Stuffed vegetable marrow and devilish potatoes

The National Mark Calendar of Cooking is a useful little cookery book, even today although it was first published in the 1930’s. The National Mark was part of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries  which promoted home-grown and home-produced foods. Each month in the little book there are recipes using what is in season.

Here are two recipes, the first using potatoes; I suppose how devilish they are depends on the amount of cayenne pepper you use!

Devilled potatoes

• small waxy potatoes peeled and boiled
• 2 egg yolks, beaten
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• salt
• cayenne pepper
•  1 tsp made mustard

1. put tall the ingredients except the eggs and vinegar into a deep frying pan, mix very well then add the vinegar
2. cook for three or four minutes then add the whole potatoes
3. stir in the egg yolks and stir until the mixture thickens

I think the spicy potatoes would go very well with…

Stuffed vegetable marrow

• 1 large marrow (peeled if the skin is tough)
• 2 tbsp chopped cooked beef
• 2 tbsp chopped ham
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• 4 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 1 beaten egg
• white or cheese sauce
• powdered mace
• pinch of lemon thyme
• 1 tbsp tomato ketchup (catchup in the recipe)
• salt and pepper

1. with a small marrow, scoop out the seeds from either end, with a large marrow, cut in half length-ways and scoop out the seeds
2. mix all the other ingredients except the white or cheese sauce together with as much of the egg as you need to bind
3. with a big marrow, put the two halves together, tie the vegetable in a muslin and steam until it is tender
4. place on a serving dish and coat with the sauce

I love the fact that lemon thyme is specified – many people seem to think British kitchens before Elizabeth David were a culinary desert… actually, they weren’t!