Freekeh with Roasted Butternut Squash, Tomato & Feta

January 13, 2015.Reading time 6 minutes.

My new love affair with freekeh led me to cook with it again this evening. I was completely blown away by its fantastic flavour when I cooked it with courgettes and herbs last week and that in turn led me to go and buy some more! While freekeh can be an alternative for rice, bulgur […]

Roast Chicken with Sumac & Pomegranate and Garlic Potato Puree

January 12, 2015.Reading time 7 minutes.

If I’m on my own on Sunday, I often roast a chicken portion. I buy the chickens in the local farmers’ market and joint them and it’s easy to pull one out of the freezer early in the day to defrost. I seem to rarely roast a whole chicken these days; even if I have […]

A Sunday Morning Walk in Kew Gardens – January

January 11, 2015.Reading time 6 minutes.

Sometimes wishes come true. I have a strong memory of driving along the river into Richmond when I was about 20 to visit my friend Tina who was at college here. It’s such a beautiful area of London that I remember having a deep wish that one day I could live here. Actually coming to […]

Grilled Salmon with Watercress Sauce

January 10, 2015.Reading time 7 minutes.

I try to eat fish a couple of times a week, not just for health benefits but because I love it, and some fish on my supper menu was definitely overdue. I’ve talked before about the wonderful fishmonger, Sandys, in Twickenham high street and I stopped by there this morning and bought a nice fillet […]

Freekeh with Courgettes & Fresh Herbs

January 7, 2015.Reading time 8 minutes.

I never really got my head round quinoa and then the ‘healthy grain excitement’ moved on to freekeh and this ancient Middle Eastern grain became a favourite of the foodie world last year, 2014. Ottolenghi was ahead of the pack, of course, writing about it in his book Plenty in 2010. The excitement remains strong and freekeh […]

Spiced Lamb Chops, Saffron Pilaf & Baked Aubergine with Mint Yoghurt

January 5, 2015.Reading time 9 minutes.

I hadn’t planned to cook. Well, not cook from scratch. I had to work over the weekend; a job I’d taken on just before Christmas turned out to be much longer than expected so I had no choice. Taking a portion of the turkey curry I had in the freezer seemed like an easy option […]

A Single Person’s Guide to Entertaining

January 4, 2015.Reading time 16 minutes.

I’ve been single for over 11 years now. It’s taught me a lot about life, love, friendship, running a home on my own, having to remove the cat’s offerings of dead mice and birds on the kitchen floor myself … and travelling, dining out and entertaining on my own. Life isn’t always what we think we […]

A French 12th Night: Galette des Rois

January 3, 2015.Reading time 11 minutes.

OK. Well let me admit right from the start – it was actually a 9th night cake! When I bought this yesterday from Paul Bakery in Richmond and posted a photo to Twitter saying it was for ‘tonight’s family supper’, someone replied, but isn’t it meant to be for Epiphany? Frankly, I could easily eat […]

Moroni Portraits, Quiet Soho & Lunch at The Palomar

December 29, 2014.Reading time 11 minutes.

The temperature has dropped to freezing in London but a sunny day was forecast so, still in holiday mode, I decided to have a ‘day out’ in central London. I’d heard great things about the Giovanni Battista Moroni exhibition at The Royal Academy of Arts and since I’m a Friend and can therefore visit for […]

Fattoush

December 28, 2014.Reading time 6 minutes.

It’s hard to avoid at least a little overindulgence at Christmas and as the festivities die down, I can’t help but crave for something fresh and healthy. Thus, I decided to make a fattoush at lunchtime today. I’ve made a variation of this Syrian/Lebanese bread salad from Moro East many times with aubergine and pomegranate […]