The Edinburgh Reporter Newspaper February 2020

The Edinburgh Reporter
24 FOOD
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FOOD 25
Recipe of the month
Juliet's Food Diary
Sauté cod roe
Willie Little, Proprietor, Little’s
Restaurant Blairgowrie and Fish in
Crieff Fishmongers provides our
recipe this month.
Willie said : “Something that
your grandparents may remember
eating is cod roe, the eggs of the
cod fish - mousse-like, mildly sea
flavoured, and delicious.
In those days it was very much a
case of them not wanting to waste
anything nutritious, but as an
ingredient now cod roe is less well
known, with many people unsure
how to cook and enjoy it.
It is very easy to prepare and
is really something of a delicacy
now. Remember though, it’s only
in season in January and early
February, so why not try it as soon
as you can. Most fishmongers will
have some in stock.”
Here’s Willie’s easy and delicious
recipe to make :
• 200g cod roe per person
• 100g capers
• 200g butter
• ½ lemon
• chopped parsley
• pinch of pepper
Heat the pan - but not too hot.
Melt half the butter and gently
place the cod roe, cook for two
minutes, turn, and cook for two
more minutes.
Add the remaining butter and
allow to froth, then add the capers,
chopped parsley, pinch of pepper
and a squeeze of the lemon. Cod
roe does not need salt.
www.littlesrestaurant.com
Lunch at the Broughton with Kevin Geddes
When the Phoenix on Broughton
Street closed its doors for the final
time the locals were incandescent:
“What a tragedy!” they cried. “An
injustice!” they wailed. If everyone
who lamented the closure of The
Phoenix had actually patronised
the establishment the owners
would have been doing cartwheels
down Broughton Street having just
booked their third holiday of the
year to the Bahamas.
However, wanting to detest
a traditional boozer which had
become a restaurant and bar I was
willing to hate The Broughton.
Yet, on entering the comfortably
designed space I had to weep a
silent tear: it’s a bummer being
wrong. The restaurant area is
delightfully cosy, something
lacking in one of the coldest parts
of the country, and the service
from the outset was incredibly
friendly. As the owner is also the
proprietor of The West Room and
the Seafood Restaurant in St
Andrews this shouldn’t have taken
me aback.
My dining companion was
Kevin Geddes, author of Keep
Calm And Fanny On, a detailed
and entertaining biography of
the legendary chef, author and
all round mistress of reinvention,
Fanny Cradock. More of that in
my food diary to your right.
To begin, Kevin chose the
Roquefort Fritter, Pickled and
Candied Walnuts and Pear, which
he deemed ‘most tasty’, while I
opted for the Duck Liver Pate, Fig,
Hazelnut and Toasted Sourdough.
It was sublime with both fresh and
confit fig, and a lovely tart dressing
to offset the smooth creaminess
of the pate.
Kevin told me his Salt Baked
Carrot, Quinoa, Smoked Ricotta
and Hazelnut Spice which the
chose as a main course was
perfectly cooked and full of
flavour. Being a vegetarian he
says that he finds choosing from
a menu slightly less hassle. What
a chap! My decision was harder
as there were so many choices,
all sounding sublime. In the end
I opted for the Natural Smoked
Haddock, Olive Oil Crushed Potato,
Poached Hen’s Egg and grain
Mustard. There’s never a bit of
smoked fish a poached egg can’t
put a crown on and this one was
of the best quality and unctuous.
Dessert was Pineapple Pavlova,
Passion Fruit, Mint and Rum
Syrup. It looked and tasted a
triumph. “Fanny would have loved
this!” Kevin declared. As did I. My
new mantra: ‘Progress? Embrace
it!’
My full review of The Broughton
and full length interview with
Kevin Geddes are online www.
edinburghreporter.co.uk
by Juliet Lawrence Wilson
So how did we all cope with Dry
January?
I did merely ‘damp’, booze wise,
for the first month of the year,
but goodness knows some of you
must be craving a drinky poo by
now.
One reason to return to the sauce
is the Doddie Beir. Inspired by the
Scottish Rugby legend, Signature
Pub Groups has created a bespoke
Doddie pint with all Profits going
to Doddie Weir’s My Name'5
Doddie Foundation, which helps
sufferers and funds MND research.
This worthy tipple can be found
at Signature Pub Group venues
including The Queen’s Arms and
Cold Town House to celebrate the
Guinness Six Nations until the end
of March. Myname5doddie.co.uk
Another reason to return to the
sauce is the worst day of the year
is coming up. When I was in the
restaurant business Valentine’s
Day was no picnic. One year half
the couples had fallen out before
their amuse bouche, one woman
got so tiddly she threw up on
the lavatory floor and another
guest nicked the salt and pepper
grinders. It was a sorry state of
affairs but at least Valentine’s day
fell on a Tuesday that year.
It was always a pain in the
proverbial if it happened to be on
a Saturday when we’d be packed
out anyway. So my advice would
be to save your cash for another
night and stay in on February 14th.
My own ideal V Day treat would
be a fish supper and a bottle of
champagne. And should there
be some candles lit, I’d feel quite
the princess. Indeed one of my
earliest boyfriends once surprised
me with such a thoughtful dinner,
and not only did he buy a bottle
of champers, he also invested in
a whole bottle of chippy sauce,
quite clearly the food of the gods.
Sparks flew that night, let me tell
you.
Romeo and Juliet, Burton and
Taylor, Fergie and Andrew...
legendary couples, all of them but
none can hold a lit blowtorch to
the love story that was Fanny and
Johnnie.
Edinburgh Fanny fan Kevin
Geddes has spent many hours
recreating Fanny Cradock's most
legendary and bonkers dishes on
his blog keepcalmandfannyon.
blogspot.com and has now
brought out a rollicking biography
of the most flamboyant of TV
chefs.
Having studied Fanny's work
and culinary legacy for his Queen
Margaret University Gastronomy
Master’s dissertation, Kevin takes
us through Fanny's mysterious
early life, her prolific career as an
author of both adult and children’s
novels to her break in television
and long career as the Mistress of
reinvention - “Before Madonna had
even considered it.”
The anecdotes in the book
are often jaw dropping. Double
bigamy, some light insurance
fraud, theatrical food poisoning
and an alleged flirtation with David
Attenborough, there was rarely a
dull moment in Fanny’s world.
Whilst Fanny obviously had
a dark side and could be self
destructive (particularly in relation
to her two sons) and downright
rude (to just about everyone else),
Kevin tells her story with honesty,
generosity and affection.
This would be a great read for
retro food geeks or anyone who
loves a great yarn. Keep Calm
And Fanny On and Kevin's other
book, Its All In The Booklet, Festive
Fun With Fanny Cradock are both
available at fantompublishing.
co.uk
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