eG Foodblog: Jackal10 - Bread and Apples

marlena spieler · September 20, 2004

yesterday we hopped into the car and drove 160 miles EACH way, en route to Jackal10's annual apple-pressing (and feasting). I"m going to set the scene: but first, first this is what we did on the way. We stopped near standsted in Mountfitchet Castle and Norman village which is nice in the way that these recreations are nice but what is fabulous is the collection of rescue animals they have living on the premises and the fact they sell bags of food to feed them with. they have the oldest dear in captivity (dolly, 1986). all of the deer liked me a great deal, including sweetpea who grabbed the bag of food from my hands, and also there was the fattest sheep in capitvity, lamby annie. for her, i had to buy a new bag of food. i enjoyed climbing the hills and being followed by lots of deer and sheep and ducks and geese and chickens. i'd like to be remembered that way, like a little wild animal goddess.

anyhow, this was such a wonderful start to a beautiful day.

we parked in a field and walked through the trees to Jack's apple pressing. It was like walking into a village celebration several hundreds of years ago in that the celebrating was taking place surrounded by gardens and everything was a hive of activity: the pizza oven was going full force with people concocting their own pizzas, and the apples were whizzing and pressing by a team that consisted to a large extent of a couple of little boys, little hard working little boys who were soooooo excited by the whole thing, throughout the day they were climbing trees, picking apples, shlepping heavy baskets of picked apples, whizzing and pressing, and then pouring it into bottles, and every so often a little fellow would nip over to the table carrying a glass jug filled with sparklingly fresh apple juice. he's cry out: apple juice is served, and we'd drink a big glass, and it was DIVINE.

Jack had loaves of his breads, which were spectacular. especially the onion and raisin one and i kept thinking: having a bread maker nearby must make like very nice. when a person is not a breadmaker by nature (me) one can only admire the passion and skills of someone who is (Jack). His pizza dough was lovely, but I got a little distressed making my pizza so when Dan Lepard arrived, I commandeered him and in his good nature he rolled out a nice thin crust from moi. I topped it with a little tomato, olive oil and cheese, and a lotta garlic. oh and a whiff of chorizo. just a little. It was soooo good: dough by Jack (a hellova dough maker) rolled and baked by dan (a hellova baker) and eaten under a tree by myself (a good little eater).

Every so often Jack brought something new and amazing to the table. the tarte au blettes was the best ever. i had to close my eyes with the first bite, the first buttery crusty outsides delicately sweetness insides tarte, i had to close my eyes because i was purring. i had to close my eyes cause i didn't want any distractions from the joy of that tarte. i wrote to my friend in Nice this morning telling her about the tarte cause Nice is a tarte au blettes kinda place and she's often said she never had one to knock her socks off. I told her my socks were firmly gone.

I was a little late for the roast pork, but managed to snatch a few bites here and there, and i also snagged a few morsels of fatty bits for two lovely fat cocker spaniels, lucy and nuooshy. they said: thanks thank s thanks in that doggy way. they licked my hand. well it was covered in pork fat.

in a little while, jack brought out two magnificent beef roasts, gorgeously black and blue: they had cooked in the aga slowly then flashed a bit in the outside oven, and to say they were the best meat experience of my life may not be exaggerating at all. I can't think of a better one. my only regret was that i had to leave just as the second one was coming out of the oven. also that i didn't have a taste of the cheddar which looked magnificent. i suppose i could get in my car for the 160 mile each way drive, but as jack said: no leftovers!

a word must be said about Jack's pizza oven: it is huge and roasts meat beautifully but its also shaped like a little house and looks very sweet. And the top is covered with earth and a bed of thyme plants, the warmth from the oven encourages the luxurious growth of the thyme. and i guess its convenient too for making those pizze!

There were about a hundred or so people millling about happily, through the orchards, and the garden and the kitchen the most amazing kitchen: huge and looks out onto the garden, all i wanted to do was come and cook. i thought: it must be so cozy in the winter when its raining or even in the snow, the aga all warm and the room so airy, and the big table in the middle so inviting.

jack took us through his gardens, the apples, the pears, the white raspberries and golden beetroots, the rainbow chard and purple plums, the last of the basil and the climbing vines of pumpkin..........

