Cooking
Why don’t more people bake beignets?
Beignets are one of those unusual foodstuffs that are on the one hand wildly popular in their birthplace, even going…
It’s the season of short ribs
I hereby officially declare autumn open! I am picturing myself bedecked with a wreath of perfect autumn leaves. The bright…
Am I a fashion icon?
Ever since I met Omi (one half of the fashion design duo Vin + Omi) on a train, I have…
There is no substitute for homemade cannoli
A criticism often levelled at cookery writers is: ‘I could just buy that at the supermarket’, which is an apparent…
For me, cornbread will always be romantic
My early days of baking coincided with the early days of dating the man who became my husband. It is…
Blackberries wait for no woman – so make jam
My kitchen is not ready for blackberry jam. I am not ready for blackberry jam. The heat of summer is…
How to do a salade Lyonnaise justice
Salade Lyonnaise is often translated as ‘bacon and egg salad’ and I can’t stand it. Not because it’s inaccurate –…
Grasshopper Pie is like a teenage fever dream
Grasshopper pie is an unlikely dish: bright green, mint-flavoured, combined with obscure liqueurs and set with marshmallows, all sitting in…
My quest for the perfect muffuletta
Everyone knows the story of the Earl of Sandwich: keen not to interrupt a late night card game at his…
I’ve fallen in love with crème caramel
If you’ve stuck out my cookery writing for long enough, you’ll know that I am a bit of a Labrador…
Chicken Milanese is the king of homemade fast food
When it comes to home cooking, we’re obsessed with optimisation. Today this manifests itself in reels on Instagram offering a…
Embrace the squidge of a custard slice
Ihad a culinary revelation this week. I like to think I’m an egalitarian when it comes to food – I…
Beef olives – classic comfort food, without an olive in sight
We all did mad things during the first Covid lockdown. For some it was getting a dog or starting up…
The joy of iced buns
‘It’s just a hot dog bun with icing!’ the iced-bun detractors will shriek. I’m a lady with a lot of…
Man vs lobster
She was doing a postgrad course in a town by the sea, and a strange thing happened to us one…
How to win MasterChef
‘Warmer, sharper and funnier than ever,’ claims one reviewer of ‘the BBC’s disgraced cookery show’ MasterChef. But this is nonsense.…
The extraordinary simplicity of oeuf mayonnaise
‘Sometimes, in the search for originality, the most obvious dishes are forgotten,’ says Elizabeth David, the doyenne of cookery, in…
My shameful confession: I’m not a good baker
Contrary to popular conception, I’m not a great baker. I was hired by Bake Off for my judging experience, not…
How do you make a tart that doesn’t really exist?
There are few things more delicious than falling down a rabbit hole. No, don’t worry, I’m not serving up a…
Expect toddlers and parlour games at today’s dinner parties
The cost of babysitters can make accepting dinner invitations very expensive, so a host should ensure that friends feel free to bring their children too, says Jago Rackham
This Easter, eat rabbit
Dissonance is necessary around Easter. Fluffy lambs and chicks are everywhere: on cards and decorations, in countless chocolate forms and…
Why rabbit makes the best Easter lunch (yes, really)
Dissonance is necessary around Easter. Fluffy lambs and chicks are everywhere: on cards and decorations, in countless chocolate forms and…
The perfect 15-minute chocolate mousse
There’s an inherent pleasure in having something by heart. Poetry at school. Lines in plays. Song lyrics. The things that…
My take on marry me chicken
I am not in the habit of bringing viral TikTok recipes here. It is a safe space, away from digestive…
There’s no beating the comfort of cabinet pudding
The British hold a steamed pudding close to their hearts. Like a culinary hot-water bottle, it may not be terribly…
