Man I better start taking better Photo's. You people are something !!! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Lou, Baked another ugly Fish Cake Found a brass Silver Plated Serving Tray the right size, to bake it in.( 9 1/2 x 6 1/2 inch well. x 1 1/4 in. deep. ) Ingredients: ½ cup each of ( chopped small ) Red Pepper and Onion. ¼ cup of Celery also chopped small and Nuked them 1 ½ minutes Mixed in 3 Tablespoons of Mayo and 1 teaspoon of mustard In a SS bowl I put in a 15 oz. Can of Pink Salmon and Two 4 oz, cans of Bumblebee Crab Meat.( drained) Broke up the Salmon and picked out the backbone, then added the nuked Veggies and mixed well. In another bowl I mixed all the dry Ingredients 1 cup of bread Crumbs 1/2 teaspoon of Old Bay seasoning 2 teaspoons of Parsley Flakes 1 teaspoon of Baking Powder 1/2 teaspoon of Salt 1 teaspoon of Garlic Powder and Onion Powder 2 Tablespoons of Parmesan Cheese Beat 1 large egg with 1/4 cup of water and add to the dry ingredients. Add enough water to dampen . I Mixed the wet and dry ingredients together and placed it in the tray. Baked it at 325 Deg. for 1/2 hour. Put in some Baby Shrimp for Gills and an Olive for the eye Turned the over to Low Broil basted the fish with melted butter and Broiled for about 10 minutes , or until browned. This mix also made two 4 inch round Fish Cakes. Lou Think I'll add this to the " About the Salmon " Post

