Dumplings are delicious, everybody loves dumplings, the whole world over, and every culture seems to have its own take on these little morsels of yumminess. Parcels of dough, often (but not always) filled with something tasty are firm favourites everywhere. There are Japanese gyoza, Chinese wontons, Polish pierogi, Italian ravioli, Jewish matzah balls, Indian samosas, […]
Gravadlax, sometimes called Gravlax, is raw, cured salmon. It’s Scandinavian in origin, and the salmon is kept in a mixture of salt, sugar and dill for a few days before being eaten. It’s also delicious. There’s a general belief that things like this can’t be easily made at home, and so instead, people pay out a small […]
Cheese. Who doesn’t love cheese? It comes in many varieties and is fabulous on its own, or with crackers or bread. More importantly it’s the basis of so many different comfort foods. Macaroni Cheese, Cheese on toast, Grilled cheese sandwiches, Cheeseburgers, Pizza! The problem with all of these delicious comfort foods is that they all […]
I rarely buy bread these days, when we have bread, I usually make my own sourdough. The only problem with sourdough is that you have to plan ahead. Making a loaf is a two-day process, so you can’t suddenly think “I fancy a sandwich”, and then start making the bread for it – you will […]
The idea of wrapping up meat and vegetables in a dough or pastry and then cooking it is something that is found all over the world, and with very good reason – whether you call them empanadas, calzone, samosas, öçpoçmaq, panzarotti or pastels, these parcels of food are invariably tasty and satisfying. In Britain, we have our own take on […]
One of the oldest methods for preserving foods is fermentation – people have been fermenting their foodstuffs for thousands of years. Not only does it help the food keep for longer, it can make it easier to digest, and most importantly, it adds a whole wealth of interesting flavours. The list of fermented foods is […]
Apparently it is National Peanut Butter day in America today, which is a rather neat coincidence, as Anya’s next challenge is to make some. Nut butters are incredibly easy to make at home, and are vastly superior to the ones you find on supermarket shelves. Earlier this week, I made three nut butters of my […]
It was Anya who started me off on this particular tack. She had been talking to someone at a work Christmas function a few weeks ago, who happened to mention that he made his own tonic water. She later told me about this chance conversation, and I was intrigued by the possibility. I’m very fond […]
Cheese is one of the oldest foodstuffs around – as far as the historical records go, people seem to have been making it for ever. The earliest evidence we have are pieces of ceramic strainers which contain traces of dairy fats – these were found in what is now Poland and date back to around 5,500 […]
It’s been a great summer for barbecues. Plenty of nice weather, lots of opportunity for lounging around in the garden eating sausages and burgers, together with a nice beer or two. Today though, it’s clear that winter is now here. Last night saw the temperatures fall below freezing, and today we had cold, wet sleet. […]