Tag Archives: literature
darkly sweetly madly…..
” …we’re in the soup” ” in a bit of a stew” “there are too many cooks” “the salt has lost its savour” “it only takes one rotten apple” “our goose is well and truly cooked”. Being that the cooking … Continue reading
cooking with my hat on…..
When the stars make you drool just like pasta fazool, that’s amore: no it’s not. What it is is pasta e fagioli but even though Dean Martin was Italian, Italians in America become American after quite a short time which entails … Continue reading
lunch…alone…
“…lost to almost everything but a vague sense of jam and idleness”* Although, pace Maggie Tulliver, in my case “jam” was supplanted by “lunch”. This perfectly conceived emotion had caught my imagination as I was reading last night and had come flooding back … Continue reading
a taste as old as cold water….
Lawrence Durrell’s precise metaphor is the clearest description of the taste of olives that I have ever heard or read. In truth, he was speaking of the wrinkly, black, salt cured olives whose flavour is as naked and unashamed as a new … Continue reading
Bakewell Crumpet…..*
Like a latter day Canute I do my best to keep the incoming tide of mortality at bay. Whilst the noble king was demonstrating that he did not have supernatural powers this Canute has decided that the solution is to bury … Continue reading
and now let’s hear it for the Greens …..
Through the good graces of the internet and television I have been able to quickly become intimate with kings, of all nations across the ages, and through this intimacy I can confirm that familiarity has bred contempt. Conversely, although I have … Continue reading
I say tahmayto…and I would advise you to do the same…
It is well known that the tomato has a colourful history, filled with misunderstanding, suspicion and rumour. However, it has now not only found acceptance but has become so deeply ingrained in our food tradition that several highly seasoned purées of … Continue reading
Neither a borrower nor a lentil be…
There is nothing glamorous about the green lentil yet, from the rich and varied universe of the dried pulse, it holds sway as my unchallenged favourite. There is no question that it needs a little help but, if that help … Continue reading
It is a far, far better thing that I eat now……
There is a smokiness in the air that is sending me the clear message that it’s time to start bringing in fire wood. A mountain of good, dry wood has been delivered and all that remains to be done is … Continue reading
On the trail of the toothsome pine…
The muffled drumbeat of rain on the awning has not been heard for some time, but there it was, like an unexpected knock on the door that momentarily causes the smile to drain from the face. Being English we have … Continue reading