Mar 19, 2020 | Sides & Sauces
Sweet and Smoky Beans You can’t buy beans like these, they’re in a league of their own, beyond compare. They’re nothing like ‘baked beans’ either, for a start they’re not baked, instead these are rich, dark, smoky and sticky; beans like these should take...
Sep 24, 2019 | Risotto, Sides & Sauces
Roast Butternut Squash Risotto Butternut squash makes a sublime risotto; roasted until soft and sticky its flesh makes a silky-smooth basis for an autumnal side dish. This is a risotto to serve as an accompaniment to something protein-y; chicken or mushroom...
Apr 6, 2019 | Puddings & Desserts, Sides & Sauces
Honeycomb Honeycomb is great to make with kids but it is potentially a recipe for disaster and besides, they do tend to have a habit of eating it. I’ve been making it recently to tart up dairy free desserts, where usually I might use cream or chocolate....
Jan 29, 2019 | Main Course, Sides & Sauces
Roast Vegetable Couscous Couscous is what we have in our house when we don’t have the time or the inclination to cook. You can dress it up, dress down, side dish, main dish, hot or cold; it’s quicker than pasta and is equally as accepting of just about anything...
Nov 16, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
Braised red cabbage is fairly commonplace these days, especially popular at Christmas or any time confit duck makes an appearance it seems. Well this is the white version. Similar in preparation to its red counterpart, it has an air of sauerkraut about it, and...
Nov 14, 2018 | Seafood & Fish, Sides & Sauces
This is a special occasion sauce; rich and indulgent, it tastes like the sea smells; like the first lung full of holiday-by-the-sea air. I serve this poured over a hunk of pristine white cod along with a smattering of the mussels… a few still in their shells. By...
Nov 8, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
This is an unusual side dish, one to bear in mind for the weekend I would suggest rather than knocking up a quick batch for the kids’ tea. It works brilliantly as an accompaniment to barbecued meat and also roast chicken; it’s both savoury and naturally sweet at the...
Nov 5, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
The world doesn’t need another recipe for tabbouleh, and certainly not from me. But when it comes to deciding what to blog next, and I flick through the Rolodex of my mind of all the people I know who follow my recipes, I think about enthusing those for whom time...
Nov 5, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
In a word, yes. However, it’s not as straightforward as just comparing the cost, so in order to answer the question you first need to decide how much you enjoy the process of cooking and where you draw the line; where it stops being pleasurable and becomes a hassle....
Oct 29, 2018 | Sides & Sauces, Starters & Small Plates
This is one of those alluring recipes with few ingredients that should be filed under ‘food alchemy’; the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Quite. It’s made in pretty much the same way as hummous, but with soft, smoky aubergine replacing the chickpeas...
Oct 18, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
I make these pickled grapes to serve alongside the cheese course when I’m showing off entertaining; they’re a halfway house between a pickle and fruit and they look fab. A dollop of pickle isn’t always appropriate after dinner, and likewise a hunk of apple is better...
Oct 4, 2018 | Sides & Sauces
This is a cracking little recipe to have in your repertoire; it can be a sauce, a salsa, a dressing or a dip. It works as well with fish as it does with chicken, lamb or cheese. Easily adaptable it could be South American as much as it could be Creole or Provençal....
Aug 30, 2018 | Sides & Sauces, Starters & Small Plates
This is my favourite way to eat lentils; the green Puy version being the lentil of choice. I’ve tried them on the menu several times over the years, usually as a starter served with Parma ham and eggs, ham hock or black pudding even, but it’s not exactly a...
