This might be worth a read - Criterion Restaurant

August is upon us, London is heaving with groups of painfully loud Spaniards and irritatingly slow camera clicking folk from the Orient. The City is on hibernate mode, all motorways and A Roads are crawling at a pace that even a snail would laugh at and of course, the Tube is stiflingly hot.
The Criterion, however, is rather busy. A restaurant with a long and sometimes slightly chequered past is overcoming all the doom and gloom of recession and is fast becoming THE restaurant to go in Central London.

Slap bang in the heart of Town Criterion is famous for being the place that Stamford took Dr Watson to in order to introduce him to the great, if slightly crazy Sherlock Holmes on Arthur Conan-Doyle's famous book. It was a restaurant then, and still is. Now independently owned with a newly (and extremely carefully) cleaned gold mosaic ceiling, some oversized chairs and decent lighting it still oozes grandeur and sophistication.

I had been looking forward to my lunch there for a while and had been instructed that I ought to try a signature dish or two. Greeted with a chilled glass of fiercely bubbling Champagne we got comfortable in the afore mentioned oversized chairs and began to discuss the reason for our lunch - London Restaurant Festival which, I might add, is going to be epic!

The bread was subtly placed on the table with some very homemade looking butter, I was of course aware that Chef Matthew Foxon is known not only for the wondrous food that come out of his kitchen, but for the time, effort and creativity that goes into it all. The butter had, of course, been churned on site and the bread (that smelled divine) baked on site as well. I, rather reluctantly abstained from the bread an butter because, being the greedy little so and so that i am I had ordered a starter that contained scallops and truffles and a main that included a fillet steak and Fois Gras - all this for a Wednesday Lunch!!!

My starter of pan fried scallops, pea and truffle puree, pancetta, pea cress was just heavenly. The truffle in the pea puree was so finely balanced that all flavours could be distinguished, and the scallop - perfectly cooked was divided in two by a fantastically crispy bit of pancetta.

The main course, although I really really didn't need it on a weekday lunchtime, was heaven. Look at the picture below, it really did look like that! I must say, for all my expensive tastes, I usually prefer a Sirloin Steak,but this fillet was beautiful, gorgeous and pink and tender and and and...... The Pont Neuf Chips in their little basket were some of the best tasting chips I've had in a long time, and because of the basket, they didn't go soggy in the jus!

We tried several desserts... All miniature versions of the normal menu. And I can't fault them.

All in all, the service was fantastic, the food was divine and the place itself; really something that has to be seen to be believed (in a good way!!). Here comes the cliche, this restaurant really is, I believe, rising from the ashes and is set to be great, very great indeed.
Keep an eye out for the Criterion as you walk through Piccadilly and during the London Restaurant Festival.

It is at this point that i must come clean - I have just started working there. But, for those of you that don't know me, I am utterly terrible at marketing and thus writing imaginative copy, so what i have written is all true! Friends will back me up in that one... Cross my heart.

Beautiful Scrumptious Stromboli

In the summer time when the weather is hot, hmmm-hm-hmm-hhmm... Can't remember the rest of the words!

Last weekend was full of picnics, Pimms and polo (I didn't actually drink any Pimms but it sounded good!) Well, it sounded average.

I seem to be suffering from a small case of writers block this week. I was so excited by my Eggs Benedict post that I've lost my imagination this week.

This Stromboli, however, is a fantastic little thing that I found online and is perfect for picnics.

For the Dough:

500g Strong Bread Flour

2/3 sachet of fast acting yeas

A pinch of salt

1 tsp sunflower Oil

300 ml hand warm water

For the Filling:
8 slices wafer thin ham

1/2 tin of tomatoes

Small block of Mozzarella (buy the cheaper stuff as it's easier to grate)
A large handful of Basil

lots of lovely grindy pepper

1 small egg

Begin by making your dough.

• All the flour into a large mixing bowl, add the yeast granules and the salt. Also add the Oil and stir it through so everything is mixed up. (The oil will seem like a pretty pointless addition as it's only one tsp but it makes all the difference).


• Make a well in the centre of the bowl, pour some of the warm water in and begin to bring the mixture together. Best to try to use only one hand at the start to keep the other hand free to add more water.


• Add the water bit by bit until the stuff in the bowl resembles dough (I don't have a photo, but you've all seen the Hovis or was it Lurpack adverts!)
  
