Not So Guilty Secrets

OK, so yet another food post might seem a tad excessive, but here's the thing: if you can't be arsed to create, invent or otherwise extemporise a meal, let alone follow a recipe, the next best thing is to turn to the comfort food of one's childhood. Viz the above: the aftermath of tonight's meal - I couldn't even be bothered to photograph the finished article as I simply wanted to eat it: a Fray Bentos steak & kidney pie with baby Maris Piper potatoes roasted in beef dripping. Properly nostalgic working-class nosh from my childhood. The Fray Bentos pie occupies a place in that unique pantheon of readymade foodstuffs that serious, professional chefs will always cleave to when they simply want comfort and convenience after a hard day's work. No-one wants to bake a sixty-four layer puff pastry from scratch, to be perfectly honest, and the pastry on these things is always nothing short of wonderful.

Other items of note on the roster are: Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup: having spent ages myself making a creamed tomato soup from scratch in the past, I can attest that the end result was pretty much the same as opening a can of the stuff and warming it through. A go-to for most cooks. Heinz Baked Beans are a true staple, also; although I would now caveat that only with the addition of some extra salt and sugar these days, as the health police have rendered the standard can of beans a tad bland. Also, they benefit from the addition of one of the other 'guilty' secret foodstuffs: Heinz Tomato Ketchup [glass bottle formulation for preference]. I suppose the list could go on: Cracker Barrel Cheddar is one; Marmite, Vegemite, Bovril, Lea & Perrins' Worcestershire Sauce, Gentleman's Relish, etc. etc. There is nothing to be ashamed of in consuming any one or indeed any combination of these time-encrusted and trusted kitchen staples: Michelin-starred chefs do, so who are we to argue?