THE FABULOUS FONTELUNA

I remember the old food shops in Edinburgh. On forays into the city for entertainment, education or provisions as a child there remained some out-of-their-time places where my parents were regulars. Jamieson’s fruit shop in Princes St. You could park outside. Jamieson was a rather dour man, who would deal with his customers crisply. Until he saw 'Mrs Woyka', when his eyes would light up accompanied by a frantically obsequious hand rubbing. I dont know if he thought she was a duchess, he certainly treated her so.

My father’s favourite was Young & Saunders where he’d by tins of consomme and Charbonnel & Walker powdered truffles. At the time they were an exclusive brand, based in the Burlington Arcade off Picadilly. Young & Saunders was like something out of Harry Potter. Countless little men, like oompa loompas in brown overall jackets with dockets and pens in their top pockets. You’d arrive with a list and they’d scurry around the place, dashing up ladders and through the back, wrapping everything in brown paper and string, from wafer thin ox tongue to candied angelica. There was one of those amazingly enigmatic vacuum cash pipes, where bills would be sent to the accounts department, perched over looking the rest of the shop, where presumably countless bills were totted up and added to the accounts of the great and good.

But by far my favourite was Valvona & Crolla. My love of food and cooking was germinated in my visits here. In those days it consisted only of what is now the front of the shop. It seemed skyscraper tall stuffed full of exotic , colourful and pungent goods; all sorts of amazing things that looked and smelled tantalising to a small boy. I was fascinated by the tottering ladders up which the staff would climb to fetch something. But my most favourite moment was as the bill was being settled and Carlo Contini would pinch my cheeks and give me a delicious butter toffee sweet. I savoured those sweets and can still remember the taste today. I think they were Polish.

Of course V&C is a different animal today. Altogether more corporate which of course results in less charm. Such is the way of business. Anyway one is forced to limit the spend which is a good thing. But for the basics, it has no rival in Britain that I have found. Their garlic, lemons, parmesan, gorgonzola are unbeatable. But what I most celebrate in recent weeks is the long-awaited return of the Fonteluna sausage. It’s a semi cured sausage flavoured with chili and fennel which makes an attention-seeking but easy supper dish. Here goes. For this dish you need a bit of fresh tomato. I have little regard for tasteless Dutch tomatoes and cant afford those imported from Italy. And I really resent the British laziness of serving them unseeded and with skin. The best tip I have learned to create a quick and clean tomato base is this. Cut the tomatoes horizontally and squeeze out the pips. Then grate the flesh into the pan. Chuck the leftover skin.

Now Gently heat some olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan Throw in some roughly chopped garlic and red chilli with handful of pinenuts. Lightly fry and add a sliced Fonteluna sausage. Cook til it curls a little then add the tomato and a big handful of chopped flat leaf parsley. Can be served with anything but my favourite is orrecchiete. Smother in parmesan. Serve with rocket and watercress salad and a bottle of Nero d’Avola.

postscript: sadly Carlo Contini died last year. Until quite recently when I was visiting Edinburgh, I would bump into him in Leith Walk. He always remembered me. He will be a much missed figure from my childhood.

TENDER WORDS

Tender (2009) tells the story of Nigel Slater's love affair with his garden in Islington and the many seedlings he has raised in his box-hedged vegetable patches. It’s a magnificent volume, like a medieval knightly treatise with pictures of his Eden, its produce and many of the recipes he has created from them.

23 May, 2010

FOOD FROM THE HEART

Cooking is a basic human instinct. We’ve been eating, chopping, shaping, flavouring, enticing ingredients into something delicious since time began. But as the way many of us live has changed, the basic skills we require to cook, are no longer valued and it’s often easier to let others take control of what we eat.

21 April, 2010

IN A RIGHT FISH STEW

This week we had sustainable fish stew. It’s a quick and easy way to feed a gang of hungries on a Friday night and doesn’t need much else but some good bread and wine. Like all stews, you need balance, rich liquid and a range of potent flavours steaming from your pot.

15 March, 2010