I've long been an admirer of potatoes. I never used to eat them much, at the height of low carbing, and then I realised that they were much maligned, along with the larger sized among us. I still feel a pang of naughty when I eat them, but it's a mere wisp of a pang, …
I hate waste. I've probably said this before. I had a few slices of bread left that had gone a little mouldy on the crusts so I sprang* into action. Cut off the crusts, then rolled them as flat as I could with a rolling pin. Brown bread is surprisingly resilient. Cheap white bread would …
I adore the smell of fresh lemons. I am generally captivated by lemon trees, and always wanted my own one, but living in the UK without a conservatory or a very large greenhouse makes that fairly improbable. In these cookies I used a lemon olive oil, plus extra zest, to get that zing that I …
I'm calling it a family fish pie because this amount will easily serve 4-6. It's worth making a big batch, and then freezing it in individual portions, ready for a late night home from work or two. We’d inherited a freezer full, as someone’s Pa had accidentally ordered 12 packs, instead of 1…4 large fillets …
I adore rice pudding. From the vanilla laden stodge in a can which I will eat cold, to the snackpots, and through to the very best baked and sugared topped-with-a-baked-skin that Nans make, I will eat them all and go back for more. It’s nursery food I suppose, but for me it’s definitely a comfort …
Continue reading Nigel Slater’s Middle East: Fragrant Lebanese Rice Pudding, a variation
You know how sometimes a cooking method can escape you time and time again, and then one day you read one more account of how to do it, and it all makes sense? Today I had that with artichoke prep.Not the big globe ones, but the smaller, purple ones. Perfect little flower heads that, nonetheless, …
Continue reading Artichokes with browned butter and Hilopites noodles
I’ve tried making these before, and although they always tasted good, the texture left a lot to be desired. Tasty hockey pucks come to mind. I know that with the huge proliferation of them in the shops, I really do not need to make my own, but that fruited spiced smell wafting through the house …
I’m not one to throw much away, unless forced to by mould (and then not always) or circumstance, so when I have not quite one serving of a really good dish, I want to make it into something equally as satisfying, and maybe have enough to freeze some. I’d made a Lamb, Leek and Chickpea …
I’m currently reading Istanbul & Beyond. There’s so much more to Turkish cuisine than the meat and salads that we usually see here. “Standing at the crossroads between the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Asia, Turkey boasts astonishingly rich and diverse culinary traditions. Journalist Robyn Eckhardt and her husband, photographer David Hagerman, have spent almost …
Continue reading Istanbul and Beyond: Inspirations. Lamb, Leek and Chickpea Stew
The things I do for my colleagues. Ed mentioned that when he’d been on holiday in Croatia, he’d had this gorgeous dip made of aubergines and red peppers, and was bemoaning the fact that he hadn’t been able to find it since. I was pretty sure I’d be able to find a recipe, and I …
COOKWITCH'S CREATIONS 