As we all know fish is good for you ! Here in our London Tower we do eat a lot of fish, all sorts , but one I do not like is mackerel! Smoked is fine ( as is smoked salmon) to make a very quick pâté. But as a run of the mill, not for me! But being the super wife that I am, I cook it from time to time for himself.

During the pandemic and our various lockdowns, I bought fish online from either Chapmans Fish based in Kent, and ISH Fish. I actually fell in love with both of them and bought from them regularly. Very sad news though, no longer do they deliver to small fish like me! Well Chapmans do, but no longer do the have RYE BAY, Scallops or Skate but ISH FISh certainly do not, only to the big boys! Therefore I am forced to find new sources, and this ranges from supermarkets, our local ‘Wet’ fish shop, online Wright Brothers, Berwick shellfish to name just a few.

One new fish that I found, and himself has given it his nod of approval! Is Cornish Megrim. Never heard of it? Neither had I ! But it looks like Sole ( eyes on its flattened head), cooks like sole ( maybe not so refined) and is a fraction of the price of sole and is much better than lemon sole or plaice , both in texture and price.

As you can see they do look alike except of the spots! Look out for it, before the price starts to rise. Remember , Monkfish used to be as cheap as chips, and was used as a fake in Scampi and chips, not anymore as it is now expensive!

Another fish that I loved during the lockdowns, Chalk Stream Trout ! Not anymore! I would buy 6 or 12 of a one person size, and grill them on the BBQ, but now they only sell large ones, enough for 6-8 people!

But back to Mackerel, we had unexpected guests the other night, great to see them, as they live in Belgium ( where we lived for 13 years), so have know them for 40 years ! And the boys still ski together ! Hence it was a delight for them to visit, but some quick thinking was required. Nibbles? All too easy to go for chips and dips! Wandering around my local store, I espied smoked mackerel. What could be easier ! Actually not a lot. It can be called Pâté or maybe even better Rillets, but whichever you choose is fine.

I used smoked mackerel, but smoked salmon ( slices or odd ends), hot smoked salmon or smoked trout will also work.

Discard the skin from the fish, flake it, put into a bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of crème fraiche or sour cream and a squeeze of lemon juice. I then blend them altogether using a handheld blender, but of course, a food processor or, liquidiser , or a simple fork will also do the job. If using a fork, the end result will be a little coarser, whereas the finer the pâté, means that for a refined finish, it may be piped onto crackers . Optional extras ( not for piping) included finely chopped dill, finely chopped spring onions or cornichons?

Moving on from smoked mackerel, I do have some trout in the freezer. No longer from the chalk stream but from my local fishmonger. Another thing that himself loves is spinach and I’m always looking for alternative ways to cook it. The latest incarnation is what I all Spanish Spinach, though for some reason, I think it originated from Catalunya.

Quantities vary according to how much you need, but spinach here in the UK is usually sold in bags weighing between 200 grams and 400 grams. It can also be bought as baby spinach and ready washed spinach.

Wash your spinach leaves if necessary and spin dry or drain on a tra towel. You do not want wet spinach. Sauté in a wok or large flat frying pan, a chopped onion or shallots until soft but not brown, in some olive oil. Add a clove or two of minced garlic along with a handful of pine nuts, ( raisins and or chopped dried dates) continuing to sauté whilst the nuts turn golden. Add the spinach, continue to sauté, turning the spinach over from the bottom of the pan, but not stirring! Remember SAUTÉ means to jump, whereas to stir is remuer! When the spinach has wilted, it is ready to serve at once!

What I did was to grill my trout fillets ( they don’t take long) at more or less the same time as cooking the spinach dish, so that both were ready at the same time.

This very simple dinner, satisfies not only hunger, but aesthetically pretty and is a very healthy, dinner. At least Himself is happy!

We left our mountain home,where we had been for about 6 weeks!

The first three we had Tess with us and almost to the day it rained,that last week she was joined by her mother and siblings, the sun shone, we were able to go to the lakes and them to French Camp! We played golf just once at our Mountain Goat course and just once in Chamonix, where it was even hotter, the course sandwiched between the mountains became a heat trap.

They left and the weather certainly changed and not for the best , a heatwave, so during this stay we have had as little as 14 C to for these last two weeks 38C+. For those of you who live in such climates it is made bearable by air conditioning. We found this whilst living in Houston Texas! Why? we wondered were homes dark , and windows small ! Because of the climate and what do the locals do in such weather? Stay home and do jobs in the cool! We soon acclimatised ( or Acclimated )as our American friends would say.

The last week, had been too hot to do much but eat we must, so as we were soon to leave much of it was a UFO! Which equals, You’ll find out, or rather using up what was still in the refrigerators, or that was simple to prepare! Exercise became a 6 am occupation, a walk in the woods or by the river, at that time of day, the temperature was OK! As we were out we tried a few of the local patisseries, with mixed results. The best one changed hands and is now not worth going to, but we recommend a small one in St. Jean d’Aulps, where we reverted to “ Tremper “ our croissants in our coffee! There is a song for the kids, which goes” Tremp ton pain Marie, Tremp ton pain Marie, Tremp ton pain dans la sauce! Basically dunk your bread !

Being of the school of Waste Not, Want Not, I have to use up all food that is still in the refrigerator, or failing that it has to be frozen in time for our next visit, and as we are driving much can also be transported back to London, garlic and onions for example!

So what was on the menu this past week? Well some did require cooking, but maybe that was done early morning before it got too hot, or maybe with all windows and doors open and a breeze blowing through? And as I have said, left overs in many shapes and forms.

