

Fruit fools
"Savlon for the tongue" Nigel Slater That's a somewhat weird, maybe even repulsive or at least unattractive way of describing, what to me and many other English people is the most sublime of desserts - particularly the gooseberry version. ‘Soft, pale, creamy, untroubled, the English fruit fool is the most frail and insubstantial of English summer dishes’ says Elizabeth David and even Claudia Roden - doyenne of Middle-Eastern food describes them as "one of the delights of s
Jan 3


A kataifi template or two
"a bit like shredded wheat, only 10 times tastier" Yotam Ottolenghi Today's Guardian Feast newsletter featured this Kataifi pie with feta. tomatoes and warm oregano honey from Alice Zaslavsky. I was a bit taken by it, thinking that this might be the next thing I will make for a vegetarian. I mean it looks wonderful, has all the trendy things like the drizzled honey thing, pistachios and feta and all things I like inside - tomatoes, cheese, onions. And no chilli. But se
Nov 28, 2025


Bagatelles
Bagatelle: "a thing regarded as too unimportant or easy to be worth much consideration." Oxford Languages So yes 'bagatelle' is a French word for a trifle: "The French word bagatelle , from the Italian word bagatella , means a trifle or little decorative nothing." Wikipedia And this is an oddments post - full of trifles. A bagatelle trifle is also a specific French Canadian dish of which the magazine Saveur says "The typical bagatelle in La Beauce is a child's delight o
Oct 27, 2025


An earl, history and recipes
"Tea, Earl Grey, hot" Picard/StarTrek Well the above quote has nothing to do with this post really, but not being a Star Trek follower I...
Jul 23, 2025


Sugarless desserts
My sister and her husband have regular lunch dates with friends. They take it in turns. However, the male half of the other couple is a...
Jul 21, 2025


The nostalgia of mundane meals
"Mundane nostalgia refers to the sentimental longing for ordinary, everyday aspects of the past." Google AI The title of this particular...
Jun 16, 2025


French toast
"French toast tackles pancakes head on and smashes it." Claire Thomson Yesterday's New York Times recipe offering - no picture - was...
Feb 9, 2025


A dessert problem - vegan
First problem - what picture to choose to attract you to read? I shall be mostly talking about vegan desserts and the difficulties...
Nov 12, 2024


Apple dumplings
"The crust, unhindered by a heavy filling, expands and flakes like puff pastry. When you cut into each, a trickle of buttery brown sugar...
Nov 12, 2024


Party time in the wilds of Nillumbik
Nillumbik is our local council area. It calls itself 'The Green Wedge Shire' - because over 90% of it's 431.94 square kilometres of land...
Oct 21, 2024


Who was Betty and was she brown?
Or was she a blondie? Or even a teapot? Sometimes I worry that my brain is not connecting all its bits and pieces properly and today's...
Aug 11, 2024


Why don't I cook pancakes more often?
"Its surface is the softest canary yellow evenly dimpled with pale gold. Its edges are as frilly as old French lace. It is so delicate...
Aug 2, 2024


Cobblers - anything goes comfort food
"The whole point of cobbler is that it's easy" Daniel Gritzer/Serious Eats It's a miserable kind of day - the sort of day when your...
Jun 8, 2024


Spotted Dick
"as British as it gets" Jamie Oliver Again I am starting with Delia, because I came across this as I trawled through the third volume...
May 4, 2024


Amuse-bouches
Amuse-bouches: "a bite-sized hors d’oeuvre sent out at the whim of the chef, to whet diners’ appetites (or “amuse the mouth”) for the...
May 2, 2024


Old fashioned magic - possets
"Posset is persistent. It’s patient. It seems archaic and impossible, but it’s also just a boozy custard which is very easy to...
Apr 27, 2024


Zabaglione, Sabayon, Delia ...
"a fragile whip of cream contained in a little glass, concealing within its innocent white froth a powerful alcoholic punch." Elizabeth...
Apr 19, 2024


Fermented herring to taco Fridays - Sweden
"The backbone of Nordic cuisine comes from dealing with challenges" Rachel Khoo Back to my foodie tour around the world with the third...
Apr 7, 2024


"A gentle hum of happiness" Dessert
"a dessert must feel familiar, yet somehow improved." Yotam Ottolenghi Another day, another quote, this time from Yotam Ottolenghi - yes...
Mar 15, 2024


Iles flottantes
“a French take on what the English would describe as ‘a nursery pudding’”. We’re reared on suet dumplings and steaming semolina, while...
Feb 5, 2024

