture of plays, comedies and musical productions, including Andrew Lloyd Webber's “Whistle Down the Wind.” After that, “Fame” enjoyed an extended run from 2002 to 2006. The Aldwych has also hosted “Dancing in the Streets” and has been home to the British musical version of “Dirty Dancing” since September 2006. It’s a beautiful theater and well worth the visit just to see the building itself.

**********
Tiramisu

3 eggs, separated
5 T. sugar
6 oz. Mascarpone Cheese
36 Ladyfingers
1 c. orange liqueur
1 c. espresso or strong black coffee
2 oz. bitter chocolate, grated
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
Powdered sugar, opt.

Arrange a single, tight layer of ladyfingers in the bottom of a 9x12-inch serving dish and set aside. Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks in a separate bowl and set aside.

Combine egg yolks and sugar in a medium-sized bowl and beat well. Using a larger bowl, combine egg yolk mixture with the mascarpone. Fold in beaten egg whites until a creamy mixture is produced.

Drizzle half the liqueur and half the espresso over the ladyfingers, adding one liquid at a time. Cover drizzled ladyfingers with the mascarpone mixture and grated chocolate, and dust it with just over half the cocoa. Cover this with a second layer of ladyfingers and drizzle with the remaining liqueur and espresso. Chill at least 12 hours (Tiramisu can be made 24 hours in advance). Dust top with remaining cocoa before serving. You may also dust the top with a tiny bit of powdered sugar if you prefer a slightly sweeter variation.

Homemade Fish Cakes

1 lb. cod fillets
2 medium-sized russet potatoes

1 c. bread crumbs

1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley
2 T. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

2 eggs, lightly beaten
Grapeseed oil or canola oil

Boil potatoes until tender. Boil fish until tender. Mash and remove any bones that might still remain. Mix potatoes and fish with remaining ingredients by hand. If its too crumbly, add an extra egg. If too sticky, add more breadcrumbs to get it to the right texture to shape into cakes.

Divide mixture into 12 portions and shape into cakes for cooking. Coat a skill with oil and fry over medium high heat until lightly browned and crisp. Yields 4-6 servings.

Stuffed Aricots

4 ripe apricots, pits removed
8 amoretti cookies, 3-4 oz.
1 T. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 T. brandy
1 large egg yolk
1/2 c. heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks, opt.

Heat oven to 375º F. Cut apricots in half and place in a baking dish, cut-side up. Place cookies on a clean surface and use a rolling pin to crush them into fine crumbs. Transfer crumbs to a small bowl and add butter, brandy and egg yolk. Use a wooden spoon to combine these ingredients together.

Place about one tablespoon of cookie mixture into each apricot half and bake 25-35 minutes until the apricots are tender. Serve plain or with a dollop of whipped cream on the side. This looks similar to the one ******* enjoyed so much.