

If you're a dedicated cook ...
"I’ll admit it's a labour of love, but so very worth it." Ixta Belfrage This will be a quickie I think. It's inspired by this recipe for A curry leaf, cherry, coconut & hibiscus crudo on a red millet tostada which turned up in Ixta Belfrage's substack newsletter. (I think the link will work - if it doesn't just do a Google search.) It arrived in my email this morning. As you know I am a huge fan of Ixta. Her food is truly exciting, and generally only a tiny bit difficu
3 days ago


Old-fashioned canapés - first recipe
"If you don't have the time to prepare something good then just serve some olives or nuts." Beverley Sutherland Smith Well you would perhaps wouldn't you? - or just open a bag of crisps because canapés - the retro kind - often take a lot of work. This is a photograph of some of Beverley Sutherland Smith's canapés, styled in a very old-fashioned way on a silver platter with the bottle of champagne in a silver bucket. The kind of thing you would get served at a fancy cocktai
Oct 30


From the street to Michelin stars - first recipe
"there is no such thing as ‘traditional, authentic cuisine’ anywhere. It’s constantly evolving." Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn - Michelin star chef Bangkok Before I return yesterday's book to a shelf somewhere I thought I should do a first recipe thing on it, as it will be placed on a shelf that has already been given the first recipe treatment. I also decided retrospectively, having researched a bit, to cover two different dishes here - the first and third recipes in the book.
Oct 17


Pinot gris or grigio?
"And why do Aussie winemakers not just call it ‘grey pinot’? Well, that one’s obvious – ‘a glass of the grey stuff’ doesn’t sound quite...
Jul 26


Recent eating - from the thrown together to the sublime
They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, and I guess that's what I have been trying to do for almost 60 years now. So I...
Jun 21


I forgot the Faroes
“The Faroese food, especially the fermented food, is something you keep to yourself, You eat it, but only if no one is looking.” Poul...
Nov 18, 2024


A decor book
"It's not just what's inside them that counts – books are also the underrated heroes of home décor." Bed Threads This is my next Lucky...
Jul 3, 2024


Stephanie's idea of 'simple'
"A lot is said about simplicity in modern, Fench-influenced cookery. I find it very difficult to find a suitable definition of a simple...
Jun 28, 2024


Luxury
Luxury: "great comfort, especially as provided by expensive and beautiful things "something that gives you a lot of pleasure but cannot...
Jun 16, 2024


Tablecloths
"A kid under a tablecloth insists he’s a ghost. A table underneath a tablecloth is, I guess, like the rest of us, only pretending to be...
May 16, 2024


Detail
"Details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail." Leonardo da Vinci A week or so ago now we went to the current Lume exhibition...
Apr 28, 2024


A guru in retro fancy mode
"This is a book for the discerning host or hostess who takes pride in serving attractive, memorable meals with that extra 'touch of...
Aug 29, 2023


French in Fitzroy
"the things Melbourne and France value in dining: character, charm, classics executed well and an atmosphere-charged place to take it all...
Jul 26, 2023


White hot cool and rabbit stew
"A story is way more important than a recipe. A recipe can confuse you but a story ... a story can inspire you." Marco Pierre White...
Jun 26, 2023


Watermelon radish - tastes of Cape Schanck
"We each make our memories in different ways. But it has to be worth it." Jay Rayner Yesterday I felt far too tired and mildly hungover...
Jun 23, 2023


A moment in time for Heston ... and me
"I think of my life as a series of moments and I've found that the great moments often don't have too much to them. They're not huge,...
Jan 26, 2023


Baubles
"Bauble - a showy but worthless or useless thing" Collins English Dictionary In our house it's sort of Christmas Eve today because...
Dec 23, 2022


From Aqua Pazza to Fish poached in charred tomato broth
"There are many different variations of this sauce, from light broths, to thick tomato based sauces, which have been found on all types...
Jul 23, 2022


Precious - in what sense?
A Simple Dish of Potato Cooked in the Earth In Which It Was Grown The photograph is of a dish devised by Ben Shewry in his Attica...
Jul 22, 2022


A street library offering and a family saga
"Of course, you’re paying for the view at Watson’s Bay. And if you’re in a retro frame of mind, it might be just what you’re looking for."...
Apr 12, 2022