• NOTE: If the mixture is crumbly add a bit more water, if it sticks to your hands add more flour. You MAY not end up using all the water so don't feel that you HAVE to use it all up to make mud pies!


• Put the dough onto a floured surface and knead it for around 10 minutes - a seriously good stress buster (or, get someone else to do it - that's what i did!)


• Place the kneaded dough back into the mixing bowl and cover with a lightly oiled piece of clingfilm (just place it on top of the dough - this is not to seal the bowl with....


• Leave the bowl in a warm place to rise for at least 2 hours, it will end up double the size and will smell gorgeous!


• Knead the dough again and once again leave to rise for another couple of hours.


• Pre heat the oven to 180 degrees C.


• Bash the dough a bit so it is in a round lump, then take a rolling pin and roll it flat (it'll look like a pizza base (but it's not strong enough to do the spinning around in the air so I wouldn't recommend trying it!!!)


• Add the tomatoes, ham, grated mozzarella and fresh basil. Black Pepper.



• Roll up and place on a non-stick baking sheet (large one) or some baking parchment if like mine, your baking sheets are so old they aren't non-stick anymore.


• Crack the egg into a cup, give it a quick whisk and brush the dough with the egg wash.


• Pop it in the oven for around 25 minutes.


• It'll come out looking golden brown and scrumptious!


• BEWARE - HEALTH AND SAFETY!!!! The inside will be so so so hot, so if you don't want a furry tongue for a week, leave it to cool for a little while!


• Once it's cold cut it up as you would with a baguette and serve to the ravenous picker-knickers!


• Goes well with a small dollop of Hellman's!

Warning to those with dentures - the ends are a little hard - the boys played cricket with one of the ends!! The rest of it is blooming gorgeous!

Eggs Benedict has got to be one of the ultimate breakfasts one could ever encounter. The delicate crunch of an all butter English muffin with the runny smoothness of a perfectly cooked (if not beautifully presented) poached egg topped with the bite of home-made Hollandaise Sauce.

I began this love with eggs Benedict years and years ago on holiday, on my Gap Yaaaaaar actually, in Australia. If there is one thing that the Aussies can do – it’s Breakfast! Until then, going out for breakfast had consisted of ’Full English (no mushrooms though, thank you so much)’ or a tres tres rapide croissant et cafe noir. Never had I sat and enjoyed the rich, creamy calorific joy that is Eggs Benedict. These days I have to limit myself because, let’s face it – the 150ml of melted butter that goes into enough Hollandaise for 3 people is a weeny bit unhealthy! And you can’t say ‘why do you have less sauce?’ to a Northerner like me – it just doesn’t work!

So, Hollandaise, my style!

2 medium egg yolks
150ml Melted butter (everyone says it has to be unsalted, but whatever butter you have, use it) 100ml white wine vinegar
5 – 10 peppercorns
Pinch of fresh or dried tarragon
Few drops of lemon juice

To prepare:

• Put the white wine vinegar into a microwave proof dish/jug with the peppercorns and tarragon. Microwave for 10 minutes. During that time the vinegar will reduce and will also absorb some tarragon and pepper flavours.

• Melt the butter – all the chefs say do it in a saucepan and skim off the froth – I say, use the microwave (again) all the fat will sink to the bottom and just be sure to only pour the clear stuff when you’re using it.

• Have a pan of boiling water with a heatproof bowl over it ready, I have a plastic jug with a handle that I used and it worked a treat.

• Egg yolks and 2 tbsp the white wine vinegar mixture into the jug/bowl. Using electric whisks beat them together until very pale yellow and frothy.

• Add about a tablespoon’s worth of the melted butter to the pale yellow froth and whisk until it’s fully combined with the froth.

• Continue to add the butter in a very slowly drizzle keeping the whisk switched on while drizzling. If you do this from a jug the white grubby bit at the bottom will stay there and you’ll only get the clear stuff.

• Once you’ve got towards the end of the jug of butter, have a taste of the sauce (switch the whisk off first obviously – SAFETY FIRST). It should look yellowy creamy in colour and look like runny mayonnaise.

• If, when you taste it, it takes the skin off the back of your throat then add more butter. If all you can taste is butter then add a little lemon juice and a drop more of white wine vinegar.
Getting the right flavour is about trial and error. If you add more of anything make sure that the whisks are on and ensuring everything is blended through.

• Toast a muffin

• Add your scrummy extra topping

• Put the egg on top, pour the Hollandaise over the top.

