Finally Some Good Food 2.2: Happy Death Day!
ft. charspookerie, cursed bagels and the best pancakes in Manchester
Yesterday was Samhain (pronounced Sowwen), otherwise known to non-pagans as Halloween. The modern Halloween we know blends a lot of different traditions and cultures with varying degrees of sensitivity, but before Christianity was widespread in the UK, a large proportion of the Celts living here practiced Paganism. Paganism has eight different festivals throughout the year, including Samhain, which so happened to be on the same date that the Catholic Church decided at a later date Halloween would be. What a coincidence!
However, this is a vegetarian newsletter so we won’t be addressing beef, religious or otherwise. However, I did have the pleasure of attending a meeting of witches recently (no, I won’t elaborate) and I got to find out more about Samhain and how it was a festival to celebrate the end of the harvest and the death of things. No, it doesn’t sound particularly cheery, but the thinking is that life is a cycle and everything has to end at some point, so we should embrace it wholeheartedly as without things ending, new things can’t begin.
It felt quite revolutionary to celebrate things ending, especially in a culture which hears the word ‘death’ and immediately sticks its fingers in its ears and screams until it never gets mentioned ever again. We live in a society where we are under pressure to keep everything going as long as possible. Every romantic relationship aspires to find ‘the one’, the person you’re meant to be with for the rest of your life, with the hope you’ll get married ‘until death do us part’. We are invited to try and pick a career path while we’re still living with our parents and have hormonal acne that is meant to suit us until we physically can’t do it anymore. And there are entire industries which exist solely to keep us young (or at least young looking).
In Marie Kondo’s controversial hit book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying, of course there was the ‘sparks joy’ phrase that was spread across the internet for a while and provoked the ire of people who have formed their entire online personality around owning books. But when we actually look at what she was saying, you wasn’t saying you can’t keep anything you don’t want to get rid of. It is more asking us to interrogate why we are holding on and whether there is a sense of guilt that is keeping us from letting it go. Is it that gift someone got you? A book you think you should read? That job you hate but your family will think you’re irresponsible if you pursue what you actually want to do? That friend that hurts your feelings but you’re a bad person if you’re not able to sustain the friendship? That partner who doesn’t really fulfill any of your emotional needs but you think you’re incapable of being loved by anyone else? Let it go! (okay, maybe some of these weren’t examples Kondo used, but you get my point). I’m not saying be a dickhead about it, but it does not mean you are a failure if these things end. Kondo says that things are meant to come into your life, but sometimes it is only for a short time, and sometimes it is just to teach you what doesn’t work for you. All these things had value, no matter how long they lasted and that is something to be celebrated.
To be honest, I’ve had a really stressful six weeks or so with health stuff, book stuff, work stuff and just a lot of shit I didn’t need; so when my first Halloween party coincided with my first proper day of unemployment, was I going to mope around the house? No. Instead I spent five hours baking three different desserts for the Halloween party I was helping with that evening. It was perhaps subconsciously influenced by this banger off the Waitress soundtrack, which I have been listening to a lot lately. However, with or without the musical stylings of Sara Bareilles, I realised I could hold onto all the stuff from the last month or so, or maybe, just like the desserts I saw quickly disappear into my friends never to be seen again, it was time to let it all go.
Consider this newsletter not just a list of recommendations, but a tribute to all those funky little things that come into my life before disappearing off the face of the earth (and the Sainsburys aisles). To start with, my spooky desserts:
(poison) apple pie
When tasked with baking something that is spooky but not in the tacky american way, this is what I settled on. Based off a half-remembered apple bunuelo recipe from the Wahaca cookbook, I came up with this Snow White inspired recipe.
Cut Granny Smith apples into small chunks and fry in butter with whisky, sugar and cinnamon. I can’t tell you the amounts because I improvised every time, but you want enough of everything just to coat all the apple pieces.
Cook on a medium heat until the apples are cooked through and soft, making sure to stir often. Also taste the chunks to adjust whisky/sugar/cinnamon.
Buy sheets of ready made puff pastry. You can make it yourself, but who can actually be arsed? Cut out the shape of an apple, or whatever shape you like tbh. Use the first one as a stencil for all the others - you’ll need two per pie, one for the bottom and one for the top.
