A day trip to Oxford

On Sunday Matthew, Vance, and Sarah drove up to Oxford. Sarah is from Minneapolis. She's doing a masters programs at SOAS in London. I had met up with Sarah once before for a cupcake in Primrose Hill. She happens to be friends with some of my friends, but we never met in Minneapolis.

The drive up to Oxford takes about an hour and we didn't really have anything planned. We brought a guide book and were just going to wander around. We decided to ignore the useful park and ride right outside the town center and try to find parking directly in Oxford. That provided to be a bit tricky, or hellish might be a better word for it. We found a parking lot and spent about 30 minutes getting furious at people who seemed to be just spending the in Oxford standing next to their cars in the parking lot.

We ended up parking in the lot that is for train commuters. Matthew bought a train ticket (2.50) and then he had to go stand on the platform and send a text to pay for the parking. I think it's neat that you can pay for parking by text. It ended up to be 4.50 in the end and there were plenty of places to park and it was close to the town center. If you go to Oxford park in the train station lot.

Here's a bit of info about Oxford from wikitravel:

Oxford [1] is the oldest university city in England, situated some 50 miles (80 km) to the west of the capital London in its own county of Oxfordshire, and located on the rivers Thames (the section of the Thames in Oxford is known as "The Isis") and Cherwell. Together with Cambridge (the second oldest university city and Oxford's great rival), Oxford has long represented the English academic establishment and élite ("Oxbridge"), a haven of tradition and endeavour. Oxford's famous "Dreaming Spires" refer to the medieval churches and colleges that dominate the bustling modern town in all their Gothic splendour. Picturesque architecture and a vibrant modern life (driven by students, light industry and technology) set in the rolling countryside of Oxfordshire make this a great destination.

Without an agenda we just took to the streets and looked around. I had apparently left my guide book in the car, but thankfully Sarah had hers with. We decided to head towards a pub and have lunch. It was about 2 p.m. by the time we got into town. We set off towards to the pub and on the way stopped to go down Broad street where we discovered Blackwell's book shop.

Blackwell's Books, 48-51 Broad Street (opposite the Sheldonian Theatre) - founded in 1879, Blackwell's main Oxford shop is a veritable tourist attraction in itself, the vast 10,000 square foot Norrington Room excavated beneath Trinity College Gardens laying claim to being the largest space dedicated to book sales in Europe. Another 9 speciality branches of this Oxford institution dot the city.

Thankfully we all love a good book shop especially a big and historic one. We popped in there and looked around for awhile. That's something I love to do, browse for books. I think if it weren't for the pangs of hunger we would have stayed for hours. Thankfully there was a pub right next to the book shop called the White Horse.

The White Horse has many claims, which include being one of Oxford’s smallest, oldest and most famous pubs as well as Inspector Morse’s favourite haunts. Sir Winston Churchill and Bill Clinton are also reputed to have called The White Horse ‘their local’ when they have stayed in Oxford.

Over the years landlords come and go, and so too do the many names of Oxford’s oldest pubs. The White Horse is no exception, being first called the White Mermaid in the 1590s (at a time when the word ‘mermaid’ was a word used to denote a courtesan) and later the Jolly Volunteer.

After a restoration of Charles II in 1660, it was renamed The Elephant. Almost a hundred years later, the name of the tavern changed to the White Horse.

Steps lead down through a little door into the dark interior of the narrow wood-paneled room beyond, in a building that dates back to the 18th Century. During the rebuilding of the facade in 1951, a painted wall was discovered upstairs, and in the roof was a witch’s broomstick - superstition discouraged anyone from touching it!

After drinks and some crisps we moved on to the next pub where amazing Sunday roasts were promised. While we were walking to the pub we went over the river and saw a spot where we could hire out a punt for a cruise.

A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole. A punt should not be confused with a gondola, which is propelled by an oar rather a pole.

