Tomorrow marks one year since I began "The British Chef. So, I thought it only fitting to go back to the beginning and re-post my first ever food blog...The English Breakfast!!! It is how any Englishman should start the day. It is so simple and so scrumptious. Some people refer to it as a "heart attack on a plate". They are right in the aspect that it is all fried up in a skillet. The slang term for it is a "fry-up". You start out with frying up some bacon and sausages in a skillet. You then add some Black Pudding. For those who don't know, black pudding is a sausage made from coagulated pig's blood mixed with herbs and spices. When you cook it it turns black, hence the name. You also fry up some tomatoes, mushrooms, potatoes and eggs. All of this is also served with some good old Baked Beans. The common brand is Heinz. It is hard to get Heinz Baked Beans here in the US. You can however find them online and at some specialty food stores. Once all this is done, you then make fried bread. Just take some sliced bread and brown it in the pan drippings. It is then all served up with some tea, and a bottle of HP Brown Sauce. It is delicious not only at breakfast but at any time of day. If you would like to find some of these products online, I would suggest the British Food Depot. They have everything from sausages and black pudding to HP Sauce and Baked Beans. Click on the link below to go to their site. Cheers!!
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I first discovered this recipe watching Ree Drummond's "The Pioneer Woman". She said that this was her family's favorite snack/breakfast. She explained the right and wrong way of making cinnamon toast. Apparently I have been making it wrong my whole life. The wrong way is to toast bread and spread butter and sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top. WRONG!
When I saw her make cinnamon toast the right way, I tried it and it is almost like a heavenly moment. The clouds part, you see sparkles. Here is the correct way to make Cinnamon Toast:
I guarantee once you make this, you will never go back to the old method of making cinnamon toast! Bon Appetit! Here is part 2 of 3 of my discussion on a few British Food Products. Again, all of these can be found in some specialty food stores and online. If you prefer to get them online. I would suggest the British Food Depot. You can visit their site by clicking on the button at the bottom of this blog post. 6. Hobnobs - These are one of my favorite British snacks. They are sweet oat biscuits that come either plain or coated in milk chocolate. They are perfect with a nice cup of tea or a glass of milk. Simple and yet so delicious. 7. Marmite - This product is one of those things where you either love it or hate it. It is a highly concentrated yeast extract. It is probably the closest thing to salt. It has a unbelievably strong taste. Most Britons eat it on buttered toast. I personally am not fond of the taste, and I have found another use for it. You can dissolve it in water and use it in a soup or stock in place of salt. It adds an earthy taste to savory dishes. It is a stronger version of the Australian product Vegemite. 8. Black Pudding - This, like the baked beans, is an essential part of an English Breakfast. To some it may sound revolting, but it is delicious. It is a sausage that is made from a mixture of beef or pig's blood, oatmeal or breadcrumbs, fat, herbs and spices. It is boiled in a casing until it becomes firm like a sausage. You slice it and fry it in a skillet. It starts out a reddish brown color and when it cooks it turns black. It can taste different based on how long you cook it. If cooked correctly it has the taste and texture of a normal sausage, if cooked too long it becomes gritty. Just think of it as sausage with more herbs. A good way to serve it is with HP Brown Sauce. It must remain frozen or refrigerated until ready to cook. Try it and I will guarantee you will like it, just don't think about what it is. 9. Heinz Salad Cream - Americans, I think shall enjoy this, it has a similar taste to Miracle Whip. It is a little more tangy. It is great for sandwiches and salads. I use it myself as an ingredient into potato salad. It, like Piccalilli, will be more familiar than different to Americans. If you like Miracle Whip, give this a try. 10. PG Tips - This is probably the only product that is sold anywhere, in any supermarket. It is England's number one brand of tea. It is very good and soothing. Go to your local market, and you will most definitely find this. The perfect thing to unwind on a cool evening, a cup of PG Tips and a biscuit. Check back soon for the final part of this three part blog post. But for now, if you want to find these products, click on the button below to go to the British Food Depot.
A lot of Americans upon asking, have never heard of some of these products. They can be hard to find unless you live near a specialty food store or import store. Along the east coast, if you have a Wegman's Food Store, these products can be found in the International Food aisle. If not you can buy them online. I don't live close enough to a Wegman's so I get my stuff from The British Food Depot, their site can be visited by the link button below. The British are accustomed to strong and intense flavors. Most of the following products take a special palette to like. They are very tasty and can be used in the traditional British ways or with an American Twist. 1. HP Brown Sauce - This sauce is to the British what Heinz Ketchup is to Americans. The best way to describe it, it has a similar taste to the famous A1 steak sauce, but has a more distinct and tangy flavor. It is best used drizzled over a classic English Breakfast fry-up. You can put it over pretty much anything. Put it on fries, sandwiches, etc. It is the most well known condiment in the British Isles. 2. Branston Pickle - What the British call Pickle, we yanks call it relish. It is basically a mixture of diced vegetables like carrots, onions, cauliflower, cucumbers, etc. it is mixed with spices and made into a relish. It has a unique flavor that is hard to describe. It is not to be mistaken for the flavor of our American sweet pickle relish. A classic way to serve this is on bread with some good English cheddar. I made my own American twist an it was really surprising. I took a hamburger with sharp cheddar cheese and topped it with a nice dollop of Branston. 3. Piccalilli - The best way to describe this is yellow mustard mixed with diced pickled vegetables. It is similar in texture as the Branston Pickle but with a completely different look and taste. It is probably the only British condiment that would be somewhat familiar to Americans, minus the vegetables in it. It is good served with a Ploughman's Lunch or with some cheese and crackers. An American twist would be to put it on a hot dog or hamburger like you would with plain mustard. 4. Heinz Baked Beans - This is an essential part of an English Breakfast. Heinz, as we know makes our famous ketchup, as well as other products. However, this is a Heinz product made exclusively in England and hard to find in the States unless, as I said in a specialty food store or imported and sold online. It is basically baked beans in a tomato sauce. They are really good, all you have to do is to open the can, heat gently on the stove top. I personally add a little ketchup to them to increase the flavor. They are really good drizzled with the HP Brown sauce. I would suggest ordering them online via the British Food Depot. They sell them individually or in 5 or 10 packs. 5. Bird's Custard - This is just a British version of our Instant Jello Pudding. It is a creamy custard that can be used and flavored in different ways. I like to make a batch and serve cold dollops of it in tart shells or puff pastry. It is also a good idea to use it in a trifle. Part 2 will be up shortly. To find these treats online, click on the button link below.
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