My shameful shortcut to perfect pesto
Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It has been… too long since my last confession. Picture the scene. I…
How to make perfect scones
I am evangelical about scones as a gateway bake – they are the perfect entry point for the nervous baker.…
You shouldn’t be afraid of steak tartare
Whenever I think of steak tartare, I can’t help but remember a heartbreaking passage in Nigel Slater’s memoir Toast. Slater,…
The pleasure of reliving foreign travel through food
Russian hand pies, Polish chlodnik, Turkish fruit compote and a Latvian trifle are among the many dishes recreated in Edinburgh by the globetrotting Caroline Eden
How to make elderflower cordial
I have a complicated relationship with elderflower cordial. I love taking ingredients that have short seasons, preserving and squirrelling them…
The not-so-French roots of chicken cordon bleu
We all have our quirks when it comes to cooking. I have clear mental blocks over what is and is…
‘Terribly chic’: how to make chouquettes
I have become obsessed with the French idea of goûter, the time in the afternoon when French schoolchildren have a…
How to make ham and parsley sauce
Poor old parsley sauce. As someone who writes regularly about old-fashioned food, it often feels that we are living through…
How Linzer torte stood the test of time
Linzer torte has quite the claim to fame: some assert that it’s the oldest cake in the world; others that…
Tricky but delicious: how to make the perfect pretzels
My husband is obsessed with pretzels. The joy that a slightly warm, soft baked pretzel brings him is disproportionate. And,…
You are what you don’t eat
In the past, the ability to preserve food depended largely on people’s means, making Eleanor Barnett’s history of food waste also a history of changing attitudes to poverty
No nonsense in the kitchen
The forthright food columnist Rachel Cooke has little patience with faddy eaters, ‘meditative’ kitchen tasks or the craze for Portuguese custard tarts
Be prepared to wait: how to make French onion soup like the French
Let me be clear: this week’s recipe is not a speedy little number. You can’t knock up a French onion…
Dark, bold and perfect for autumn: how to make the perfect honey cake
I did not plan to cook a loaf cake when I embarked on concocting a traditional honey cake recipe. The…
Glorious and nostalgic: how to make corned beef pie
A few weeks ago I was at the super-market juggling a toddler, several heavy bags and, it transpired, no pound…
The timeless beauty of a French apple tart
There is, as the saying goes, more than one way to skin a cat. The same could be said –…
