Fanny Cradock Invites... you to the iPlayer

There's been quite the hullaballoo this week in the press about the 'Return of Fanny Cradock' to the BBC... Every newspaper, every radio show and even some television shows have covered the 'breaking news' story. The BBC are at last adding some classic cooking shows to their iPlayer archive for us all to savour, showcasing the changes from the 'early days' of Fanny and Delia to erm, well, the 'later days' of, erm, Levi Roots and Lorraine Pascale. It's Fanny that has set the headlines alight however - and I'm not just talking about those nasty tabloids who stole my blog photos to illustrate their stories, but that is another tale for another day...

Once again, Fanny will be showing us all how to throw a proper Cheese and Wine Party. She happily invites us into her actual home to do this, and cooks for us in her actual kitchen. She'd actually campaigned fiercely for many years behind the scenes to move cooking programmes out of the dreary studio, to show the housewives of Britain how to cook in ordinary kitchens. She wanted to cook in ordinary housewives homes. The producers were't keen. Fanny cooked up the plan to use her own kitchen instead. We'd all love to see that! Just before we get that exclusive peek of Fanny's kitchen, she, of course, introduces us to her dog, Mademoiselle Lolita Saltina Cradock, who is not yet quite a lady. No more explanation required.

Fanny is sick to death of looking at walls while she cooks at home, so she shows us around her time-saving kitchen where everything faces the camera instead. Which is fortunate. Peter and Sally are on hand, looking terrified, to help out when barked at. We're having a Cheese and Wine party after all, and time is tight. We all have dramas, nothing worse than the doorbell ringing before you are ready, you really should have your frock on by now and the food isn't presented as it should be. Don't worry, just pull in your army of amiable assistants to rummage through your endless cupboards to make the show happen with ease. It's what every ordinary housewife would do.

To celebrate Fanny on the iPlayer, I am making her very special Italian cheesecake with her very special homemade cream cheese, that we very specially made earlier. This one uses a pastry base. The cream cheese is simply mixed together with egg yolks, orange zest, sugar and a little flour. Oh, and fresh grapes and mixed peel. They are funny lot these Italians. This mixture is poured into the raw pastry case. Fanny then covers the surface in unbeaten egg white and a trellis of pastry offcuts. She sprinkles on a few pine-nuts and a dusting of icing sugar, and it's ready to bake.

Her kitchen at home has four ovens, but we only need one for this. Once baked, sit back and enjoy a slice while catching up with Fanny on iPlayer. It's a treat. Sing along to the jaunty theme tune and gawp in amazement at her talents. She never misses a heartbeat as she tours round, whips up several meals, cleans as she goes, fries stuff, forks stuff, fondues stuff, shows off every piece of equipment she owns and gives detailed explanations of the culinary terms involved. She has diplomas you know. All in one take. The camera follows her round the kitchen with ease. You'll be amazed. Of course if you miss the recipes, don't worry, they are all in the booklet. Back where she belongs on the BBC. Enjoy!

Blowing Hot and Cold

Sometimes, not often but certainly sometimes, even I think Fanny has gone bonkers. I wouldn't say so to her face of course, and I'm only saying it now from a safe distance. People around her back in the day must've thought it too, but I bet they wouldn't have dared to say anything. She made you feel that she was right all the time, crazy as it seemed and so far in this wonderful journey through her mind and kitchen I have just gone with it. She has been wonderful and wonderfully strange in equal measure. I've certainly been full of wonder, and tried my best to celebrate that, recreate it and pass it on. However, I'm really not sure about this latest recipe suggestion. Has Fanny lost it? I mean it's totally bonkers is it not to deep-fry ice cream?

I know that being Scottish most people think we will merrily deep fry almost anything. We munch on deep-fried Mars bars regularly, right? Nope. Don't get me wrong, I love a little bit of deep fried goodness from time to time, but only when it adds something. Only when it makes sense. Only when it's appropriate and frankly only when it's worth the effort. Just reading the recipe for deep-fried ice cream parcels, or Petits Paquets en Surprise, I can't say I'm convinced. Fanny has won me round before though, perhaps I am just feeling uncharacteristically negative and in need of a wallop with the back of Fannys spatula.

Everything is frozen with this recipe. Fannys beloved pancakes have been nestling in the deep freeze wrapped and stacked just as they were in the fridge. They only need to come to room temperature before being used. Proper Chefs always do this. Fanny cannot imagine them attempting to make 'Crêpe Suzette' or indeed 'Crêpe This That or the Other' (which perhaps features in a future part) during the limited hours of restaurant service if they hadn't. Imagine if they'd put deep-fried ice cream pancake parcels on their menu and had to begin an order by freshly making some pancakes? Bonkers. Preparation is key.