Put a piece of baking paper on a baking tray and lay out however many pies you want to make.
Once your filling is done, spoon a small amount onto each pie bottom, making sure to not overfill and leaving space around the edge for where you will crimp the pastry.
You can just have the filling by itself, or if you want an extra tang, just add a little spoonful of blackcurrant jam/’poison’. The jam was in my original plan, but in all my stress, I actually forgot to add the jam, but it’s not necessary. Let it go!
Break one egg into a separate bowl and beat with a fork. Add colouring if you want but in my experience, it doesn’t really come through except at the edges. brush the egg around the edges before laying the pastry top on, crimping the edges with a fork and brushing all over.
Mix cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle on top. Put in the oven around 180 degrees and cook until the top is golden brown. Eat either warm or cold but just be warned, the filling can get very hot.
Guinness cake
I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this cake before as it’s a classic Nigella recipe, but this time I had to do it slightly differently; firstly, just as I started baking I realised I had no normal cocoa powder so had to substitute with Cadbury’s hot chocolate powder. I didn’t adjust any other part of the recipe though, so that was a gamble. Secondly, I made the cream cheese frosting but decided to use my piping bag which I have owned for three years at least and have never used before to pipe a spider’s web. Turns out it is more difficult then I thought to grip the bag just right so the icing doesn’t come out all at once. Sorry men!
Normally I would bake the cake in my big round cake tin, but I don’t have one where the bottom fits anymore, so had to use my even bigger square tin. However, this spread out the mixture thinner so it was more like a traybake and cooked in 30 minutes rather than 45. It was well-received by everyone to the point I had to hide a slice for my diabetic boyfriend so I could guarantee he could actually try it before it was all gone. Turns out Cadbury’s hot chocolate powder works!
bloody biscuits a la Mandy and Sue
I’ve spoken about Mandy’s coconut oat biscuits before, but for my final bake, after reading about the tradition of soulcakes, I thought they would make a fitting version for the party. However, while the baking of the biscuits went without a hitch, the white chocolate icing proved to be a problem. I never normally have any problems with the melting of white chocolate despite it being famously temperamental and I didn't this time. However, I decided to add a bit more food colouring to make the pink closer to red and of course the white chocolate completely seized up into one solid grainy lump.
Luckily my mum Sue, who is very wise, especially in a crisis, calmed me down before I had a meltdown and encouraged me to add some water, which surprisingly worked to make it almost resemble chocolate again,. Before I could fiddle with it further, she made me go and add water to myself (AKA have a shower) and return to reattempt when I was less frazzled. When I returned, it turned out we actually had a usable bright red glaze that was slightly stickier than the usual covering but after some fridge time, dried onto the biscuits in a glorious gothic red colour. After all that stress, they were popular enough that an argument sparked at the party because someone ate more biscuits and people were worried there would not be enough for everyone. Not that I live to create conflict. but I take that to be a good review.
bonus: pumpkin hummus
Putting together a sophisticated Samhain influenced Charspookerie for your friends is hard, but here is one incredibly easy savoury snack you can prepare. There are lots of fancy recipes online, but if you do not have the time or energy, I can highly recommend this method:
Get a can of pumpkin puree (look in the American food section) and ready made hummus.
Mix the two in a bowl - you don’t need a blender, just a spoon or fork - and spoon into your serving bowl.
Top with a pinch of smoked paprika, olive oil, pumpkin seeds and a sprinkle of maldon sea salt flakes. Serve with salted crisps or nice bread of choice. Honestly so easy but makes you seem more la-di-da than you are.
And now for the rest of our roundup…
Cookies and Cream New York Bagels
Not a Halloween item but equally cursed. Technically this is my first sort of request, and while this newsletter usually only contains things I would actually recommend, my good friend Alienor has repeatedly told me how much she was looking forward to hearing my thoughts on these, so hear my thoughts you shall.
