Lettice Cooked on MasterChef?

Another fairly old recipe book,  fairly old because it only dates back to 1992.    It was brought out in association with the baking competition, MasterChef which, at that time,  was hosted by Loyd Grossman.     

I haven't cooked any recipes from the book, but it has earned a place on my bookshelves because one of the contestants is a fellow blogger.     

You may well already know her...    Lettice of Idle Thoughts.  

Over 2000 people applied to take part that year;  the judges tasted almost 350 dishes and travelled the length and breadth of the country in search of talented contestants.    Lettice sailed her way through the preliminaries with her usual style and panache.

She reached the regional heats for 'The North', I'm not quite sure of the geographical definitions for that one, but never mind.

Her menu:

Hot Smoked Wild Salmon Sauce on a Green Salad

*  *  *

Oxtail in Port with Root Vegetables and Hedgerow Jelly

Bubble and Squeak Parcels

*  *  *

Baked Bramleys with Cobnut Stuffing and Cardamom Custard

...described by the judges as being 

"Sublime"

 "Brilliant"

 "Yummy"

  "Gosh that's good"

Judges were John Harvey-Jones, Josceline Dimbleby and Loyd Grossman.


Lettice won the heat and went through to the semi-final.

Her menu:

Spinach and Anchovy Pate with Wholemeal Soldiers

*  *  *

Pheasant Pie with Potato Pastry

Creamed Butter Beans

Carrots flavoured with Caraway

Broccoli Puree

*  *  *

Lemon and Lavender Sorbet

"Wonderful"

 "A good experience"

 "Scrummy"

Judges were Sue Lawley, Anton Edelmann and Loyd Grossman.

Once again, Lettice's food was judged to be the best and she won through to The Final.

Cream of Lime Soup with Coriander Croutons

*  *  *

Fillet of Beef with Cherry and Berry Sauce

Parsley Profiteroles with Horseradish Cream

Asparagus with Chive Butter

Mashed Eddoes

*  *  *

Carrot Tart with Ginger Sauce

*  *  *

..."An invention worth inventing"

 "The Beef and Horseradish Profiteroles need little else" 

 "Great looking rustic, honest pudding".

Judges were Richard Shepherd, Clement Freud and Loyd Grossman.

Lettice just lost out to another contestant this time.

If you happen to stumble across the book you will find a few more details about each of the contestants, their menus and all the recipes...and if you are puzzled because there is no one called Lettice in there ... well, the menu would give it away!

Who would have thought it?     Our delightfully crazy, flighty, dreamy extrovert bloggy friend is not only inordinately fond of question marks, but is also a tip-top cook?      There's lots more, but those stories are not mine to tell.

So when Lettice tells you that she has had the builders in, and that she has fed them, she won't just have made them a quick sandwich or fed them a manky shop-bought pork pie,  they will have been fed like royalty.   

Which leads me to wondering about the rest of you, your hidden talents and claims to fame...