Myrtle
Bagot’s Pages
Chatelaine
of Milford Station buffet explains all about our mid 20thcentury
diet.
2. Two-Way
Stretch (1960)
My
friends are always saying to me, “Mrs Bagot, my husband’s given me a giant
marrow and I haven’t the first idea what to do with it.”
It’s
mostly those friends whose husbands have an allotment…or a nice big garden and
a terrible competitive streak. Given half the chance, all men will try to outdo
each other. Especially when it comes to growing something. If you ask me they want their heads banging
together. I mean, who wants a giant marrow?
Just
to illustrate my point there’s a film called “Two-Way Stretch” where that Peter
Sellers and Bernard Cribbins are in prison, where they belong. In this prison there’s
a garden where the prison governor is growing a marrow. He’s going to take it
to the local show and he means to win a prize with it – outdoing everyone else
because his is the biggest. Until of course the explosion in the quarry puts an
end to that lark by squashing his marrow. Serve him right of course, he should
be keeping an eye on the criminals he’s being paid to look after, not nurturing
huge curcurbits.
So
you see, there’s all these marrows going off to shows, and what happens after
they’ve been judged and rosetted I ask you? That’s right. They get dumped onto
already overworked wives who are expected to make use of it.
If
you find yourself in possession of one of these blighters, here’s a couple of
ideas from my “Main Cookery Book for Rural Gas.”
Stuffed Marrow
1
Nice-sized marrow
1lb
Minced cooked meat
2oz
Breadcrumbs
1
Egg
2oz
Butter or dripping
1
Teaspoon mixed herbs
Seasoning
A
little stock if necessary
Peel
and cut the marrow in half, remove the seeds. Mix together the meat, crumbs,
herbs and seasoning, add the well beaten egg. If very dry, add a little stock
(or gravy). Stuff the marrow and tie the halves together. Melt the dripping in
a tin, put in the marrow, and cook in a fairly hot oven till done, basting
often. When nearly cooked, dredge well with flour, pepper and salt, baste and
continue cooking until tender. Remove the string, and dish. Make a nice gravy
with the fat in the tin and strain over the marrow.
As
my friend Mr Godby pointed out, life is too short to baste a marrow. He much
prefers his soaked in vinegar and mustard.
Marrow Pickle
1
Large marrow
1
½ oz Mustard
1
¼ lb Sugar
12
Chillies
2-3
Pints best vinegar
1
oz Powdered ginger
½
oz Powdered turmeric
1lb
Shallots
12
Cloves
Peel
and cut up the marrow into small cubes: there should be 4lb of marrow. Sprinkle
with salt, and let it stand overnight; drain off the water. Mix to a paste the
ginger, mustard and turmeric with a little vinegar. Bring to boiling point the
sugar, onions finely minced, chillies, cloves and vinegar. Add the paste, mix
well, then add the marrow, and cook till tender.
Anyway
I can’t stand round here gossiping all day. I’ve got customers to serve and
that girl Beryl seems to be having a series of coughing fits. I don't know what's wrong with the girl.