March into the past with Tony Tobin

Above: Tony Tobin marches into the past with rhubarb in tow

Any excuse not to act your age this month, as TONY TOBIN invites us to delve back to our childhoods to the very first tastes that originally excited our culinary palates

A wake! Arise! Rejoice! Cook! Eat!

Why the enthusiasm? Well, it’s March and one of the two ‘bridge’ months of the year (along with October). For chefs, farmers, gardeners and… well, everyone really, its arrival marks the first steps in the annual cross-over from darkness and chill to light and warmth, from February’s bare trees to April’s budding twigs.

In the kitchen, things are stirring too. In our vegetable racks, purple sprouting broccoli, carrots and spring greens arrive, moist and fresh. Elderly winter root vegetables begin to be jostled out of the kitchen by adolescent new potatoes from the temperate farms of the Channel Islands. On the meat and fish front, rabbit and pigeon skip and flutter towards the oven along with halibut and bass whereas flat fish (who start their spawning, making this a special time of year for them too) go into decline. March also sees the majestic arrival of the first rhubarb of the year – more of this later!

Now if that list doesn’t inspire you then I have an idea that might and it is based on the first notable date of March: Mothering Sunday.

Some shameless nostalgia...

I could easily get into a tirade about the way this traditional day – when fledged sons were given leave to return home and visit their mothers – has been spoiled by the relentless marketing zeal of card manufacturers, florists and department stores. Instead, I want to indulge in some shameless nostalgia. And I want you to do the same, with your taste buds.

I want you to promise me (by postcard will do!) that you will take time in March – whether on Mothering Sunday or anytime – to cook something that takes you back to your childhood.

At POST in Banstead, where I oversee the restaurant upstairs, we recently launched a range of desserts featuring ingredients designed to whisk you back to a time when you were eight years old: baked Alaska with mini marshmallows; apple pie mousse with apple sherbet; and crème brulée with a ball of unashamed candy floss. The reaction so far has been dewy eyed as diners are transported on a trip down memory lane to an old-fashioned sweet shop bearing their 10p of pocket money in hot hands.

Childhood favourites...

During the next few years, I predict that food nostalgia will take off big time, so why not get ahead of the curve and see how successful it can be at home. You can always visit us at POST for inspiration, but if your budget still hasn’t recovered from Christmas, dig deep into your memory for dishes that will take you back in time more surely than a Tardis.

My personal favourites are rabbit stew, bubble and squeak, Toad in the Hole, treacle pudding and, of course, rhubarb crumble. When it comes to nostalgia, rhubarb has it all. Its tart, bitter-sweet tang gets under your skin. As a child I loved it, but regarded it a bit like a friendly Doberman – sweet on the surface but still a bit dangerous underneath. If your children have never tried it, cook it for them using the recipe opposite in March and take them on a nostalgic trip with you. Watching those first cautious mouthfuls is better than television in my book!

With all nostalgic dishes, one has to ask why they exert such a strong effect? Well, scientists claim that smell is the sense most closely linked to memory – that the nose can take you deep into your psyche as if you were still in another place with polished wooden floors or musty books or shoe polish. This is undoubtedly true but sniffing on its own is a bit one dimensional. For me, the greatest joy of food is that it ties together three powerful senses – taste, touch and texture (inside your mouth) and smell. Each of these can have its own umbilical link to our childhood. The sticky, silky, sweet, crunchy sensation of the candyfloss at POST delivers a wash of emotions that transport me back in time to the funfairs of my pre-teen years.

Step back in time...

The food writer Nigel Slater won prizes a few years back for his book, Toast, describing his personal history of food sensations and memories. For me, taking the journey back in time through the food that I cook, eat and serve is one of the privileges of being a chef. My mother always wanted me to savour and value food. That’s why I always clean my plate but those values she instilled in me also give me a deep down link to my own past through the tastes, textures and smells of food.

It’s a journey I’d recommend you all take.

• 8 stalks of roughly chopped rhubarb
• Grated zest of one orange
• 5½ oz good caster sugar

Ingredients: (Crumble)

• 12 oz plain flour
• 3½ oz demerara sugar
• 5 oz butter
• Optional HobNob biscuits (to add richness and crunchiness)

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to 110ºC
• Chop the butter into even cubes and refrigerate until needed. Also, chill your bowl before you start the crumble.
• Place the rhubarb and orange zest into a roasting tray, sprinkle the caster sugar over it. Cover with greaseproof paper and cook in an oven at 110ºC for about an hour-and-a-half to confit it.
• With 20 minutes to go, take the bowl out of the fridge, wiping it to remove any moisture.
• Sift the flour into the bowl and add the butter.
• Rub the mix with your fingertips until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.
• Add the sugar and stir through with a knife or spoon.
• At this point crumble two or three HobNob biscuits into the mixture if you wish.
• When an hour-and-a-half is up, take the roasting tray out of the oven, pour the contents into a separate serving dish without mushing it up, then evenly spread the crumble on top.
• Turn the oven up to 185ºC and when it’s at temperature, pop the dish in for 10-15 minutes.
• Serve with tinned custard and watch their faces!

Tony Tobin has been a regular on the BBC’s Ready Steady Cook for over a decade and runs two acclaimed restaurants in Surrey: The Dining Room in Reigate and POST in Banstead.

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