Warm potato salad, made with small new potatoes, cut into chunks, not peeled, and these I threw into the microwave ( cheapest and most efficient way of cooking) via the microwave container, cooked on high for 5 minutes , added some chopped spring onions and a slug of good olive oil ! Job done! Do not refrigerate as then it will no longer be warm potato salad !

Next on the agenda was carrots, I can keep my carrots in my London refrigerator for days and even weeks but not so in the Alps, limp and or mouldy they rapidly become, so Carrot Salad. In central London, there is a restaurant called Brasserie Zédel, and for those in the know, it is part of the chain that includes the very famous Ivy Restaurant. They have on their lunch menu Le Prix-Fixe, 2 courses for £16.95 and 3 for £19.75. And there is a choice, not just a take it or leave it! One of the choices for starters is Dressed Shredded Carrots. I take it a tad further, and add some chopped nuts ( almonds, brazils, walnuts or pecans) some raisins or sultanas and of course some olive oil and some balsamic vinegar. Very simple, very quick to make and this one I box and keep in the refrigerator.

Before the kids left, I defrosted some steak and decided to have the Japanese dish of Shabu Shabu. It is an onomatopoeic word, literally meaning Swish Swish. It is the sound made when swishing ingredients around in the pot. It is made at the table, with thin slices of meat and sometimes seafood, on skewers which are swished around in hot liquid or broth for a few minutes and eaten hot with a variety of sauces. Then shredded vegetables are added and a broth is made. Our improvised version, used thinly sliced steak ( best to slice whilst still frozen) and an assortment of shredded vegetables which could included, carrots, cabbage, pak Choi, mushrooms, kale etc. we also used some light stock as the base, though I believe in Japan, they start with water. Great communal meal for all ages. To make this all you need is a good sized pot and some sort of heating device, some fondue forks or chop sticks, some sauces to go with the steak, and here we used what we had, Teppanyaki, Teriyaki, Miso sauce, French mustard and Piri-Piri mayonnaise! Not particularly authentic, but it is what the 8, 13 and 15 year olds decided! They love Shabu Shabu.

On a final non food note, I mentioned golf on our Mountain Goat course and also at Chamonix, so pictures below out of interest!

We almost NEVER have Sunday lunch, not when we were first married, a life time ago, not when the kids were small, or bigger but still at home and even now , now we are foot loose and fancy free, Not even with our myriad of grandchildren. That’s not saying that they don’t get fed, when Chez Nous, it’s just not Sunday Lunch!

However, we usually have something special for Sunday dinner. Many years ago, one of my first favourite cookbooks ( Simcas cuisine) I would take one of her set meals, every Sunday and work my way through the book. Nowadays, I troll the books on my shelf, using stickies, to denote ideas/ recipes I want to try. Unfortunately there are too many on my list and the list seems to grow longer by the day. I love to cook but only so so about baking, whereas my son cooks and my lovely daughter in law bakes! A perfect combination!

This week was a bit of a cop out. I had mushrooms which I had to use ( we are away for a week) and also had marrow bones, which I had been dying to use and were not yet in the freezer. And Steak, I had two beautiful filet steaks, which cried out to me COOK !

The mushrooms were the easy bit, cleaned ( use a mushroom brush, but NEVER NEVER WASH! They go slimy), sautéed in olive oil with some chopped garlic and some chopped parsley ( actually had the leftovers on toast for breakfast! Yummy). But I digress. The first time I had grilled bone marrows was in a large Very French Old Hotel in Le Touquet. The hotel was a huge disappointment as was the restaurant EXCEPT the bone marrow. Grilled until the marrow melts, maybe with garlic and parsley dressing and toast.

I had been planning to have these for a while, but again, the choice was to throw them in the freezer for a rainy day, or to “Go for it”:So I went for it. I mixed together some panko breadcrumbs with chopped parsley ( did you know…… don’t throw parsley away, put into a bag and freeze it, then it smushes easily ready to use) and chopped garlic. Smothered the top of the bone marrows and put into a hot oven. Nothing could be easier!

Alternatively, if you have bone marrow in your refrigerator, scoop out the marrow with a teaspoon and mix it into good quality beef mince with at least 20% fat. Preferably 30% but if adding bone marrow the 20% will suffice. There is nothing worse than dry hamburgers!

But for my steak, I have been reading/ watching the latest way that chefs cook the perfect steak. Firstly, preheat your oven to 400F/200C, then pat the steak dry, a dry steak will sear better, season with pepper and then lob it onto a very hot grill pan ( oven proof) for about 2 minutes, flip over and repeat.

Then place steaks and pan into the oven and bake ( yes bake) for 5-10 minutes . At this point it is best to use a thermometer to test exactly the inner temperature of your steak, however, I forgot at that point that my thermometer had died, so I had to wing it, just by timing. Remove from the oven about 5 degrees inner temperature earlier than you think as you will now need to let them rest. ( to let them finish cooking and for the juices to be reabsorbed into the meat, making for a tender juicy meat.

So the end result for me was, my steaks were WELL DONE! Never mind, I need to get a new thermometer and repeat the exercise! To serve my steaks, I had the mushrooms along with a gratin of root vegetables which I had made previously and had frozen.

Here is a photograph of my Coronation Quiche!

Oops sorry the amount of Rice flour needed is one and a half tablespoons!

I made mine a week ago, just kept them in a plastic box and Himself devoured the last two today. Enjoy!