Welcome to My Website

My website is designed to complement the food videos on my YouTube channel.  My intention is to inspire and guide anyone who wants to have a go at something new in the kitchen, or to refresh their knowledge from years gone by.  The videos provide the demonstration and on here you will find full versions of each recipe, sometimes with additional information and hints & tips, plus occasional musings on food-related topics.

Launching a website in the midst of a pandemic may appear somewhat strange but having recently hung up my apron after teaching Food Tech for many years, then my Tech Guy Ed’s work in the events industry coming to an abrupt halt, we both suddenly found ourselves with rather a lot of time on our hands.   It occurred to me that the rest of the country was in the same locked-down predicament so what better time to make good use of our skills and help others to build theirs’?

I hope you enjoy it!

Easter Musings

Before the Covid-19 lockdown was announced, we managed to find a Colomba – a traditional Italian Easter cake shaped like a dove.  It’s very similar to the Christmas Panettone, so is a yeasted cake mix, very light and encrusted with an almond topping.  Living in Milan for a while in the 1990s we were lucky enough to be near Saronno where both cakes and Amaretto liqueur are made – a delicious combination, Easter or not!

I’ll show you what it looks like when we cut it on Sunday!

…And here it is! A lovely light textured cake, similar to Panettone but dotted with candied orange and lemon peel and topped with almonds and a sugary hazelnut crust. Absolutely delicious – it won’t last long in our house! Happy Easter! x

HOT CROSS BUNS – the normal ones (no chocolate, cranberries etc.) – are such a treat for breakfast at Easter. Split, toasted and spread with butter they’re delicious. They may have been in the supermarkets since January but we’ve resisted the temptation until now. Eating food in its proper season is more relevant than ever with the current restricted shopping opportunities. And left-over hot cross buns after Easter make an excellent bread and butter pudding, cut open and buttered – even spread with marmalade too if you like, then soaked for a little while in an egg and milk mixture and baked until golden brown. Lovely!