The Good Life

I haven't got much to write in this entry, it is going to be mainly a pictorial post.

The excitement of picking home grown vegetables over the weekend has rendered me speechless!

I, of course, can't take the credit for this - this is all Jill Pollock's hard work!! I know that not everyone has a huge plot to plant vegetables but we all have window sills on which we can put a pot of Basil and a pot of parsley... Even fresh parsley tastes different to the dried stuff. Whether you shop at a supermarket or a farmers market you can get your hands on a pot of either of the above under a Fiver and what a difference it'll make to your food!

While down at Le boyfriend's parents' house Sunday supper approached rather fast and we raided the veggie patch. Look what we got!!

In this basket we have:

Courgettes

Onions/shallots (I'm not sure to be honest)

lettuce

Anya Potatoes

Annabel Potatoes

Broad Beans

Swiss Chard

Isn't that just absolutely amazing!

So, what am I actually doing with this blog?

This little entry is really for the Facebookers who click on the weird links that get posted to my Status 3 or 4 times a week!


For those of you who know me; you will know the following about me:

• I'm potty about food
• I love cooking
• I love eating
• I spend all my money on attempting to be glitzy and cool
• food shopping, for me, is like a smoking addiction - I can't really afford it but I always find the money somehow!
• I have had the nick-name 'Bridget' (as in Jones) thrust upon me on several occasions

So, in brief I decided to save some money by starting this blog, I will therefore not go out so much and start to become a geeky recluse. That's the idea, anyway.

I will eventually loose any tan that i have ever had, become deficient in Vitamin D and probably only communicate through Facebook and Twitter (oooh yes, I'm on Twitter as well - told you i was cool!). I might also develop a nervous twitch or a stutter just for effect.

Seriously though - I want (along with every other celebrity chef on the planet) to cook food that is:

• Yummy
• cheap
• fresh
• quick
• healthy - well most of the time

I want people to see that you don't have to head straight to the ready meal aisle in the supermarket!!

So that's that!

Next post is going to be mainly photos of lots of gorgeous veggies that we picked this weekend!!

Slowing Down....

Just come back from a fantabulous week in scorching hot Egypt.
I love it there, it's really really hot but there was lots of lovely breeze so we didn't have to worry about baking in the shade.

I had hoped to take lots of holiday foodie snaps but my 'waterproof' camera, it seems, isn't waterproof anymore.....Hmmmm. Very disappointing! So out of the window goes my planned blog schedule of lots of scrummy looking pictures of divine kebabs and authentic ummmm spaghetti bolognese, well, yeah, I wasn't hugely adventurous I must admit.

But the problem is, I've come back with a bit of a writers block. I've missed a week of the foodie season so am totally confused as to what i should be cooking (apart from broad beans... not a huge fan, it's got to be said!)
I can't talk about 'The Good Life' again because I'll get carried away and start waffling - again.

What next?

Well hopefully the new job will provide me with some good inspiration.

I don't know if anyone reads this but any ideas or thoughts on:
a) how I'm doing in general
b) what you would like me to write about

Greatly appreciated...

Sticky BBQ Spare Ribs

With the heatwave in full swing - hands up who's bored of charred sausages or tasteless chicken drumsticks.....? And.... hands up who's also bored of thinking 'oooh, let's have a BBQ for supper' and then getting to the supermarket and finding everything remotely pre-marinated has gone.

So I've come up with an easy marinade for spare ribs that uses store cupboard ingredients so you can buy the plain ribs in the supermarket - they are always there because no one know how to do the sticky marinade!!

1 x 500g packet of Pork Ribs

4tbsp runny honey

1 good squeeze tomato puree

4tbsp Dark Soy Sauce

a slosh white cooking wine

pulp of 5 tomatoes

2 drops of Tabasco

Put all the ingredients (apart from the ribs...obviously) into a blender and whizz.

pop the ribs into a mixing bowl and pour the mouthwateringly wonderful smelling all over them. Get your hands into the bowl and massage the marinade into the pork.

Leave to marinade for at least a couple of hours.

Whack 'em on the BBQ and they will turn yummy and sticky and mmmmmmmm.

Ready Steady Cook!!

I'm no Ainslie and it took a lot longer than 20 minutes, but i bet they don't get wine and cider on the TV show!

The ingredients:

The challenge:

Produce a 3-course meal using ALL of the ingredients provided and any store cupboard bits and bobs.

