Leftover Stilton (or the cheese that broke the camel’s back)

In which is demonstrated the uses for leftover Stilton Cheese in Cauliflower or Broccoli and Stilton Soup, Leek and Stilton Soup, Cauliflower or Broccoli Cheese, Huntingdon Stuffed Pears and Stilton and Nut Mousse.

* * *

If, like me, you have been left with a chunk of Stilton large enough to set up in business as a purveyor of fine fromage, you will, by now, be staring at your cheese plate with a mixture of admiration and fear.  On Christmas Eve, I went to Welton’s in Great Bowden to collect my Christmas order of a small Pork Pie, some Black Bomber, some Brie and a modest amount of Colston Basset Stilton.

A proportion of the Stilton was consumed at Christmas Tea with a chunk remaining that was manageable by a single adult over a period of a week.  But as luck would have it, I was given a massive chunk by Sister the Second who had been over-serviced by her supermarket.  It is sitting in the fridge glowering at me like The Cheese in the Railway Carriage so evocatively described by Jerome K. Jerome.

I was going to spin this out over a couple of days, but that would be too much like the Stilton. 
This is what you can do with it. 

HUNTINGDON STUFFED PEARS  have been featured earlier.  Click on the link for the recipe

CAULIFLOWER OR BROCCOLI CHEESE  use the cheese sauce recipe in the link but substitute Stilton for Cheddar. It’s rich but gorgeous. 

CAULIFLOWER OR BROCCOLI AND STILTON SOUP  **

Utensils:
1 x medium saucepan
1 x stick blender or ordinary blender

Ingredients:
1oz / 30g butter
1 medium onion – finely chopped
1 medium cauliflower or largish head of broccoli – broken into florets
1 pint / 600ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 tblspn mixed herbs or a bouquet garni
½ a medium potato – peeled, diced and cooked
½ pint milk
4oz / 120g Stilton Cheese

Method:
Melt the butter in the pan
Add the onion and fry gently until soft
Add the cauliflower or broccoli, herbs and stock and milk
Bring to the boil, cover the pan and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the vegetable is soft
Allow to cool slightly, add the potato and remove the bouquet garni if using one
Mix to a smooth puree with the blender
Stir in the cheese until it has melted
Serve

** Post post note:  Leek and Stilton also make an excellent soup.  Cook 2 large, finely sliced leeks in with the onions then add the stock and proceed as per the recipe.

STILTON AND WALNUT MOUSSE – serves 8

Utensils:
8 x ramekin dishes – greased & with a circle of greaseproof paper in the bottom
1 x medium saucepan
1 x whisk

Ingredients:
1oz /30g butter
2 level tablespoons plain flour
7floz / 200ml milk
7floz / 200ml vegetable stock
1 sachet of gelatine
40z / 120g Stilton cheese
2 eggs – separated – whites whisked to form stiff peaks
¼ pint / 150ml crème fraiche
2oz / 60g walnuts – chopped

Method:
Melt the butter in the pan over a medium heat
Stir in the flour to form a thick paste
Gradually whisk in the milk and stock until it thickens and starts to bubble
Remove from the heat.
Sprinkle over the gelatine and whisk until it has dissolved and is thoroughly mixed in
Add the cheese and stir until melted
Whisk in the egg yolks and season to taste
Fold in the crème fraiche with a metal spoon
Then fold in the whisked egg whites and gently stir in the walnuts
Spoon the mixture into the prepared dishes
Chill until set
Serve with a green salad

Just a small point about broccoli stalks

Broccoli is a lovely thing.  It’s a marvellous dark green, it tastes great and it’s really good for you.  And let’s not forget the joy of eating a vegetable that looks like it’s won a Bonsai competition.

But wait!  What have you done with the stalk?  Surely you haven’t tossed it into the bin or the compost heap in a wicked and profligate fashion?  The stalk can be tasty in it’s own right, you know.

Using a sharp knife, slice off any tough, knobbly or stringy bits.  Slice into ¼ ” / ½ cm slices and cook in a little water until softened.  Melt some butter in a saucepan and add a chopped garlic clove.  Toss the broccoli stalk slices in the garlic butter until everything is soft and buttery. 

