Fiction, Food, Faith and everything in-between

It is a new year! Ok it is a new financial year but it is still new. I have another cookbook from the Jamie Oliver Cookbook Club. I tried my best but I simply couldn't resist this one. It is a lovely book and I am only just beginning my adventures with this book. I started off easily with Vanilla Chai Shortbread and Vanilla Chai. Then I made Berbere Meatballs. These were nice but a bit spicy. Less spice next time. I also made Spice Island Fish Curry. This is delicious and I am so pleased that I now have a good recipe for fish.  I made Coconut Squid and I knew that was good when my son started eating them. Joshua is not a great fan of squid but these were great. One morning I woke up and remembered that I had put an overripe banana in the food recycling. It was still in its skin so I made banana loaf. Instead of dates I used double the amount of nuts and it turn out nicely, albeit a bit overbaked. I think the lock down really revitalis...

Christmas is long gone and we are now one month into the new year. The new year always starts so slowly and then suddenly it is April, August and December! I have much to look forward to this year. I am really enjoying my new job and I bought the first recommended book at the Jamie Oliver Cookbook Club.  In January, the book was the Italian Pantry by Theo Randall. I wasn't going to buy it but then people started posting pictures of the things they had made and I was convinced! I have made a few things such as Spinach and Ricotta Arancini  Yes they were delicious and I shall be making them again.  I made Asparagus and Parmesan Frittata. I am not a great egg person but this was ok. My son ate some which is always a good sign and I made slow cooked chicken thighs with porcine mushrooms and marsala. It was nice but next time I will double the porcini and forget about the leeks. And I made Kanellangd.  ...

The cold weather is upon us and I have the flu. I felt a bit odd on Saturday morning but I decided to cook lentils and Chinese Chicken and Broccoli. I also made a Chocolate Babka with some lovely Godiva chocolate which was given to me as a thank you present. By evening I felt very unwell and then the snow came and I went to bed. I think flu does something to your brain. I managed to sleep very deeply and then I woke up at 3.30am and decided it was a great time to make mulled wine. I didn't even taste it. I just put everything in the pot, heated it, heated water for my hot water bottles and returned to bed.  My head still feels like cotton wool and I really need to rest instead of answering emails. Maybe drink some of the mulled wine. In the midst if the flu and snow, I was struck by how comforting the food is. The Lentils just slid down my sore throat and made me nice and sleepy. I haven't had the flu for the past 3 ye...

There is something deeply comforting about meat and potatoes. Whether it is roast, fried, boiled, sautéed or barbecued, a meat and potato combo = comfort.  It is even more comforting when the meat and potatoes are wrapped up in pastry. A good pie is just right for wet, wintery weather. I made this meat and potato pie from a Paul Hollywood recipe. It was lovely but I think I prefer pie crust at the bottom and the top. In this recipe the pie crust is only for topping. I made the filling and added extra herbs and seasoning but I should have left some of the sauce in the pie. I managed to make a decent pastry. I am not a great fan of making pastry.  but this turned out ok. I didn't trim it. When the pie was ready I just broke of the edges and ate them. Why waste good pie crust? All in all it was a very nice dish, and delicious with broccoli 🥦 😋 👌.

I have had a number of mishaps in the kitchen today. I think it is because I am preparing for my new role and cooking at the same time. I decided to cook a loaf of  Cholla for a friend and added two lots of salt by mistake. I then made a quick soda loaf so that I would have something to give her.  The Cholla was much too salty. The soda loaf was ok but a bit underdone in the middle. I discovered this because my friend didn't turn up and I cut the loaf in half so that I could put it in the freezer. I saved it by sticking it back in the oven.  I also decided to make Blondie Cake from the Jamie Oliver 'One' cookbook. Alas I left it in the over too long. Happily it still tastes fab! Who knew that plum jam and crunchy peanut butter could be so delicious in an overbaked cake!  A couple of days ago I tried to make Samosas for the first time. The pastry was too thick and the Samosas didn't hold their shape but once again they tasted great. ...

I made a sausage roast for the first time ever. It is a Tom Kerridge recipe which I saw him make on the food channel. I also made roast potatoes and roast broccoli. There is something so comforting and so traditional about a roast meal. It always feels like coming home to me. It reminds me of my childhood and sitting round the Sunday dinner table with my parents and two sisters. I loved those meals which often ended up with apple pie and ice cream 🍦. Apple pie and ice cream, and a nice roast dinner are my favourite foods.  I also made squid and chorizo. I love chorizo and squid but I don't really know how to cook squid well. I am getting there though.  A couple of weeks ago I had jerk squid at a restaurant and it made me realise that cooking squid nicely is actually an art form. The restaurant failed because their squid was dry, fried to death and tasteless. Why have something on your menu if you can't cook it properly? In any case my new challenge is to learn how...

I love to spend time in the kitchen over the weekend before the hassle of the week. I like to batch cook during the weekend and it means that I don't have to cook again until the end of the week.  One thing the lock down enabled was the ability to slow down because we were not racing to the office. I want to hold onto that sense of slowing down timeven though I will soon be starting a new and demanding job. I think planning and batch cooking can help with this. Good cook books and easy recipes can also help. I have some of these Emmental pastries in my freezer and also a few odd loaves of bread. Sometimes I eat these when the busyness becomes unavoidable and other time they make nice gifts for friends. This Paprika Chicken from Jamie Oliver's One book was very easy to make. Being able to make quick dishes is often so much better than local takeaways and also cheaper.  I do love a takeaway but I do prefer my own cooking. Planning ...