BOOK/A TABLE - Victorious Victoria Cake

“Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. There are circumstances in which, whether you partake of the tea or not—some people of course never do—the situation is in itself delightful.”

So begins The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James. I’ve always admired the gentle ritual of the British tea; the pause that refreshes, like a siesta—but with caffeine—and have enjoyed an afternoon or two steeped in civilization at The Ritz in London and The Plaza in New York.

But what is tea without cake? This heavenly Victoria Sandwich Cake courtesy of Barbara Pym is stuffed with raspberry jam and might well be the queen of all teatimes. With only a few ingredients and a modicum of effort, you can emerge victorious when serving this dessert any hour, even at midnight, to yourself. 

Victoria Sandwich Cake

Adapted from The Barbara Pym Cookbook

(My suggestions in italics)

Ingredients:

12 tablespoons (180g) butter

1 cup (180 g) castor or superfine sugar

Vanilla extract

3 eggs

1 cup (180g) self-rising flour

Raspberry jam (go nuts and break from tradition with strawberry jam!)

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). 

Beat butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Add a few drops of vanilla extract and beat in eggs, one at a time. Sift flour, and fold into batter gently.

Put the mixture into two 7-inch ( 18 cm) sandwich tins that have been greased and dusted with flour. Bake 17 to 20 minutes (I used one 8-inch tin and baked for 30 minutes. Tent with foil if browning too much), until done.

To sandwich, spread slices with raspberry jam, layer, and sprinkle tops with castor or superfine sugar.  

BOOK/A TABLE - Dressing for Dinner

Behold the battered, taped-up copy of Valley of the Dolls I bought at the Paperback Bazaar when I was about fifteen years old and desperate to escape New Hampshire. Although I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting into, I ended up tearing through it, enthralled by the depiction of New York (and Broadway!) set in the 40s and 50s. And I told anybody who’d listen to read it. I wasn’t alone of course in my discovery—Jacqueline Susann’s debut has remained one of the all-time bestsellers for over fifty years.

The other night I went to a showing of the infamous 1967 movie version with my friend (he’d never seen it) and I explained afterward how the book has a special place in my heart and differs greatly from the camp spectacle he’d just witnessed. Also there is no bad acting in books.

Gore Vidal (or Truman Capote, depending who you ask) once said Susann’s prose wasn’t writing, it was typing—and although it might not be Wuthering Heights, the book has a brilliant structure founded upon the friendships of three young women struggling to make something of themselves. Susann was also a marketing visionary, a brand-name novelist who brought Peyton Place to Manhattan and paved the way for many romance writers to come.

Valley of the Dolls made me fall in love with New York and confirmed my decision to make it my home. Visions of the old El Morocco and the Stork Club danced in my head and after I moved to Manhattan, ‘21’ certainly became one of my favorite places to eat—no, to experience! 

Before ‘21’ closed a few years ago, I had the privilege to chat with its former executive chef Michael Lomonaco at a press event. I gushed over the shallot and champagne vinaigrette in his cookbook, which feature recipes from the fabled venue. So, when Anne Welles, the heroine of Valley of the Dolls arrives at ‘21’ dressed to the nines, I can’t help but imagine her salad was dressed with Lomonaco’s perfect vinaigrette—and my go-to favorite.

“Anne rushed into ‘21’ and joined Henry at his usual front table. Henry noticed that every man in the room had turned to look at her. She wore eye makeup and her hair was fuller, like a lion’s mane...she was exciting now. Anne laughed and ordered a salad.”

                              

Shallot and Champagne Vinaigrette
Yield: 1 cup

Ingredients:

1/4 cup champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
4 large, peeled shallots
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Method:
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, process the vinegar, mustard, sugar, shallots, salt, and pepper until the shallots are finely chopped. With the processor running, add the oil very slowly in a small stream until all the oil has been incorporated and the dressing has achieved a silky, smooth texture. The dressing may be stored, covered, up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator but should be brought to room temperature before using.