Mitchell Wood House is like an alternative universe, almost a wonderland of growing things and cooking passions, and sociability, and it was such a pleasure to be at Jack--and Jill's!--annual celebration. I hope we behaved ourselves well enough to be invited back.

on the way home we nibbled on the 3 plums that I scrumped from the tree....(okay okay it was four, and two apples. 160 miles is a long way.) please forgive me, they were delicious.

:wub:

Marlena and Alan

Edited September 20, 2004 by marlena spieler (log)

marlena spieler · September 20, 2004

just wanted to add:

Jack and Jill: what terrific hosts.

un grand merci, and I can still taste the utter refreshment of the apples fresh from the tree, pressed into sweet tart fragrant juice.

also, the chocolate challah was amazing.

the day felt as if we were players in a movie, is there a screenwriter out there to write the script? it needs to be done--see the photos and i'm sure you'll agree!

marlena

Carrot Top · September 20, 2004

Thanks for the report, Marlena. I could see it, feel it, taste it and hear it, and yes, from here on forward in time will think of you as a little wild animal goddess.

And also thanks for the link to your website. I had not seen it before, and it is quite a nice site. :smile:

bloviatrix · September 20, 2004

on the way home we nibbled on the 3 plums that I scrumped from the tree....(okay okay it was four, and two apples. 160 miles is a long way.) please forgive me, they were delicious.

Marlena and Alan
←

It sounds like William Carlos Williams would have had hard controlling himself as well. :laugh:

Thanks for sharing your account of the day. It really sounds fabulous. I am perpeptually in awe of the generousity of the people here on egullet.

marlena spieler · September 20, 2004

It sounds like William Carlos Williams would have had hard controlling himself as well.
yeah, i should have put quotation marks but you know how it is on egullet, you start a tappin and a tappin and its more stream of conciousness and you think that everyone else knows what you're thinking as you tap it out when of course we actually live in reality sad to say, and so people cannot after read my mind. maybe its just as well sometimes, but anyhow in this case, anyone reading my blurb, yes, imagine quotes, and stick william carlos williams name after the forgive me phrase.........
x m.

bloviatrix · September 20, 2004

you think that everyone else knows what you're thinking as you tap it out when of course we actually live in reality sad to say, and so people cannot after read my mind.
←

My thought was "I know I'm spending way too much time here when I can read other people's minds" Further proof of the eg family -- we finish each others thoughts. :cool:

The WCW poem is one of my all-time faves. Brings a smile to my face every time.

jackal10 · September 20, 2004

Thanks Marlena. Good to see you both, and thanks for coming. Glad you enjoyed it!

I don't usually hire caterers. We have the excellent Mrs A, who comes twice a week to clean and iron, thank goodness.

The half hour progress meeting turned into a four and half hour strategy meeting, so lunch wsa a samosa and two pieces of chicken in spicy batter was from the local Indian store "Nasreen Dar"

The office has a well used automatic expresso machine, that makes a quite acceptable cup, fresh ground from Lavazzo beans. Like most high-tech organisations good coffee is essential, and there is a deep freeze of ready meals and a microwave free for those working late..

Back to yesterday.

Salmon en croute. Good easy party dish

Cheat by using shop bought puff pastry, but given a couple of turns with more butter. Roll out the pastry and put the skinned salmon fillet on it. Make forcemeat stuffing with breadcrumbs, parsley, rosemary, onion, salt, pepper, bound with an egg

Layer the salmon with the stuffing, and lay the other salmon fillet over the top, head to tail end of the one below. Cover with more puff pastry, eggwash, and decorate - scales made with a small pastry cutter and a head and tail are traditional. Bake for twenty minute or so. Unfortunately I wasn't paying enough attention, and the brick oven was much hotter than I expected, so it burnt.

Quick work with a sharp knife saves the day!

