A few weeks ago I was catering for a retreat for 150 young adults. They needed to be fed for the whole weekend, which involved some serious cooking and quantities of food that were quite staggering. The friends who helped in the kitchen with me laughed and cried (onions, lots of onions), chopped, peeled, roasted,…
Read MoreAll articles filed in dinner
Carrots and beets and all the good things
It’s a lot harder to get people to ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ over beets and carrots than it is to get them to ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ over artichokes or asparagus, and I enjoy being able to take these humble, ‘lowbrow’ foodstuffs up a few notches and serve them with great exuberance. Charlie Trotter Hear, hear, Mr.…
Read More
Warm potato salad with dill and almonds
It is always wise to make too much potato salad. Even if you are cooking for two, make enough for five. Potato salad improves with age – that is, if you are lucky enough to have any left over. Laurie Colwin My mother was a proponent of the ‘you can’t have too much’ school of…
Read More
Patatas puttanesca: a series of fortunate events
‘Puttanesca.’ It’s an Italian sauce for pasta. All we need to do is sauté olives, capers, anchovies, garlic, chopped parsley, and tomatoes together in a pot, and prepare spaghetti to go with it.” Klaus Baudelaire When my children were younger we read Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, relishing every page, enthralled by the Baudelaire…
Read More
Get stuffed: mushrooms, that is
I am a late comer to goat’s cheese, having been scarred by my first experience, which was an intensely smelly, fiercely flavoured french variety. However, I have been educating my palate to milder versions and now love a subtle, creamy, ash covered chevre. Mushrooms pair beautifully with it, as the cheese seems to enhance their…
Read More
Holy guacamole, Batman!
A perennial favourite, everyone has their preferred recipe for guacamole. and this is mine – smooth and creamy avocado contrasting with tomatoes, chilli, onion and herbs. There’s a tang of lemon, and the earthy notes of coriander in the dukkah I sprinkle on top, as well as a good seasoning of salt and black pepper.…
Read More
Sticky Asian lamb
Sticky, sweet and spicy lamb cutlets, with a slightly astringent dipping sauce is a perfect starter for a dinner with friends – good friends, who don’t mind slurping and eating with their fingers to get every last morsel off the bone. It tastes best if the lamb can be marinated for several hours, or even…
Read More
Slow roasted pork belly with apples
Rich and unctuous, with a crispy crackling, pork belly is a spectacular dinner party dish and the pan fried apples and spiced sauce are wonderful partners. It’s important to cook the pork long and slow to help render out most of the fat, and end up with meltingly soft flesh. But then the last part…
Read More
Chilli prawns with pasta
This is a new favourite of mine – only problem is that I am the sole prawn lover at our place. But then – no sharing required! I used tiger prawns, but you could use any variety of your choosing. The chilli, parsley and lemon zest are astonishingly simple ingredients, but together they are a…
Read More
Rich beef stew with winter vegetables
In my part of the world it is wintry, with cool, bright days, and chilly nights. This rich stew is perfect for this time of year. Tender beef and root vegetables, with undertones of smoky paprika, garlic and onions, and finished with the freshness of gremolata sprinkled over the top, it is only made better…
Read More
Simple food 