Blue Is The Colour - E-Mail correspondence with Spooky St. Ives

Helen Bristol

01 November 2003 15:39

Blue String soup

(lack of) Progress Report.

I'm afraid the news is not good. The soup-stock ore that is mined in East Angular is of VERY poor quality. I blame the chalk plates in the Brecks. I've been experimenting with using commercial stock cubes and find the UK varieties much inferior to their counterparts from Frank. That said, I am still trying to decide whether vegetable cubes or bouillon are preferable to chicken. My inclination is towards the veggie variety as they compliment the natural subtle flavour of the Blue String. Added to which the water hereabouts is somewhat harder than in SI

The second problem is that I discovered that the Blue String I had been using was well past its sell by date...........................by about 15 years. As a consequence when cooked it does not soften as it should but remains well................ stringy. I had thought that extended boiling might soften it but alas the opposite seems to be true. The longer you boil it the tougher it gets...................so when the going gets tough the tough go shopping ...........but that's another story

So, its back to the drawing board, or in this case cookery books and Google................................now that was a bit of a shock! Blue String PUDDING and GREEN soup are mentioned as well as Blue String soup.........................oh, its all too much for me I shall have to go and have another G&T to recover.

PS off now to pot some shrimps..............and become CM's bestest-friend-in-the-whole-wide-world

The Soup Dragon

01 November 2003 16:05

You see, m'dear, it's not as easy as it appears.

Many is the time I've emerged from the mines with my scales so singed I had no choice but to plunge myself into a vat of iced G&T (bless the boys, at least the RT know how to cope with a crisis).

The stock situation is a difficult one given your lack of resources (i.e. you do not live on a moon). The secret in dealing with the tough string is to use Iron Chicken stock. She use to lay the cubes for me in exchange for packets of Kellogg's cornflakes (fancied the gorgeous hunk on the front!).

Keep up the good work,

Luv Soupie

PS. How do you pot shrimps? I mean it would be a doddle with a shotgun but it wouldn't be any use underwater.

Helen Bristol

01 November 2003 20:39

No, No, think harpoons, my dear, and if that doesn't satisy, think snooker

PS what hunk? on cornflakes? Oh dear!!

The Soup Dragon

02 November 2003 08:40

The big green chicken.

Did you know that you can (or could) get Kellogg's cornflakes chicken suits (sort of towelling things to wear after emerging from the shower). VJ wanted to get a set to serve as an appropriate Sloop kitchen staff uniform but they only made them in kiddies' sizes. Bah!

Lucy T. Lobster

02 November 2003 11:42

Don't tell him but I thought that was what he was wearing last time I saw him.

The last lot of failed blue string I chucked out on the lawn for the birds. A blackbird was standing by it head cocked to one side eyeing it suspiciously. The menage a trois of dunnocks were getting even more excited than usual and the robins have started knitting mufflers with it.

The Soup Dragon

02 November 2003 13:42

Why not feed the blue string to the local hedgehogs. The Sonics assure me that BSS is a natural aid to maintaining a healthy blue spikiness.

Helen Bristol

03 November 2003 17:35

Chance would be a fine thing - only seen one once this year, last year we had a whole family.

The Soup Dragon

04 November 2003 08:47

Maybe they have been building themselves up on BSS and have now gone off to be super-speedy evil-fighting hedgehogs like youknowwho!

Helen Bristol

06 November 2003 18:36

I think I mis-read that.................I thought you were talking about evil hedgehogs...................wouldn't want you to be savagely prickled.

Spent yesterday in the rarified hallowed towers of the University of East Angular and got home completely brain-numbed. It all started badly when I decided to do the citizenly thing and use the Park-and-Ride, bus every 10 minutes. 40 minutes standing at a draughty bus stop, already late for the proceedings .............I made a momentous decision..................**** public transport, **** the hole in the ozone layer - I'll drive everywhere, arrive on time and keep warm.

My I'll-just-pop-across-the-road-to-the-smokehouse this afternoon turned into more than I'd bargained for. Dressed crabs - check. Ah, still got some brown shrimps - a pint and the head - check. Now how about a nice piece of hot roast smoked salmon? Not only a taster from the middle about as thick as my finger, but a personally guided tour of the smoke rooms and what happens when, where and why. So, a lot -longer -than-I- should- have- been later and £6-81 lighter we're all fished up for the weekend. Forgot the kippers so I'll be back tomorrow.

Had my first back care session today. Talk about muscles you didn't know you had.............and that was after a very gentle intro session. I'll have a rippling 4-pack next time I see you. (I know....................but there isn't space for a 6-pack being a girly bloke an' all that)

Vile Jelly

07 November 2003 08:44

Public transport? If you believe in that I don't supposed you'd be interested in buying timeshares in Buckingham Palace that I just happen to have for sale.

Don't care if the 4/6 pack is rippling when you turn up just as long it is at the right temperature (and none of that smoothflow widget crap either). Better still bring bottles!

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