Archive For August 2010
We in Britain have long had a love for spice. That might be a surprising fact to many who believe that our food is bland and uninteresting. Look at our history, though, and you will find that so much of our sea-faring and globe-trotting has had other people’s spices as the target. There have been…
These Kid’s Cook classes at Cookbook Café allow mums and dads a casual dining occasion with their children at the Saturday Brunch. The raft of food on offer will tempt the pickiest of young eaters. A little taste of this, a thin non-threatening slice of that. The waffle station will be a draw – the…
(This restaurant is now closed) The centre of London throngs with life on a mid-week summer’s day and it’s just as thronging on a Sunday. Streets are filled with both visitors and locals taking advantage of everything this cosmopolitan city has to offer. Chinese restaurants for brunch of aromatic dim sum, American burger chains for…
Yes, Pizza is fast food. Well, more accurately it’s fast-ish food. A good pizza has a freshly-made base and an exceptional one has that cooked in a real pizza oven. It’s fast food with a pedigree. The first pizzas were simple affairs sold by the slice on the streets of Naples. It wasn’t available much…
It’s a little black book. Perhaps not THE little black book containing possibly incriminating information, but it does still hold within its covers tips and hints to encourage a successful social life, or at least it does if you are an eligible chap with a kitchen. It’s the only cookbook I have come across that…
Geetie’s Cookbook is subtitled “Recipes from the kitchen of The Duke of Cambridge Organic Pub”. It’s a bit of a mouthful but a delicious one. It’s a book full of recipes and inspiration. It’s not only the food that grabs one’s attention but the whole philosophy behind the project. The Duke of Cambridge is indeed…
It’s got to be one of my favourite books of the moment. Desserts is quality in both content and presentation. The large format allows for the most gorgeous photography by Brent Parker Jones who has used his skills to great effect. The authors, Rachel Lane and Ting Morris, are both successful food writers and they…
We have not had great exposure to Arab cuisine in Britain. Our connections to that region have never been as close as, say, those we have with our former colonies; so our high streets are more than adequately garnished with restaurants offering Indian food, air travel has introduced us to Spanish food and Greek food,…
It’s summer in England and we have been blessed with dry weather. OK, the sun seems to have been as elusive as ever but at least it’s warm enough for us to indulge in a little al fresco dining. Our tables might well be strewn with Italian dishes, and those tables that are not probably…
Mexico already has many of its monuments on UNESCO’s list of protected sites. Now it has gained international recognition for the country’s unique cuisine. London has a restaurant which is recognised by the Mexican Embassy as providing authentic dishes. Mestizo near Euston Station will provide a vibrant introduction to Mexico’s culinary heritage. UNESCO officials have…
I lived in Montreal, on and off, for 3 years and I loved it. It’s a city that doesn’t often get a mention and that’s a shame: it’s an inspiring ethnic mix and the climate is….interesting! Today, 3rd August, it’s 73 degrees. Canada is famous for maple syrup and the Wintertime is when it’s in…
Elizabeth David is for many the Grande Dame of British cooking, although she is more famed for her writings on the cuisine of the Mediterranean at a time when the prospect of many Brits travelling to those sun-drenched climes was slim. Spices, Salt and Aromatics in the English Kitchen takes us a little further afield…
I review many cookbooks in the course of a month but this one has had me waiting in eager anticipation. It has arrived, and is just what I had both expected and hoped. Lotte Duncan will be a familiar face to those who watched and loved the much-missed Good Food Live on the UK Food…