Jump straight to the Chilli Roast Pumpkin, Halloumi, Cavolo Nero and Pomegranate recipe.

One day after the equinox and 2020 is never going to go easy on us. But I can still look at my cheerful dahlias, standing tall and giving bright strong colour, and I can make a plate of beautiful nourishing food, like this one.

I am here not just to share this recipe and hopefully brighten your day too, I am also here to tell you that you should massage your kale, or, as I have used here, cavolo nero. It makes it soft and supple, beautifully seasoned and perfect in any salad, but especially in an Autumnal dish like this. It also makes it easier to digest. Double win. Continue reading

Jump straight to the Confit Duck with Damson Plums, Puy Lentils, Beetroot and Sage recipe.

Autumn didn’t just arrive with speed, it knocked the door down and forced its way in. While we are now enjoying Summers brief blast of a second wind with a whopping 29C in London today (green tomatoes everywhere rejoice!), mornings and evenings are still Autumnal here. Even today, the day started cool, and will finish so. Leaves are on the ground, windfall apples and crabapples line the paths I walk in the park, the sun sets earlier.

But, Autumn produce is here. I love the seasons. Continue reading

Food and cooking has been the centre of my existence for years now, and not always in a good way, if I am honest. But it is now fiercely centre stage in an excellent way, providing colour and interest in a time that is lacking in stimulation. Are you feeling like you are going stir crazy? I am. I feel like I have been walking the same circles for months now, because I have. And, I am sure you have too.

When I started blogging I was working in a demanding job that didn’t allow much travel, financially as I was still paying student debt, but also in terms of time. I find myself back in a similar place now, as we all are, with the pandemic. With stacks of cookbooks from my travels and inspirational cookery writers closer to home, I am again travelling vicariously through my kitchen and my plate. As I always used to. Travels with a pot, pan, stove and wooden spoon.

Travelling vicariously through my kitchen and my plate

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This post and recipe is sponsored by Indigo Herbs who asked me to create a recipe for them using anything from their range. I was impressed by the vast range of ethically sourced produce. My attention was drawn to the pulses and seaweeds and I came up with this now favourite recipe of Baked Seaweed Beans. 

Toot toot! I am going to start shouting about beans again. A big batch of home cooked beans are a boon in the kitchen and a joy for the creative home cook, a relief for a tired one. Inexpensive and friendly, beans go with everything. They are fantastic value and always better cooked from scratch at home.

Home Cooked Beans 

Home cooked beans have better flavour and texture generally. Beans with bite and texture, seasoned as you like, and not as required to preserve them in a tin. Home cooked beans are resilient. You can slightly undercook them in the first boil from soaked. That way when you put them in the dish that becomes their forever home, they will finish cooking then, until just so, and not fall apart as some tinned pulses can. Continue reading

Lockdown marches on and takes us along with it. I hope you are doing ok and it is not proving too difficult and that Covid has not impacted your life directly. If it has, I hope you are doing ok. I have been fairly silent here, which was not my intention. But, I am back now and I have lots to share with you. Lots of this will be recipes too. 

It won’t surprise you to hear that the publication of my book, Bacon, has been impacted by Covid. The latest in a litany of hurdles but the last one. My printer was affected by the Italian lockdown but things are moving again and I will keep you updated as to when Bacon will be on sale. I am also planning on publishing an updated version of Comfort & Spice after that with a fresh design and a light rethink. But Bacon first, and I can’t wait to share it. Continue reading