English Journal, Installment 5

Town Centre ~ Chelmsford

Excerpts from an English Journal,
Part Five

March 10: It started raining this morning, the first day I haven’t been awakened by bright sunshine pouring through the window since I’ve been here. ******* had a dental appointment today but other than that, we’ve stayed in. We’d planned a short walk but the rain put a “damper” on that. Not sure about him but I need some down time to recuperate from yesterday anyway. It was a really long day and I’m still a little tired, not to mention footsore from all the walking on our trek to London.

He took advantage of the break and did some ironing and a few other household chores he wanted to get done. I helped a little,Not with the ironing though! Not my “cup “of tea,” so to speak.

March 11: *******’s actual birthday is today even though the celebration isn’t until Sunday. Daughter-in-law J**** and grandson J***** dropped by midmorning to deliver cards and wish him Happy Birthday. Daughters J****** and J***** arrived with more birthday wishes about half eleven. ******* had to leave in time to call for her children at their school but ****** stayed for and we walked her home, about two miles. I like both his daughters but until now, I’ve spent more time with ****** and I’m growing very fond of her. She’s a very sweet person. (She’s also a Taurus so maybe that explains a little of it too.)

We saw church rector Raymond Brown on our walk to J*****’s. He was riding his bicycle from visiting parishioners and stopped to chat a few minutes. I couldn’t believe he remembered the date I’m supposed to go back to Atlanta. I only met him the one time at church Sunday morning and while I found him to be friendly and quite charismatic, we really didn’t talk that long. He asked me then how long I was staying but I had no idea he would remember it. I suppose things like that are what makes him such a popular figure with his parishioners.

Evening: ******* is an avid walker and organizes outings for a group of friends. They wanted to celebrate his birthday and he also wanted them to meet me (and vice versa) so he hosted a dinner for a few of them at Waterfront Place tonight. It’s a lovely pub on the banks of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It‘s known for the quality of its food and a view of the water adds a soft ambiance to the setting. His friend Derek drove us there where we were met by Anita, Espé, Mary and Wendy. Group regular Stan was just out of the hospital, recuperating from food poisoning he contracted while on holiday, and unable to be there.

Again, the food theme. They ordered various starters and half of them ordered Braised Shank of Lam on Puy Lentils with Green Beans as their main course. (These lentils are called Puy after Le Puy-en-Velay, a commune in South Central France where they are grown.)

Lamb seems to be very popular here but in keeping with my vow to try new foods (as well as not eating red meat), I went a slightly different route and ordered Warm Chicken Liver Salad with Pine Nuts & Pomegranate Dressing for my starter and Chestnut, Leek & Mushroom Pie with New Potatoes as my entrée. Both were fantastic. Still no Margaritas though so I settled for Diet Coke and Jack while the others shared a bottle of wine. Jack because there were no Margaritas and Diet Coke because it offsets calories in the Jack. That’s my excuse anyway and I’m sticking to it.

The chicken liver salad I had was more than good. It was not in pâté form even though pâté is often used in preparing dishes with the same name. On a personal level, I thought this was much better as puréed meat tends to be a little too sticky for my taste.

Far from being bland as the name might sound, the Chestnut & Leek pie was seasoned well enough not to be. I don’t know how they made it but I do know it has puff pastry on top and was one of the best things I’ve had so far. The roasted potatoes were very good too. Several plates of fresh steamed seasonal vegetables were placed on the table but I had no room for them so didn’t partake.

Derek brought a Marks & Spencer chocolate birthday cake that we all shared small slices of for dessert. It was filled and covered with chocolate ganache, lightly dusted with cocoa power, decorated with fine dark chocolate pieces and finished with dark chocolate scrolls. I’m almost glad I don’t have the recipe for it. It was sinfully rich and worth the indulgence but I couldn’t splurge on it very often or I’d have to shop for new clothes!

After dinner, the group presented ******* with a lemon tree about three feet high, replete with several large, almost ripe lemons. I rode home with it sitting beside me but didn’t touch it though. With my brown thumb, it might not have made it home. Derek also gave him a microwave later, a gift he really didn’t want but was quite gracious about it anyway.

March 12: We had a leisurely breakfast before walking into Chelmsford’s Town Centre to shop a little and let ******* attend to some business. It’s a little chilly here but a two-mile walk does tend to warm you up a good bit. I bought some post cards and my best purchase so far, a British dictionary. Now I don’t have to ask for translations on everything I don’t understand.
We also had tea while we were out. Or ******* did. I had Diet Coke and we both had a sweet with our beverages. J***** and her brother K**** are coming over for dinner tonight so we aren’t going to prepare lunch, just settle for some cheese and fruit or a sandwich I think.

Late Evening: Culinary skills were shining again tonight. We had some delicious Scottish salmon with roasted parsnips (at my request) and some other veggies and tarts for dessert. K**** works for Barclays Bank out of Cambridge and had to rush off immediately after dinner for a work related matter. J***** had walked over earlier so we drove her home and had tea after we returned. I’m not ordinarily a tea drinker and rarely drink hot drinks of any kind but I’m beginning to fancy a cup of hot tea with a little cream, especially the Yorkshire tea ******* uses. He makes the best “cuppa” I’ve had so far.

