16. A Winter Warmer

Today, simply one of my favourite meals ever. Plain, simple, oxtail stew with dumplings.

When I was a child  I spent a lot of my time with my Grandfather. He was a butcher & so knew all there was to know about how to make the most of meat. On winter afternoons I would come home from school, being careful to avoid the ice on the flag-stone path. It would absolutely make my day if I was greeted by a warm & utterly delicious smell filling the kitchen, & I wasn't often disappointed. We would make the dumplings together & I'd be thrilled to see them triple in size, as though by magic! What makes a good stew even better is the fact that the smell is so pleasing that you can practically taste it hours before it is cooked. When it is finally served it is always so hot that you have to wait a good ten minutes to become edible & so this anticipation makes it even more satisfying when it is warming you from the inside out.

What I'm trying to say, is that I really, really, love stew. & don't get me started on the dumplings.