I reckon you could also chuck in other vegetables such as courgettes, onions, peppers – anything you like, or just serve it as a vegetable.  Chum it down boys and girls.

Cheese Pie

Cheese Pie made a regular appearance on the dinner table when we were children, but my grandmother, as far as I remember, made it simply with layers of cheese and potato with a crust on the top and I don’t remember ever being given vegetables with it.  My scurvy has very nearly cleared up.

The Wartime Housewife and her sisters (in whom she is well pleased) enhance this dish in different ways to make it a bit more interesting.  The great thing is, that like the best of home cooking, one can improvise depending on what is in the storecupboard. 

There will be half a pack of shortcrust pastry left over which could be well wrapped and frozen, or better still, while the oven is on, make some jam tarts or a few little apple pies to have with custard for pudding tomorrow. 

A note about pastry, before anyone pounces on me.  Obviously, it is always better to make your own pastry, but don’t put unnecessary pressure on yourself if you’re a busy person.  Shop-bought pastry is perfectly good.    Before I had my children, my hands were always icy cold and I made the best pastry in the world.  Sadly, the hormonal assault of pregnancy has permanently warmed me up and I ruin every bowl of pastry I attempt, so I buy it.  Life is too short to fret about these things.

This evening I made Cheese Pie for me and The Boys  and it will easily stretch to another meal, perhaps with some extra vegetables or salad.  This is what I put in:-

Heat the oven to 200/ 400/ 6

Utensils:

1 x medium casserole dish
1 x medium saucepan
1 x chopping board

Ingredients:

2lb / 1kg potatoes – thinly sliced and par boiled
½ onion – finely chopped
A few florets of broccoli cut very finely
½ tin of chopped tomatoes or 2 fresh tomatoes
1lb/500g Cheddar cheese – sliced
¼ pint of cream or full fat milk
1 tspn mixed herbs
1 packet of ready made shortcrust pastry

Method:

Place a single layer of potatoes in the casserole dish.
Alternate the layers eg onions then cheese then potatoes, then broccoli, cheese, potatoes, tomatoes, cheese, potatoes etc, finishing up with a layer of potatoes
Sprinkle the herbs on the top and pour the cream or milk over the whole thing.
Roll out the pastry to about ¼” / 1/2cm and cut to fit the dish.
Place the pastry on top of the layered potatoes
Cut three slits in the pastry to let the steam escape and brush with milk
Bake for about 40 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown

Chickens and How to Use Them: Day 3 – Inadvertant Broccoli Soup

In which the Wartime Housewife makes Broccoli Soup out of what she can find in the larder.

My plan for ‘Chicken – Day 3’ was to give you a recipe for my acclaimed Celery and Apple Soup, a lovely refreshing and bodily cleansing summer soup.  However, I had not taken into account the guerrilla style tactics employed by The Boys in pursuit of a midnight feast.  I suppose I should be glowing with pride that the things that went missing from the larder were the celery, the last carrot, the apples, the last of the cheese and a packet of oatcakes. 

Realistically, of course, they know that that there are nine levels of Hell reserved for those who take The Last Flapjacks, and the prospect of spending the rest of the summer holiday in the icy darkness of Level 9, with nothing but demons with pointy teeth for company has clearly made an impression.

Consequently, I was forced into level nine of the larder, fridge and freezer to scavenge what I could to make supper.  This, of course, is what the Wartime Housewife is all about, being able to produce a nutritious meal out of nothing.  The scouring began.  I found an onion (always a good start), one stick of celery and a bag of frozen broccoli.  Let the soup begin!

BROCCOLI SOUP

Utensils:
1 large saucepan
Chopping board
1 stick blender

Ingredients:
1 onion – chopped
1 good knob of butter with a little splash of oil
1 stick of celery – chopped
1 x 1kg bag of frozen broccoli
1 pint chicken or vegetable stock
1 heaped tspn dried parsley
1 pinch nutmeg
¼ pint of full fat milk (or 1/8 pint cream if you have it)

Method:
Melt the butter and oil in the pan on a moderate heat
Add the onion and celery and cooked until translucent
Add the broccoli and toss about in the butter.
Add the stock and parsley and cook until the broccoli is soft
Add the nutmeg and the milk and blend until smooth.
Season to taste.

Now wasn’t that easy?  And completely scrumptious.