My Menu:

Deep fried Camembert with a caramelised onion chutney

Chinese Style noodle soup with flash-fried fresh scallops

Blueberry, Greek Yogurt and Ice cream Mess

I'll start with the 'Mess'
Possibly one of the easiest recipes in the world... EVER

4 ramekin dishes
4 large tbsp Vanilla Ice Cream
A handful of blueberries
About a soup ladle's worth of Greek yogurt
3 tbsp Icing Sugar
1 tsp lemon juice

• Dollop the Greek Yogurt and lemon juice into a small mixing bowl (I used a measuring jug because by that point I'd run out of anything else to use!)
• With a fork, stir in the icing sugar (don't worry about the little lumps, that's why it's called a 'Mess').
• gently heat the blueberries in a saucepan with some sugar and little water. crush a few of them to release some of their juices.
• Once the sugar has dissolved in with the blueberries pour the mixture in with the Greek Yogurt
• Put a tablespoon of ice-cream on the base of each ramekin dish and pour over the blueberry/Greek Yogurt mixture.
• Serve!

I'll do the other two recipes in another post....

I can HIGHLY recommend a 'Ready Steady Cook' night, it was just four girls, we've all known each other since school and have recently got back in touch so there is PLENTY to talk about.

It did feel a bit weird all day knowing people we coming over, but short of cleaning the flat (which i failed to do) there was simply no preparation for me - no recipe planning - no shopping - no food prep. And... it didn't take all night, OK so i cooked each course as we needed it but we were done by 10pm (ish).

A piece of advice - if you ever want some amusement, give a teacher friend of yours some highly sugary sweets and see what happens, she'll be bouncing off the walls within 30 minutes - GUARANTEED!

Right - it's off to bed for me as I've decided this post isn't nearly as amusing as it should be!!

Bx

Too Hungry to wait for supper

The likelihood of me ever being 'too hungry' to wait for my grub is pretty slim!

But last night i was so 'hungry' that i decided to create a little snackette.

Very easy. Very Quick. Not very healthy.

You will need:

1 vine tomato

a lump of cheese

sprinkle of Thyme

A sprig of parsley if you're feeling poncy and are planning on taking a photo of your snack!

Turn on the grill

Cut the tomato in half

Roughly cut off a lump of cheese

Sprinkle some thyme on the tomato halves

Balance the cheese on to the tomato halves

If you're tomatoes aren't balancing, with a serrated knife slice a very very very think slice off the bottom of the tomato so each half has a flat bottom.
Sprinkle a little more thyme on top of the cheese and a little grindy pepper

Place under the grill until the cheese has melted.

Scoff!

Super Fast Pea Soup

The girls came round for dinner a couple of nights ago, so I absolutely HAD to cook to impress - while at the same time remembering that i only had a short time to prepare!!

A time that was made even shorter by my soon to be new employer asking me in for a meeting (which is a good thing...........................)

I got home at around 7pm with everyone due to arrive at 7.30. I can't tell you how much i was hoping the Tudor Girls were going to be traditional and thus; turn up late!

Menu:

Minted Pea Soup

Roast Pork Belly

Mashed Potato

Leeks

Balsamic Strawberries

Crisis #1

No peas. I chose minted pea soup because i knew i DEFINITELY had loads of peas in the freezer!! Aaaah! The corner shop had a minute bag of petit pois - phew!

1 bag of frozen peas

1 leek chopped up

1 large garlic clove finely chopped

1 small glass of wine

Almost 2 pints vegetable stock

A large knob of butter

Salt & pepper

Put all the dry ingredients into the saucepan.

Add the stock.

Bring to the boil and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Then blitz the ingredients.

I just served it straight away, BUT if i were you, I would sieve it before serving as I found there were a few too many pea shells in there for my liking...

A fantastic starter for four or a midweek meal for 2.

The Great Afternoon Tea!

I confess I've been a bit useless at writing over the last couple of weeks. Rest assured good people of the Blog-o-sphere I am a) alive and b) still speedily expending my waistline!

I've been having tea!

Summer is apparently here, the sun has shone a handful of times and us Brits are excited! Tom Aikens has opened a deli where Townies and Bumpkin Tourists can feel like they are in their local farm shop, yet pop across the road to visit Somerset House, The London Eye and The National Gallery. Gordon Ramsay is suddenly waxing lyrical about picnic hampers. And of course every glossy food related article i see brings back a haunting memory of my burnt strawberry jam a couple of weeks ago.

