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• An early Christmas present
  on Dec 8, 2010
  An early Christmas present from Celia at Purple Podded Peas. The most cheering sort of present ... continue reading, at my new blog, An English Kitchen...
• Creamy Puy lentils
  on Oct 13, 2010 in cheap vegetables legumes easy vegetarian
  Luxurious way with lentils. We ate this with chunks of squash roasted with herbs and orange zest. Horatio said it would have been nicer with chicken, but he's a well-known lentil hater.200g Puy lentils1 finely chopped onion1 clove finely chopped garl...
• Pastry, and a frangipane filling
  on Sep 15, 2010 in pudding baking tarts
  Because my blog is my kitchen notebook, and because I keep having to look up these recipes ... and because, if you think you can't make pastry, these just may transform your baking (they have mine).1. Shortcrust pastry200g STRONG flour100g unsalted b...
• Top 25 cookbooks
  on Aug 22, 2010 in recipe books books cookbooks lists
  Last week, the Observer Food Magazine published its top 50 cookbooks. This week, Joanna's Food presents its own top 25. Very difficult indeed to choose - in the final cut, I lost Elisabeth Luard, Michael Smith, Sarah Raven, Claire Macdonald of Macdon...
• Eliza Acton's redcurrant jelly
  on Jul 30, 2010 in fruit jelly preserves
  The quickest and best way to make redcurrant jelly, so that the flavour of the fruit shines through. Can't believe I've never posted this before, but I couldn't find it when a friend asked for the recipe. It comes via Jane Grigson, from her Fruit Boo...
• Food photography at the Irish Embassy with Alastair Hendy
  on Jul 26, 2010 in Irish food issues seafood photographs
  Lovely party in the beautiful ballroom at the Irish Embassy in London, a house which used to belong to the Guinness family ...A group of bloggers was given a masterclass in food styling and photography by Alastair Hendy - author, chef, photographer,...
• An English Kitchen
  on Apr 22, 2010 in food for free salad An English Kitchen flowers
  I've started a new blog, An English Kitchen. I'm not abandoning this one, I'll be using it exclusively for recipes. An English Kitchen will cover all the stuff that goes on here in the heart of our home. Today, there's baking, and I've been eating pr...
• Tulips in my study
  on Apr 19, 2010 in tulips flowers
  I often think I like them better when they're half dead ...
• Pastry ... and a watercress tart
  on Apr 5, 2010 in baking pastry easy Easter
  This weekend I have cracked pastry-making. Perfect every time (4x). And, of course, it's not rocket science; but it's satisfying, all the same, to be able to write it down.Put into a processor bowl:200g strong* white flour100g cubed butter, preferabl...
• Blue Orpingtons
  on Apr 2, 2010 in hens in the garden eggs Orpingtons hens garden
  My beautiful blue Orpington hens laid their first eggs this week, just in time to help with the Easter baking. I bought them in October, a sustained moment of extravagence at the end-of-season auction - the first lot went for slightly more than I wan...
• A new take on flapjacks
  on Apr 1, 2010 in cheap baking seeds cookbooks easy treats
  I've always had trouble making flapjacks that don't flake into a hopeless mess of crumbs, never quite managing to achieve the chewy texture that make flapjacks so appealing. So I wasn't at all surprised when this recipe didn't work first time. I say...
• Peas and beans in the garden
  on Mar 29, 2010 in pulses flowers gardening garden
  I've just planted out some peas and beans. Sadly, the autumn-sown peas and beans didn't survive the winter, mainly because I was too idle to cover them through the harsh weather. The rotting remnants of the plants stayed in the ground just outside th...
• Garlic paste
  on Mar 27, 2010 in quick cooking ahead vegetables garlic convenience food preserves
  Here's a worthwhile time-saver: garlic paste on hand in the fridge, no need to fry off before adding to - well, anything you're cooking, really. You just need a food mill, unless you've got strong arms and a sieve. Keeps well.8 heads of garlic2-3 bay...
• Bread - a new take on Jim Lahey's loaf
  on Mar 26, 2010 in #realbread baking bread bread machine leftovers
  I've been baking a lot of bread recently. I haven't bought a loaf for a couple of years, and these days my homebaked bread feeds not only the family but also the chickens and the dog. I use a bread machine for days when there isn't the time or inclin...
• Quick real bread - a new take on Jim Lahey's loaf 2
  on Mar 26, 2010 in quick #realbread baking bread
  Karen at Cornflower baked the original Jim Lahey bread today ... it's a two-day process that makes good bread. If you need bread on the table NOW, just bake your usual dough in a covered Le Creuset pot (what Americans call a Dutch oven) in a hot oven...
• Heinz 57 varieties ....
  on Feb 10, 2010 in beans processed food convenience food
  ... in case you've ever wondered about the other 56Thanks to Posterous...
• Greater spotted woodpecker
  on Feb 9, 2010 in garden
  All through the winter I've seen this greater spotted woodpecker feeding in the garden. In the last few days he's been boring holes in one of the finials Lucius made for the rose pergola. It looks like a toy our children used to have years ago.Photog...
• Oven-baked polenta
  on Feb 9, 2010 in cheap grains easy hens
  This wonderfully easy new-to-me way to cook polenta comes from Paula Wolfert's terrific new book, Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking. There's none of that strewing cornmeal onto fiercely boiling water, followed by constant stirring. You just mix cornmeal...
• Raymond Blanc's tomato essence
  on Feb 6, 2010 in vegetables tomatoes easy treats
  Five years ago, when I started this blog, I posted two recipes on the first day. One of them has reappeared in the Telegraph, which is where I think I got it in the first place. It is Raymond Blanc's truly wonderful tomato essence ... glamour without...
• Tarte tatin
  on Feb 5, 2010 in fruit pudding baking treats
  I made Tarte tatin for pudding the other night; it's an indulgence, but an enjoyable one - Lucius said it was the best thing I'd ever cooked, and he was still talking about it the next day. It's very rich, so not for everyday .... but it's perfect fo...