Collect saladings: cucumber, lettuce (this is buttercrunch), and the overgrown tomato patch

The tourte blette (being finished by Fabien). The pastry is my standard pate brisee 3 flour: 2 butter: 1 sugar, and egg yolk to cohere. Put all in the food processor and whizz together.

I did not get a chance to photograph it before it vanished. That is a pizza baking on the right, but I did get to taste a piece of the tourte. To me, apart from the buttery pastry, with a hint of woodsmoke, the apple and the brandy dominated the taste, with a rich, slightly bitter and almondy backgound, a bit like a green sort of frangipane. Nice. I'll make it again.

The pate, and the chocolate challa. Maybe a bit too much salt in the challa

Put out the beer and champagne. We used plastic champagne flutes, which are OK, safer outside and save washing up. Ice bucket on the right. Tie bottle opener on string. There was also a Provencal Rose. Apple juice and champagne is excellent.

More food on the kitchen table The cheddar is a Butlers Vinatge Traditional Farhouse Cheddar (again from Tesco, one of the few good and serious cheeses they do). It was a quarter of a whole truckle, and vanished like the snows of yesteryear...

More from yesterday.

A tarte flambe or flammenkuche cooking in the oven

This Alsacien version of onion tart is a very thin pizza base, creme fraiche, onion and bacon

The beef, . Like everything else this vanished, and someone even took the bones home for their dogs...

A beef sandwich, but not as we usually know it..

Various spontaneous happenings: Ross playing the Northumbrian small pipes.

Dan Lepard taking a pizza out of the oven. Dan is one of the best bakers in the UK, if not the world. He was the initial baker and baking advisor for St Johns Bread and Wine, and many other famous places. Dan was heroic, and when the pizza dough ran out, happily made more by hand, discoursing and demonstrating to a fascinated audience on the properties of dough and the hydration of gluten. His new book "The Handmade Loaf" ISBN: 1840009667 will be published next month by Micheal Beazley.

Plum pizza (plums, butter, sugar), and apple pizza (apples, butter sugar) (delicious). Like most food, it tended to vanish before I could snap it...

There are still apples in the orchard. I guess we will have to do it again soon..

Edited September 20, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

jackal10 · September 20, 2004

Someone asked about corn. This is strawberry corn. You are meant to be able to use it as popcorn, by putting the whole cob in the microwave. Didn't work for me..

Inevitably some things got forgotten. I found another bag of the fish balls in the fridge, and a pack of cumberland sausages I was going to roast. They will freeze for another time. About half a loaf was left from all that bread, and I suspect that was only because it had been put away after I had used half for the forcemeat for the salmon. There was a tray of baked potatoes left in the oven, that turned to charcoal.

Supper tonight needed to be something simple and restorative. Chunky Chicken Soup with Onion and Parsley Dumplings. Fortunately I had bought a chicken at the supermarket, and it was about the only thing left from the ravening hordes.

Chicken stock is quickly made in a pressure cooker.

Tomorrow I am at a Cambridge Angels dinner, which I am hosting in my College. The Cambridge Angels is primarily a dining club, but we justify its existance by making angel investments in promising young start-up companies. I act as steward. The average investment is around $500K, and we have made a dozen or so investments in the last year or so. Angel investment is a long term, high risk gamble. Don't do it with money you can't afford to lose. The term angel was origiinally one for a theatrical backer. It typically takes ten years to get your money back, and maybe only one in ten suceeds, thenyou have to pay tax on it. Two or three will fail, and you lose the investment. Most will settle into lifestyle companies, or zombies - sound companies, but not making much more than enough to pay the staff. However a very few will win a lot, returning hundreds of times the initial investment.

We meet before dinner and hear presentations from hopeful companies who want us to invest in them. We then give them a hard time in questions - usually there are some experts in the field amongst us. I wanted it to be called the Chapter of Angels, and for us all to wear studded leather jackets, but I was overruled. The rule is that any Angel can introduce a company, but they must be prepared to invest in it themselves personally, and act as its champion. We then throw out the candidates, and have dinner over which there is lively debate or the merits of the proposals..

