Thursday, October 09, 2008

looking, blobs, cheese and pickle

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Roots are always looking for something.

On a page of my notebook are small blobs made by drips from buttered toast. They have created shapes which invite the point of an exploring pencil to complete or modify. They have become a reference for a particular moment on a particular day.

A belated breakfast outside my favourite cafe. A cup of tea and a cheese and Branston pickle sandwich. I sit in the sun and think to myself that on a desert island this would be the luxury I would most be in need of.

4 comments:

Lucy said...

I have sometimes tried to make a chutney that resembles Branston pickle, but without success. It has a kind of savoury-ness that I've never been able to imitate.

In fact we can get it here quite easily, and don't eat it all that often, but a cheese and pickle sandwich is a fine thing sometimes - Cantal or Salers will do nicely for the cheese!

Dave King said...

Like the blobs in your notebook, you posts are full of suggestions.

Unknown said...

Glad you agree about cheese and pickle. For me that's nothing to beat a mature cheddar with that particular pickle. I love French cheeses but they seem to have to much personality of their own, some too refined and some too distinctive, for Branston.

Lucy said...

Mmm, the Cheddar we can get here is either very expensive, from an franchise of shops selling Irish produce, or not terribly nice, with slightly chalky bits in, I don't know why...

My brother has a theory that the similarity between Cantal and Cheddar is down to limestone landscapes, but as very little Cheddar really comes from Cheddar, I don't know. Salers is a stronger, slightly richer variety of Massif Central cheese, we don't get it often, but it's very good. The Cantal needs to be 'entre deux', you don't usually see the fully mature version.

Pickle with soft type French cheeses is a fairly disgusting experience!