Royal palaces, broad beans on toast and a splash of soy

8 May 2023

Tom Cenci’s not avocado on toast…but broad beans

I’m writing this today from a rainy Dartmoor and looking out at mist and cloud from the windows as we are quite high up. All walks have been cancelled and people are thinking about going to climbing walls or a National Trust property. I’m off to Dartington now to see the garden and take shelter from the rain in the woods. Our meal on the way here at Emilia Ashburton was excellent, especially the gurnard with fennel and pickled kumquat and the lemon ricotta tart

Travel

UK

Although I didn’t watch the Coronation and did a coastal walk instead, I liked the travel guide on how to visit royal places including Buckingham and Kensington Palace, Highgrove, Balmoral, Sandringham etc in the Telegraph. I’m going to Highgrove in July as to see the garden after going to an exhibition at the Garrison Chapel which is on till the end of May. Free admission.

In the North West, a guide to Wrexham in the Telegraph in the news because Wrexham AFC secured promotion back to the English Football League. I would visit to walk across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct which is nearby. Another article on why you should make Liverpool your next city break, even after the Eurovision spotlight has gone. And finally, a guide to the best pubs, walks and hidden beaches in North-east England in the Guardian, with lots of interesting recommendations.

There’s also a guide to Spalding in the Telegraph which they call the Netherlands of Britain as ‘there’s a good chance your spring flowers came from this pleasant little low-lying corner of Lincolnshire known as South Holland’.

Europe

The Daily Mail tells us how Marseille has been spruced up and there’s a family-friendly Paris guide in the Independent.

There’s a comprehensive guide to the Marche region in Italy and also Assisi in Umbria in the Telegraph to chime with the exhibition, Saint Francis of Assisi, which runs from May 6-July 30 at the National Gallery in London. Admission is free.

Brno, in the Czech Republic, in the Guardian and a city guide to Palma in Mallorca in the Times.

The Guardian has its rail route of the month going from Sundsvall in Sweden to Trondheim, coast to coast following a pilgrim trail based on the life of the 11th-century king, St Olav.

Restaurants 

In the FT, Tim Hayward went to Nessa in Soho, W1 where the reviews have been mixed but he thinks it will ‘be a timeless classic.’

In the Guardian, Grace Dent stayed in London to go to Papi London E8 which is ‘small plates’ and a testament to the ‘zany reputation, albeit a subdued one in the context of a delicious meal from a young chef with a fascinating future.

In the Observer, Jay Rayner was in Plymouth, at Toot, a Persian restaurant which gave them ‘a very good time indeed and at a very good price.’

In the Standard, Jimi Famurewa went to Story Cellar, website here, in Covent Garden, London WC2  a rotisserie chicken spin off of Tom Sellers restaurant, Story and gave it 5 stars. Punchy prices £17 for a pig terrine 

In the Times, Giles Coren was in both Quo Vadis in Soho, website here and Noble Rot Mayfair, website here, both in London W1 and as expected, gave them both top scores.

Recipes

As the Coronation is over, I haven’t included any more recipes for quiche, chicken, trifle etc as I think we all know how to make them by now. Having said that, Nigel Slater’s twist on coronation chicken with salmon with grapes and mango chutney in the Observer sounds good for a summer party as well as his recipes for buttermilk ice-cream and rose scented shortbread. Mango pots from Ravneet Gill  are a quick easy dessert.

Ottolenghi’s party finger food recipes in the Guardian have his characteristic originality, for devilled eggs with tarragon and poppy seed oil, potato and cheddar cigars with spiced ketchup and knafeh crumpets with maple cardamom syrup as do Melissa Thompson’s tamarind chicken lettuce cups.  

Brunch recipes in the Times including Skye Gyngell’s Bircher muesli, José Pizarro’s indulgent migas and Tom Cenci’s  not avocado on toast which is a favourite at his restaurant, Nessa. He says ‘uses British broad beans as a sustainable alternative to the evil avocado, which has a significant carbon footprint.’ The photo is of one I prepared earlier using frozen beand, which I peeled, listening to a podcast, a time consuming but calming job.

In the FT, Fuchsia Dunlop explained how to build a Chinese noodle soup and to think of this recipe as a template for your own.  ‘For a main meal, top your noodle soup with any source of protein you fancy: a fried egg, perhaps, a few slices of leftover roast meat, the remains of takeaway roast duck.’

A gorgeous sounding recipe for sticky pork belly with ginger and honey tomatoes from Eleanor Steafel in the Telegraph which includes white miso, soy, honey, rice wine and five spice for a sauce to coat the pork. This is the one I want to make when I’m back from my holiday.

Three low-carb recipes that go big on flavour by Mark Emberton in the Sunday Times; grilled asparagus with sour cream gribiche; chicken stifado with celeriac and shallots; g and grilled aubergine, pomegranate and tahini. Thanks to Ottolenghi, don’t we all know how to sprinkle pomegranate seeds over aubergine by now.

Books

A Splash Of Soy: Everyday Food From Asia by Lara Lee

with an interview with the author here in the Independent and recipes for cheesy kimchi linguine with gochujang butter, a sambal prawns with coconut and cashews and finally, tamarind caramel brownies. The brownies sound so good with the sourness of the tamarind.

 Potato by James Martin

An interview about the chef’s new restaurant at the Lygon Arms in the Cotswolds and some potato recipes including smoked salmon and potato with homemade salad cream and Jersey royals with asparagus, poached duck eggs and hollandaise

And to end, here’s a picture of Buckingham Palace in lockdown, looking the exact opposite of how it was on Saturday when we walked all the way from our house.