There is something about Shakespeare that does it for me…
We had some left over roast chicken and always keep a tub of Thai red curry paste in the fridge for a tasty quick supper, so a week or two ago after long days at work, Rocket popped the paste into the pan and added some coconut milk and the cooked chicken, brought the temperature to just off the boil then simmered for a few minutes and – “taa daa”, the curry was ready. Continue reading Salad days…
This one is for Mousse…
When we were prepping for our barbecue last weekend we wanted to have some pre-prepped salads, that could just sit out with little to do when our guests were there. We didn’t want anything that might wilt as it has been so hot so I thought of potato salad but that sometimes seems dull or an easy option. never let it be said that we choose the easy way out so…no really, it is very straight forward.
Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the dish in question – so here is a picture of some of the other items! Continue reading Sweet potato curry salad
We’ve had a hectic few weeks for a range of reasons, and some serious celebrating for the family wedding of our nephew deeps and his delightful new wife Queenie. Along with Rocket’s special birthday and a manic work schedule we have had little time to stand and stare.
Before heading off in a different direction, let me tell you about a few things that have happened.
The first thing was a Jools Holland concert, featuring Marc Almond, Nell Bryden and Ruby Turner to name a just a few where myself and a group of our friends revealed to Rocket that we are taking him to Marrakesh in October…. Great excitement.
The group had also very generously bought Rocket his heart’s desire in the form of sous vide, so brace yourselves for some slooooow cooking. All in all he was a very lucky boy with some absolutely fantastic and generous gifts, he thanked all concerned with a BBQ at ours on Saturday.
We are now on the countdown to our trip to France, and really can’t wait – my contract at the local authority ends soon so goodness knows what the future holds – I have a small possibility of a teeny tiny deli but more about that next week as I dare not hope- one thing is for sure, some browsing of produce markets and lazy lunches in the Pyrenees are just what we need.
of the Looe
River Estuary
Guest Blogger!
Rocket here! Thanks to Poppy (what WOULD I do without her?!?!) I’m staying at the Barclay House Hotel in Looe. Continue reading Postcards from the edge…….
It was so grey and wet here in earlier this week in London, I decided to have some sunshine food in the form of tagliatelle and salmon, a friend gave us some cavolo nero from their garden so I added that into the theme.
After I had lightly poached and flaked the salmon, I blanched the cabbage and when the tagliatelle was cooked in lightly salted water and drained , I popped the salmon cabbage and little lemon zest into the pan with plenty of black pepper a little Cornish sea salt and a squeeze of lemon juice . In a separate pan, I warmed through a some Creme Fraiche and ran that through the warm pasta.
Simple and very speedy.
I feel like this…
Who knew that my death cell pudding, favourite all time dessert follows the route the Tour De France just took? I suppose the Kent part is pushing it a bit and it didn’t go to Scotland this time…but they probably travelled through Kent to get to the next stage, and there is a strong alliance between Scotland and France – okay that is tenuous at best… Continue reading Yorkshire Puddings, Kent Strawberries, London Syrup, Scottish Ice Cream…
Thai Green Curry is a wonderful thang, visiting Thailand last year we were treated to a more authentic variety and I have been trying to get to a home made version that really sings to me.
David Thompson’s Thai food is one of my favourite cook books, not just for the recipes but for the background stories and the way he describes the ingredients, the Thai people ad their approach to cooking as well as laying out the regional variations. This is a book with a cover made from pink silk – need I say more? It is very dear to my heart, and I think anyone who would like to cook Thai food should go and buy this book immediately! Continue reading Thai Green Curry, London style…
We had some lovely farmed sea bream and decided to marinade it in some rose harissa, lemon, olive oil and Paprika. We slashed the fish, rubbed it in the marinade and popped some limes into the belly, and put it in the fridge for an hour or two, before grilling it on the barbecue.
We made a Greek style salad. I saw Jamie Oliver on the telly ages ago, saying how it looks nice if you randomly chop things like tomatoes for salads to cut them into all sorts of shapes rather than ending with uniform quarters or eighths. He is a clever fellow, and I think it looks much nicer.
So having randomly chopped some really ripe tomatoes and some cucumber, pink onions, peppers, and a little avocado (just because we had it in the fridge) we threw in a handful of black olives. Next we added salt and black pepper, lemon juice and olive oil, along with a little crumbled Feta cheese. We turned the veg through the dressing and placed in a serving bowl adding some more feta to the top, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of dried oregano.
The day before we had saffron potatoes (basically just potatoes peeled and boiled in water with a little salt and saffron) they are really nice. There were a few left over so we used them as a side, it’s quite naughty but they are delicious done this way – we clarified half a packet of butter (125g) then added a quarter tsp of hot chilli powder (more if you want a bigger kick). Next we poured the butter onto a hot roasting tray then coated the chilled potatoes in the butter mix and roasted on a high heat until golden and crispy.
I’ve been thinking about making a lychee granita, I woke up thinking about it as I bought a punnet of fresh lychees yesterday. Continue reading Anyone for a Lychee Martini Puppy?
So lovely to have a sunny Friday and we are at home. Rocket had called earlier in the week, from Wales, to say he had found a delightful, tiny butcher shop in Usk, South Wales. It’s called N.D. Lewis & Sons, it’s one of those places that is worth a mention. Continue reading Le Tour, Le Veg, Le Pays de Galle….
We’ve got so foodie and ‘up ourselves’ these days, as my cousin Dewey pointed out, we all enjoy and rave about these great and innovative foods, recipes, restaurants but we don’t talk about those basic items that we eat behind closed doors! Are we are a little bit embarrassed about them?
I’m getting them out there for all to see.
Not that guilty really, so here is my top ten of foods that I wouldn’t shout about but that I regularly enjoy – for my actual dinner – in the privacy of my own home….. Continue reading Guilty Pleasures
Found this sandwich,what a beauty!
This is the salt beef Rubens from “KIOSK” in Kings Cross. Continue reading I am the Catcher of the Rye
With Tuna and Salsa Verdi….
Long day at work yesterday, lots to do last evening, but I needed something tasty and healthy to keep me going. Continue reading Courgetti Spaghetti
There is great excitement in London SE11– well there is in our house anyway!
There is a new kid on the block in the form of ‘The Duchy Arms’ and sneak previews have revealed a beautiful and classy job has been done on this old pub at the end of Courtenay Street. Yes, I am aware it has had a few incarnations in recent years, but this time it’s a proper job… Continue reading Pass the ‘Duchy’….No! Don’t pass it, go inside!
In Search of the Catfish Café... 