Only got iPhone pics and I missed the starter. But for £50 each, all in, this has to be the best evening's food and drink I've ever had. Shame I've got to go to work tomorrow...
So I'm not sure why we decided to pitch in for Le Cassoulet's 5-course wine-tasting evening when I got the marketing mail a couple of months ago. Gosh, I'm so pleased we did though... It was one of those 'can't really be arsed' evenings when we went out of the house. But from the slightly awkward 'glass of champagne and make conversation' stage through the 'you're sharing a table so you'd better enjoy the company of your co-tasters' stage it turned out to be a fantastic evening. The wine commentary from O.W. Loeb was passionately engaging, the wines were superb - and perfectly matched with the food - and the food was up there with the best I've ever eaten. No accident (nor aftermath of 6 wines) that the kitchen team got four rounds of applause when they came up to talk through their choice of dishes at the end of the meal. Only got iPhone pics and I missed the starter. But for £50 each, all in, this has to be the best evening's food and drink I've ever had. Shame I've got to go to work tomorrow... I know what you're thinking. What did they do with the leftovers?
Pretty much what we always do with left-over roast chicken: We turn to one of the several well-thumbed Nigel Slater books that lie around the kitchen and pick a recipe. As often as not, we'll do one of the two or three risottos - tonight the creme-fraiche one from Real Food. All wonderful because, frankly, Nigel doesn't do healthy: If it needs butter, it needs 50g of butter. The great thing about risotto is that it requires very little skill: I could make one with my eyes shut. The not so great thing about risotto is that it does need constant attention, what with that all that ladling of stock... (Does anyone really ladle stock? Rather than put it in a jug and pour in a bit every couple of minutes? Do people feel it's more like proper cooking if they have to get their ladle out?) So... stuck at the stove with my jug of stock and wooden-spoon, I looked around for something to occupy myself. It was never going to be Simon Cowell. And my camera lay idle... Pesto roast chicken and Caesar salad. And fairy cakes. Al did the former, the girls the latter. I helped, by eating.
And a reminder that, however competent the iPhone for quick snaps, you can't beat a decent camera and a moment's thought about aperture and composition... Also... The Hook Norton Brewery's 'Old Hooky' is perhaps the finest accompaniment to a roast dinner EVER.
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March 2020
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