‘My cooking tells my life story.
It’s quite terrifying but true – the ingredients I use, the way I cook and the urgency with which I have to write all about it expose something of my character.’

Recipes

Gingery Pumpkin Pickle

Gardens and Goodies
From early childhood, there was much to explore in the garden: peas so good that many were eaten before they reached the kitchen and tomatoes that filled the small greenhouse with their compelling aroma. Unearthing firm little potatoes like buried treasure below almost-dead plants was fun and the furry lining in broad bean pods was just amazing. While the glossy, dark-red apples on one tree were disappointingly dull, those strange auburn-brown russets were absolutely bursting with flavour. Even in winter there were clumps of parsley and leaves on the huge sage bush to pick and nibble in passing – I still love eating parsley and sage fresh from the plants.
From my father’s family farm there were fresh eggs in summer; damsons, sloes and apples in autumn; red cabbages and root vegetables for winter. When a pig was killed, there were hocks and trotters for making the best-ever soups and casseroles. On the rare occasions when the chain-rattling milk lorry did not collect the churns of fresh milk, great bowls of cream had to be used quickly, so we made fabulous pancakes, batter puddings and feather-light scones. What fun those technical hitches were to a little girl who loved making drop scones!

Love Cooking – Hate Washing Up
The kitchen was the place for appetite-arousing activity and there was always something to do, watch or dip into – cakes to mix, tarts to fill, vegetables to cut up for soups or pickles, pans of bubbling chutney to stir, or just some cheese to grate ready for Welsh rarebit. When there was no time to spare, a casserole would simmer or a simple supper dish filled the air with a tummy-rumbling aroma. The only difficulty was escaping just before the final round of washing up. Everything was fun until it came to washing up.

Discovering Dishwashers … and more
My culinary world exploded when I moved from rural Wales to the South East of England. Away from university, working as a student helper in a publishing house test kitchen sent a kaleidoscope of ingredients soaring inside my head. I discovered vegetables I had never seen before; intoxicating herbs and spices; sophisticated food halls displaying ingredients about which I had only read and could never have afforded outside work. I shopped, scrubbed, washed, trimmed, sliced, chopped and cooked from early morning until evening – often later – and I relished every minute.
… and there was a dishwasher.

Culinary Ramblings

It is sad that so many people seriously believe they are too short of time to ‘cook’. Making meals does not have to be a chef-styled process, calling for a ‘batterie de cuisine’, several assistants, split-second timing and near nervous breakdown.
In this twenty-first century lifestyle madness, achieving simplicity – even briefly – is a wonderful antidote to daily stress. For me, the best everyday meals capture the simplicity of home cooking – not only those dishes that filled my childhood with flavour but their contemporary counterparts as well.
In our house, after-work dinner rarely involves more than one pan or cooking dish. Vegetables are often the focus – a head or two of fennel, celery, crisp carrots, bright peppers, watercress and other salad leaves, aubergines or some type of cabbage. There are herbs in the garden or, for dark evenings and lazy days, and a supply of chopped fresh parsley, coriander, dill and / or fennel in the freezer, plus selected dried herbs and lots of versatile spices. Caraway, cumin and fennel are current favourites and I keep a jar of these spices roasted with a mixture of sunflower, sesame and pumpkin seeds, oat and barley flakes,for adding instant warmth and crunch to simple salads.
Pasta, rice, couscous, potatoes or bread are satisfying and potentially delicious. Smoked fish, bacon or pulses – particularly chick peas – are week-day favourites but there may be other fish or chicken. These days, most meaty meals seem to be weekend specials – except for the occasional comforting cottage pie or bubbling lasagne al forno on which we inevitably overindulge.

Calming Cooking
The wonderful thing about food is that once you have decided to keep it simple, there is no need for frantic activity. On the contrary, a short period of preparation can be incredibly calming. When the day has wound me up and thrown me out, I take refuge in my chopping board – not in up-beat swiping but in gently quartering, slicing or shredding a few familiar vegetables. This is absorbing and productive, almost soothing.
Braised, baked or roasted vegetables and hot-cold salads are practical because they are quick to prepare and require minimum attention – they also have the advantage of being particularly full of goodness for everyday eating.