Individuals (who must be of high net worth and sophisticated investors to comply with the financial regulations) make the investments personally. It has the advantage that since everyone is acting on their own behalf, decisions can be made quickly.

The menu planned is

Sweet Pimento and Crab Soup

******

Roast Whole Venison Saddle

served with a Caramelised Pear and a Redcurrant Jus

Vegetable Selection

Potatoes

******

Warm Prune Linzer Torte

with Armagnac Ice Cream

******

Cheeseboard, Coffee and Mints

Wines:

Before: The Graham Beck Blanc de Blanc 1998

Bassermann- Jordan Jesuitgarten 1990

Nuits St George Domaine D'Arlot 1995

Ch. Coutet 1988

Warre 1977

I'll talk more about college life and catering tomorrow, answer any questions and then the blog baton will pass on...

Edited September 20, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

hjshorter · September 20, 2004

The menu sounds delicious. Who decides the menu & wines, and is the catering in-house or brought in?

jackal10 · September 20, 2004

The menu sounds delicious. Who decides the menu & wines, and is the catering in-house or brought in?
←

I choose, in consultation with the catering manager and the head chef.

The wines are from the college cellar. As a by-fellow I get acess to the Fellow's wines, rather than the standard catering list. The college has many tens of thousands of bottles laid down.

As I said earlier, Colleges provide living and dining, and it is a requirement for the students to eat a certain number of meals a term in college hall. The idea is that they learn by socialising as well as by formal teaching. There are also formal feasts and guest nights several times a year.

College http://www.emma.cam.ac.uk/ has about 400 undergraduates, and about 120 fellows. Outside University term it also acts as a conference venue.

The kitchen is thus akin to a hotel kitchen and has to serve a number of roles:

Three meals a day bulk catering for the students and staff, both formal and self-service canteen.

Formal fine dining for high table (the fellows), complete with gowns and latin grace.

Private dinners and conferences

Feasts.

The college awards scholarships, and one of the duties of a scholar is to be on the rosta to say the Grace. The Grace has been said in Hall every day for over 400 years. For feasts it is sung by the choir,

Edited September 20, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

alexhills · September 21, 2004

college wine cellars... sigh.... some of them sell to fellows (or graduate students in very rare cases) at the prices they LAY THE WINE DOWN FOR. Good memories from my past of a 1984 Potensac and a 1985 Deutz for less than a bottle of plonk from wine rack...

Pan · September 21, 2004

Marlena and Jack, thanks so much for the accounts and pictures, which I believe really did give me a good deal of a sense of what it was like to be there. Now, if there only were taste-a-vision. :laugh:

jackal10 · September 21, 2004

college wine cellars... sigh.... some of them sell to fellows (or graduate students in very rare cases) at the prices they LAY THE WINE DOWN FOR. Good memories from my past of a 1984 Potensac and a 1985 Deutz for less than a bottle of plonk from wine rack...
←

Nearly true... In my college, at least, because of the complex tax and charity laws, the wine is, I believe, formerly the property of the fellows, but is looked after for them by the college. The primary consumer is the formal dining and feasts, but some is sold to the fellowship for personal consumption. There is also wine for conferences, undergraduates, parties and the like.

The usual rule is that the wine is sold at the price it would cost to replace it with a wine of equivalent quality of a current vintage, plus a small handling charge; essentially the capital and the cellerage is free..

I remember when I was a graduate student my tutor would entertain once a term with a blind tasting for his students (fellows get an entertainment allowance). The student who most nearly correctly identified the wines won a case. Excellent education and motivation!

The wines are chosen and controlled by the wine commitee, drawn from those of the fellowship who are interested. Buying wine for a college is quite different to buying wine for a restaurant. For a restaurant (and the conference trade) you ideally want to sell the wine before you have paid for it; few restaurants have the capital or the time for long term cellerage. For college time is of no object. Of course, the bursar has a severe view of the budget he will allow for wine for feasts and dining that the college pays for, so the wines are typically mid-range, and of fairly conservative taste.