Am i more susceptible to this foodie culture that has hit us because I'm writing about it? Or is it because I'm spending all day kicking myself because i forgot to write about it AGAIN?! Or is it simply because we all get so excited when summer arrives? Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall could waffle for days about his allotment, so could Jamie Oliver. Then of course you have the Coren's and Gill's of this world who dine out, literally (sorry, my simpleton's humour rearing it's ugly head) on good SEASONAL food.

I just get so so excited about seasonal food. I jump up and down when the Asparagus season starts, not just because my Mum spoils me more than usual by ensuring that every visit she makes to London, she is laden with Wykham Park Farm Asparagus. The main reason for my excitement at the asparagus season is that it marks the start of everything else.

Things just get better; strawberries, raspberries, Jersey Royals, (or even better in my opinion) Anya potatoes, beans, courgettes. It's just mind boggling what we can grow in the UK. OK, in London it is difficult and I'm often green with envy watching Jamie at Home or The River Cottage, because I, again, forgot to plant my potatoes and have spent my salary this month so can't afford to buy seeds and by payday it'll be too late - huge sigh of sympathy please!!!!

I've got a little overexcited by this seasonal stuff - I'll be worse when i get a chance to take some pictures of Jill's divine veggie patch in a month or so. Then the whole world will see how rewarding it is for people who don't have a TV crew following them to reap the rewards of The Good Life!

Oooh ho I'd love to be Barbara for a month - but with a bit of Margo's decadence thrown in for good measure!

Tea! Tea! I was supposed to be talking about Afternoon tea! Goodness me I'd make a terrible Restaurant Critic! Please don't anyone agree with that!!!

I can't claim to have made 90% of what's in the pictures below, with the exception of about a dozen of the larger amateurly (is that a word?) piped pink cupcakes.

So, as this is already too long, I'll let the pictures speak for me apart from a few well-chosen-not-the-first-that-came-into-my-head-at-all-words...

Scrumptious - Delightful - British - downright gorgeous!

Not my highest quality photos I'm afraid - i think my camera is dying - Good news for Giles Coren; bad news for me...

ONE more thing - a person called Luigi has made my week! he is my first Follower and the first person to comment on my Blog! I am so utterly thrilled!

Thanks Luigi!!

x

Junk

A wall has been hit.

I'm currently a bit too skint and a little too social to cook anything this week.
So, what do i write about. Shall i do what every other blogger out there is doing and blog about Sir Terry Leahy? How great he was for Tescos and how terrible he was for the general populations' expanding waistlines... it's all a little dull. What's more, I can't put any pictures in without offending fat people.

Wouldn't it be great if i could create a topic that bloggers would latch on to, but sadly my readership of around 5 people (though they are 5 very important people!!!!!) doesn't really count for a huge voice in blog land!

I think I'm going to have to write about the burnt jam and the floppy profiteroles.... I've been putting it off for too long!

Watch this space!

x

Scotch Egg Pasties

Another summer weekend, passed by in a haze of cookery, faffing and generally quite a bit of jolly good old-fashioned fun!

My fun, of course, involved the cooking side of things. I have been wanting to know how to make Scotch Eggs for a while and actually only discovered quite recently (to my horror) that they are deep fried!! So, when i saw the 'Scotch Egg Pasties' on the Good Food website - i obviously had to try them out.

OK, so a Scotch Egg is never going to be healthy, but these are a helluva lot healthier and actually they look a lot more appetising than the bright orange balls you get when you've deep fried (or bought) normal Scotch Eggs...

So, technically i can't take the credit for this recipe, but i did add some extra bits and bobs that weren't on the recipe, mainly due to the fact that i was only vaguely following it in the first place.

So, you will need (hang on - confession - I didn't make the pastry, the British Summer is too short to be making pastry)

1 pack short crust pastry

1 great big sausage of sausage meat

5 spring onions (finely chopped)

2 peppadew peppers finely chopped

Large slosh of Worcestershire Sauce

Lots of salt and pepper

About 4 sprigs of Thyme (finely chopped)

7 medium eggs (JUST hard boiled)

