On 3/10/06 20:00, in article , "Janet
Baraclough" wrote:

The message t
from "Mary Fisher" contains these words:

mashing potatoes isn't rocket science ...

I have seen ready-made mashed potato, porridge, omelette, and baked
potato in Marks and Spencer. All you have to do is drive to M and S,
park the car, trail round the aisles, stand in a queue, buy your
ready-made omelette etc, return to the car, load car, drive home, put
the omelette in the microwave and warm it up. What could be more
convenient? :-)

Oh, I think the baked potato beats everything. Really, I do. How hard is
it to wash a potato, prick its skin and stick it in the oven? And the effort
and agony of opening a can of tuna or a packet of grated cheese - see, that
could be allowable - just. But really - buying baked potatoes is the nadir
of instant cookery, surely?

--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/

On 3/10/06 21:21, in article , "BoyPete"
wrote:

snip

I have great trouble finding a good potato masher. The run of the mill
varieties all seem to have too large holes, and pounding for ages still
leaves lumps. Yuk!! What do you use?

Find one of those Italian things that turn them through a sieve rather like
an old fashioned meat mincer. BUT, the real trick is that once you've
mashed your tatties with an ordinary masher, you take a wooden spoon and
whip it round the potatoes to give a creamier texture, adding extra milk,
cream and butter to your taste. That enhances the texture very much.

--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
http://www.discoverdartmoor.co.uk/

Mary Fisher wrote:
"BoyPete" wrote in message
...

I have great trouble finding a good potato masher. The run of the mill
varieties all seem to have too large holes, and pounding for ages still
leaves lumps. Yuk!! What do you use?

A grandson, who of course knew everything at 17, said that a potato ricer
was the Only Thing so I bought an expensive device from John Lewis. Because
of my proclivity for mashing potatoes with their skins on it wasn't 100%
effecient and caused much use of expletives unsuitable for someone of my
vintage so I reverted to my ancient chrome plated one which was part of a
set we were given as a wedding present*. The chrome is coming off in parts
but it works!

But I can't use it on my beloved Circulon pans so I bought a plastic masher
which wouldn't risk scratching the lining. As you say, the holes are too
large.

So until Spouse makes me a tool like a wooden mallet with the head on
sideways I'll have to boil potatoes in the steel pans :-(

Potato mashers are a funny game: they seem very keen on selling ones
which don't actually mash potatoes. For an old-fashioned hand one, the
one I've finally settled on has holes half an inch long and
three-sixteenths wide: Pete should take a ruler into the shop and he'll
be OK: ignore fancy brands and "design", and go by the ruler. Next
consideration is a comfortable handle, not a pretty one -- as with any
other tool. Devices which make you turn a handle work very well, but
you can't use them for mashing up tomatoes in the pan, or fruit in your
wine-bucket, and things like that.

--
Mike

Janet Baraclough writes
The message
from "BoyPete" contains these words:


I have great trouble finding a good potato masher. The run of the mill
varieties all seem to have too large holes, and pounding for ages still
leaves lumps. Yuk!! What do you use?

Lakeland made mine. It's squat and about 7 " high with an easy grip
handle across the top and two side bits which hold the mashing bit.
Costs about 11 quid but is worth every penny. Smooth fluffy mash every
time and no lumps.

I mash roughly with a fork then finish with a small electric hand held
beater. Smooth fluffy mash with no lumps, and no need for a dedicated
bit of equipment
--
Kay

I mash roughly with a fork then finish with a small electric hand held
beater. Smooth fluffy mash with no lumps, and no need for a dedicated bit
of equipment

But you can't use either in my Circulon pans :-(

Mary

Oh, I think the baked potato beats everything. Really, I do. How hard is
it to wash a potato, prick its skin and stick it in the oven? And the
effort
and agony of opening a can of tuna or a packet of grated cheese - see,
that
could be allowable - just. But really - buying baked potatoes is the
nadir
of instant cookery, surely?

I didn't know you could. My astonishment rating always shoots up when I see
tinned potatoes, and custard. Still, some must like them, if the demand
weren't there they wouldn't be produced.

Mary

We're making hay while the sun shines, who knows if we'll be here
tomorrow
...

Thud.

kiss of life

There, that'll teach you to play to the gallery :-)

Blech. And more Thud.

LOL!

Mary Fisher wrote:
"Broadback" wrote in message
...

...

Thud.
sorry, can you repeat that? Mt hearing has deteriorated with age. Damn,
didn't want to reveal that!

I'm being fitted with a pair of digital hearing aids :-)

smugly

Mary


~Ah Mary, I have them, a bit improvement, but nothing is as good as good
hearing! :-(

In article , Mary
Fisher writes
I haven't a microwave ... tell you, we live under a (very primitive) stone.

So it's back to pounding boiled potatoes :-)

But some types of potatoes make terrible mash, they have sort of solid
lumps in them. Other varieties mash like a dream.

I have to admit using Smash on top of shepherd's pie as I find it easier
to smooth it across the meat!

--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article , Janet Baraclough
writes
e?

Lakeland made mine. It's squat and about 7 " high with an easy grip
handle across the top and two side bits which hold the mashing bit.
Costs about 11 quid but is worth every penny. Smooth fluffy mash every
time and no lumps.