Beacuse the colleges are significant consumers (think of them as medium size hotels), and there are enough of them in one place, the wine merchants find it worthwhile to come to Cambridge and show their wines. I suspect they also enjoy it, as the audience is informed and knowledgable. Thus during term there is often a wine tasting most weekday lunchtimes, especially in the Michealmas term

Edited September 21, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

...tm... · September 21, 2004

I might have missed you mentioning it because I was distracted by the beautiful pictures and delicious descriptions, but what are you burning in your bread oven? Is any sort of hardwood enough to get the oven up to 500 degrees?

jackal10 · September 21, 2004

I might have missed you mentioning it because I was distracted by the beautiful pictures and delicious descriptions, but what are you burning in your bread oven? Is any sort of hardwood enough to get the oven up to 500 degrees?
←

I did mention it here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...ndpost&p=717672

Its a mixture of elm, hazel and mostly cherry from trees on the estate that have fallen down, stacked and dried for a couple of years...The oven is very well insulated, so it only uses half a wheelbarrow or so per firing.

Edited September 21, 2004 by jackal10 (log)

Carlovski · September 21, 2004

How come Dan Lepard never turns up at my parties to help with the pizzas :biggrin:

That mention of the Warres 1977 brought back memories of my only decent free college wine experience (Durham's colleges not being quite the same sort of institutions as Oxbridge ones).

The senior common room were hosting a port tasting after the meal, and possibly foolishly invited a few of the undergrads as well. It was very enjoyable, but obviously being students, we did more than taste.... And after the wine with the formal, you can guess what happened!

We worked through the bog standard dows, white ports, lbv's and tawny ports, and ended with a couple of vintage ports - culminating in the 1977 - the first time the guy leading the tasting had tried it. The thing was, 1977 was the year most of the undergrads invited had been born, so we took it upon ourselves to 'sample' as much of it as we could.

I did catch our senior tutor (And my Quantum mechanics lecturer) ordering quite a hefty number of cases for the SCR drinks cabinet, so I don't think the stereotype of acadmics lounging in leather armchairs sipping port is completely untrue.

balex · September 21, 2004

college wine cellars... sigh.... some of them sell to fellows (or graduate students in very rare cases) at the prices they LAY THE WINE DOWN FOR. Good memories from my past of a 1984 Potensac and a 1985 Deutz for less than a bottle of plonk from wine rack...
←

I scored half a case of Latour 61 when I was an undergraduate (from Peterhouse , but I was at Trinity). That was nice.

Carrot Top · September 21, 2004

I scored half a case of Latour 61 when I was an undergraduate (from Peterhouse , but I was at Trinity). That was nice.
←

'Nice' is a definite understatement.

How long did it take you to drink it?

(I had the same bottle once...and if I'd had more, I am sure they would have been calling me to drink them up one per day right in a row till done. Glorious taste.)

Edited September 21, 2004 by Carrot Top (log)

Carrot Top · September 21, 2004

This has been an ardent and marvellous foodblog, jackal10. Whomever follows will be a brave soul.

Thank you for the incredible effort that went into putting this together for our pleasure.

forever_young_ca · September 21, 2004

Thanks for your wonderful (second) blog Jack. These blogs are great as we get a glimpse of someone else's life/eating habits. You live in a wonderful part of the world.

You have inspired me to read again your bread baking class and to bake some bread come fall.

Thanks again :biggrin: I have loved every word and picture.

reesek · September 21, 2004

jack - what an amazing job you've done. it really is daunting to see the accomplishments of this community - thank you so much for the photos, the bread tips and a chance to walk through your garden.

if i wasn't so glad just to have seen this (even from online) i'd be so envious i'd spit.

bloviatrix took the words right off my fingers when she said you'd better watch out next year...i'm already wondering how to plant the seeds with BF's aunt and uncle. i'm sure they want to see their darling nephew again! :wink:

Sign In

eG Foodblog: Jackal10 - Bread and Apples

Recommended Posts

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Link to comment

Share on other sites

Similar Content

Recently Browsing 0 members