Miserable Food

I am not a big fan of being down in the dumps so when I do feel like this I am unsure what to eat as my comfort food. Many would have chocolate, lots of it. Some need soup (or is that when you're ill?). Take away is high on the list and my friend always resorts to pizza for that lift. I am stuck. American's have big bags of crisps (chips) and eat the lot. Or ice-cream still in the carton with a spoon. I might try this one; it means the ice-cream will get softer as you eat. My late Granddad used to put ice-cream in the microwave because it was too cold......he was Irish if that's any excuse. But I don't have a nutrient zapper machine in my kitchen (much to the annoyance of P when his dinner has to be heated up in the oven) so I will just have to put it on the radiator or eat it in the bath.....Waitrose ice-cream freezer here we come.

Happy munching!!

Sussex Food Awards

I was lucky enough to be at the Sussex Food Awards with a bunch of great friends. It was to be our Christmas party (as all good retailers know Christmas parties are always in Jan). We had an ok sparkling (not quite the fantastic "Champagne quality" Nyetimber from West Sussex) reception then on to dinner. 5 courses so thankfully I was very hungry. The most memorable part of the food for me was the main, we had beef steak (fell apart - very good) and then in its own suet pudding was the kidney. I thought this was done very sympathetically for the non-kidney-eaters amongst us. The suet was a little thick but boy did I enjoy that kidney....even ate my neighbours!

Our parents and grandparents ate far more offal than we do today. It was cheap then, like the great cuts of meat that used to be cheap but then Fergus Henderson and (more high profile but less interesting) Jamie Oliver came along and promoted these cuts, now they're a little pricier. I really enjoy a devilled kidney (especially St.John's devilled rabbit kidney) starter or ox-heart main. P loves bone marrow (another Henderson delight) and thought my haggis pie was a goer. So this year I'm going to invite more and more interesting meats/offal (or dodgy meat as an old friend would have said) onto my table.

Chocolate Shopping

 We've just been to select chocolate for Easter. What a terrible day - Not!
A certain grocer to the Royals once advertised for a chocolate buyer by posting an ad in The Times saying "the best job in the world".
You can imagine the people who thought they could do this job! I had teacher, lawyer, and waitress friends sending in their CV's. It went to someone who did have some knowledge in chocolate but I think many other people would have had enjoyed the (heavenly) job a lot more. I have always had an interest in food production and chocolate comes high up the scale. I am becoming more and more discerning and would rather go without than eat just anything. When P puts his chosen bar under my nose I often refuse, and if I don't refuse I quite often regret (think of the wasted calories!!) I have a fair few friends who have enjoyed my previous (and this) job roles for the simple reason that I provide them with lots of goodies....chocolate, cheese, artisan bread, cake....the list goes on. But chocolate is always a favourite and is where you can really tell the difference. Coffee is quite hard, unless the beans are burnt.....or in fact they're not beans but that other strange drink - instant coffee.
Chocolate is so mass market and familiar to us that people don’t bother to look at cocoa content and fat. Next time you go to a decent chocolate shop or deli buy a small bar with high cocoa content (60%ish for plain and 35%ish for milk) from a good maker Audrey's of Hove, La Masion du Chocolat, Fortnum's, Charbonnel et Walker or Valrhona....the difference is less calories and more taste.

Don't just book it.....plan it

I'd love to book my years worth of holidays and weekend breaks right now. I am an avid planner and love to plan every detail, I enjoy the research and drooling over the guide books nearly as much as the holiday itself. I like to book restaurants (or at least know where I must not miss), plan days events, museums to check out and those to avoid, day trips (usually involving castles - P's hobby), find areas to shop for food and wine, areas to shop for clothes, book more than one hotel (variation is key), check out the weather, find the best bars....dreaming already. But where to go. I pulled out some holiday books this morning and looked at where I'd been recently. Sooooo many food photos. Here's a few of my favourites.
Of course food/wine/restaurants are the most important parts of the holiday planning. Hence I've not been to Eastern Europe....I'll have to give it a go, if only for the beer!

January Snow

The snow we've had has made the British a little mental. They have closed the schools, taken time off work, shut roads, found bin lids make great sledges, worn all their wardrobe at once, made some quite rude (but very impressive) snowmen but most crazy of all they've emptied the supermarkets of milk and bread. Did people think that the cows would freeze and not be able to produce milk?
If you shop locally (as my friend quite rightly told the BBC) you would not have had the worry of no milk, your local shop would have got from their local dairy which would have delivered by whatever means (or they'd go bust!) as they are reliable and want the business. Stuff the bloody supermarket shop and get down to your local deli/butcher/grocer and support them. They'll close down if you don't and then you'll wonder why your high street looks a mess. Please, please will people start shopping local.......not just watch Hugh or Nigel and agree.....but DO IT.