Yakisoba literally means ‘fried buckwheat’ in Japanese, and is traditionally a street food dish made of fried noodles with veggies (and sometimes meat) and flavoured with a delicious sweet and slightly tangy sauce. It’s super easy and pretty cheap to make (which explains the street food element) and for these reasons it’s definitely one of my go-to weekday dinners for myself and Mr H, especially if I don’t have heaps of time on my hands. Continue reading
I’d always been confused when people spoke about macaroons in the past – to me they are little coconutty biscuity things, crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, but then these funny French sweet pastel-coloured sandwich things turned up and everyone seemed to call them macaroons too. Which one is the real macaroon and which is the imposter? I had to know, so I consulted Mr Google and it seems us Brits (well the less cultured ones like moi) have been calling the French delicacies macaroons when they are ACTUALLY called macarons! Who knew one less vowel could make such a difference. Continue reading
Butternut squash is one of my favourite veggies – it’s so amazingly good for you (lots of vitamin A and antioxidants) and it tastes so delicious too! However, the thing I don’t like quite so much about butternut squash is the time (and elbow grease) it takes to peel and chop it into chunks. Which is why these butternut boats are so fab, all you need to do is chop the squash in half, take out the seeds and pop it in the oven with some olive oil and it comes out beautifully roasted and soft. Continue reading
The day I created this recipe, it was one of those rare super hot days which don’t come around all too often in London. I’d been brainstorming about chocolate fudge covered raisin flapjacks and was really happy with my flapjack mixture (I tested it lots) but I just couldn’t face going anywhere near the oven to bake it. It was just too hot. So I made a couple of tweaks and the result was these insane no-bake chocolate fudge covered raisin flapjacks.
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I used to love coronation chicken, but never put too much thought about what went into it, it was just yummy and a great sandwich filler. Fast forward to me looking up how to make it one day and I was shocked – chicken, yogurt, spices and raisins, I mean who on earth came up with that? It’s like the world’s most random combination, but somehow it just seems to work. Also, as it was created for the Queen’s coronation banquet in 1953 it must have been an even crazier concoction back then, as in post-WWII England I don’t think many people were busy cooking with curry powder. How times have changed hey? Continue reading
Mojitos used to be my all time favourite cocktail around my late teens or early twenties, when I could afford them anyway, that is until one time when I overdosed on them once at a friends 21st birthday party (there was a free bar). I wasn’t ill or anything, just slightly tipsy and absolutely buzzing off all the sugar, and since then whenever I’ve tried them they’ve just tasted way too sweet.
I still love the combination though of tangy lime and refreshing mint, with just a hint of sweetness, so I’ve created a little mojito juice that is just as tasty and refreshing as the original, but with much less sugar and no alcohol (although you’re welcome to add that back in if you like). Continue reading
This dish, originally made with spaghetti, translates from the Italian as ‘spaghetti in the style of a prostitute’. Now the more judgemental of us might not want to touch such a thing with a bargepole let along a fork, but let me remind you of the classic movie ‘Pretty Woman’ before you go slut-shaming my dinner. Continue reading
One of the best things about British summers are British strawberries. Now I know that there are some amazing strawbs to be tried in other countries too and I’m not disputing that, but by the time they’ve flown or sailed over to British shores, then got themselves into a truck to be transported to our supermarkets, then sat on the shelves until we’ve bought them they just don’t taste so great. I’m also trying to be more of a locavore (that’s someone who eats local produce) for health reasons as well as environmental and sustainability ones too, so when our homegrown gems hit the shelves I’m all over it. Continue reading
When Mr H and I went to New York a couple of months ago we had a huge list of things (mainly food related) that we wanted to pack in to our five day visit. My list included things like The Butcher’s Daughter and Hu Kitchen and his included such culinary gems as Carnegie Deli and Levain Bakery. Now I know as well as the next woman that the secrets of a happy marriage are compromise and a well fed husband, plus here at D&H we believe in active avoidance (so whilst I might know that a piece of chocolate cake might make me feel rubbish tomorrow, I’ll have a couple of bites if I fancy it and not give myself a guilt trip for doing so), so I was happy to indulge him, and indeed as it turns out, myself. Continue reading
I have a massive sweet tooth, but there are times (usually after a lot of dessert recipe testing) that my body craves something savoury first thing in the morning. Even if I’m in a massive rush I still make time for breakfast (it’s a cliche but it really is the most important meal of the day) and my favourite go-to savoury brekkie has to be smashed avocado on toast. I don’t even know if this can technically be called a ‘recipe’ because it’s just so simple and quick to make, but it tastes so amazing that I just had to share it with you. Continue reading
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