William Holden's Lime Gelatine with Carrots, Olives and Nuts

"The older you become, the more you know;
your bank account of knowledge is much richer.”

I agree William. And for once in my working life my bank account of DOUGH is richer after filing my tax return rather than much, much poorer as it usually is... Yippee.

I've had a fabulous weekend in the countryside trampolining, watching the tennis and eating a tonne of Silver Screen Supperage. Paulette made a magnificient Gloria Swanson Devil's Food Cake and I did canapes. The centrepiece was William's crazy lime jelly extravaganza. I made it in a rabbit mold and Paulette said as it plopped out, "it looks like some kind of Damien Hurst artwork". It really was quite a sight to behold! Not much of it was eaten but it certainly was a talking point. We also had Gloria Swanson's Caviar Canapes and the old faithfuls Jean Harlow's Celery a la Shrimp and Adolph Menjou's Spiced Venetian Cheese. All washed down with some extremely strong martinis. Hic.

The young Rebel Without a Cause James made me laugh when Paulette brought the cake to the table. When she mentioned it was a very special cake he just asked, "Betty Crocker?"

Alan Ladd's German-Style Potato Pancakes

"As long as my pictures go into theaters
and we ask people to pay to see what I do on the screen,
I should not object if customers want to know what kind of man I am."

You seem like a nice guy Alan, but how can a girl be sure?

It's been quite a week! A guy that I met at the Singles Night on Saturday is doing a pretty good job of sweeping me off my feet, but I am trying to resist! Ha ha! My mother is counseling me to find out everything I can about him but it's not easy is it, when you meet someone at random? Anyhow, it has put a spring in my step this week, despite a bit of cage rattling this week by an ex.

It's going to be a big weekend for Silver Screen Suppers too as I'm off the the countryside with Paulette, Ivor and Shirley to a big dinner party with lots of film star fodder. Will report back. For tonight though I am planning to rustle up some of Alan's pancakes as I am now working my way through the book recipes in alphabetical order and Alan is numero uno. I might have them with a fried egg on top....

Gary Cooper's Buttermilk Griddle Cakes

"To get folks to like you, as a screen player I mean,
I figured you had to sort of be their ideal.
I don't mean a handsome knight riding a white horse,
but a fella who answered the description of a right guy."

Fortified by the last of Constance's Spanish Chicken I went to a singles night last night to search for a "right guy". I had to steel myself to do it, as the friend who was supposed to come with me chickened out (boom boom), but I remembered the new warning motto, "resistance is the ego sensing danger" and got myself psyched up for it.

It was really good fun. Surprisingly so, and it was a real fillip to see that there were fanciable men out there (as one of the ladies put it) "apparently" single. Not sure that anything will come of any of the encounters but at least it has reminded me that they are out there, somewhere...

I've got the whole day to myself and am RELISHING it. Have just made myself a batch of Gary's Griddle Cakes and they were delicious. These are such a treat and it seems quite extravagant to make them just for one, but I'm on a testing frenzy at the moment.

Marion Davies' Rarebit a la Marion

"Gandhi had eaten the whole welsh rarebit."

I wonder if this is the very same doggie that ate the Welsh Rarebit Marion was so looking forward to at San Simeon. I laughed so much when I read her story about it in "The Times We Had" and it's a perfect anecdote to accompany her recipe in the book. I read the story late at night and was so tired I didn't blink an eye about Gandhi being at San Simeon watching movies and eating Welsh Rarebit late at night. It was only in the morning I remembered that one of Marion's dogs was called Gandhi.

I've just eaten TWO slices of Rarebit and very nice it was too. The mixture was a bit runny and Marion didn't specify grilling it so I did it just as she said and just poured the mixture over the toast and scoffed it. Yum.

It's Marion night in Crouch End tonight. I am now going to turn the TV off and write the first draft of the mini biog that will accompany Marion's recipe in the book. What a shame her movies are so hard to get hold of on DVD, I could have rounded the evening off with a screening... Instead I shall start planning the Sunset Boulevard lunch party I am having in February. Gloria Swanson's Caviar Canapes here I come!

Myrna Loy's Senegalaise Soup

“I think that carrying on a life that is meant to be private
in public is a breach of taste,
common sense, and mental hygiene.”

You could be right there Myrna. I had to take a post down this week as it upset someone dear to me so I guess I have to be a little more careful about what I share with the world on this blog. HOWEVER, it is lovely that when I posted how miserable I was the other day I got nice messages to cheer me up, so hurrah for the interweb!

