Speltotto is a type of risotto made from spelt grain rather than rice. This recipe produced in partnership with Cathedral City as part of their “Love Cheese?” campaign, find out more below… My 9 year old son will not normally eat risotto but he loves cheese so I have high hopes he’ll enjoy this speltotto. […]
Spicy Slaw Quesadillas
Quesadillas are the Mexican answer to toasted cheese sandwiches. These Spicy Slaw Quesadillas are filled with cheese, chicken and veggies, then served with a sparky slaw topping. Updated 2026 · Originally commissioned by Baxters Quesadillas are simply toasted tortillas with melted cheese and other tasty bits inside. Nothing especially complicated but I was introduced to […]
Chop! Chop! With Robert Welch knives
Getting to know my new Robert Welch Signature Knives – this post is part two of a collaboration with this 60 year old British knife brand – find out more below. How good are you at slicing loaves of bread? I used to joke that as a carpenter’s daughter I was especially good at sawing up crusty […]
Spicy Black Bean Nachos
This spicy black bean nachos recipe was commissioned by Baxters’ Deli Toppers. Find out more below. Tonight I asked my 9 year old what nachos are. His face lit up as he excitedly said “yes they’re tortilla chips and STUFF.” I know for a fact when I was 9 years old I would not have known […]
Chickpea Blondies with Coconut, Chia, Choc Chips
These chickpea blondies are both egg free and wheat free and make a tasty snack. [Recipe post commissioned by Nature’s Path using their nice and crumbly Coconut & Chia organic granola, find out more below…] A year ago or so I saw a YouTube video about chickpea blondies, scribbled down the ingredients and made them. […]
Rainbow Burrito Wraps with Spicy Chicken
How to make a colourful spicy chicken wrap with rainbow vegetables You need to pity my bread maker. It hasn’t seen much use in the past year. Wraps have become a firm favourite choice for my work at home lunch. During the six months where I lost over three stones in weight, I had largely avoided eating traditional […]
Toffee Apple Pavlova
A frothy pavlova, light as the ballerina’s tutu it was named after, has to be the ultimate casual summer dessert. Sweet, crowd pleasing and light with a mix of cream and fruit. [This is a commissioned post for Bramley apples. Read more below…] But generally these meringue confections are associated with berries. A rampant raspberry […]
Chopped Salad with Robert Welch
Here’s a fresh tasting chopped salad with rice noodles and salsa verde. It’s packed with crunchy vegetable texture and strong flavours. [A commissioned post for Robert Welch with an opportunity to win products from their Signature Knife range…] Kitchen magpies need a steely resolve to resist shiny new stuff on offer these days. Wherever there’s a […]
Ultimate Salad Niçoise – The Mediterranean Classic
My Ultimate Salad Niçoise with tuna, olives, eggs and anchovies: I’ve been obsessed with this classic French recipe even before I’d been to Nice. The ingredient combination never fails to conjure up the taste of Mediterranean summer holidays – sun-warmed tomatoes, the hum of cicadas and long lunches near the sea. Updated 2026 · Originally […]
New Pizza Express Menu Options for Summer
I don’t know whether owning shares in Pizza Express is a thing but quite possibly my family does a good job of keeping their business afloat. We tend to visit at least once or twice a month anyway so I was happy to accept a recent invitation to come in and try items on the new Pizza […]
10 Tuscany Road Trip Ideas
We are used to driving on European holidays but the two night stops required each direction to Florence would eat into a large chunk of my husband’s annual leave days. So a flight and a hire car would enable us to make the best use of the precious time. We made a series of trips […]
Campfire Shakshuka
Campfire shakshuka is a surprisingly easy tasty dish to make whilst camping. Well. You can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs so the saying goes. But once you’ve broken your eggs, why just scramble, poach or boil them when you could do something more exciting instead. I had actually photographed today’s recipe prior […]