Fanny uses a block of ice cream, which must be cut into portions and then returned to the deep freeze until 'rock hard'. I was pleasantly surprised to see that supermarkets still sold these nostalgic bricks from my childhood, and in Neapolitan too! Clearly I'm not on Fannys wavelength here though, I just wanted to slice it up and eat it, perhaps with a wafer or two. Maybe some Ice Magic if I was feeling fancy, but Fanny had other ideas. She wraps the rock hard wedge in a pancake, folding it up like a parcel before dredging it through beaten egg and rolling it carefully in ground almonds.

Fanny at this point drops it straight into smoking hot oil, but I could feel my package was a little bit squidgy, so I popped it back into the freezer to firm up. Limp packages will never do. While I wait for it to harden I canelle some oranges, which Fanny recommends as the garnish, making pretty flowers. There is no escape though, with my oil bubbling and my package rock hard I fire it in until it becomes golden brown. Fanny presents it just as it is, with the orange canelles and suggests that I do too. She does not cut one open. I do and unsurprisingly molten ice cream runs free. I'm left with a slightly empty creamy package that is partly crunchy and partly sludgy. I think they might've been successful with another filling, just not ice cream. Ice cream doesn't need to be deep-fried, does it? It's bonkers!

A Pile of Crêpes

Johnnie should be worried. More worried than usual. He often looked somewhat concerned anyway, but somehow remained unflappable in Fanny's presence. Perhaps not today. There is something different in the air, a change of mood, a change of intention. Poor Johnnie. He's probably quietly taken himself off and is hoping to remain hidden downstairs in the dank and dark wine cellar. Maybe Fanny won't notice he is absent, or maybe she has devious plans... She's not in a rage, she's not cross and there is no suggestion she will be walloping anyone. Not today. Quite the opposite. She's felling, well, a little fruity to be honest.

Fruit Pancakes that is. And she is not in the mood for hanging around, this potent feeling may not last. She has her crêpes already prepared, layered, wrapped in ordinary kitchen foil and stacked in the refrigerator, so she's good to go. It's as if she has been planning this flush of lustiness. I made mine earlier too, following Fannys instructions but using her recipe which contained white wine. It's all part of Fannys seduction plan, fling in some booze wherever possible. The wine actually makes the crêpes very thin and flow around the pan with ease, making crêpes that look like tracing paper.

The first of Fannys fruity flairs are Crėpes Caramelisées aux Pommes, or Caramel Apple Pancakes. Fanny quickly peels and cores a cooking apple before slicing it into thin rings. These are laid over a single pre-prepared crêpe, sprinkled with sugar and popped under a hot grill until they bubble and brown. Fanny warns not to have it too close to the heat, much as there is hurry for seduction, as they will caramelise before the apple cooks, so she asks that you please remember! Fanny hasn't even noticed that Johnnie is missing, she's engrossed in her next temptation - oomphing up the fruitiness with a Tiered Orange creation, or Gâteau des Crêpes aux Oranges.

These are fairly similar to the Pommes, but are made with layers of pre-prepared crêpes sandwiched with home-made orange custard. Fanny frisks up egg yolks with flour and sugar until they are pale and foamy. Meanwhile she heats a mixture of orange juice and orange curaçao gently on the stove top. There is always room for more alcohol, poor Johnnie doesn't stand a chance. Just before the alco-juice boils, she pours it over the sweetly eggy mixture, stirs until its blended and pops it over a double boiler to thicken up, stirring constantly of course. It should coat the back of a spoon. The custard is spread between the crêpes and then topped with thick orange slices, sugar and grilled until brown. Now, where is Johnnie?

Fanny clearly is not convinced that these two alone are enough to woo Johnnie, so includes a third option. Stuffed Pancakes, or Crêpes Farcies. Soft fruits this time, radiant red raspberries and beaming, burnished blueberries made into a quick jam. With internal temperatures soaring, there's no time for it to set, so Fanny has a little trick. The fruits are heated in a pan, then a mix of white wine (I know!) and a little potato flour is added. It thickens in seconds! Fanny then rolls up some fruit with jam in her crêpes, and tops with more of the glazed, lusty preserve. Johnnie will surely not be able to resist. The whiff of the fruit and sugar would surely be enough to tempt him back upstairs, but I have no doubt that the waft of alcohol will certainly bait him back into Fanny's arms, unable to resist. Run, Johnnie, Run!

