I adore Balvenie and I especially adore the signature edition. Unfortunately this is the last large dram from the bottle I got on my birthday.
On Saturday I found myself standing in the co-op staring blankly at a wall of ready-made sandwiches contemplating lunch. I eat a lot of ready-made sandwiches – mostly during the working week – and they’re almost universally disappointing. Faced with this sad choice again I looked around for something a little different and as I paced up and down the aisle I noticed a packet of trimmed green beans sitting in the veg section. Seeing the packet made me think of a warm salad of black pudding, apple and beans that I’d had a year ago in an Edinburgh restaurant and really enjoyed. It was just the kind of dish that would make a really quick and easy weekend lunch. Read more…
For the last few years I’ve taken over making the starter for our Christmas dinner. It helps take some of the pressure of my Mum on the day and gives me a chance to show off a bit. In the past I’ve done stuffed mushrooms, chicken pate and last year I made smoked mackerel pate. This year I’m going to make this chestnut and pancetta barley risotto. Read more…
You know a few years ago I hardly ever ate dessert. It just wasn’t something I was into. I never saw the appeal of ice cream, tarts or cooked fruit. Exceptions were made for chocolate based desserts of course. Over the last couple of years I’ve been slowly converted to the dessert cause and now its one of the main reasons I have to do so much exercise!
I absolutely adore warm apple tarts with cold vanilla ice cream. A great tarte tatin with caramelised apples and crisp pastry is a cause of much delight especially when it’s served hot with a great big lump of ice cream melting all over it. When I received a copy of Michelle Roux’s Pastry for my birthday recently this had to be the first recipe I tried. Read more…
I’m always a happy bunny when the guy from Mortlach Game appears at the farmer’s market with some rabbits. I don’t understand why we rarely see them in supermarkets and butcher shops in the UK. When we were in France in the summer the meat counter had a lovely display of rabbits, skinned and laid out front and centre of the cabinet. You never see that over here. Instead in the heart of one of the most important game regions in Scotland our local Tesco only has chicken, beef, lamb and pork. Great.
Anyway here’s yet another Stephane Reynaud inspired recipe. Read more…
