Um, no, we aren't really known for our cuisine. I am fortunate that other cuisines have made more inroads here since I first visited on business. Food was some shade of brown or off-white with lots of grease and hardly any spices. It's better now but there's a long road ahead before we can crow about it, especially with France about as far away as Beaumont is from Port Arthur.
Almost anything. Amazon UK has Knorr White Roux granules. I don't see roux in a jar. My gumbo roux is not white so I guess I will carry on making it from scratch!
Do you have recipes from your mom and grandmothers that you make? None of us in my family can make our mother's Steak, Rice and Gravy. We have stood next to her and helped her make it, and while she has the magic touch, none of us can duplicate it on our own. It's a very simple recipe, but the flavor and gravy just don't come out. She made great roast and fried chicken for after church on Sunday. I think her spaghetti sauce was from scratch. I can at least duplicate her shrimp gumbo, which is more of a soup than a stew - real comfort food. I have a whole slew of recipes that I make repeatedly, and even more that I hope to try one day. Maybe you can do a few recipe posts some time.
We have some recipes from them, but as I said, I'm the worst cook. My gumbo is erratic and never approaches being as good as theirs, for example. I've accumulated a modest selection of recipes that turn out well enough even when I make them, finding them anywhere I can.
Of us kids, my sister is the one who cooks and bakes all the time with the best skill. She married a former professional baker, so they are very food oriented. My brother has turned out to be good at it too. I figure they are the ones to keep family recipes going, since I tend to mess them up.
You probably can't get roux in a jar in England, but it's the BEST! Makes all the difference since I don't have patience to make roux from scratch properly.
I can't imagine where I would even look for roux in a jar (or some of the spices from southeast Texas). I did bring back a few packets for making étouffée as a shortcut. But when I make gumbo, it's always from scratch.
My mom greatly enjoyed desserts, so much so that she'd peruse the dessert menu first to see if there was anything special, and then would order her meal accordingly. If there was a good dessert available, dinner was light, so she had room to eat and enjoy it.
In light of her favorite saying, Life is uncertain, so eat dessert first, we choose a dessert based luncheon for her memorial.
Grandma passed down her mother's wisdom to us--if we're going to bring flowers, bring them while she's alive to enjoy them (because she won't be able to enjoy them at her funeral). So Grandma and your mom would have gotten along well. I like it that your mom's approach can apply *every day*.
Mom & grandma said something similar to us, too, and I did my best to follow that advice.
I'm still working on the 'use the good items now instead of waiting for a special occasion' advice that I learned later in life, but after mom's death, it really hit home.
I tend to wait for a special occasion or ration the good stuff. However, I've stashed so much sugar free pancake syrup (something the UK doesn't have) that I'm being less frugal with that. So maybe I'm beginning to learn that 'use the good items now' idea.
It's different when an item is irreplaceable, or very difficult to replace. I think it's more to do with using the 'good china' or the favorite perfume (as examples) and enjoying them on a more regular basis than once in a blue moon.
The perfume I learned the hard way; I had finally found one I adored, and it was promptly discontinued, so I used it sparingly. Too sparingly, it turned out, because it went bad and I had to discard nearly half the bottle.
I guess England isn’t really known for its cuisine is it? White roux. Yum?
Um, no, we aren't really known for our cuisine. I am fortunate that other cuisines have made more inroads here since I first visited on business. Food was some shade of brown or off-white with lots of grease and hardly any spices. It's better now but there's a long road ahead before we can crow about it, especially with France about as far away as Beaumont is from Port Arthur.
Hard to find roux in a jar in Oklahoma too but you can get anything on Amazon!
Almost anything. Amazon UK has Knorr White Roux granules. I don't see roux in a jar. My gumbo roux is not white so I guess I will carry on making it from scratch!
Do you have recipes from your mom and grandmothers that you make? None of us in my family can make our mother's Steak, Rice and Gravy. We have stood next to her and helped her make it, and while she has the magic touch, none of us can duplicate it on our own. It's a very simple recipe, but the flavor and gravy just don't come out. She made great roast and fried chicken for after church on Sunday. I think her spaghetti sauce was from scratch. I can at least duplicate her shrimp gumbo, which is more of a soup than a stew - real comfort food. I have a whole slew of recipes that I make repeatedly, and even more that I hope to try one day. Maybe you can do a few recipe posts some time.
We have some recipes from them, but as I said, I'm the worst cook. My gumbo is erratic and never approaches being as good as theirs, for example. I've accumulated a modest selection of recipes that turn out well enough even when I make them, finding them anywhere I can.
Of us kids, my sister is the one who cooks and bakes all the time with the best skill. She married a former professional baker, so they are very food oriented. My brother has turned out to be good at it too. I figure they are the ones to keep family recipes going, since I tend to mess them up.
You probably can't get roux in a jar in England, but it's the BEST! Makes all the difference since I don't have patience to make roux from scratch properly.
I can't imagine where I would even look for roux in a jar (or some of the spices from southeast Texas). I did bring back a few packets for making étouffée as a shortcut. But when I make gumbo, it's always from scratch.
Love=Food=Love is perfect.
My mom greatly enjoyed desserts, so much so that she'd peruse the dessert menu first to see if there was anything special, and then would order her meal accordingly. If there was a good dessert available, dinner was light, so she had room to eat and enjoy it.
In light of her favorite saying, Life is uncertain, so eat dessert first, we choose a dessert based luncheon for her memorial.
Food=Love, indeed.
Grandma passed down her mother's wisdom to us--if we're going to bring flowers, bring them while she's alive to enjoy them (because she won't be able to enjoy them at her funeral). So Grandma and your mom would have gotten along well. I like it that your mom's approach can apply *every day*.
Mom & grandma said something similar to us, too, and I did my best to follow that advice.
I'm still working on the 'use the good items now instead of waiting for a special occasion' advice that I learned later in life, but after mom's death, it really hit home.
I tend to wait for a special occasion or ration the good stuff. However, I've stashed so much sugar free pancake syrup (something the UK doesn't have) that I'm being less frugal with that. So maybe I'm beginning to learn that 'use the good items now' idea.
It's different when an item is irreplaceable, or very difficult to replace. I think it's more to do with using the 'good china' or the favorite perfume (as examples) and enjoying them on a more regular basis than once in a blue moon.
The perfume I learned the hard way; I had finally found one I adored, and it was promptly discontinued, so I used it sparingly. Too sparingly, it turned out, because it went bad and I had to discard nearly half the bottle.
Oh, that must have been a terrible disappointment!
Quite! That was many years ago and I've yet to find another I like. Ahh, well.