Coginio gyda Mam

(it means cooking with Mum, and this post has been written as part of the Oui Chef Virtual Kitchen )

(also known as I'll do anything for a good badge!!! - is this good enough though??)

My mum was a working mum, though not when we were very little. When we both started school, she started milk recording (something to do with cows, farmers, early starts and poo on head!) and would prepare things the night before (either that or risk my Dad cooking, thankfully its improved, then it was inspired by Ready, Steady, Cook (TM) and seeing as we never had things in cupboards it would always end up not eaten!!)

Being a family who sometimes had to eke things out, she was definitely before her time (she would probably laugh now at the websites you can get (like the one I use, Love Food Hate Waste!)

Many a Sunday we'd have roast chicken, swedes and carrots, roast parsnips, roast potatoes, mashed potato and gravy and then on Mondays we'd have left over potatoes, swedes and carrots (either warmed up or re fried) with left over chicken warmed in gravy. The bones would then be turned into a cawl (a Welsh soup or broth) and we'd carry on eating until it was all gone.

Another family staple was mince and potatoes. Not as bad as it sounds and my mum would add tin toms, beef stock (cube of course), Worcestershire sauce, mushrooms and peas to the mince before serving it up with mashed potatoes! Another mince favourite and something which reminds me of mud pies in doc leaves is mince wrapped up in cabbage leaves. It was basically the same family staple mince recipe (which was used for spaghetti bolognese, lasagne, shepherds pie) but wrapped in cooked cabbage leaves and served!!

I know that in my dad's house there is several of mums old cookery books, including her little black book (of recipes). Things she saw from magazines and fancied would get stuck in here, or recipes passed down from the family would also get written in. One half of the book would be savoury and the other half (turned upside down) would be sweet. Things are written there in my mums scrawl and sometimes having to decipher handwriting and recipe is as much fun as cooking them. One of my all time favourites from the book, is Mum's Bara Brith recipe which when written in the book reads as 1 cup , heat, add flour bake! Not a recipe  all cooks could deal with!! (I must remember to steal, borrow that book next time I'm at Dad's!!)

Mum's cooking may not have been posh, but it was good honest food that she knew her family would eat and even though she is not here I feel that she would be happy with the food I serve my girls!


BNM