Janet


Lakeland make a lot of really useful items, though I did send a letter
complaining as I wanted to fins the casserole dishes you could use on
the top of the cooker as well (I was told it used to be called Pyresil)
They were brilliant as you could brown meat, add casserole stuff, shove
in oven and then serve. Even better they could be frozen and microwave
without a calamity.
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

"Broadback" wrote in message
...
Mary Fisher wrote:
"Broadback" wrote in message
...

...

Thud.
sorry, can you repeat that? Mt hearing has deteriorated with age. Damn,
didn't want to reveal that!

I'm being fitted with a pair of digital hearing aids :-)

smugly

Mary
~Ah Mary, I have them, a bit improvement, but nothing is as good as good
hearing! :-(

No, but I'm fed up of asking, "what did s/he say?" at the theatre or
watching a son's telly when everyone else laughs ... I'm also fed up of
asking people not to turn away or cover their mouths with their hands when
they speak. I don't lip read but need to have a shape to the sounds.

Shakespeare was right:

"Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second
childishness and mere oblivion, Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans
everything."

In fact my taste and smell are still very good and not *everything* else has
gone. But he didn't mention the pain of arthritis nor the breakdown of other
bodily systems which beset us :-(

It's being so cheerful as keeps me going!

(not Shakespeare!)

Mary

Mary Fisher wrote:
"Broadback" wrote in message
...
Mary Fisher wrote:
"Broadback" wrote in message
...

...

Thud.
sorry, can you repeat that? Mt hearing has deteriorated with age. Damn,
didn't want to reveal that!
I'm being fitted with a pair of digital hearing aids :-)

smugly

Mary
~Ah Mary, I have them, a bit improvement, but nothing is as good as good
hearing! :-(

No, but I'm fed up of asking, "what did s/he say?" at the theatre or
watching a son's telly when everyone else laughs ... I'm also fed up of
asking people not to turn away or cover their mouths with their hands when
they speak. I don't lip read but need to have a shape to the sounds.

Shakespeare was right:

"Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second
childishness and mere oblivion, Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans
everything."

In fact my taste and smell are still very good and not *everything* else has
gone. But he didn't mention the pain of arthritis nor the breakdown of other
bodily systems which beset us :-(

It's being so cheerful as keeps me going!

(not Shakespeare!)

Mary


Sadly Mary I find mine are of little help in the theatre, (the loop
system is poor, to me) films or TV, subtitles are a blessing. One
really, really big plus is bird song, wonderful, let no one tell you
there are not as many birds about, I can never remember hearing so many!
:-))

"Broadback" wrote in message
...

digital hearing aids

Sadly Mary I find mine are of little help in the theatre, (the loop system
is poor, to me) films or TV, subtitles are a blessing. One really, really
big plus is bird song, wonderful, let no one tell you there are not as
many birds about, I can never remember hearing so many! :-))


Bird song is no problem, I hear it and even do bird song surveys. I was
assured that the aids are improving all the time, that it would be like
standing on the stage with the actors and that if they weren't good enough
they could be adjusted. I live in hope of all that ... On Sunday we went to
see Humphrey Lyttleton and Acker Bilk, I could hear Humph when I could see
his mouth, I got absolutely nothing of what Bilk croaked. At least it was
that way round :-)

We don't go to films and have no tv but when we did I found subtitles
intrusive and not easy to read.

This is so OT now that others will be irritated, I wouldn't mind continuing
personally.

Sorry, folks,

Mary

Janet Tweedy wrote:
In article , Mary
Fisher writes
I haven't a microwave ... tell you, we live under a (very primitive) stone.

So it's back to pounding boiled potatoes :-)

But some types of potatoes make terrible mash, they have sort of solid
lumps in them. Other varieties mash like a dream.

I have to admit using Smash on top of shepherd's pie as I find it easier
to smooth it across the meat!

Or you can just make the mash a bit wetter than usual. But it's the
bumpy bits that brown best: I roughen the surface with a fork. When I
can't be aced to make mash, I top with overlapping boiled potato slices
instead of mash and trickle some oil over them: this has probably got a
fancy gastro-name.

--
Mike.

"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
. net...

"Broadback" wrote in message
...

digital hearing aids

Sadly Mary I find mine are of little help in the theatre, (the loop
system is poor, to me) films or TV, subtitles are a blessing. One really,
really big plus is bird song, wonderful, let no one tell you there are
not as many birds about, I can never remember hearing so many! :-))


Bird song is no problem, I hear it and even do bird song surveys. I was
assured that the aids are improving all the time, that it would be like
standing on the stage with the actors and that if they weren't good enough
they could be adjusted. I live in hope of all that ... On Sunday we went
to see Humphrey Lyttleton and Acker Bilk, I could hear Humph when I could
see his mouth, I got absolutely nothing of what Bilk croaked. At least it
was that way round :-)

We don't go to films and have no tv but when we did I found subtitles
intrusive and not easy to read.

This is so OT now that others will be irritated, I wouldn't mind
continuing personally.

Sorry, folks,

Mary

No apology needed. At a future date someone will advise on how to rid
digital hearing aids of Greenfly and soil:-)