In the kitchen

Messing around in the historic kitchen again this week, with generally positive results. I planned to make Mrs. Beeton's Beef Cakes, using some left-over roast beef and pork shoulder. The meat didn't grind up as easily as the the chicken croquettes, and the texture of the finished beef cakes showed it. The flavor was alright, though I added too much salt to both the cakes and the gravy. Next time, I would also either use beef drippings or lard, not bacon fat (which tended to overwhelm the other flavors). Taking advantage of the garden's seasonal offerings, I served the beef cakes with Boiled Turnip Greens, and followed up with a Red Currant and Raspberry Tart, utilizing our local sort-of-black currants. The turnip greens were fine; the tart also, though I used a larger proportion of raspberries and should have used either a shorter tumbler or more berries (or both).  Having some cherries to use up, I turned the extra short crust into Turnovers.

Cherry Turnovers

Beef Cakes

Currant and Raspberry Tart