Foodie meme

[shewhomust]

All the cool kids were doing this back in November, but I was otherwise occupied in November - besides, if I can't have food-related indulgence during the Twelve Days, then - well, I don't want to play, is all. I copied it from desperance, who says he picked it up from rushthatspeaks, and I'm pretty sure other people were doing it too...

What's the last thing you ate?

The last of the Melton Mowbray pork pie, bought in Melton Mowbray; parsnip and fennel salad, with a mustardy dressing and toasted hazelnuts; mrissa's wild rice pudding with sour cherries (first time of making, and already yummy, but next time I'll have a better idea how long it takes to cook, and how much rice to use)

What's your favourite cheese?

Used to be Cotherstone, when she made it with unpasteurised milk. Now it's still a good cheese, but one of many. I had a cheese I didn't like, once; perhaps it would be easier to answer about that (it was gammelost).

What's your favourite fish?

Smoked? Smoked mackerel, smoked haddock, smoked salmon, even? Or just haddock, perhaps, which is what I always ask for as my fish and chips. Then again, anchovies - small but essential.

What's your favorite fruit?

Quince, of course.
The fruit I'd miss most if it weren't there is probably lemons - or tomatoes - but it's always a thrill to find some quinces, and decide how I'm going to use them.

When, if ever, did you start liking olives?

Too long ago to remember. But I know there was a time when I liked green olives but not black ones.

When, if ever, did you start liking beer?

Bit by bit. But the tipping point was probably in my 40s, when we visited a friend who was living in Prague, and I discovered that the local lager actually tasted of something. (I do not understand the logic that if someone doesn't like beer, you can win them over by giving them lager which tastes of nothing. The first beer I enjoyed at all was Guinness, in Ireland).

When, if ever, did you start liking shellfish?

I don't remember ever not liking shellfish, some of them more than others.

What was the best thing your parent/s used to make?

Back in the 50s, my father's speciality was "Swiss breakfast" - oatmeal soaked overnight in milk, with raisins and nuts. In the morning he'd grate sour apples into it. This was before muesli reached Britain, and it took me years to realise that that's what it was. Later he became a good breadmaker, too.
My mother was always moving on to something new - I don't remember anything specific, only her saying: "Read me the recipe, darling - only double the quantities."

What's the native specialty of your home town?

Durham? Goodness, I don't know. Leek pudding, maybe. Stottie cakes (a large flat bread bun). I can think of regional recipes, rather than civic ones.

What's your comfort food?

Toast.

What's your favorite type of chocolate?

Not too dark - it's about the feeling in the mouth as well as the flavour, and the very high percentages aren't unctuous enough.

How do you like your steak?

Bloody.

How do you like your burger?

Ditto. Also, all meat (I buy them at the Farmers' Market).

How do you like your eggs?

Free range. I like the yolk runny and the white cooked - but I'd rather have the yolk cooked than the white runny. This is so misguided of me that desperance is unable to remember it, and is pained afresh every time I say so.

How do you like your potatoes?

Any way and every way.

How do you take your coffee?

Stronger than anyone else, it seems. With milk, not cream, and sometimes, especially after dinner, without milk either.

How do you take your tea?

In the afternoon. Preferably one I can drink without milk, biut if it's brown tea, I'll have milk in it, and that'll be fine, too.

What's your favorite mug?

I have a breakfast mug, an after-dinner mug, a tea mug, a daytime coffee mug, the pretty black one for when their are guests and a pot of coffee has to be split between more people. (That last might actually be my favourite).

What's your cookie of choice?

Whatever you've just baked.

What's your ideal breakfast?

Fruit juice, toast, coffee. Don't mess about with my breakfast.

What's your ideal sandwich?

Cheese. Different kinds of bread, different kinds of cheese, sometimes a sliced tomoto, or some chutney, but I can eat cheese sandwiches every day and not tire of them.

What's your ideal pizza (topping and base)?

If we were in Italy, say we were sitting by the lake, then I'll enjoy the local, paper-thin pizza, maybe with pesto and ricotta, or maybe something I haven't tried before.
But if we're sending out to the local pizza parlour, deep-pan anchovy and olive.

What's your ideal pie (sweet or savory)?

Apple, with sultanas. Or with quince, apple and quince is good.

What's your ideal salad?

Different every season.

What food do you always like to have in the fridge?

Cheese, yoghourt, lemons, celery. Mayonnaise (Hellman's. Sorry.) I don't refrigerate eggs.

What food do you always like to have in the freezer?

Soup. Bread. I buy meat at the Farmers' Market once a month and freeze it. Right now I'm trying to empty the freezer - it desperately needs to be defrosted.

What food do you always like to have in the cupboard?

Tinned tomatoes. Rice, pasta, couscous, dried beans.

What spices can you not live without?

I can live without them. But I don't want to. I use a lot of cumin, and hot smoked paprika.

What sauces can you not live without?

I'd miss soy sauce, and occasionally Worcester sauce. But that's about it.

An hour later, I'm probably more than halfway through this, and taking a break. There's a reason why I do so few of these questionnaire memes: I'm often tempted, and if they run to three or four questions, I might do it. When it's nearer to 50, not so likely. Still, it's interesting, and I might return to this one.

I wonder if the people who compile these questionnaires realise how much they are revealing of themselves?