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Hamming it up for Christmas Eve

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Food Network UK| Leave a comment

The build up to Christmas has always been special for me. I look forward to those personal milestones that get you in the Christmas spirit. The first Coca-Cola advert of the season, opening up your advent calendar and the first time I hear The Pogues – Fairytale in New York.

Being born on Christmas Eve, these little rituals are also a running countdown to my birthday. ‘Only 23 days before Christmas’ people quip with each other in the office, while I sit there and think ‘Only 22 days to my birthday.’

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Posted in Chefs & Shows, Cooking with…, Savoury

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A Thick Tart Makes Thin Pastry

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Food Network UK| 1 Comment
My attempt at the famous Milk Chocolate Tart

My attempt at the famous milk chocolate tart

I’ve been wanting to up my baking game for a while now. In the few months I’ve been baking, I’ve progressed from cupcakes to lemon drizzle cake, taken part in a cupcake masterclass and made an array of cake pops. Did I mention I recently made 48 chocolate cupcakes for a friend’s engagement party? I don’t even know who I am anymore; I only used to sit in the kitchen if I needed to warm up.

While I was away for 10 days sunning myself on a Bajan beach, my co-workers were plotting my next challenge: Andy Bates’s Milk Chocolate Tart.

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Posted in Chefs & Shows, Cooking with…, Sweet

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Cake Pop Masterclass

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Food Network UK| 1 Comment

Looking incredibly proud of myself with Christine Lee and Juliet Sear

When you first think of cake pops you think of intricate detailing, fiddly decorating and a perfectly polished end result. When you first think of me you think cack-handed, incredibly messy and by no means able to produce something so delicate and perfectly formed.

So you can appreciate my nerves and sheer disbelief at being invited to an all-day cake pop masterclass. Luckily for me, bakers Juliet Sear of Fancy Nancy and Christine Lee of Boo Lee Scrumptious knew all of this before we started.

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Posted in Cooking with…, Sweet, What’s Hot, Where We’ve Been

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Indian Cooking Step-by-Step: Classic Vegetable Biryani

Posted on October 19, 2011 by Food Network UK| 5 Comments

Classic Vegetable Biryani

There is a word in Indian cooking that used to send a chill down my spine every time it was uttered – biryani.

I was never suspicious of the biryani because it’s difficult to cook, but because it’s typically served as a main course. As a little girl, rice had always been a side dish for me – something to go with the daal or to soak up a sauce.

It didn’t matter if the rice was bland because there were other dishes on the table to perk it up. But when I discovered the world of biryani, there was a shift in balance – the rice had become the star of the show and everything it was cooked with had to taste good. If it didn’t, the whole dinner went to pot.

But now I’m a fully-fledged member of the biryani lovers club, I’m here to offer a lesson in how easy preparing it can really be, provided you know the basics.

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Posted in Cooking with…, Recipes, Savoury

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Indian Cooking Step-by-Step: Aloo Paratha

Posted on October 12, 2011 by Food Network UK| 4 Comments

Aloo Paratha – spicy potato-stuffed flatbreads from Northern India

I fell in love with paratha at the age of four, when I was the proud owner of various miniature kitchen utensils that looked like they’d been manufactured in toy town. I’d use my hot pink chapatti board and rolling pin to make baby paratha, which my mum would cook and my pa would wolf down with gusto, whilst telling me I was a great chef.

And that was all it took – I had discovered my love of Indian breads. Forget your typical puff of glitter – for this strange little Indian Barbie, childhood was all about that magical cloud of chapatti flour.

Last week, I spilt the (mung) beans and admitted that I’m a terrible teacher, but when it comes to cooking Indian food, I become a chatterbox, sharing more kitchen secrets than your average Indian aunty-ji (ji being a respectful form of address for elders, even if they tend to jabber on at times).

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Posted in Cooking with…, Other, Recipes, Savoury, What’s Hot

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