4 crumpets (I used tree-shaped ones for Christmas) 2 eggs splash of milk ½ onion, chopped finely ½ red pepper, chopped finely ½tsp ground cumin ½tsp chilli powder ½tsp turmeric handful fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped 25g butter 1tbsp olive oil 50g cheese, grated
Beat the eggs in a large, flat bowl and add the milk, onion, pepper, spices and half the coriander leaves.
Toast the crumpets on both sides (in a toaster is fine).
Place the crumpets, face down in the egg mixture. Squash down to allow them to soak up as much as possible.
Heat the oil and butter together.
When it bubbles, cook the coated side of the crumpets.
Carefully, using tongs or a slice, place them back in the egg mixture to coat the other side. Return to the pan and top with any remaining mixture. When bottom is cooked, turn again to allow all the topping to cook. Place the right way up on a baking tray.
Cover with the cheese and grill until the cheese is bubbly.
Sprinkle with the remaining coriander and serve with a dollop of ketchup.
Patricia Highsmith knew how to create a psychopathic playboy, These days, her Mr Ripley is probably the best known, but in 1951 Alfred Hitchcock made Strangers on a Train into the ultimate film thriller.
The premise is so simple: two people share a few hours of a train journey together. They both have a personal dilemma and they joke about how they could solve each other's problem (criss-cross).
But then it becomes much more sinister. Charles Anthony Bruno takes it upon himself to deliver his half of the hypothetical deal and then demands an awful lot in return of the reluctant Guy Haines.
So, how great would it be to have Charles to dinner?
CRISS-CROSS TART
Serves 2 – 3
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks 1 small onion. chopped 1 sheet ready rolled puff pastry 1 egg 2tbsp sour cream handful of fresh coriander (leaves and stalks) 2tbsp olive oil salt and black pepper
Toss the sweet potato in most of the olive oil.
Roast in a baking tray at 200˚C/ Gas 6 for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove from the oven and, if soft, allow to cool.
Heat the rest of the oil in a pan and gently fry the onion.
Put in a food processor with the onion and sour cream.
Blitz to make a thick paste, then add the coriander.
Blitz again.
Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Beat the egg with a little water to make a wash.
Unroll the pastry sheet and cut into two.
Cut a 1cm border from one half (like a picture frame) and place it on top of the other, sticking them together with some of the beaten egg. Prick the base with a fork.
Cook in the oven for about 5 minutes.
Then, spread the sweet potato mixture over the base, leaving the border clear.
Use the remaining pastry to make a lattice over the top. Brush with the remaining egg wash.
In honour of Remembrance Day, Rupert Brooke receives the latest invitation to eat at Zelda's table.
It is more of an afternoon tea than a dinner, in keeping with the idea of Brooke sitting in his pyjamas in the fields around Grantchester.
Many lost their lives in the terrible conflict which tore Europe apart between 1914 and 1918. Many brilliant people wrote about it, fought in it and died in it, but popular culture continually nominates two poets as the ultimate symbols of that poignant loss of youth (and life). Wilfred Owen is considered the realist, the one who experienced guns, mud and shellshock. Rupert Brooke is the idealist, the one who died before he knew the horror of war.
Described in contemporary accounts as an 'Adonis', he was intellectually gifted, but in the years leading up to World War I, his biggest concerns seemed to be love-related.
Brooke was not unique for willingly giving up the life of a relaxed intellectual (because so may did) but, his early death from sepsis on the way to Gallipoli - though spared the battle - made him an almost mythical figure.
One patriotic sonnet is most associated with his thoughts on going to war before the horrors of war were fully recognised:
Yet, let's invite him to enjoy something which references one of his best-loved poems, The Old Vicarage, Grantchester, written before anyone knew of what was to come, in 1912.
And is there honey still for tea?
Yes, there is...
Zelda has chosen two tea-time treats: Honey Flapjacks and Poppy Seed Rolls.