Back to the point... Nazimova sent a grand and celebratory email to say that she'd made Myrna's soup again at the weekend and "everyone loved it". Her mum - visiting from Belgrade - said she could eat it every day and asked for the recipe! Naz suggests having the soup as a starter with liver and mash to follow, using the onion and apple bits Myrna says to discard to go with the liver. Genius!

I am very pleased that we have been pro-active about the Serbian cooking weekend and got a date in the diary. Naz's mum speaks no English and I speak no Serbian so it's going to rock!

Constance Bennett's Spanish Chicken

I was very down in the dumps yesterday. Uncharacteristically well and truly fed up and when I got home I was feeling very sorry for myself indeed. But there on my doormat was a small parcel, addressed to me. This was a surprise as only my mother and my sister know my postal address and I could tell from the writing it was from neither of them.

To my immense joy it was from my old friend PJ in Warrington. He'd sent it to my folks and they had forwarded it on. And joy of joys it was a MIX-CD from the legendary KING of the MIX-CD. I'd seen from his blog that he was transferring his vinyl to digital files and he's been a good and true friend and made me a CD selection. I had no time to listen to it last night so plan to do so this evening in an old fashioned style whilst eating my dinner - the leftovers of the Spanish Chicken I made for Charley on Sunday night. Can't WAIT. Thank you PJ! This has cheered me up no end.

Rudolph Valentino's "Secret" Spaghetti Sauce

“To generalize on women is dangerous.
To specialize on them is infinitely worse.”

I have given up trying to fathom it out myself Rudolph. It's just a ZOO PARK!

I'm back from the wedding of the century. My sister of the skillet is hitched. It was such a lovely affair and a whistle-stop tour of Austin for Edmund. Even though we were only there for a week we managed to squeeze in some of the best, best spots of the town. Highlights for me were: getting my first glimpse of the diamond as big as a bath math on Ruth's finger, two-stepping with a Hot Rod Spare Parts Dealer at the Broken Spoke and the moment Lawrence stamped on the glass at the wedding - MUSELTOF! I'm so happy for them both and wish them every happiness in their new life.

Another great thing was meeting some of the test cooks who have been cooking up a storm in the US. Dale (our "Star Spangled Rhythm" party thrower) was there. As was Gene (great to meet her, Edmund's favourite!), Irene - the wonderful and generous mother of the bride, the two beautiful cousins and many, many, many assorted Frick, Bush and Page relatives. How utterly wonderful to be a part of such a humdinging event.

So now I return to my little garret in Crouch End. New Years Resolutions are kicking in and test cooking has resumed. Tonight's cookathon has put me in a quandary. Rudolph's Chicken From Parma is such a favourite BUT, his "Secret" Spaghetti Sauce is (to copy one of the Bush cousins) AWESOME so a decision will have to be made. As Valentino was famously a superb cook - always rustling up pasta for his fellow film stars - it may have to be this one...

There is a Shahrukh Khan movie on C4 and I am watching it in Ruth's honour (Shahrukh is her own Ricky Whittle). At her hen night we had a Bollywood dance lesson so I am waiting for a big number so I can do the "snake" and the "lightbulb" moves here all alone to try and work off some of this pasta... Must remember to pull the blinds though so the neighbours don't have to witness it...

Silver Screen Saturday - Gone With the Wind

"As for those grapefruit and buttermilk diets,
I'll take roast chicken and dumplings."

Hell yeah Hattie!

In the first of my monthly Silver Screen Suppers extravaganzas today we had a FEAST proposed by Hattie McDaniel in a 1941 edition of Modern Screen Magazine.

Plantation Chicken with Dumplings
Corn Bread
Sweet Corn Pudding
String Beans
Cranberry Jelly
Tomato and Watercress Salad
McDaniel Dressing
Cracker Cake

It was a bit like cooking a Christmas Dinner. Elaborate but absolutely DELICIOUS. Luckily I had lots of helpers. Charley came back after beers in the old man's pub last night and offered to assist. Although the lovely King had brought me back some Graham Crackers from the States I couldn't get my act together to go to Maida Vale to pick them up (what was that New Year's Resolution again?) so I used Digestives for the cake. Charley whacked a plastic bag containing over a whole packet of biscuits with vigour. The resulting cake was quite amazing. Picture viewable on the flickr site! We decorated the cake with candles and celebration glasses of So-Co (Southern Comfort). Birthday boy James said that it was like a massive Custard Cream.

