Weeks 48, 49 & 50 – yep, still no kitchen

Regular readers will have been enjoying the recent peace and quiet from my side. I haven’t been enjoying it much, but as I sit here eating my delicious Sunday menu of crumpets with marmite for breakfast, crisps and hobnobs for lunch, and re-heated chinese takeaway for dinner, I feel I need to regain some food […]

Weeks 46 & 47 – I don’t like life without a kitchen

This week, the cats have mainly been decorating us with their dusty paws: While we have been eating ready meals … … and crumpets for dinner: But by the end of week one the kitchen is … progressing! This weekend we treated ourselves to some meals out, including breakfast at a lovely local cafe: And dinner […]

Week 44 – Day of the Dead with Old El Paso

Last week I was invited to an Old El Paso cookery evening to celebrate the Day of the Dead (which is actually today, 1 November) and sample their new range of ‘Stand n Stuff’ taco kits. Actually I’d already tried them as Old El Paso had sent me a selection to try (see last week’s […]

Week 43 – countdown to a new kitchen!

Finally, finally, finally …  all the dates have come together and we have dates in the diary for the installation of our brand new kitchen. Not only are we having a new kitchen, but we’re doing some remodelling work, and having a conservatory built, so we’ll have a kitchen / diner filled with loveliness (after […]

Week 42 – making beer bread with the Fabulous Baker Brothers

Let me tell you, those baker brothers are pretty fabulous: they look good, they make delicious food, they are friendly and charming, and they seem to be genuinely nice guys. And next week both Tom and Henry Herbert are travelling east from the Cotswolds (where their family’s bakery is based) to open up a bang-on-trend Hoxton pop-up called The […]

Cacio e Pepe in parmesan baskets – new recipe

Cheese and pepper – two of Andrew’s favourite things. We discovered this simple classic Roman dish when we were on holiday there in July. I had ordered pasta carbonara from the waiter at Roma Sparita restaurant, who refused to serve me it, insisting that instead both Andrew and I try their classic Cacio e Pepe, […]

Weeks 39 & 40 – recovering from Las Vegas

I didn’t get a chance to write my meal plan last week, as I was jetting back from Las Vegas, where Andrew and I (finally) finished celebrating his 40th birthday. There wasn’t much to the meal plan anyway, except lots of fruit and vegetables to try and counteract some of the damage caused by my […]

Week 35 – lunch at Ottolenghi’s (review)

As I explained last week, due to travels to Paris for work I didn’t have much luck in the way of planning. I did indeed have pork chops, salmon and faggots, a tasty crab sandwich, plus a delicious Sunday lunch with local pals Isi and Michael earlier today. I made a speculoos cheesecake for pudding […]