green apple sorbet

Princess Victoria marmalade

6 February 2014

When I think of Costa Rica, several things come to mind: toucans, treehouses, a beautiful swimming pool sparkling in the sunshine, and the most delicious marmalade I have ever tasted, eaten whilst watching monkeys play in the trees outside the window. This recipe is my attempt to replicate that joyous breakfast. Seville oranges are something […]

Read the full article →

dark chocolate toblerone and amaretto mousse

14 January 2014

January. The month of detoxing, diets and denial. Aren’t you sick of hearing about it? Frankly, if you don’t know by now how to eat a balanced diet that incorporates all the major food groups, it’s not for me to try to tell you. Let’s start the year as we mean to go on, with chocolate […]

Read the full article →

dancing with dough

6 July 2013

As I write this, I’m chewing on a pecorino and olive breadstick. It is probably the best breadstick I have ever eaten. Not because it’s fresh, although that’s part of the appeal; not because it doesn’t contain any chemical nasties – anyone for mono- and diacetyle tartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids?? […]

Read the full article →

my fairy godmother’s chocolate chip oatmeal cookies

16 May 2013

I was in two minds about sharing this recipe. Partly because it is just so good, but mainly because it is very special to me. The smell of these as they’re cooking reminds me intensely of my childhood. It seems to me now that every time I went to my godmother’s house – and that […]

Read the full article →

sunny chicken and rice

11 December 2012

So if you took my advice and made soup yesterday, you might have some chicken drumsticks leftover in the fridge (I did – I had to buy a pack of four). If you do, I suggest going to get a few more – enough to make the total weight up to around 1kg – inviting […]

Read the full article →

therapeutic soup, and the importance of a good casserole dish

10 December 2012

The fact that I have made this soup twice in two weeks probably speaks volumes. I plucked the recipe at random from the Leon: Ingredients & Recipes cookbook, but since I was short on time and didn’t fancy a walk to Waitrose in the cold and dark (English winter, be praised), I substituted some of […]

Read the full article →

grown-up jammie dodgers

14 February 2012

Last week I was lucky enough to be skiing in Tignes and Val d’Isère, and whilst there, to have lunch at La Fruitière. With its stylish dairy decor and blue boiler-suited waiters, it’s a real treat. The highlight was my main course – beef cooked for 72 hours (melt-in-the-mouth doesn’t even come close to covering […]

Read the full article →

sesame-crusted tuna with a honey glaze

11 January 2012

I was inspired to cook this after a visit to a local Chinese supermarket at the weekend (I love filling a basket with exotic ingredients – and is there anything better than char siu buns for breakfast??). The recipe comes from a fantastic book that I recommend very highly if you suffer from a touchy […]

Read the full article →

Nigella’s clementine cake

9 January 2012

With so many clementines in the shops at this time of year, it would be churlish not to give this cake a go. It’s not dissimilar to the St Clement’s Polenta and Almond Cake I featured some while back, although this recipe has fewer ingredients and is therefore a little more straightforward – provided you […]

Read the full article →

wickedly easy maple roasted veg

7 January 2012

This is barely a recipe, but I thought it was worth noting as it makes a tasty accompaniment to a nice juicy steak or a herb-roasted chicken. If you do as I did and buy pre-peeled, pre-chopped vegetables (lazy I know, but sometimes it’s the only way), the preparation will take no more than about […]