Exhilarating Food – The Ginger Days
Cooking can also be great fun. It is creative and individual – an expression of personality and style. For me, the serious and responsible side of working with food is balanced by sheer enjoyment.
Fresh root ginger is one of those ingredients that makes me smile. Its appearance successfully conceals its true identity: under the brown-beige, slightly papery skin, the flesh is juicy, lemony and spiked with just enough heat to punctuate, rather than obliterate, main ingredients. Dry-fried with a little chopped bacon, ginger enlivens a simple salad of freshly cooked new potatoes or pasta served on a mixture of watercress and rocket.
Life would be dismal without fresh root ginger, so it is lucky that, when chosen with care, it keeps well in the refrigerator. Even so, I still make ginger pickles and relishes to transform simple ingredients – with creamy or crumbly goat’s cheese grilled on slices of crusty bread; used as a baste for baked chicken or tuna fish; or added in tiny amounts in a simple salad dressing.

Restoring and Sharing
Preparing good things to eat is a wonderful restorative. When I feel lack-lustre and a little lifeless, I prepare a fruit salad and, as the lively colours and textures of different fruit come together, I feel far better. Even before I have eaten any of the vitamin-rich concoction I feel healthier, restored and full of vitality.
Sharing food and cooking for others is an important way of caring for them and letting them know that you care. Within families, with friends, for neighbours or in the wider community, sharing the pleasure of cooking and eating brings people together.

Leaping about in the Kitchen
Cooking can be exhilarating and exciting. There is always something new and exciting to discover when experimenting and tasting. Among the combinations of ingredients that are competent and good, there is always a star waiting to gleam through – the fine tuning of proportions, grind of a pestle, twist of a mill or swirl of seasoning can transform the ordinary into the exceptional. That’s when I leap around the kitchen and find myself singing and dancing as I cook.

Recipes

Gingery Pumpkin Pickle

This juicy, golden pickle is enlivened with lots of fresh, zesty ginger. It is the perfect match for succulent grilled sausages, duck, lamb or pork, and delicious with full-flavoured or creamy cheese - try it with crumbly goat's cheese or slightly creamy feta, or with creamy semi-soft cheeses. For an irresistible snack, just dollop a little on crostini topped with sliced mozzarella or soft cheese.

Makes about 3.5 kg (8 lb)

1 kg (2 1/4 lb) onions, finely chopped
150 g (5 oz) fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
350 g (12 oz) dried apricots, finely chopped
675 g (1 1/2 lb) granulated sugar
900 ml (1 1/2 pints) spiced white vinegar or white wine vinegar
2.5 kg (5 1/2 lb) pumpkin

Place the onions, ginger, apricots and sugar in a large stainless steel saucepan, stockpot or preserving pan. Stir in the vinegar and bring to the boil, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat immediately so that the mixture simmers gently. Cover the pan - use double-thick cooking foil to cover an unlidded preserving pan - and leave the pickle to simmer for 1 hour, stirring once or twice to make sure it cooks evenly.
Meanwhile, scoop the seeds and fibrous middle from the pumpkin, and cut off the peel. There should be about 1.75 kg (4 lb) flesh left: cut this into 1-1.5 cm (1/2-3/4 in) cubes. Add the cubed pumpkin to the pickle and stir well. Bring back to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer steadily, uncovered, for a further 45 minutes. Stir frequently during this second cooking stage to cook the pumpkin evenly and prevent the pickle from sticking to the pan.
While the pickle is cooking, use a sterilizing solution to wash jars with metal-proof lids. (The type of sterilizing solution used for baby feeding equipment is ideal for this.) Fill the jars with boiling water to heat them, then drain and dry them just before potting the pickle.
The pickle is ready when the pumpkin is tender and translucent - some of the pieces will have broken down but there should still be plenty of chunks of pumpkin left. Use a wide-necked funnel (called a jam funnel) to pot the pickle, ladling it into the jars immediately the pan is removed from the heat. Top the pickle with discs of waxed paper and cover at once with airtight lids. Work quickly so that the pickle is still stove-top hot when the pots are covered - this way the lids will seal and the pickle will keep well.
Label and store in a cool, dark cupboard when cold. The pickle tastes good as soon as it is cold, but it is best when matured for 3-4 weeks, allowing the flavours to mellow and mingle. The pickle will keep for a year or so.

© Copyright Bridget Jones 2001