When I was a kid, the only tortellini I ate were floating in a bowl of barszcz (beetroot soup). They were a chewy-slurpy dumpling in a wonderfully sweet and sour concoction, and with a dollop of sour cream … even…
Cheeky Tinned Fruit Pineapple Salsa
Fresh pineapple is summer holidays, and lazy days, and cocktails, and moonlit nights, and pina colada, and getting caught in the rain. Not to mention, there’s something saucy about salsa. But I’m not even pretending I used fresh pineapple! 😂…
Blast From the Past Shepherd’s Pie
This blast for the past kitchen is the type I associate with shepherd’s pie, also a blast from the past! Is it the same for you? Or do you think of a different era? The kitchen/dining room I grew up…
A Sweetener Chocolate Caramel Slice
You could bribe the Pope with this chocolate caramel slice. Rich, gooey, satisfying. Completely balanced between the shortbread biscuit base (dessicated coconut👩🍳 😘!), caramel, and dark chocolate. I’ve seen some skinny caramel slices, and they look forlorn and wanting, but…
Red Wine Beef Onion Stew
Confession: I feel quite pleased with myself when I see containers of stews and soups lined up in the freezer. It’s my “acts of service” love language, looking after the people I love, making sure there’s always something that can…
Celebrating Melons in the 1600s
Two themes I keep finding myself returning to on this site are simplicity, and finding beauty in the old, or everyday items we might otherwise overlook. Which is why I was so struck when I read this paragraph about Japan’s…
Super-Versatile Salmon Tray Bake
What did the fish say to his fiancee? I need salmon like you. This is my adaptation of the Jamie Oliver salmon tray bake recipe I found in his first cookbook The Naked Chef. I can’t find a link to…
Afternoon Tea Revelation
When I was a child, my mother used to say to me (not unkindly), “Your eyes are too big for your stomach.” This was when I couldn’t finish something I’d served myself, especially ice-cream. I remember ice-cream headaches very well!…
Creamy 15-Minute Pork Sausage Pasta
SYNERGY /ˈsɪnədʒi/. Noun. The interaction of two or more substances to produce an effect greater than the sum of its parts. May I present to you my synergistic Creamy 15-Minute Pork Sausage Pasta. Seven ingredients, plus lemon and seasoning. One…
Garlic Prawn Pasta
I adore mafaldine pasta. With its ruffles, it’s a bit like Christmas ribbons, or vintage lace curtains, or peony flowers, or even a bit frilly like Austin Powers … Mafaldine goes with both light or meaty sauces, and also with…
Chef’s Kiss Mango Avocado Salad
I don’t need to sell this mango avocado salad. It sells itself. Easy and amazing, it’s the perfect accompaniment to whatever meat or seafood you’ve thrown onto the BBQ or under the grill. Which raises the question of salad as…
Charcuterie and Champagne
I think the kitchen island is the tapas bar of the home. Perfect for a little champagne and charcuterie. First, a little history. People around the world have been preserving meat and fish in their own ways for thousands of…
