Scotch Tails - Borough Market

It's a beautiful thing a perfectly cooked Scotch, isn't it?

Scotch eggs seem to have become the most trendy food item recently, which is great because they're a British classic and I love them. Scotch Tails proves that the scotch egg has come a long way from those nasty, grey solid things you can buy in the refrigerated aisle at the supermarket. On the contrary, these scotch eggs are a work of art. The food photographer in me is a sucker for a runny egg shot, and the yolks of these eggs are just the most vibrant and glorious sunset orange. Anyone who read my previous blog post 'Good Eggs' will know just how passionately I feel about a proper free range quality egg over a cheap supermarket one. Scotch Tails use beautiful Burford Brown eggs, which just makes all the difference. Just have a look at their website: www.scotchtails.com

They have all sorts of wonderful flavours, ranging from the pretty traditional Cumberland sausage meat, through to veggie varieties such as Sweet potato & Falafel or Marmite & Parmesan, and Chorizo or Sweet Chilli pork for the meat and heat lovers. I'm ashamed to say I have no idea which one I tried, because I was too greedy to even wait around to ask. It was one of the sausage meat ones though, and fairly traditional but totally delicious.

Although maybe a little dear at £6.90 for a scotch egg and fries, if you compare that to a meal in a restaurant it's not too extreme and won't exactly break the bank, so I'd say it's good for a little lunchtime treat every now and again. I think the guys behind Scotch Tails have got a fantastic thing going with this. It's such a simple concept, which makes it ideal street market food. It's quick and easy for them to prepare on the stall, and it's easy for the customer to eat. I'm looking forward to trying some more flavours!

Enjoying lunch sitting by beautiful Southwark Cathedral- doesn't it look like a fairytale castle?

Proper British Roasties

I'm such a potato fan. They have to be the most comforting and satisfying of foods to eat ever. Mashed, roast, fried, baked, new, dauphinoise....there is so much potential with the potato. My family roast potato recipe is pretty straightforward with no real tricks to be honest. It's been passed down by my Granny, who used to say that the variety of potato you use makes a huge difference. Her advice was to use Golden wonder potatoes, but I'm sure nowadays there are tons of other suitable roasting varieties too. Some people toss their roast potatoes in polenta which they says gives extra crunch. I've never really found that to be necessary to be honest, so I stick with this basic recipe:

1kg Golden Wonder (or other roasting variety) Potatoes
100g Goose
Salt

1. Place a large roasting tin in the oven and heat to 200C. After about 10 mins, add the goose fat.
2.  Peel the potatoes and cut into medium sized chunks.
3. Boil the potatoes in salted water for around 10-15 mins, until the are starting to get soft.
4. Drain the potatoes in a colander, and give them a good shake to roughen the edges (these fluffy edges are what makes your roast potatoes crispy). Allow them to drain really well, so that they are nice and dry.
5. Add the potatoes to the roasting tin one by one with some tongs- they will probably spit and sizzle at you...but persist! Make sure they have plenty of space between each other as cramping them together will make them go soggy/effect their cooking.
6. Roast the potatoes for 15 mins, then take them out of the oven and turn them over/give them a shake about. Roast for another 15 mins and turn them over again. Put them back in the oven for another 10-20 mins, until they become golden and crisp. Sprinkle with salt and serve straight away.