Going for a ride in a punt boat was the only thing that I really wanted to do in Oxford. We thought we would do it after our lunch, but of course a Sunday lunch involves a bottle of red wine. So time got away from us and it was dark by the time we left the pub. We did manage to find a little cafe on the way back to the car that sold pecan pie. I thought that was pretty lucky. It was the first time I had seen it in England. I had a slice warmed up with ice cream and it was pretty good! Not as sweet as it is in the States, but pretty good.

After that we headed back to London. We listened to some Prince in the car and called it a day. It was a nice Sunday out in Oxford. Sure, we didn't see many sights that you'd find a guide book. It was nice just to walk around and explore without a real agenda. I think I will definitely be going up there again to have a look around and for a ride on a punt.

Bubble and Squeak, in a tin

Yes, I actually ate this.
Was it good? Hummmmmm......
I added a lot of Tabasco sauce.

While I was wandering the aisles at Sainsburys the other day I was having a look at all the unusual foods that were around. As many times as I have seen them, I just can't get over the idea of hot dogs in a can. Hot dogs in a can? I can't think of anything nastier. I do happen to eat dogs so it's not the whole what's in a hot dog thing. Just the fact that it's in a can soaking in brine, is disturbing.

So, I walked by the hot dogs in a can and gave them a little nod and carried on to discover that they sold bubble and squeak in a can. I had once had bubble and squeak in a caff in Brighton and really liked it. It was like a mashed potato hash brown thing. For those back in Minnesota, bubble and squeak is as defined by the almighty wikipedia as:

Bubble and squeak (sometimes just called bubble) is a traditional English dish made with the shallow-fried leftover vegetables from a roast dinner. The chief ingredients are potato and cabbage, but carrots, peas, brussels sprouts, and other vegetables can be added. It is traditionally served with cold meat from the Sunday roast, and pickles. Traditionally, the meat was added to the bubble and squeak itself, although nowadays the vegetarian version is more common. The cold chopped vegetables (and cold chopped meat if used) are fried in a pan together with mashed potato until the mixture is well-cooked and brown on the sides.

The egg is resting on the bubble and squeak.
Don't worry I didn't eat the sausage!

Despite the picture on the can looking a bit unattractive I decided to buy it and give it a try. Even the fact that is canned potato product had spinach and cabbage in it didn't put me off. The first thing that hit me after I opened the can was the smell. It wasn't very nice and it didn't help that it was a slimy greenish color. The directions instructed me to just put in a frying pan and cook it up for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes got brown.

It wasn't very good at all, although what did expect? I will steer clear of the canned kind from now on. I will continue to eat it when I am in a caff. I love ordering it just so I can say the name, what a great name for something to eat.

Dinner tonight. Review

Well, I had the best intentions. I thought this one would be an easy on to make here in London, but it turned out to be extremely bland. I am attributing it to the very bland cream of mushroom and chicken soup. I tried to make a tuna cassarole before and used a very cheap store brand of cream of mushroom and it wasn't very good. This time I went all out and bought the most expensive one I could get, Heinz brand. I also added sliced canned mushrooms and those were bland too.

Matthew confirmed that the mushrooms are supposed to be bland, since they are canned. The ones I like to use in America are pretty salty. The Oven Chow Mein was just bland, but the thought was there. I think I will just have to accept that cream of soups here just aren't the same.

Dinner tonight.

OVEN CHOW MEIN
1 lb. ground beef
1 onion chopped
2 cups rice (dry) can be instant rice
2 stalks chopped celery (optional)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups water
chow mein noodles

Brown ground beef and onion (or microwave if you have one)
Add all other ingredients (except chow mein noodles)
Stir all together in 2 quart casserole dish
Bake covered at 350 for 50 minutes or so
Add chow mein noodles (I just put them on the table for people to add themselves)

Great with strawberry jello

My good friend Molly's mom Pat Roark posted this recipe on my FB page. It was a very pleasant surprise to find it there today. The last time I was in Minneapolis Molly's mom, Pat, took us for lunch at the University Club in St. Paul. Over lunch I told them that I wasn't exactly a fan of English cuisine. Or that there were certain foods from Minnesota that I missed, that's a bit more diplomatic. Taking to heart what I said about food in England Pat was kind of enough to send this to me. She's been to England before so she understands the differences.