The Cranberry Jelly in a mould the shape of a rabbit was weird but tasty. Dumplings aren't my cup of tea but were enjoyed by the guests (Rosalind, Jimmy, James and Ava), the corn bread was corny and the chicken yummy. All in all I would say that this was probably the best meal I ever cooked!

"Gone With the Wind" was screened as I prepared the lunch. Rosalind screeched for me every time there was a classic moment and I legged it up the stairs for the best bits. I loved being in the kitchen, remarkably calm considering all the dishes I was juggling and hearing Ava in the distance laughing at the film. Rosalind said, "I'd forgotten how funny it is", during the first half and then handed out some tissues during the second half for a big blub.

A wonderful, wonderful way to spend a Saturday and a great precursor to the trip to Texas tomorrow. Yeehaw and toodle-pip for a week or so. Wishing all my readers a humdinger of a year ahead. I've a feeling it is going to be a fantabulosa year. Love. happiness and healing via the power of classic movies to you all!

Jean Harlow's Celery A La Shrimp

“I like to wake up each morning feeling a new man.”

Ha ha, me too Jean, me too!

For the first time in living memory however, I have woken up on the first day of a New Year totally on my lonesome. Not too hungover to make myself laugh by saying out loud immediately upon waking up, "Happy New Year To Me!" All sorts of resolutions have been made for the new decade, one of which is (broadly speaking) to just get my act together. It's vague I know, but it has to happen.

My New Year's Eve was lovely. Spent in the bosom of my pals in Crouch End drinking copious amounts of bubbly, eating a few Hollywood canapes including Jean's classic shrimp dish and entertaining each other with "turns". Shirley played us a song on the piano, Paulette gave us a tune on the accordion and Ivor led us all in a game of bingo. Marvelous. I did a family friendly version of my paper tearing act.

So the new year begins with preparation for a grand luncheon tomorrow with all recipes by Hattie McDaniel. There is much to do but I'm managing to squeeze in a cheeky drink with Charley at Villiers Terrace later. We are both agreed we are going to dance on the grave of 2009. And besides, my mum has sent some Christmas cake for him...

Myrna Loy's Senegalaise Soup

“Life, is not a having and a getting,
but a being and a becoming.”

I'm going to ponder that over the next few days Myrna, what with the end of the decade fast approaching and resolutions to be made...

I had a go at Myrna's soup for the first time, simplicity itself and yummy too. I did prefer Nazimova's version but maybe that is because other people's cooking is always nicer than one's own. It's a good little recipe though and a definite for the book. Apples, onions, curry powder and chicken essentially. Mmmmm.

I'm busy, busy, busy this week. Trying to get a head start on my tax return before I head off to TEXAS. I am beside myself with excitement.

Roland Young's Rissoles

I'm as surprised as Roland is that the rissoles are not an annual tradition as I first thought. The last time I made them was the year before last and they didn't make an appearance in 2008. I am shocked!

I hereby pronounce them an annual tradition. The best, best, best way of making the most of the annual post Christmas food parcel. I chopped up the turkey slices, pigs in blankets, stuffing and bacon and mixed them up with the other ingredients Roland suggested and they made the most yummy little patties ever.

I had to make a last minute plan today. Charley was poised for a trip to the countryside but Rosalind and Jimmy had to wait in for the cable guy. Hence a luncheon party in the Crouch seemed the best option and we had a late lunch (Linner / Dunch) incorporating Roland's Rissoles.

Alas, nobody knew the classic phrase to quote when invited to such a repast, as Ginger would have put it when invited to a last minute lunch: "I'll be round like a rissole!"

Betty Grable's Watermelon Pickles

“It's loud, it's cheap, it's gaudy.
It's like everything I've ever done - I LOVE IT!”

Well, Betty's pickles were sampled on Boxing Day with a large amount of cheese and cold meats. My mum, as always, was very polite and said, "I would class these as an acquired taste" and they were certainly unusual as pickles go. I pronounced them to be "clovetastic" as they smelt and tasted like a visit to the dentist. But many thanks go out to Cary who had the patience to make them for us and I'll ask him what he REALLY thought of them when I see him next.

Christmas was LOVELY. Just me, my folks and 2 waifs and strays who couldn't get to their family because of the snow. My favourite part of Christmas Day was when we all had a "zizz", as my dad calls it, after lunch. He set the alarm so that we could have an hour and a half of shut eye and wake up in time for a game of Walkers Whist before Poirot. Ha ha - a trad Christmas alright!

