mulled cranberry and orange relish

mulled cranberry and orange relish

I love the way that recipes can be passed along generations, and across continents and cultures. A few years ago, an American friend of mine introduced me to the joys of her family's cranberry relish recipe. Her version used raw ground cranberries and oranges and it was very nice indeed. I decided to make a cooked version with spices, for a more Christmassy feel, which has become a new tradition in my family on this side of the pond.

too hot to cook? zhejiang "drunken" chicken is the solution

Zheijang "drunken" chicken

The only downside of having a kitchen that faces south is that during the hot weather it can approach furnace-like temperatures, despite the fact that I leave the back door open while I am cooking. I find myself either cooking less or cooking things that can be prepared ahead of time, when the temperatures are a bit cooler, either late in the evening or early in the morning.

in praise of damien trench: baked camembert

baked camembert with garlic, rosemary and bacon

My favourite radio food writer, Damien Trench, is back. He returns on Radio 4 for another series of his superlative programme, In and Out of the Kitchen. I have so missed his wise, fulsome words and unflappable approach to food.

Damien Trench is the comic creation of Miles Jupp; a gentle parody of the most florid aspects of food writing. The programme is an absolute hoot.

spicy mulled wine plum compote with star anise and cinnamon

spicy mulled wine compote

Back in her stand-up comedy days, the comedienne Jo Brand used to say (and I am editing here as although I have been known to be occasionally foul-mouthed, I don't particularly like reading it), that she didn't eat any fruit at all. She explained that since there was no chocolate in it, there was no point. This has to be a rare occasion when I have to disagree with Jo, as these mulled wine plums are bloody marvellous!

poached cherry, roasted balsamic red onions and goat's cheese salad with cherry vinaigrette

poached cherry and goat's cheese salad with cherry vinaigrette

When it comes to recipes, I am something of a tinkerer. I find something I like and then wonder to myself whether there was something I might have missed. Could the recipe be improved?

In itself, this is not a problem. Unless you are like me; you write a food blog and have set yourself the challenge of getting out of a culinary rut (number one in my culinary New Year's resolutions). I had assumed that no-one would want to read the same old, same old, with my minor tweaks and fol-de-rols.There are also times when frankly I had tinkered too far and the food was only fit for the compost heap. (But let that be our little secret.)

sussex stewed steak

sussex stewed steak

A dark sticky stew, the meat a rich mahogany colour and a melt-in-the mouth texture full of beguiling savoury flavours. It is perfect for frugal times since this recipe stands up well with cheaper cuts of beef and is also worth the long cooking - particularly now the autumn evening chill seems to be settling in. It is simplicity itself. 

my cherry amour! sparkling cherry crush

sparkling cherry crush

To support the great British Cherry and Foodlovers Britain's Cherry Aid Campaign, I decided to make a refreshing summery drink, which was very pretty too. A lovely vibrant pink colour - it is very simple to make, although you will need to prepare well in advance since the cherry syrup needs to cool down before using.

If you were to add a splash of almond syrup and some fresh lemon juice, you have a cherry bakewell tart . . . in a glass!

pumpkin soup with shavings of parmesan

When autumn nights are drawing in, this lovely warming soup is the perfect comfort blanket.

spicy mushroom soup

a deeply soothing mushroom soup

There are times when I find enjoying a mushroom soup a deeply soothing experience; an almost spiritual one, communing with nature. This soup seems to be both spicy and calming at the same time with it's mouth-watering savoury taste. It is both spicy and aromatic and is a most beautiful dark brown colour, flecked with green . . . a sort of forest floor of a soup, but without the mossy bits! 

chicken with sloe gin and juniper berries

sloe berries before the first frosts

Yesterday we went sloe berry hunting. Our favourite location seems to have remained a secret from both other north Londoners and the local wildlife as the bushes looked remarkably unravaged. A good haul now nestles in the freezer until next weekend when I'll be in a home-brew frenzy, making sloe gin, damson gin and some more mead (more of this another time). 

sweet cherry-stewed meatballs - full of wonderful middle eastern flavours

This delicious recipe has a lovely sweet and sour hint of Persia. I have a confession to make, I have absolutely no idea where I had originally sourced this recipe (Bad Kelly!). I found a notebook with this recipe scribbled down in it and I suspect that this may have been based on a review in the New York Times of a cookbook by the American-Syrian writer, Poopa Dweck,  . . . yes, I too was entranced by her name too!