Toad. Quite possibly in the hole.

My appetite is an odd beast, to which I am occasionally held hostage. And today it demanded Toad in the Hole, and nothing less. LW has never tried this English childhood delicacy, and, needless to say, it couldn't be just ordinary sausages! No, we had to go and get a couple of gourmet delights: Moroccan Lamb, and a German Pork Bratwurst.

I won't go into the details of the recipe, just to mention that the Yorkshire Pud was cooked in the sizzling hot fat from the swosages, and the oven was not opened for the regulation 20 minutes to minimise the chances of a premature collapse.

Accompanied by a rich beef and red wine onion gravy, and some buttered Brussels sprouts with toasted almonds, it looked somewhat like this:

And washed down with Monteith's absolutely brilliant Crushed Apple Cider, which I have taken quite a shine to, as it tastes like crisp green apples.

LW's conclusion after her 1st Toad ever:
"Delicious, but I prefer it without the sausage!"

So. Yorkshire puds & gravy next time!

Missing Snapper Shock Revelation!

In an unexpected twist yesterday, a generous gift of snapper fillets went completely unused, sources say.

At approximately 5.15pm, with a car full of occupants threading their weary way south from Kaitaia, the missing snapper was first noted. The fillets had been placed in the fridge, and it was only as the car approached the Mangamuka pass that LW realized that the fishy treat had been accidentally abandoned.

A planned supper of fish and chips had to be entirely re-thought, and it was only thanks to the quick witted, eleventh-hour decision-making process that we still feasted last night.

The farmers' market in Kerikeri has a new stall; an expert in cured meats of the porky variety, and we've tried a few of his products; the streaky bacon is very good, but quite salty; and last night we tried the cured pork sausages.

The sausages are very firm, almost like a salami, very high in meat content, in the traditional continental European style, and mildly spiced. The skins were strangely "baggy" on the sausages, so I suspect they had, despite shrink wrapping, lost a little moisture content since they were made, but they fried very well, and had an excellent taste. We will definitely have them again! I think they'd be lovely fried, cold in a sandwich, with some Dijon mustard.

Chips. Everyone likes to cook theirs their own way; here's mine: Use a floury spud; (we love Agria or Victoria) soak the uncooked chips (LW likes them skinny french-fry style) in water & drain off any excess starch, then fry once at 130 deg for 7-8 min until they are pale but floppy. Heat the oil to 180 deg and re-fry for 3-4 min until golden & crispy on the outside, but still soft in the middle. Serve immediately, with Fried Sausages and 2 eggs, for a comfort food, after a 10 hour day feast!

Yum. (I do hope the snapper is OK till Monday)

and before you ask,the sausages aren't burnt, it's just the odd exposure of the pic, and, yes, I did overcook the eggs. Damn.