Scallop & Bacon roll at Billingsgate Fish Market

Imagine for a moment that it’s a Thursday. You set your alarm clock for 3.55am, wake the others at 4am, get into the car at 4.10am, and collect a friend at 4.15am.

Pan-fried turbot with samphire and capers

A flat fish, pan-fried in brown butter, with a squeeze of lemon, capers and shallots, cannot be bettered. This is a way of cooking – an inspiration – rather than a stringent recipe.

Puff the magic pastry

A discourse on pastry, learnings about baking powder, and another week-another challenge for #shortandtweet

Humph the Middle White Pig arrives

I like to imagine that in life he was called Humphrey.  We only have half a Humphrey, so I’ve named him Humph.  I look forward to getting to know him better.

Tongue in a bun

I last saw tongue on a plate at a hotel by the seaside in 1987.  Following the starter of a single maraschino cherry atop a slice of gala melon, the tongue was served grey, dulled, and with a full complement of taste buds intact on the upper surface.  I didn’t try it.

Rye apple cake; a Twitter Challenge

Note, this post is probably only of interest to those involved in #shortandtweet on twitter

For the last 14 days, I have been sourcing flours, mixing, kneading, baking – and most importantly – eating, all thanks to  Dan Lepard’s wonderful book The Handmade Loaf.  Never before have I enjoyed bread so much.  However, that is another story…

On how to not eat

 

Last Sunday a Michelin starred London chef posted a photo of his breakfast on twitter: a plain one-egg omelette, half a slice of dry toast, and a dollop of tomato ketchup on the side.  Of course, responses to the tweet included photos of larger breakfasts had by others, but there was not one word of outrage or even surprise.

A misty moisty morning wine

To win a bet, I opened a bottle of Vincent Carême Vouvray Spring 2007 with breakfast.

Fireside warmth in a white. Honey, walnuts, cooked apples. Dry. Incredible length; encouraging reminiscences. I would call it Autumn, not Spring. At this time of year it is easy to imagine the chilly vineyards looking over the Loire river, as it drinks its way along the valley.

A dry chenin blanc from Vouvray not so frequently seen, but definitely worth seeking out. Sixteen bottles remain. Knock on the front door quick.

£9.75 a bottle from Lea & Sandeman, though I suspect they have none left.

A Grand Day Out: Decanter Fine Wine Encounter

The first Decanter Fine wine event I attended was from the New World in May 2011.  Friends were bored for weeks with tales of divine excess, and the frightening lack of spittoons.

How to eat a boiled crab*

Choose your newspaper carefully. Then take a boiled crab and turn it over. Admire how its legs are not so different to those of the human (in the photo, obviously).