I also had my first Hot Cross Bun tonight. These were not homemade but came from Marks & Spencer, a store known for its good bakery. I’m not quite sure what I was expecting but it was good, especially with a little homemade plum jam.

It’s off to bed now. Not quite sure what we are doing tomorrow but it’s probably going to be another long day. We’re also having dinner with friends Stan (badminton Stan, not “walking” Stan mentioned earlier) and his wife Sheila later so I should probably try to get some rest tonight.

Note: When I emailed Waterfront Place a few days ago, head chef Tristen Easter kindly shared his recipes for Chestnut, Leek & Mushroom Pie and Warm Chicken Liver Salad with Pomegranate Dressing and I am including them here. The recipes and directions for these dishes are just as he sent them. The abbreviation dsp stands for dessert spoon. It’s approximately the size of a soup spoon in the USA. Easy conversion tables can be found at http://www.metric-conversion-tables.com/autometricconversion.htm.

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Warm Chicken Liver Salad with Pomegranate Dressing
(Courtesy of Tristen Easter, Head Chef Waterfront Place, Chelmsford, Essex)
Serves 4

300 g (2/3 lb.) chicken livers
100 ml milk
1 dsp olive oil
100 g mixed lettuce (washed)
Sea salt & cracked black pepper
20 g Pine nuts, toasted (28 g = 1 oz.)
Cucumber
Spring onions

Dressing:

100 ml red wine vinegar
1 Pomegranate
50 ml Red wine
50 g Cranberry sauce

Pick the chicken livers of all the sinew and soak in the milk for 20 minutes.
Remove the seeds from the Pomegranate and keep them to one side.
Add the wine, vinegar and Cranberry sauce to a pan and reduce by half.
Add the seeds and reduce again until you are left with a pouring syrup consistency.
Leave to cool.
Drain the livers from the milk.
Prepare the lettuce.
Cut the cucumber into thin batons and chop the spring onions.
Lightly toast the Pine nuts.
Get a frying pan hot and add the oil.
Fry the livers for about 30 seconds on each side. Add the seasoning and keep the livers moving so they don’t burn.
Place the livers on top of the salad with the Pine nuts and drizzle over the dressing.
Serve immediately.

Chestnut, Leek and Mushroom Pie
(Courtesy of Tristen Easter, Head Chef Waterfront Place, Chelmsford, Essex)
Serves 4

1 x Leek
50g Chestnuts
100g Button mushrooms
1 small onion
2 garlic cloves
1dsp Olive oil*
100ml White wine
Chopped thyme to taste
Seasoning
100ml Double cream
1 dsp Wholegrain mustard
4 x 10cm2 Puff pastry

Roll and cut out the Puff pastry.
Sweat the onion and garlic in a pan with the olive oil
Chop and wash the leek and add it to the pan.
Chop the Chestnuts into smaller pieces and add them.
Add the Mushrooms.
Keep mixing the pan until all the ingredients have coloured slightly.
Add the white wine and chopped thyme and the seasoning.
Reduce the wine by half.
Add the cream and bring to the boil.
Stir in the mustard and turn the heat back as low as possible.
Brush the pastry with egg wash and season.
Bake the pastry at 200º C (392º F) until it has puffed up and turned golden.
Serve the filling straight on to plates or in individual cocotte dishes and place the pastry lid on top. Serve with new potatoes and vegetables or with chips and peas.

Braised Lamb Shanks

6 lamb foreshanks

Coarse salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3 T. plus 1/2 cup olive oil

2 ribs celery, roughly chopped

1 carrot, roughly chopped

One large Spanish onion, coarsely chopped

1/2 c. tomato paste

5 sprigs thyme1 bay leaf

1 T. black peppercorns

3 anchovy fillets

1 whole head garlic, cut in half

2 c. red wine
1 c. dry white wine

1/3 c. white vinegar

1 t. sugar

1 c. veal stock or 1 c. demi-glace

2 c. chicken stock

Preheat the oven to 325º F. Season lamb shanks liberally with salt and pepper. With a sharp knife, cut about one inch from the bottom (narrow end) of the shank bones down to the bone and all the way around to help expose the bone while cooking. Set aside.
Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a pot over medium-high heat. Add the celery, carrot, and onion to the pot, and cook until very soft, 8-10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook 1-2 minutes.
Add the thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns, anchovies, and garlic, and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add the red and white wine, vinegar, and sugar, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium and add the veal and chicken stocks. Leave over medium heat while you brown the shanks.

In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, brown the shanks well in the remaining 1/2 cup of oil on both sides, about I minute for each of 3 sides. Use tongs to flip them over.
Transfer the shanks to a roasting pan and pour the stock mixture on top. Cover with aluminum foil and cook in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Remove the foil and cook for another 3 hours, turning the shanks over every half hour until the meat is very soft.

Remove the shanks from the braising liquid and strain the liquid. Skim any fat that rises to the surface and use the liquid as a sauce. Serves 6.