Here's one Sharon Cb shared last year-- perhaps she'll add her photos to this : Diane's Home Cookin Chapter: Heirlooms , Traditional & Ethnic English Christmas Cake (from SharonCb 2005 ) ====================== 1 pound flour (4 cup) 3/4 pound butter (1 3/4 cup) 1/2 pound soft brown or castor sugar 1 pound sultanas (2 2/3 cup) 1 pound currants (2 2/3 cup) 6 ounces chopped mixed peel (1 cup) 1/4 pound glac cherries chopped (2/3 cup) 6 large eggs 1/4 pound almonds (1 cup) 1 teaspoon grated orange rind 1 tablespoon black treacle (molasses) 1 level teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice 1 wineglass (or more) of brandy 1 Sieve the flour with the baking powder, spice and a pinch of salt 2 Blanch the almonds and finely chop; chop the peel or put through a mincer; quarter the cherries. 3 Put the butter into a bowl and warm it slightly; beat with a wooden spoon Add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, using a level dessertspoon of flour as each egg is added. Then stir in the treacle (molasses). 4 Add half the rest of the flour, all the fruit, almonds and orange rind Put the other half of the flour on top, stir and mix well but do not beat. Put in the brandy. If the mixture seems too stiff, add a little milk - the mixture should drop easily from a spoon. 5 Prepare a cake tin about 10 inches in diameter, grease the tin then line with buttered grease-proof paper high enough to come 2 to 3 inches above the top of the tin. 6 Put in the cake mixture, slightly press in the centre to make the cake rise evenly and stand the cake on a layer of coarse crushed salt on a baking tin (or cookie sheet). This will prevent the bottom becoming too brown before the cake is cooked. 7 Have the oven preheated at Gas 4, electricity 350F Put the cake not higher than the centre of the oven - just below if possible. Lower the heat at once to Gas 2, electricity 300F for one hour, then lower the heat to Gas 1, electricity 275 F The cake will take from 5 to 6 hours to cook Test with a warmed fine skewer or knitting needle after 5 hours. 8 After removing from the oven leave it in the tin for half an hour, then turn out onto wire rack, remove the paper. After about 12 hours, wrap in double sheets of greaseproof paper and store in a tin with tightly fitting lid until required for icing. If preferred, the cake can be baked at Gas 3, electricity 325F for 1 hour, then turned to Gas 1 electricity 275F for the rest of the time. Source: The Margaret Powell Cookery Book - London 1970. MY TIP: I made the cakes in mid-October and wrapped them in brandy-soaked cheesecloth in tightly closed containers, removing and resoaking the cloths (in brandy) and rewrapping them a couple of times before I did the marzipan and icing a few days before Christmas. . ICING THE CAKE: - in two stages --------------------------- ALMOND PASTE (Marzipan) 12 oz ground almonds (3 cups) 6 oz castor sugar (3/4 cup) (or fine fruit sugar) 6 oz sieved icing sugar (1 1/2 cups) 3 egg whites few drops almond essence 3 TBS apricot jam, sieved ROYAL ICING - (three days later) 4 egg whites 2 lbs icing sugar, sieved (7 to 8 cups) 4 teasp lemon juice 2 teasp glycerine 1. Mix almonds and sugar in a bowl, then blend in egg whites and almond essence to make a soft paste. Knead until it is smooth, then divide into three equal portions. 2. Roll one piece onto a sugared board to an 8-inch circle. Roll remaining two-thirds to a strip the same depth as cake, and long enough to go all the way around the edge.. 3. Brush the sides of cake with apricot jam. Press long strip around sides and press firmly to join. Place circle of paste on top of cake. Allow to dry for at least three days before icing. 4. Whisk egg whites for royal icing until they become frothy. Add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and beat well after each addition. Finally beat in lemon juice and glycerine. To prevent the icing hardening, cover bowl with a damp cloth 5. Spread icing thickly over top and round sides of cake and smooth flat. Leave for a day to set and then decorate with red ribbon around sides. Tip: Using glycerine in the icing ensures that it is not hard. The lemon juice adds flavour and helps tp make a softer icing. Source: Hamlyn All Colour Cook Book London - 1970. MY ADVICE: Buy ready made marzipan, apply it and then top with purchased rolled fondant icing. It's softer and easier than royal icing. SharonCb Notes from Delia Smith Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it's cold 'feed' it make small holes in the top and base of the cake with a cocktail stick or small skewer, then spoon over a few teaspoons of brandy, wrap it in double silicone paper secured with an elastic band and either wrap again in foil or store in an airtight container. You can now feed it at odd intervals until you need to ice or eat it. Also can soak the fruits 12 hrs in the brandy prior to mixing. Additional notes for English Christmas Cake =========================================== Mixed spice is a propriey product-common in England & Australia--make your own, grind together 1 small cinnamon stick and 1 tablespoon each clove , mace, ground nutmeg, coriander seeds, and allspice berries Some people add a little ginger for extra 'bite'. Or you can use pumpkin pie spice or allspice instead. Daisyduckworth . Diane, I would use a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves if you didn't want to grind them as Daisy has suggested. Here's an English website that sells that mixed spice and lists the ingredients they use. I've haven't seen this type of cake done in a loaf pan. It might not turn out as moist in that shaped pan. I made my smaller cakes in round tins as well - about 6 inches across. As I remember I did 6, 8 and 10 inch round cakes, not all on the same day and used springform cake tins with inserted paper sides higher than the pan as per the recipe. I'm sure the times should be shortened if you're using smaller cake tins.. Darn - I'm kicking myself for not making careful notes last time I made these cakes. I have a notebook where I keep all my Christmas recipes and cooking experiences from year to year but didn't think to make notes in it when I was making Christmas cakes. I know that I used a metal skewer to test for doneness. I have a fan oven so I normally reduce cooking times for most things. I guess you just have to try it once and keep an eye on them as you wouldn't want them too dry or underdone. SharonCb

I am reading The Dressmaker's Gift by Fiona Valpy, loaned to me by my daughter because she liked it so much. It is a present day/Paris during the Nazi occupation story of a young English woman whose mother died young and who never knew her grandmother. She discovered that her grandmother had worked in a high-fashion house during the war. She is herself interested in fashion and has obtained a job in that same firm and has met another young woman working there whose grandmother worked with her own. So far, it is a pretty predictable but good story of young love, the resistance, and the dreadful Nazis.

I make my own condiments and spice blends but do have some good pantry staples that might fit the bill. My vinegars and oils I've way pared down to basics. Every day cooking and higher end for dressings...nothing steeped or flavored. I had a shelf stable pantry drought early summer 2020 and ordered from SuperMarketItaly. Link, HERE I needed olives, capers, caper berries, Saba, etc. Excellent salami and prosciutto. Great gluten-free pastas, -corn, rice and quinoa, -had that last night. Anchovies, and the tube paste. Not just Italian. They stock global products. Important to note that over 50$ is free shipping...such an annoyance to shop and get sticker-shock shipping charges at check-out. (I think I spent about a hundred, but once a year to stuff the jar pantry.)..not bad. -cannot recall if they were the 'packing peanut people'. Not had that annoyance in years. Ugh, dislike packing peanuts. A fun shopping cruise anywho. Trying to post a pic....