• Put the Eggs in a pan of water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
• Drain, refill the pan with cold water and leave the eggs to cool in that while you get on with the sausage.
• Heat oven to 200 degrees (if you haven't got a fan then 220 degrees).
• Squeeze all the sausage meat out of the packet into a large bowl.
• Add the thyme, spring onions, peppadew pepper, Worcestershire Sauce and the seasoning.
• Squidge it all together, ideally with a hand, but i used a fork then a spatula to get it all off the sides of the bowl. Check it for seasoning - NOT by EATING it - but by smelling it, you'll just get this mouth-watering sausagey smell that will make you so impatient to hurry up and cook these flippin' things.
• Roll out the pastry and cut round disks, measuring about the diameter of a normal cereal bowl
• Carefully peel the eggs.
• Place the pastry disks on a floured surface
• Dollop and spread (almost to the edges) round a ball, ummm, bigger than a golf ball smaller than a tennis ball of the sausage mix. place an egg in the middle of each disk.
• 
• Wet the edges of each disk and gently pull the edges together and you will see a pasty shape being formed.
• 'Crimp' the edges. I'm not sure if that is a technical term but it involves putting the thumb and forefinger together on one hand and using the knuckle from the forefinger on the other hand.
• Place the thumb and forefinger together hand on one side of the stuck together edges and the knuckle on the other side and gently push together forming a relaxed v shape. continue this all the way round and it will look a bit like this.


• 
• Chill the pasties for 30 (ish) mins, brush over an egg wash and bake for 25 - 30 minutes

Now i really must say, that these smelt divine while cooking, were almost impossible to keep until the picnic (a mere 2 hours after cooking) and tasted utterly gorgeous hot and cold!!

And here they are:

Cecconi's Restaurant

Thankfully can say, hand on heart, that i did not take any photos of any of the food that was put in front of me. Following Giles Coren's musings in the Saturday Times today - it's not something i will try to do in the future either.

I have, only once mind you, taken photos of my food and that was at Bar Boulud about 3 weeks ago. I first scoped out the area surrounding my 'table' to check there were no staff in the immediate vicinity to look down on me and judge my food blogger status, i then got my friend to use his IPhone as there is no flash on that. I came out with two terrible photos; one of the Boulud Signature Burger, which looks dull and greasy even though it was nothing of the kind, and one of the halibut which looked even worse (not least due to the fact that I'd forgotten about my plan to take a photo and had ruined the arty-farty plate by taking a chunk out of the fish with a smear of the puree for my first mouthful!) As i have mentioned in a previous blog, the whole thing was fantastic, but if i was one of the MILLION people (hmmmmm, not quite there yet) reading this blog basing my opinion on photos subtly taken I would think twice about going to Bar Boulud and would consequently miss out of a splendid evening beautiful food, actually i think i need another word there, beautiful and hearty food!

I might mention that the likelihood of not being judged by any staff for my poor photo effort is minimal due to the fact that i was at the bar area eating my food, with no fewer than 8 chefs right in front of me.....

Back to Cecconi's....

It's been a while since i went to a restaurant that reminds me of my old days with D and D London, but Cecconi's is just that. A member of the Soho House Group, but with all the characteristics of a Conran Group (D and D London these days) restaurant.

Walking into the dimly lit restaurant i was hit by a wall of chatter indicating i was lucky my host was able to get a table as the place was absolutely full up.

Fantastic! a large glass of Pinot Grigio was placed in front of my seconds after i had ordered it - there is nothing worse than having to wait an age for your drink, particularly when it's Thursday evening, your dog tired and flustered because you were late arriving for dinner...

The menu is good simple Italian cuisine - need i say more.

After the initial lightening service we struggled to find a waiter to take our order, but hey, I had my glass of wine and we were having a very good catch up so it wasn't a problem.

I went for the Bresaola with Rocket and Parmesan, which arrived looking like the simple and delicious dish it turned out to be. I did have a small issue with the Rocket which knocked my little socks off - it was pungent stuff and a wee bit too much for me. My friend's starter of Prosciutto San Daniele with Gnocco Fritto was utterly divine. For the great unwashed like me a Gnocco Fritto is a fried dumpling looking rather like this:

Our main courses arrived pretty swiftly after the starters had been removed, I went for the Pan-fried Halibut with Asparagus and Salsa Verde. I don't really have a huge amount to say about it as it was so so good. The halibut gracefully fell apart at the lightest touch of my knife revealing the glistening flavourful slivers of flesh, just perfect. The asparagus was well cooked and the salsa verde was a n accompaniment that, until now i would have thought would over power the fish, but no; they are are perfect together.

I didn't try the Papardelle with Wild Boar Ragu but i was reliably informed that it was very very good, rich, but very good!

