The Kitchen (the-cure.com 1996)


Chinese Robert's prawn curry
(serves 2)

ingredients:

2 tablespoons hot curry powder
2 teaspoons mixed ginger/lemon grass/nutmeg/cinnamon/pepper
1 tablespoon cornflour
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2 carrots
a handful of (frozen) peas
several mushrooms... hmmm...
many tiger prawns !!!
the juice of half a lemon
1 big splaaash of orange juice
and a small splosh of... tomato ketchup !

1. mix the curry powder and the spices together with a bit of water to make a runny paste. let it stand !

2. mix the cornflour with about 2 tablespoons of water, stirring it over a low heat. don't let it go too lumpy ! as it thickens, add more water : get it to the consistency of... ummm... careful... chinese curry ?

3. heat the oil in a frying pan or a wok, but don't let it burn. stir-fry the onion until it's a good (?) colour, then add the runny curry paste and stir it around some more.

4. add the carrots, peas and mushrooms, and cook for another couple of minutes.

5. add the prawns and the lemon juice and the orange juice and, most importantly! the t.c.
cook for about another minute.

6. add the cornflour, stir, heat through, and serve (serving suggestion alert !) inside a ring of fluffy white rice ?
(rs)


elderflower champagne

this is something else that sent me into raptures when i was little !
and it still does...

you need :

1 and a half pounds(about 750g) loaf/white sugar
1 gallon(4 and a half litres) cold water
1 lemon
4 large fresh (or dried) elderflower heads (i can take no responsibility if any other flower is used !)
2 tablespoons white vinegar

warm a bit of the water and dissolve the sugar in it
let it cool
squeeze the juice from the lemon
discard the pith, and slice the peel
put the lemon juice and the peel and the elderflower heads and the sugar water and the vinegar into a big bowl or a (clean !) bucket and add the remaining water

leave it for 4 days
strain it and bottle it (in airtight bottles)

leave it for another 6 to 10 days (yes i know, it's too long, we're too thirsty etc etc)
but when it's ready i hope you'll think it was worth the wait !

ps. drink it all in one go in the sun with a friend ! and when you wake up... just make some more !!!
pps. best if you start batch 2 the day after you start batch 1, that way you won't have to wait too long inbetween... although following this logic, you are obviously going to need a lot of buckets...
(rs)


mrs smith's salad cream

in summer when i was young, there would always be a big bowl of this in the fridge, and it made even the limpest yum ! but as with many things that i try to recreate or relive, it's never really as good as i remember... or maybe this is just one of those things that only mums can do ? (and as with any 'handed down' recipes, the measurements and methods are pretty vague !)
but try it !!!

mix together in a heatproof bowl:
2 teaspoons dry colman's mustard powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cornflour
1 tablespoon white sugar
half a cup of milk

then add:
2 beaten eggs
and then half a cup of vinegar

mix it all up...

put this mixture (still in it's bowl) into a pan a quarter full of boiling water and stir it with a wooden spoon until it's thick

danger - don't let the mixture itself boil !!!

take the bowl out of the pan, let it cool, then put it in the fridge

and when the sun shines, pour it over anything you want !