The Future is Bright - Tarte aux Oranges

Fanny makes this her 'Star Dish of the Week' as she is so pleased with it with it's sparkling bright colours, splendid vitamin content and simple set-up. It is yet another flan, which really must be Fanny's favourites, but this one has a fresh and vibrant feel, using boiled oranges. Yes, boiled. It doesn't sound appetising but it's intriguing. It seems particularly cheery today, and a real antidote to the 'depressing guff' Fanny alludes to as the reason for celebrating all kinds of citrus, as I am packing away the Christmas tree and decorations and reflecting on the year past and what's in store for the year ahead. Fanny suggests this as a large flan, but I decide to scale it back a little and make individual ones, after all it's been a few weeks of over indulgence! 

The oranges - or large globose many celled berries with sub-acid juicy pulp enclosed in a tough rind, externally of a bright reddish yellow/orange colour to give the definition provided by Fanny - should be popped in a pan, covered liberally in cold water which is then brought to the boil before simmering gently for around an hour. Fanny suggests that the way to tell if they are ready is to pinch them lightly between your first finger and thumb and they should be as flabby and soft as a worn out tennis ball. This isn't a point of reference I am familiar with, and I have no worn out tennis balls to hand, but after an hour with the kitchen smelling heavenly they are quite squishy, which seems right. They need to be plunged into iced water now to cool completely.

Meantime I prepare my flan case and ever trusty confectioners custard. I have some individual cases left over from a previous bake which seem ideal, so just need to whip up a batch of custard. Maybe as a result of the Christmas clear out and the need for some retro comfort, or because the colour seems so bright and appropriate, I go against Fanny's method and make my custard from Birds powder. How very daring of me! Total rebel, is this the way 2014 is going to be?!

Once the oranges are cool, Fanny tells me to wipe them thoroughly and slice them neatly into 1/8 inch slices, skin and all, pop them into a shallow pan, cover with stock sugar syrup and simmer gently for 20 minutes. The syrup reduces quite a bit in this time. Once again the whole house is filled with vibrant orange aromas, replacing the familiar pine smell of the tree.

When the custard is cooled and spooned into the cases, the only remaining thing to do is to add some orange juice and a splash of orange liqueur (thanks Fanny!) to the reduced syrup and brush it over the neatly placed orange slices. I can see why this is Fanny's Star Dish of the week now, it's such a lovely colour, the flat smells wonderful and it tastes smashing - just like the very best homemade marmalade. So, Christmas is over but I am sure there is lots to look forward to in the coming months, this sparkling orange flan is just the start!

A Slice of Cheer for New Year

Fanny fills the fifth installment of the partwork with all sorts of fruity citrus recipes. She is so keen on them, that she claims she could fill an entire book, but is careful here to introduce just the basics for every course and every kind of meal. After all, citrus fruits are almost as versatile as eggs and as easily obtainable throughout the year! They are also 'gay to look at', Fanny tells us, and as such are immensely decorative for garnish and presentation, her most favourite of mantras. Citrus fruits delight the eye and titilate the taste buds before any of Fanny's masterpieces have even been sampled. Fanny loves the fact that her citrus recipes can be virtuous and bursting with vitamin C without all the dreary associations of cookery books who list the vitamin and calorie content of everything. Fanny finds this depressing. So, it seems apt to adapt one of her culinary marvels using the humble orange just in time for Hogmanay. 

Fanny's idea is to serve redcurrant jelly in a surprising way with venison, lamb or hare - which is clearly not something I'd be doing. As it's party season I am switching it up and making an alcoholic version with some of the homemade Cranberry Vodka I've had maturing for a few weeks. It's really just some fresh berries pricked all over and plonked in a bottle with the booze, but seems like it would make a much more sophisticated vodka jelly shot. First up I need to hollow out an orange - Fanny has Peter show us how in a pic-strip - which involves slicing off a very small lid and carefully scooping out the flesh.

It's quite tricky not to break the skin, but using a teaspoon I soon have a hollow skin ready and waiting. Time for the jelly. In place of Fanny's suggested redcurrant jelly, water and gelatine, I use a bottle of Sprite Zero I have in the fridge (which seems appropriately citrus packed), my cranberry vodka and some vegetarian Agar flakes, which are made from seaweed. The flakes need to be dissolved in theSprite and heated until just boiled, before simmering for a few minutes and adding the vodka. Maths and science were never my strong point at school, so I am hoping my calculations are good enough to get it to set. 

Once mixed, it needs to be poured into the hollowed out orange and left to set. Agar flakes can set at room temperature, so just a case of waiting... Thankfully after about an hour it has cooled and set really firm, just as Fannys redcurrant version had. The orange can now be cut into segments ready to serve.

I think these make really fun jelly shots for a party, or even just a night in by yourself, as Fanny says they look so gay (in the way Fanny meant it) and decorative but unlike Fanny's version, they also have an adult kick. Perfect to start off the New Year celebrations, with a cocktail or two and good enough to leave you feeling somewhat virtuous and vitamin conscious still, right? Happy New Year!