What a great place this was - the food was really good and not nearly as expensive as i had thought it was going to be, that said, I didn't pay so i needn't really worry about it!

Go to this restaurant - it's worth it.

Daddies - take your daughters after you've been for a fitting on Savill Row, they'll love it!

If you've got all the way to the bottom of this marathon entry - well done! I'm impressed, mainly by the fact that my excellent writing kept you reading to the end!

Lunch - Glorious lunch!

The burnt jam and the floppy profiteroles will have to wait!

I had such a good lunch yesterday, made by my own fair hand that i had to write about it.
The main reason for me wanting to write about it and do a recipe is due to the fact that i did it all while half awake - ie 7am, following a not particularly good night's sleep!

Here's what it looked like (and yes I did feel rather foolish taking pics of my packed lunch at my desk!)

Here's how to do it:

handful of Basmati rice (or use Brown Rice if you prefer - it just takes longer to cook)

1 chick stock cube

2 or 3 rashers of smoked bacon

1 bashed garlic clove

1 shallot

'Some'
Cucumber

tomato

Sun dried tomatoes (if you happen to have them)

lettuce

celery

Wake up grudgingly to the alarm. Snooze x 3

Flop into the kitchen, fill kettle and switch it on.

Shower

Put rice & crumbled stock cube into saucepan. Pour in boiling water plop in the bashed clove of garlic. I bashed mine by putting it under a fork and leaning on it, this ensured that A) it was still intact to pick out once the rice was done and B) my hands didn't smell of garlic for the next few hours.

Dice the shallot and add it to the boiling rice about halfway through the cooking. Chop up the bacon and add to the water as well.

It might seem odd to do this but the bacon doesn't loose its taste and you're not creating any extra washing up by frying it.

While the rice, shallot and bacon are finishing; chop up the cucumber, tomato, lettuce and celery.

Drain the rice and sloosh cold water quickly through the sieve to cool it down.

While it's draining, line the bottom of a Tupperware box with the lettuce. mix together the rice with the chopped tomato and the cucumber and tip it on to the lettuce. Sprinkle the celery on the top of the whole lot.

And there you have a fantastically yummy salad that is pretty healthy.

I was very surprised at how yummy it was actually...

Strawberry Blooming Jam!!

The phrase goes; 'Make hay while the sun shines' or something like that anyway! I can confirm it is definitely not; ' Make jam while the sun shines'. It is hot and sticky - literally, and when it goes wrong it's effing annoying!

I got home after a fab bank holiday weekend full of la joie de vivre ready and raring to get to work in the kitchen on strawberry jam!

You will need:

500g Caster Sugar with added pectin (setting agent)

1kg English Strawberries

Half a lemon

Hull and halve the Strawberries, then plonk them into a heavy bottomed saucepan (I used my Le Cruset coquette).

Add the sugar

Then with a potato masher squidge the strawberries until they are half and half mush to strawberry halves.

Put onto the hob on a medium heat and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 - 8 minutes. This really is all it needs and not the 25 minutes i boiled it for!

Skim off any white foam from the top and leave to cool for a little while.

Pour into jam jars, put a wax circle between the jam and the lid and label.

It's best to keep this in the fridge, there aren't too many jars that will take up too much space.

And there we have my jam!

There is a reason for the massively overexposed picture - it's so it doesn't show the black bits in the jar.

I burnt my jam!

I sterilised 5 jars and got 2, not even 2 but one and a half jars of slightly bitter Strawberry Jam!!!!

not happy!

Still on the veggie stuff (ish)

i was going to write this entry about a fishy dinner i had a couple of nights ago, but it went so horribly wrong that I'm not going to bore you with it!

See Pic below....I didn't really like it, the cheffy attempt with the minted pea puree was a bit of a waste and i didn't do a sauce so it was dry!

Must do better next time!

I've totally lost track of where i was in the alphabet, somewhere around H I think.

Got Profiteroles on the menu next week, expect a step by step guide on how to make choux pastry! It's not as scary as it looks or as everyone thinks it is!

Bank Holiday is a calling, what will be on the menu.........

Oooh, it's all Greek to me!

Funnily enough, G is for Greek!

It's National Vegetarian Week and tonight i cooked a recipe that I've been wanting to try for ages! I'm afraid i can't take the credit for this one, it's a Good Food website special and it looks fab!

