Continuing with our theme of exhibition visits, today we’re hosting a Wallace and Gromit Stress Free Dinner Party.

Food

Having enjoyed watching a bunch of Aardman animations, I can tell you that Wallace and Gromit eat what I think of as a fairly typical traditional English fare.

Drinks

Wallace mostly prefers tea but has been known to drink red wine.

Ambience

It’s hard to replicate mid-fifties mad scientists, but if you are game, don’t tidy up for dinner!

Dress Code

Brown pants, white shirt, red tie and green knitted vests.

Dinner Planning

As ever, six guests invited to arrive 6.30 for 7.00pm.

6:30 Apéritif: Gin and Tonic with traditional cucumber sandwiches

it’s hard to get more quintessentially English than gin and tonic and cucumber sandwiches.

Peel a very fresh cucumber and slice thinly. Sprinkle lightly with salt and leave for about 20 minutes to draw the water out. Pat the slices dry (both sides) with some kitchen towel. Taste a slice, and if the cucumber is too salty, rinse in fresh water and pat dry.

Lightly butter (not margarine) thin slices of fresh white bread. Cover half with overlapping slices of cucumber, add a little ground white pepper, and top with another slice of bread. There’s no need to add salt as there will be some residue from the salting. Cut the crusts off and cut into triangles. Serve immediately.

7.00 Entrée: Pork Pie with Vintage Ale

You can’t go past a good old fashioned English pork pie. They are tricky to get right, so I recommend you buy a large one you can slice. Serve cold with a spoon of piccalilli, though some prefer tomato chutney.

8.00 Main: Lancashire Hotpot with red Bordeaux

Preheat your oven to 320° F (160° C/140 fan forced).

Cut 2 lb (900 g) stewing lamb into chunks, and slice three lamb kidneys and dust with 1 oz (25 g) plain flour. Peel and chop two onions and four carrots, peel and slice 2 lb (900 g) potato.

Heat 3½ oz (100 g) of dripping or butter in an oven proof casserole and brown the meat in batches. Set aside and fry the carrots and onions in the remaining fat until golden. Add tsp of Worcestershire sauce, and a pint (500 ml) of chicken stock and bring to the boil.

Return the meat to the casserole with two bay leaves, give it a good stir and top with the potato. Cover and bake for 90 minutes. When the potatoes are cooked, take off the lid, brush the potato with a little fat and return to the oven for around 10 minutes to brown them off.

This dish would traditionally be eaten as is or with preserved vegetables, but you could steam some greens.

And because we’re eating English style, bread and butter (not margarine) on the side.

9.00 Dessert: Victoria Sponge Cake with Moscato

The Victoria Sponge cake is a light sponge that comes in two layers separated by a layer of cream and strawberry jam. They usually come with either icing sugar or cream and strawberries. They are the kind of deceptively simple cake that takes decades of practice to beat to the right light texture and not sink in the middle. I will be buying mine from a local bakery. If you want to have a go, try Mary Berry’s.

10.00 Digestif: Port with Wensleydale and crackers

Just the cheese and crackers this time. And a pot of tea.

Schedule

5.45 prepare the meat and vegetables for the hot pot

6.00 peel and salt the cucumber

6.05 cook the hot pot and put it in the oven

6.30 prepare and serve the sandwiches

6.55 plate and serve the pork pie

7.45 take the lid off the lamb

7.55 serve the lamb

8.50 put the cream and jam on the cake and serve

9.50 put the coffee on and bring out the cheese

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Wallace & Gromit and Friends: The magic of Aardman exhibition is at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) until 29 October 2017.  You can see some of the original sets and models, as well as snippets of film from Wallace and Gromit, Shaun the Sheep, and Chicken Run.