Category: Food & Drink

“Jack be nimble. Jack be quick
Simple recipe, done in a tick!”

Or I’m sitting and suddenly realise that for the last five, ten, fifteen or even more minutes, I haven’t been there. My lungs had continued to inflate and deflate, my heart to beat, my blood to circulate, my stomach acids to carry out their natural alchemy, but I hadn’t been there. No mental activity of any kind. A body functioning but a mind stilled.

I once made this recipe for a friend who came to visit (actually the non-veggie version). He had driven many miles on a motorbike from the south on a crazy wild and wet night. The food went down pretty well! I know it’s a but late for winter warmer food but hey, this is England. […]

On the evening of Saturday 6th February, a chimney collapsed from a student flat over the Cradlewell shops on Jesmond Road, Newcastle. The bricks fell onto the road at the front and into the yard at the back. Thankfully no one was injured. The police were informed, and they immediately evacuated the premises around the […]

I even once (or maybe even twice or more) started to do some research about the best way to poach eggs. I found myself reading all sorts of seemingly tricky stuff about creating s vortex (apparently some of the top chefs and hotels do this) and so on. There was also plenty of often conflicting advice about whether to use vinegar or not, the same with salt and whether to use a deep or shallow pan. Oh and to keep the pan boiling, or cover and switch off the heat…

The great thing about a recipe like this is, the more of one ingredient you have the more it will taste of that thing, and that’s never a bad thing!

Here is a recipe for my homemade vegetarian lasagne. It is a great recipe for when it’s cold and you want warming up. And what’s more, it can be easily adapted if you’re a fussy eater!

This is a simple recipe that you can adapt as much as you like. Winter-warming and good for lockdown days.

After a hike through a biting north wind, eat your scone hot and soaked in butter and topped with raspberry jam. Wash it down with a few cups of your favourite tea, as you watch a winter afternoon fade into dark.

The North East is a melting pot and no amount of British nationalism can erase that. The Big Ben Bongs at 11 pm on December 31 to herald Britain’s freedom from the EU signify nothing other than blatant English nationalism. This will be a date in which I lose part of me, detached without will; it’s not a new year heralding something new, it’s a death. The death of the future I had planned for myself, right up to retirement. It’s out of my control, a sort of prison without visible bars.

It was a huge steaming rectangle, not the small buns of the Godless South, that she’d cut into wedges and we’d smother in thick gravy. Only after we’d polished off the pud would come the roast.

This is a truly community effort and the team hopes to bring some light and love in this difficult year and really make a difference in Christmas 2020.

Once, in a fit of Christmas enthusiasm, we experimented with three days of exclusive holiday dining on red and green meals.  Lobster, an obvious choice, was behind an unassailable paywall but good fun was had with popcorn and red and green food dye.  Of all the new combinations of ingredients we tried, this for red […]

t’s going to be seven-ish at the earliest before I’m ready to eat again. I always find Christmas Pudding too heavy, so perhaps a classic Panettone (dried fruit rather than the chocolate variety) would make a good replacement. I had considered making a Panettone bread and butter pudding but I think I’ll have it with custard. Not very Italian, I know, but I love custard and as I’m cooking for me and me alone, custard it shall be!

All in all, I would imagine you might just about be able to cover the full cost of this for ten pounds, if Aldi does sell a small chicken for £2 at all. Not being near enough to Aldi myself to just pop in, I rely on memory, which suggests that £3-4 is more likely. There are utensils to factor in. Do you have roasting tins, a stock pot, a reasonably good knife? Come to think of it, do you even have an oven and a hob?

You, me and Afternoon Tea is part of the local virtual xmas market, which has helped the business to reach a wider audience through facebook.

Plum jam is not just easy to make and deliciously fragrant, it looks so vibrant it’s just what’s needed to brighten up your breakfast table.

This is not an exact kind of recipe; it’s more just some ideas to try out. I kind of started this dish as a way to use up some vegetables and then kept on adding…You can substitute as much as you want. If you want it to be veggie then leave out the tuna and […]

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” (The Hobbit, JR Tolkein)

Be patient and confident if you can. It does take practice. However, the good news is that it can’t really go wrong. Thick jam and runny jam are both lovely!

Making butter is easy and fun! Why not give it a go?

A tasty treat for a holiday weekend (or any time really!)

Sourdough produces the most fantastic bread and once started you’ll love the results so much you won’t want to stop. (Recipe)

It started in March. As lockdown started and panic began to take hold, I could not get flour anywhere. Every supermarket had been stripped clean, no wholemeal, no rye, no plain white, nothing. I have always made bread for my family in a bread machine (which, by the way, is awesome and nothing to be ashamed of […]