Entertaining gaily with Robert Carrier

"Most of us approach entertaining with mixed emotions. While there is the pleasant prospect of gaiety and conviviality in the offing, there is also, for the host or hostess who wants to give a memorable kitchen luncheon or dinner party, a lot of real hard work. And yet party giving can be great fun if we learn to be realistic about our budget - and our capabilities - and remember that the true purpose of getting friends and family together is enjoyment." Robert Carrier

This post is about my recent gift - Entertaining by Robert Carrier. Yes Robert Carrier was indeed gay but amongst the things that struck me about this interesting - yes interesting in all sorts of ways - book was his regular use of the words gay, gaily, gaiety. And he did not at all mean anything to do with what we know of as gay these days. He just meant happy, fun ...

Which is very sad. I wonder why the homosexual community, or the media, whoever it was, chose the word gay to refer to themselves. I mean they mostly are not really gay in the old sense of the word are they? Their situation is too difficult, and non-mainstream - even today. They might be flamboyant but that doesn't necessarily mean happy and fun loving. And it's very sad that the old word has fallen into more than disuse. I mean you just can't use it in that old sense at all can you? Take that old rhyme about birthdays. I was born on a Sunday -

"the child that is born on the sabbath day is bonny and bright and blithe and gay"

When you say that you automatically think gay in the modern sense, even though you are obviously not gay. The rhyme is no longer just cutely old-fashioned, it's marginally creepy. Well to me anyway.

If the word had not been appropriated by the gay community, then that rhyme would now be somewhat old-fashioned and quaint but could still be used. No more.

The whole book is a bit old-fashioned and quaint, yes dated, and other faintly archaic words such as fabulous and glamorous are peppered throughout his little introductions. And yet there is a lot of common sense and practicality in there too. He is simultaneously trying to educate you into putting on a show and at the same time showing you how to do it in a very simple way. Those glamorous table settings I talked about the other day are the stage for incredibly simple dishes.

And yet it's also so faintly over the top, as in these couple of quotes from his 'Hostmanship' section at the front of the book.

"Impromptu parties can be fun. Deciding what kind of party to give is a simple matter of finding out what you've got and what you can do with it, and not trying to do a classic dinner party in a situation that doesn't fit a classic dinner party."

"Keep a record of the parties you give and the guests who attend them and what you gave them to eat. A hostess friend of mine - noted for the charm and gaiety of her parties - even keeps a list of the table decorations and china used for each party."

I'm somewhat embarrassed to say that I once kept a book of dinner parties - who had been invited together and what I cooked. Well for a period there in my career as executive wife I hosted quite a few dinner parties, - well David hosted - I cooked. I would certainly not have listed my profession as hostess like his friend. But I certainly didn't list the decorations and china. Decorations there were none, and china was limited to my best set of Arabia. But note the use of 'gaiety' again and the inference that some people in his circle spent their lives entertaining.

Nevertheless, on the whole he does keep it simple. He begins the book with two extremely simple recipes, plus how to make a green salad, for when the "working girls [who] are about to get married who have never before cooked anything more ambitious than a TV dinner" send him letters asking for ideas.

The two recipes are Easy Beef Stroganoff - one that I have used many times myself, and I can attest to the fact that it is supremely easy and supremely delicious - and Spaghetti Parmesan, which is almost a carbonara. Both of these would have been thought of as exotics back then.

Here is what Simon Hopkinson has to say about the beef stroganoff

"Essentially, Carrier’s recipe instructed you to sautée thin strips of seasoned beef fillet in butter in a heavy skillet until lightly browned, but still very rare. You’d put this to one side, add a touch more butter to the pan, and gently fry thinly sliced onions and button mushrooms until they were golden. The beef was then returned to the pan, where I’d sprinkle over a healthy dash of sweet paprika, and toss the beef, onions and mushrooms vigorously together until they were well mixed.

To finish, I’d quickly stir in two or three generous spoonfuls of soured cream; this novel ingredient was so delicious that some usually went in my mouth as well. It was crucial the cream didn’t boil, or it would curdle, so I just mingled the assembly until the meat was coated luxuriously, before doing a final quick taste for salt. Naturally, in those heady days of exciting garnishes, the dish went out to the dining room strewn with chopped parsley."

I see that Carrier's recipe in this book is slightly different in that he cooks the onions first, then the beef, removes them, adds the mushrooms, returns the beef and onions, seasons with pepper and a dash of cayenne then adds the sour cream. The version I used - from Great Dishes of the World seasons with nutmeg and mace instead of cayenne. But the basic dish is the same. And it is truly wonderful.

I cannot find the second one - Spaghetti Parmesan anywhere online so I shall give it here.

SPAGHETTI PARMESAN

Bring 3-4 litres of well salted water to the boil in a large saucepan. Add 450g spaghetti and cook for about 12-15 minutes or until it is tender but still firm - al dente, as the Italians say, which means just firm enough to bite comfortably but not so soft that it is mushy.

Melt 50g butter in a large saucepan. Drain spaghetti and while it is still very hot toss it in the butter.

Pour beaten yolks of 4 eggs and 150ml cream over spaghetti: add salt, freshly ground black pepper and a dash of nutmeg. Stir for a minute; remove from the heat and add more butter. The sauce and the eggs should not begin to solidify. Serve immediately in a large heated bowl or serving dish with freshly grated Parmesan and additional butter.

To me that sounds like carbonara without the bacon. Simple anyway. And back in the day - exotic.

I have quite a few more things to say about this book so I think I'll save them for another day. I have gone on long enough about the simple yet fussy.

So I'll finish with one more recipe, chosen at random, that shows how simple can be elaborate and old-fashioned all at the same time, though I suppose the presentation is marginally fiddly. The presentation is very old-fashioned. I doubt you would see it like this these days.

ORANGE DESSERT

3 tablespoons sugar, 1 level tablespoon cornflour, 150ml orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon finely sliced orange rind, 2 tablespoons Cointreau, 2 tablespoons cognac, pinch of salt, knob of butter, 6 navel oranges, sprigs of mint.

Combine, sugar, cornflour, 6 tablespoons water and orange juice in the top of a double saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in orange rind, Cointreau, cognac, salt and butter. Cool.

Cut through the rind of each orange vertically from the stem almost to the bud end, forming 8 segments, and curl each segment of peel inwards under the fruit at the base of each orange.

Loosen orange segments just enough so that they can be eaten easily with a knife and fork. Trim away any excess membrane, and glaze oranges lightly with sauce. Chill. Just before serving, spoon a little more sauce over orange sections and decorate with sprigs of mint.

I don't think people use liqueurs as much these days.

Here is a picture of a similar (I guess) dish (though the syrup is coffee) today. Much less fussy presentation.