Ingredients

A large bag of young leaf spinach

10 sun dried tomatoes
100g Feta Cheese

Finely sliced shallot

2 eggs

Half a role of filo pastry

Pre-heat the oven to 180 Degrees C

In a saucepan, wilt the spinach (I added some rocket and watercress as i had it lying around in the fridge) drain in a sieve and leave to cool. Then squeeze out all the water from the greens.

Chop up the feta, the sun-dried tomatoes, shallot and green bits and put the lot into a bowl.

Add the two eggs and mix the lot together.

Put the lot to one side.

Unroll the filo pastry Use 3 (or 5 in my case) and put them on the base of the cake tin, one by one. In between each layer of pastry drizzle some of the oil from the sun dried tomatoes.

Dollop the spinach, feta etc mixture on to the centre of the pastry base and then (if you're using a deep cake tin like me) put the base into the cake ring.

Add a couple more sheets of the filo pastry on the top to close the pie. If you want, drizzle a little more sun dried tomato oil.

Put into the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until golden brown.

Serve immediately.
I'm so impressed with how good it looks....

What veggie trial shall i do tomorrow!

xx

Rocketeer Picture

I should mention that the picture of the hot guy with the pestle and mortar is my gorgeous boyfriend, but, slightly more to the point on this occasion - the T-Shirt saying Rocketeer is the name of a FANTASTIC band...

look them up on ITunes!!

BBQ Season has arrived...

What a weekend!

A fancy dinner out on Friday night, BBQ Saturday night, BBQ Sunday lunch and Scrambled eggs on toast for dinner 20 minutes ago!

I didn't take any photos of Friday's Dinner as it was at my workplace and i didn't cook it.

A full day spent wondering around other people's houses hoping to buy one and ending up not, we felt we deserved a proper BBQ!

So, it was off to Sainsbury's to purchase some good grub!

The Menu:

Sticky Chicken Drumsticks

Stilton Beef Burgers

BBQ Baked potatoes

Mayonnaise (homemade)

Salad with my Sun blushed Tomatoes (see previous Blog)

My Housemate makes the best burgers in the whole world.

1 Onion

handful of Rocket

Medium sized wedge of Stilton

Minced Beef

2 Eggs

Put the beef, chunks of Stilton, onion and some seasoning into a bowl.

Then Add the eggs and scrunch the whole mixture together until it looks like one big burger. Break into burger size chunks and pat flat.

Set to one side and put on the BBQ when you're ready for them...

Not a great picture but we were so excited to eat them that i didn't get much of a chance to take photos!!!

Sticky Chicken Drumsticks

2 tbsp Soy Sauce

2 tbsp Runny Honey

1 tsp wholegrain Mustard

1 tsp tomato puree

Mix all the ingredients together. Slash the chicken drumsticks and smother them in the marinade. leave to quietly talk to each other and get to now each other (marinade).

More tomorrow.........

Must sleep!!

Keep Cooking

Bx

No Food No Fun

F is fo Frisee Endive

In other words - Salad!

There is a lot to be said for salad; my dictionary usually revolves around phrases like; rabbit food, green stuff and 'ooh let's have something healthy'.

Today I headed out for a lunch that was kindly being bought for me by a friend. We went to Cafe Rouge. I sat down all excited and looking forward to ordering a Croque Monsieur or Madame with Chips and some creamy cheesy mushrooms.

But, i decided to go for the Salade Paysanne and all it's lovely unhealthiness!!

All i need ot say is - it was so good!

More later.....

Not very healthy, but......

Pesto Stuffed Chicken with Mash.

Chicken Breast
2 tsp Pesto
2 tbsp Mascarpone
A few drops of Lemon Joice
Grindy Pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees C
Cut a slit into the chicken breast, so it looks like there is a pocket to put the lovely stuffing into.
Wash your hands.... I know, I know, but raw chicken and all that!
Mix together the remaining ingredients and put a large dollop into the pocket.
Gently pull the pocket as closed as you can without breaking the skin.
Pop into an ovenproof dish and put into the oven for about 25 minutes

Serve with mashed potato and some wilted spinach.

E is for enjoyment

Don't worry, I'm not going to go all Sophie Dahl and work my way through the emotions one can cure / bring out through food!

But i am going to waffle about how much I'm enjoying writing this blog. I am pretty sure I'm the only person reading all my entries again and again but never mind - one day I'll work out Twitter so that others might read this... but until then I'm loving all this cooking.

Look at all my photos! I've made all these things and more in the last 10 days!