And today I must rush as I have Rosalind, Jimmy and Charley coming round for rissoles...

Rita Hayworth's Angel Food Cake

I am seeing my Shellac Sister Jean this evening and I'd forgotten that she had quite a success with the Rita Hayworth cake. We are DJing at Kokos in Camden (formerly the Camden Palace) and I'm going to ask her about her egg white whisking between discs.

It's the first time I have really felt sad about the hundreds of records I had to leave behind when I split with Sidney. My CHRISTMAS 78s are all there so I have nothing festive to play tonight. Let's hope Clara has some Xmas Swing in one of her boxes.

Jean took her cake to work and got great feedback from colleagues, most saying how light it was (in marked contrast to the brick I made at the weekend). Some suggested accompaniments such as peach / apricot compote (Will in the Arts team), fruit and yoghurt (Auntie Jean) and stem ginger (Denise in the Sports team). Mmmm, that would be nice and Christmassy.

Speaking of which I'd like to wish all my readers the most fabulous Christmas and fantabulosa New Year. 2009 has been a bit crummy at times, but 2010 is going to be ace. As Bob Hope puts it, "My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?" Right on Bob!

So let's all have a great big love in, not just for Christmas - for always! Happy holidays.

Clara Bow's Vanilla Marlow

"A sex symbol is a heavy load to carry when one is
tired, hurt and bewildered"

I've been feeling a bit like that myself lately Clara but it's getting better...

London is FROZEN. It took me two hours to get home from work as trains were on go-slow, buses were cancelled or turned back from slippery hills and I had to walk all the way from Archway. Blitz spirit prevailed as we all tried not to fall over shuffling down Crouch Hill to the Broadway. It's like a Victorian scene outside my house, I just looked out the window and there is a bunch of boys chucking snowballs at each other. Lovely.

So it seems an apt kind of evening to blog the results of Lita's testing of the Marlow - not a success alas. I'm going to have to write more in depth instructions about cream whipping and milk steaming I think. Lita approached the recipe with gusto - but rather too much gusto unfotunately and the resulting curdled mess did not impress her husband! Attempting to fix the marlow reduced this very glamorous domestic goddess to a jibbering wreck but she did volunteer to give it another go once she has recovered from her diva moment!

Not right now though, too bloody cold for ice-cream!

Gloria Swanson's Butterless Devil's Food Cake

"I feel sure that unborn babies
pick their parents."

Well if that is true Gloria, I have very good taste!

Today I went up to Suffolk for a surprise 80th birthday party for my lovely mum. Miraculously all 5 of us kids made it - despite the snow, plus assorted partners and a smattering of grandchildren. We had a lovely time as the wine flowed freely as did the conversation. It was just wonderful.

My plan of taking a Gloria Swanson Devil's Food Cake AND a Rita Hayworth's Angel's Food Cake FAILED. I blame two things firstly, not using the right tools for the job (my soup masher just would not whip the egg whites to stiff - it got very, very hot and smelt a bit like a fairground dodgem - it may well be bust) secondly RICKY WHITTLE. Gloria's cake stuck to the cake mould and ultimately never made it out of the kitchen because I lost track of how long it had been in the oven due to Mr Whittle's Cha-Cha. My goodness me. Rita's made it to Suffolk but although it looked lovely, had the texture of a brick. More testing required and a wire whisk to be bought.

Despite me feeling like a very poor cook today it ultimately didn't matter as there was mountains of food and mountains of love so a stodgy birthday cake wasn't really anything to worry about...

Rita Hayworth's Angel Food Cake

"We are all tied to our destiny
and there is no way we can liberate ourselves."

Hmm, but what does destiny have in store for me Rita, Rita Peanut Eater?

I have a Rita Hayworth's Angel's Food Cake in the oven, to be followed by a Gloria Swanson's Devil's Food Cake. These are for a very special event happening tomorrow but I can't reveal what it is in case a certain someone reads this blog and twigs that there is a surprise party being hatched. It will be intriguing to see which of the guests chooses to be Angelic and who Devilish...

Yesterday was a lovely, lovely day. I finally got my waist length hair chopped to collarbone length so I can do some Rita style hairdos. Pincurls here I come. My new hairdresser is a peach! Her salon in Primrose Hill is full of original 1920s bits and pieces and she knows all about vintage hairdos. My appointment was at noon and the first question was, "Do you feel it is too early for a mulled wine?" Hell no! There were also homemade biscuits, yum, yum, yum!

