Easter is hot, frugal and turbanned

Seeing as it’s still just Lent, I include a frugal fish recipe sent in by a Mrs W Holt. Am I being too romantic in imagining this could be the wife of local hero, author and traveller William Holt? Do correct me if I am wrong. He is reported to have lived in a cave in India with a holy man for a time, so perhaps the curry influence came from there.

It is found in the Unitarian Sunday School Todmorden Ye Olde May Fayre 1949 Recipes and Household Hints

Curried Fish Sauce

1 oz margarine or dripping, 1 teaspoonful curry powder, 1 small onion, 1/4 apple or 1 teaspoonful tart jam 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 pt stock or water, 1/2 to 1lb fish, 1lb potatoes

Cook and mash potatoes, bone and wash fish, cut fish into suitable sized pieces. Prepare sauce, cut the onion into pieces and fry in the dripping, add the curry powder and fry that, add the flour and slowly work in the liquid, add the rest of the ingredients and stir until boiling, add the fish and cook very gently until tender. To serve: Make a border of potatoes, place fish in centre and strain the sauce over it. Serve hot.

Mrs W Holt

Having a keen interest in all things Arabic my attention was attracted to a recipe for Almond Turbans which I think must be the ancestor of the childhood favourite, the midget gem. It is taken from Bridge St U.M. Church, Todmorden, Jubilee Bazaar – March 1925, and was sent in by Mrs Haslam, Cleveleys.

Almond Turbans

4 oz flour, pinch of salt, 2ozs of castor sugar, 2 ozs of ground almonds, half lemon rind, 1 egg, 3 ozs butter. Method – Rub butter into flour, add salt, sugar, almonds and grated rind, mix to a stiff paste with a well-beaten egg, roll out to a thickness of one inch, cut into rounds and bake 15 minutes, decorate with royal icing.