Not going to lie, they are weird. But not in the sickly way I was expecting. It is literally a normal bread bagel, which tastes like normal bread but with a weird, slightly artificial sweet note at the end. I’ve tried with butter, cream cheese and cookie dough ice cream and there was no combination I was wowed by. If you see them, just don’t bother.
prawn cocktail wotsits
While most people wouldn’t describe me with having the daring taste palate, for some reason when it comes to crisps I am absolutely the opposite.I love all the tang and acidity, ideally with a coating that is as far away from any natural colour as possible. This varies of course, but a few of my faves are stilton mini cheddars (RIP), sweet chilli Kettle Chips, Prawn Cocktail pringles, Flaming Hot Cheetos, to name a few. My mum likes to tell the story of how I used to eat an entire packet of salt and vinegar chipsticks until my lips turned blue.
Now I was fairly late to the Wotsits game but when they introduced their giant version of flaming hot crisps last year I couldn’t get enough. Not only am I relieved that this flavour has stuck around, but when they introduced a prawn cocktail version, I was thrilled. I had them at a party and couldn’t get enough - now I bring them to almost every social do and have been known to eat an entire packet by themselves. What can I say?
Port Salut slices
From the spicy to the bland (but in a good way). I love Port Salut because it is basically the fancy French version of a babybel so no one questions its presence on the charcuterie board. You could imagine my surprise and delight to see in our local big Sainsburys they have started stocking in their cheese section ready-made slices of port salut. It’s basically like having a brie sandwich but without the risk of it tasting slightly like feet. I recommend it in a sandwich with sundried tomato paste and thickly cut bread, ideally from a pain de campagne loaf still warm from the bakery.
Quorn chicken vegetarian slices -
I specify vegetarian as I have heard mixed reviews for the vegan ones. However I picked these up the other week, as I used to love them as a teenager so I decided to give them another go to see whether it was just nolstalgia filling in the blanks. However, they are still good! Even in just a simple bread and butter sandwich with just a sprinkle of salt and pepper, or in the aforementioned Port Salut and tomato concoction, these are a reliable sandwich staple for all my vegetarians out there.
Blackmilk, Manchester
It’s taken me three years to finally go to Blackmilk, despite trying their spread when I worked in the corner shop. However me and my friend Manon were looking for a nice post-pole fitness treat and we saw that they boast the best pancakes in Manchester,which was a bold claim but one we were willing to test. I ordered the pistachio and white chocolate as I like both of these things and I was not disappointed - the perfect blend of sweet and savoury. The pancakes were really nicely cooked as well, soft and fluffy with just a little bit of crispiness on the edges for bite. I would say it might be nice to have some actual pistachios on top for extra crunch and maybe a fruit or two to cut through the sweetness with a little acid but still very good otherwise.
cheese croissant, Co-Op Bakery section
Years and years ago, on a holiday with my ex boyfriend’s family, I got to try a roule de fromage, which is essentially a giant sausage roll, but instead of a sausage it is just filled with molten cheese. Unsurprisingly, it was delicious and I think about it a lot. So, the other day, I was surprised to find a cheese croissant in the bakery section of the Co Op near Salford Regent Retail park. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it turns out this was the closest thing I’d had to the roule de fromage in ten years. Admittedly, it’s just a nice croissant with a soft cheesy centre. But what’s not to like? Sadly I have yet to see it in any other Co-Op bakery section but I remain hopeful.
The Chip Shop, Manchester
You guys know I love my chip shops. So when I noticed a new shop open on the way out of Piccadilly Station I knew I had to give it a try. Very minimally decorated, I got a very simple order - but the chips are excellent. They are wider then I am used to but well-fried with a fluffy interior and borders with just the right level of crunch. Also, they are open until midnight which is a big game-changer; I am sad I live in the opposite direction but if I’m nearby I will definitely try and swing around that direction. I’m just sad that as my job decided to let me go this Samhain, I can no longer enjoy as a post-commute treat.
That’s all for this week, but I hope you all enjoyed and I sincerely hope you all get to let go what is not serving you (unless it is this newsletter subscription, then I think it’s best to hang on, just in case). Our next edition will be a special deep dive in Ella Risbridger’s work and will be exclusively for paid subscribers only, so if you want to read, do upgrade below:
I’m always open to review requests so do comment if there is anything you wish for me to investigate. Otherwise if you have enjoyed, please feel free to share on any social media and tag me!
Port salut is 💯 might buy some this weekend 🧀 🍷