braised brisket in guinness with loads of mushrooms

Braised brisket in Guinness with loads of
mushrooms served with champ

Did you know that the famous Irish stout, Guinness, is actually a deep burgundy red colour and not black at all? Officially it is ruby red, one of my favourite colours, whether it is what I wear, the colour of my hair, the flowers in the garden, or just a pint!

I have never really understood why or when celebrating Saint Patrick's Day became more about food than drink, but in the spirit of exalting my Irish ancestry, I am cooking one of my favourite cheap cuts of meat, brisket, in a bit of the ruby stuff and lobbing on a little parsley, as a nod to the insane greenness of St Paddy's Day.

nigel slater's carrot and coriander fritters

nigel slater's carrot and coriander fritters

For years, I didn't much care for the herb coriander. The spice? Yes. The herb? Definitely not. The simple reason is because I am one of some ten per cent of the world's population that can taste the aldehydes in coriander, which also appear in soap. So what tastes like a slightly citrusy and aromatic herb to you, tastes of lemon-scented soapy washing up liquid to me. I think you'll agree that this isn't very appetising at all!

me derby kell is well and truly stuffed! slow roasted beef brisket in ale with carrots and mushrooms - with Adnam's Broadside

where's the beef?
(carrots, mushrooms and beefy ale!)

There is an old music hall song from the early 1900s with the catchy refrain of "boiled beef and carrots", which was song by the Cockney artiste, Harry Champion (of "Any Old Iron" , "I'm Henery the Eighth, I am" and my favourite "A Little Bit of Cucumber").

Baby it's cold outside . . . so welcome to a warm pie embrace! a traditional steak and ale pie

steak and ale stew

What could be more welcoming on a cold wet autumn night than a beef and ale stew? Actually, a beef and ale pie is even better. I think my love for puff pastry is well-known and the combination of light, buttery and crisp puff pastry with an intensely savoury stew is richly satisfying; a perfect homely pie to banish away the drizzlin' blues.

While I don't think that "life is too short to stuff a mushroom" as Shirley Conran famously, if foolishly, said, I do think there are other culinary-related scenarios where I would rather use the time spent doing something else . . . making two courses instead of one, baking a loaf of bread or just chatting to friends and quaffing more wine. 

sussex stewed steak

sussex stewed steak

A dark sticky stew, the meat a rich mahogany colour and a melt-in-the mouth texture full of beguiling savoury flavours. It is perfect for frugal times since this recipe stands up well with cheaper cuts of beef and is also worth the long cooking - particularly now the autumn evening chill seems to be settling in. It is simplicity itself. 

garlicky mussels with guinness . . . my goodness!

garlic and guinness mussels

I am going to nail my colours to the mast . . . I like green, I really do. It is one of my favourite colours. I’m a girl with green eyes; I love the ethos of “green” and I particularly like all things green in their natural habitat – such as plants and leaves and, in particular, vegetables; they are really ratherwonderful. What I don’t like is green in my drinks or in my cakes. Yes, you’ve guessed it, I’m feeling a bit bah-humbug about tomorrow’s Saint Patrick’s Day.

guinness is good for you! beef in ale stew

my goodness, my guinness!

"Guinness is good for you" so said the old advertising posters, together with "My Goodness, My Guinness" and "Lovely day for a Guinness". Well of course I knew that. Guinness is probably part of my DNA, my father worked for Guinness for many years and recognising the dark, velvety beer together with the wonderful iconic advertising from the mid-20th century are some of my earliest memories; perhaps my heritage, so to speak.

This is one of my favourite cold weather dishes; I am firmly of the belief that it is the ancient British or Irish equivalent of Jewish penicillin (chicken soup) as I find it both comforts and cures me of all ills.