Do you ever envisage a new dish in your head, hoping it will be as delicious as you imagine? And when you make it, it’s even better? I can’t pretend it’s something that happens all the time – more often there are tweaks to be made… or rarely, the idea is quietly binned and never ... Read more »
Ask an Argentinian or Brazilian to recommend their favourite cut of beef and there’s a good chance they’ll choose picanha. Most commonly it’s barbequed or grilled, and is a core churrascaria menu item. With it’s thick layer of fat comes lots of flavour, and it’s tender too. Yet this prized South American cut is one ... Read more »
Fellow blogger and food writer Rejina is a friend of mine, and one I’ve long thought deserved a cookery book deal, so I was delighted to be sent a review copy of her first title, Gastrogeek (What to eat when you’re in a hurry, hungry or hard up). Her blog of the same name has ... Read more »
I love Jelly Belly Jelly Beans. I can’t remember a time when I’ve not loved them, having come across them in the USA during childhood trips. I didn’t know their history until now, though. The company that makes them was born back in 1869, when two German brothers emigrated to America and set up ... Read more »
Cep aka porcini is such a prized mushroom that it is often showcased as the key ingredient in very simple dishes like the tagliatelle ai porcini I enjoyed in Parma a couple of years ago. It’s fêted in porcini festivals; there are recipe books dedicated to it; even children’s stories! But fresh porcini is expensive, ... Read more »
Having challenged myself to make a savoury ice cream, I decided on blue cheese as my flavour, melting strong blue cheese into the no-churn condensed milk and double cream ice cream base that I discovered a few months ago. It was a bit of a nightmare! I slowly melted 100 gram of Roquefort into ... Read more »
Since learning the recipe for super Easy Potato Dauphinoise at a Waitrose cookery school class many years ago, we’ve made these quick and delicious potatoes many, many times. Thinking about possible variations, I started imagining the addition of onions. From onions, it’s not a big leap to caramelised onions… But caramelising onions properly, still they are ... Read more »
I was recently invited to review some products from The Oxo Good Grips range. I’ve used and purchased some of the kitchen utensils before, and really like the well-designed handles, which are both easy to grip and ergonomically comfortable to hold. I chose to review their mandolin slicer and an angled measuring jug. Oxo Mandolin Slicer ... Read more »
My friend Monica and I riffed off each other when it came to deciding on this ice cream. We were gathered at her home, Orchard Cottage, for a weekend of relaxing, cooking and eating together; four friends who met this summer enjoying a reunion. I’d taken along a large kilner jar of my candied whole ... Read more »
This no-churn ice cream recipe makes a fantastically dense, rich and creamy chocolate ice cream. I used very dark chocolate indeed to achieve a deliciously bitter result, but you could use a 70% chocolate to dial it back a little, if you prefer. Although it’s not much, the quarter teaspoon of coffee granules definitely comes ... Read more »
The Place of Onions, in old Lille. After last night’s rainstorm the intense sticky heat has broken and today is cool, breezy, fresh… I love it! A drop of… [more]
We went to Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire at The Void this morning, an amazing VR experience where we got to be Rebel Alliance members going undercover as… [more]