November 7 2022

Places to go, food to eat

Godrevy Lighthouse from Gwithian Beach, Cornwall, in March.

Travel

UK

In the Telegraph, an article on places to go in the UK in the winter which are not so popular, including North Norfolk, Cornwall, Pembrokeshire, Lake District and the Isle of Skye. I think the success of all these holidays is weather dependent which is difficult if you are booking in advance. Having gone out for a walk, wearing a head torch in the Highlands of Scotland in winter, they also conveniently ignore the hours of daylight available in places like Skye,

More of the walks from the Guardian are now online, going from Whitstable to the Sportsman at Seasalter and foraging along the way. This is where I have eaten some of most memorable meals and it deserves all of its accolades. Also, the Avalon Marshes in Somerset and from Street to Start Point in South Devon. I would recommend the Start Bay Inn at Slapton, an unprepossessing pub but the queue is out of the door at opening time for their catch of the day seafood or the fish and chips where a ‘large cod’ tips over either side of the plate

Europe

In the Telegraph, the most useful article is probably a comprehensive article to reference on hand luggage rules on different airlines. Spoiler, the size of bag under the seat varies.

Colm Tóibín’s writes about Wexford, his home county in the FT, saying ‘This is not an Ireland of tourist posters’.

A summary of Christmas markets in different European cities, in the Daily Mail, not just cities in Germany and Austria but in Gdansk, Budapest , Seville, and an article about Innsbruck in the Guardian which by chance, has a pretty Christmas market.

Italy features this week with the ten best rail journeys in Italy in the Guardian, Puglia out of season in the Independent and also a guide to Monti, a neighbourhood of Rome in the Independent.

My other favourite European country France, is also in the papers with the chateau and garden at Chantilly in Northern France, and Carcassonne where author Kate Mosse and her husband have had a house for 30 years in the Daily Mail. Why Cognac is good for an Autumn break is in the Times.

Finally, a weekend break to Belgrade is in the Times.

Restaurants

In the FT, Sejal Sukhadwala wrote about eight Indian restaurants along the new Elizabeth Line in London, from Seven Kings in the east to Reading in the west. I noted Chai-Ki at Canary Wharf with the Crossrail Place roof garden above, Fatt Pundit at Covent Garden and the Laguna Restaurant in West Ealing.

In the Mail on Sunday, Tom Parker-Bowles stayed local at Caia, in Notting Hill, London, website here and thought ‘it was a Golborne Road restaurant that not only rocks, but looks set to stay the distance, too.’

In the FT, Tim Hayward went to the Baring, in London N1 which he liked but asked is it a gastropub or a restaurant?

The FT also asked, ‘where do you go for the ultimate cheese toastie?’ and mentioned Rose Grimond’s Nettlebed Creamery near Henley-on-Thames, in Oxfordshire, Kappacasein in Borough Market, the £34.50 toastie at 45 Jermyn St, the giant one at the Wigmore near Oxford Circus and Deeneys in Leyton, East London.

In the Guardian, Grace Dent ate ‘decent, experimental’ Japanese food with a side of jazz at mu, London E8: website here and thought, ‘the food ….is far grander and ornately executed than it needs to be.’

In the Observer, Jay Rayner visited Roasta, in Preston, Lancashire, ‘a cheerful Cantonese diner,’ website here, and Bar Pinxtos for Spanish tapas, which he thought ‘very good’.

In the Standard, Jimi Faruewa went to Kuro Eatery in Notting Hill, London for its Italo-Japanese cuisine and thought the ‘kitchen and business is confident enough to know it is on to something special.’ Website here.

In the Telegraph, William Sitwell went to Compton in Clerkenwell, London where the Modern Pantry used to be. He wrote, ‘it is good - very good - and really quite impressive value’, but is his comment, ‘I’d take my favourite aunt’ damning with faint praise? Website here

Recipes

I couldn't discern a theme running through the recipes this week but I think the most important article is Rachel Roddy’s in the Guardian, on using a pressure cooker to save fuel. She’s encouraged me to stop worrying and get mine out the cupboard.

I’m going to start with the sweet things for a change and work backwards. I enjoyed Diana Henry’s account of community teas in the Shetlands in the Telegraph, and the cake recipes for the best ever lemon cake made with lemon peel and a Sherbert fountain on top, bannocks and iced buns sound perfect as well as is her millionaire’s shortbread recipe. There’s also a bread and butter pudding made with scones and jam and custard by Ravinder Bhogal in the FT which she calls an afternoon tea pudding.

There’s plenty more vegetarian recipes in the Guardian and I’m enthused by black bean enfrijoladas from Thomasina Miers, Joe Woodhouse’s vegetarian recipes for roast mushroom and chipotle slaw buns, smoked cheddar and thyme scones, and creamed spinach soup with nutmeg. Ottolenghi explains how to make pizzoccheri which is a north Italian buckwheat ribbon pasta and serve it with sage, lemon, parmesan and butter, or with lemony miso cabbage and spiced breadcrumbs. Nigel Slater has recipes for lentils with aubergines and curry leaves and black figs with sloe gin in the Observer.

In the Telegraph, there’s a recipe for squash, mushroom, feta lasagne from Eleanor Steafel with a gremolata on top which I thought was a nice touch as well as a classic Bonfire Night beef stew recipe by Angela Hartnett

Rosie Birkett in the Sunday Times has nourishing recipes from store cupboard staples including tinned mackerel fish cakes with horseradish mayo, chickpea and onion puree with yoghurt flatbreads and harissa roast cauliflower and anchovy and cannellini bean mash with crispy fried artichokes.

I’ve realised now that the Independent has recipes originally from the New York Times, and this week, it was five soup recipes made with chicken stock in including a lemony white bean soup with turkey and greens by Melissa Clark, a Thai-inspired chicken meatball soup by Ali Slagle and a Hetty McKinnon dumpling noodle soup

Books

Meat Free Mowgli Nisha Katona

Recipes for Easy Indian plant based meals in the Times from lazy potato curry to baked rose yoghurt

A Bowl of Soup by Hannah Miles, who was an ex-Masterchef contestant.

Recipes in the Mail on Sunday included carrot and star anise soup and a sausage cabbage soup.

The Spanish Home Kitchen: Simple, Seasonal Recipes and Memories from My Home, by José Pizarro

There are recipes for lentils with chorizo and potatoes and braised pork ribs and potatoes with fried herb crumbs in the Guardian.

Can’t be arsed with rules by Sorted food chefs

There’s an interview and recipes in the Independent, on how it’s time to throw out the the cooking rulebook and reading the article made me smile. Featured is a naanzanella which is a panzanella made with Naan bread, butternut blue cheese orzo, leek and kettle chip soup, waffle chive blinis with smoked salmon – because waffle irons are not just for waffles and Marmite garlic butter mushroom baked eggs. And to conclude,, I am pleased to say, that cooking some ingredients in the microwave features in their recipes.