I'd never met Lisa before, but she and her mum have test cooked LOTS of the Silver Screen Suppers recipes as my lovely friend Hugh had told them about the project. So I'll be posting their feedback here soon. Great, great, great to meet in person some test cooks who were previously just an email address...

Lisa's lovely salon - http://lisahauck.com

Ann Sheridan's Chili Casserole

"They nicknamed me "The Oomph Girl",
and I loathe that nickname!"

Ann's casserole is in the oven. The first in my new batch of test cooking. I'm really doing it properly, making copious notes and working my way through the whole list of sixty something - even Katharine's Eggplant dish - yeach! Everyone is welcome to join in!

There is something really nice about making something then leaving it to cook for an hour or so and doing something else while delicious smells fill the air. Maybe that's why most of my star favourites are casseroles - Marlene's Lamb Chops, Constance's Spanish Chicken and Ann's Chili. All gorgeous. There's a picture on the flickr site...

By a fantastic quirk of fate I have switched on the TV to find that "Who Do You Think You Are "is on and for reasons I can't explain right now (top, top secret) I am particularly interested in this one as it is all about Alastair McGowan finding out exactly what Anglo-Indian actually means... Fascinating stuff....

I'm off now to switch on my birthday electric blanket - the perfect gift from the lovely Rosalind and Jimmy. My room is awful cold!

Dorothy Lamour's Strawberry Ice Cream

"I felt like a wonderful sandwich,
a slice of white bread between two slices of ham."

So said Dorothy of working with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby - ha ha!

It's been my birthday week and chock full of fabulousness. My feet have barely touched the ground and it isn't over yet! I've seen many friends old and new, received two sung birthday greetings and many felicitations through the post, interweb and telephone. Feel very loved, and happy to be alive. Birthdays. Good. As Gloria Swanson puts it, "I don't let age bother me. Whenever I am a year older, everyone else is too."

So it's a chance to blog Dale's findings on Dorothy's Ice Cream Recipe. Dorothy was born on the same day as me but around 50 years earlier (you can do the "math" if you care to!) so she is my honorary birthday buddy. Can you see a likeness? The conk is big enough!

I haven't made her ice cream myself but Dale pronounces it time consuming but good. "Fat + sugar + strawberries = super easy deliciousness," she says. Dale is one of our most dedicated test cooks and she made two versions - one in her ice-cream maker and one in the old fashioned way (using the NORGE!) - verdict? Her guests preferred the flavour of the latter and the texture of the former.

When the weather gets warmer I shall have a go at this recipe. At the rate I am filling the house with purchases from the Crouch End kitchen shop I will probably have an ice cream maker myself by then!

Rita Hayworth's Angel Food Cake

"After all, a girl is - well, a girl.
It's nice to be told you're successful at it."

I should say you were Rita! Extremely successful at it!

I'm going to be channeling Rita's spirit during my birthday week. I have bought myself a birthday gift - heated rollers - and will be attempting to do the Hayworth "do" for the work Xmas party tomorrow. Watch out Gilgamesh!

I thought as yesterday's post was about Devil's Food Cake, it would be nice to blog the Angel's Food Cake today. Olivia made this AGES ago so apologies for taking so long to write it up. I haven't tried this recipe myself but it's next on the list of things to offer to work colleagues for approval. Olivia proclaimed the cake to be highly enjoyable with a "light and slightly marshmallowy texture". Good for the waistline too as it is low in fat. Mind you, it does contain 9 eggs! No wonder it serves up to 16. These Hollywood folks sure knew how to feed the five thousand...

Gloria Swanson's Butterless Devil's Food Cake

"Because I take care of my body,
it doesn't look like the body of a woman of my years."

Same here Gloria, honestly!

Wow, I have had such a great reaction from work colleagues to Gloria's cake. Admittedly it did contain over a bar of Green & Black's Expresso Chocolate but yes, to paraphrase Mr Tibble downstairs, it was freakin awesome! I shall make another soon to test the cooking time. I made it in my fancy silicone tube pan thingy so I'll need to test it as a plain and simple sponge cake too.

Had SUCH a lovely weekend with Ginger and Grace - our annual girls weekend Christmas shopping at the seaside. Who would have thought it, when we all decided to live together we were three single girls and now look at the pair of them! Ha ha. One is married and pregnant, the other is heading that way - tee hee! So they both gave me a good talking to about how I should give a NICE man a go for a change.

Sigh. Not sure I am wired up for a nice boyfriend, but I might give it a go...