BOOK/A TABLE - Champagne & Sorbet

As far as I’m concerned, the shorts stay on until mid-October, at least. And why not? The seasons have gone haywire—Memorial Day weekend weather doesn’t really start until sometime in June now and I prefer to think of September as the new August.

With that in mind, it’s still a fine time to knock back an effervescent Sgroppino! A video from Nigella Lawson popped up on Instagram and I was immediately intrigued as she mixed together lemon sorbet, champagne, and vodka for a last-gasp-of-summer cocktail.

It happened to be a bit of a coincidence then that I also came across a mention of champagne sorbet when reading Doctor No by Ian Fleming. While trapped in the madman’s “mink-lined prison” our favorite undercover agent James Bond is handed two huge menus: “They might have been from the Savoy Grill or the ‘21’ or the Tour d’Argent. Bond ran his eye down one of them. It began with Caviar double de Beluga and ended with Sorbet à la Champagne.”

Champagne Sorbet may certainly serve as a tasty dessert, but a Sgroppino is easier to make and yields quicker results without having to wait around for the whole thing to freeze. Cheers then—and say “yes” to the rest of summer!

Nigella Lawson’s Sgroppino Recipe
(My booze-free suggestions in italics)

Ingredients
100g Lemon Sorbet (about 2/3 cup)
25ml chilled vodka (1 shot) or herbally Ritual gin
25ml chilled prosecco (1 shot) or Giesen New Zealand Sparkling Brut

Method
Get a small coupe or martini glass and a small wide-ish jug. Scoop the lemon sorbet into the jug.
Pour over the vodka, followed by the prosecco. Mix swiftly but gently with a couple of forks, pulling the sorbet apart and into the liquid rather than beating the ingredients together.
When you have a lump-free cohesive mixture resembling a cloud of frosty froth, pour into the prepared glass.
Raise to your lips and prepare to be transported!

TIP: Chill your glasses to keep your cocktail cold – put them in the freezer for at least 30 mins, or up to 2 hrs before serving. (Avoid freezing crystal and delicate glass.)

This recipe was created by Nigella for Ocado.

 

 

 

Spaghetti with Salmon Roe

I don’t know what to tell you except that we were gifted an enormous amount of salmon roe from a very generous friend and we had to do something with it. I found this recipe for a luxurious pasta dish featuring fish eggs and set to work. Thin spaghettini is suggested, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. Try linguine or fettucine.

Smaller jars of orangey-pink salmon roe or paddlefish caviar are usually less expensive than the black stuff (Sevruga, Beluga, etc.), so if you are looking to make a simple, elegant dish for a loved one, look no further. Double the recipe to include a few guests!

P.S. Lighten the whole thing up with condensed skim milk instead of cream. But do use both butter and oil. 

Spaghetti with Salmon Roe
memoriediangelina.com
Serves 2

Ingredients
150g (5 oz) spaghetti
100g (3.5 oz) salmon roe (2 small jars)
1 shallot, finely minced
A splash of dry, white wine
A good pour of heavy cream
Butter (or a mixture of butter and oil)
Salt

Directions
Cook the pasta in abundant, well salted water until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, melt a good dollop of butter (or a mixture of oil and butter) in a skillet. Sauté the shallot over very gentle heat for a minute or two, then add a splash of white wine. Raise the heat and let the wine reduce until it become syrupy. Add the cream and reduce again, until you have a nice, ‘saucy’ consistency. Turn off the heat and add half the salmon roe, mixing it well with the cream. If you like crush a few of the roe to add color and taste to the sauce. Taste and adjust for seasoning; the sauce should be very flavorful.

When the pasta is done, transfer it to the skillet. Turn on the heat to medium-high and mix the pasta with the sauce until all the strands of pasta are well coated with the sauce. If you find the sauce it a bit too thick, add more cream. If too thin, just let the pasta cook a bit longer. The pasta should not be swimming in the sauce, but it should slither around easily in the skillet.

Serve in pasta bowls and top each portion with the remaining salmon roe.