Spring Potato Salad with Crispy Bacon

Being an acting student with very little money means you often need to cook using whatever you happen to have left in your cupboards- lucky for me, today that meant a jar of mayonnaise, eggs, potatoes, some green scallions that had sprung from some old onions and a few strips of bacon I had frozen months ago. 

There really isn't any science to potato salads- the recipe below is simply what tastes good to me. Feel free to add or subtract anything you see fit.

Spring Potato Salad with Crispy Bacon
Serves 4-6 as a side, or as packed lunch for a few days :)

4 medium potatoes- wash thoroughly and peel if desired (I personally like to keep the skin, so I make sure to scrub them extra clean). Cut them into chunks and cook in boiling water for about 10 mins until tender (test with a fork- it should slide in easily). Don't overcook your potatoes or they'll disintegrate into mush! Drain and let cool.

4 large eggs- place in a pot of water and bring to a boil, then let simmer for 10-15 mins. Drain, and cover in cold tap water to cool. Peel, then mash roughly with a fork.

4 strips streaky bacon- fry without oil over medium heat until crispy. Drain on paper towels, let cool and crumble up.

2-3 sprigs of spring onions- chop finely.

Dump all the prepared ingredients above into a large bowl and add 4 tbsp mayonnaise and season generously with salt and black pepper. Stir it all up until combined- add more mayo or seasoning if necessary.

Refrigerate before serving.

White Chocolate and Almond Fudge

A lot of fuss surrounds the making of good non-grainy fudge, but I've learnt that as long as you adhere to a few guidelines it really isn't hard to produce a smooth and creamy result that can be adapted endlessly into different flavours. Fudge is essentially milk and butter cooked with a TRUCKLOAD of sugar- once you've perfected this blueprint you have free reign to add any variety of chocolate, nuts, dried fruit and flavourings you see fit.

So what are these basic rules? It's simple:

Rule 1: Make sure your sugar is completely dissolved- large crystals mean a yucky sand-like texture.

Rule 2: Know WHEN TO STIR and when NOT TO STIR.

Rule 3: Follow the timings- a clock/watch is useful.

Rule 4: DON'T SKIP the soft-ball stage test- you do not need a candy thermometer (I don't own one), just a glass of ice water.

The following recipe provides detailed step-by-step instructions that I experimented with a couple of years back until I was happy; carry them out exactly and you should be well on your way to candyland.

White Chocolate and Almond Fudge

Makes one 10" x 8" tray

Combine the following in a heavy pot and stir very gently over low heat for about 15 mins (the longer the better) until sugar is completely dissolved: 

350g sugar

175ml evaporated milk (NOT condensed milk)

25g (slight less than 2 tbsp) butter

In the meantime, while the syrup is heating:

1) Chop up 300g white chocolate and a large handful of toasted almonds.

2) Line a 10" x 8" pan with greaseproof baking paper.

3) Get some ice-cold water ready on standby (I place a few small glasses of cold tap water in the freezer)

Increase heat to medium and bring the milky syrup to a moderate boil. DO NOT STIR. Let it boil for about 10-15 mins undisturbed until it reaches soft-ball stage. 

Soft-ball test: Drop a tiny amount of the syrup into one of your prepared glasses of ice water- it should form a soft ball that you can roll between your fingers. If it dissipates immediately or forms a mass at the bottom of the glass, it isn't ready and you should continue letting it boil. Test again after a few minutes with a new glass of ice water. Make sure to use fresh ice water for each test.

Once it's at soft-ball stage, remove from heat and let cool for 10 mins- DO NOT STIR during this time.

Add in the chopped chocolate, chopped nuts and 1 tsp vanilla extract. STIR SLOWLY until the chocolate completely dissolves- the mixture should start to stiffen immediately, and is ready to be poured into tin when it completely loses its gloss, turns thick and makes a squelchy snapping noise when you stir.

Pour quickly into the lined pan and smoothen the top. Allow to cool completely until set, then cut into bitesize pieces. 

Voila- your very own batch of smooth, creamy, luxurious homemade fudge!:)