Oven Chow Mein is just the kind of thing I have been craving and is virtually unheard of in England. I am going to make it for dinner tonight. I hope I can easily find the chow mein noodles, I haven't used them in anything since I've been in London. Hopefully they'll be at Tesco or at the big Sainsburys. Just looking at this recipe makes my stomach growl.

I will post up a full report and photos tonight! Thanks again Pat!

Beans on Toast

I have to say that beans on toast is one of my favorite things to eat in England. I even have a little song that I sing when I cook them up! I am sure those who know me well aren't surprised that I have song about this, so here it is. I sing it while I am stirring my beans and waiting for the toast to pop up.

Beans, beans, beans on toast. It's the English food that I love the most.

The reason for this post isn't to talk about beans, but to talk about toast. I am now eating toast every day, which might not seem like a big deal except that I never really ate toast in Minnesota. I guess that's not entirely true, I would eat it if I was out for breakfast. I just would never really make toast for myself at home. In fact I didn't even have a toaster for a long time. I just didn't start my day with toast. Not because I didn't like it. I do enjoy toast, I just thought it took to long to make.

Now, I realize how nuts that sounds. Toast doesn't take very long at all to make. However, I am not a breakfast before I leave the house kind of girl. I would sleep as late as I could get away with and then dash out the door. Grabbing a coffee and something to eat wherever I went. If I was going to work then I would eat breakfast there. If I did make toast for myself in the morning than what usually happened was that I would pop it in and then forget about it only to discover it by the time it had transformed into croutons.

Perhaps it's because I have no where to be in the morning that I have turned to toast. There's really no where to run out and grab something for breakfast where I live. There's always bread, so there's always toast.

There is an interesting perspective on toast in Kate Fox's book Watching the English. The book is about the hidden rules of English behaviour and it is a very useful reference book for me. Kate has noted that in England toast is not only a breakfast staple, but an all-purpose comfort food. She discuses the role of the toast rack and points out that American toast is usually "served piled up hugger-mugger in a humid, perspiring stack on the plate, sometimes even wrapped in a napkin to retain yet more moisture. The English would rather have their toast cool and dry than warm and damp. American toast lacks reserve and dignity:it is too sweaty and indiscreet and emotional."

See, there is more to the subject of toast than one originally would think.

I was talking to Vance (our resident coach surfer) about it this morning. What I missed was being able to run out in the morning, usually on the way to somewhere, and getting an almond croissant from the Wedge for breakfast. I became lost in thought about how I used to go about getting my breakfast.

The convenience of being able to decided that you are in the mood for a Jamba Juice, Chipotle burrito, Mexican mocha (from Bob's Java Hut), a cup of tomato soup from the French Meadow, a Dairy Queen, a cupcake from Lucias or an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie from the Great Harvest and then jumping in your car and going to get it. It's one thing that I think I will always miss about living in America

I also will admit that I miss the drive through. A few times last week I drove Matthew to the tube station and thought that it would be great if I could run to McDonalds and get a bacon, cheese and egg biscuit. There is a McDonalds that is some what close to where I live, but there is no where to park anywhere near it and they don't have the biscuit either. So it was back home for some toast.

Matthew was shocked at all the drive throughs in Minneapolis, especially at the bank. He just couldn't get over that you could do your banking or get cash at an ATM from a drive through. Matthew's home town, Bognor Regis, didn't get it's first drive through until he was 13 years old. I think it was a Burger King that opened just outside of the town center, off the motorway. It's hard to imagine never going through a drive through until you were 13. As hard as I try I just can't.