Tuesday 27 November 2012

#Project366 – week 47

A variety of nibbles and accompaniments recorded in this week’s snapshots, plus a huge hunk of gnarly caramelised meat…

#323 - La Fromagerie's winter cheeseboard

Day #323 – Following the London Cheese and Wine Guide’s advice and checking out La Fromagerie’s Winter Cheeseboard, served with slices of my favourite seasonal russet apple (and a cheeky glass or two of Riesling!)

Monday 26 November 2012

#Project366 – week 46

You’ll notice an increase in hearty comfort food in this #Project366 flashback, as Winter marches towards us…

#316 - Choux's pastry buns in every flavour

Day #316 - Cute mini cream pastry buns in every flavour by Choux on display at BBC Good Food Show…I sampled a peanut butter version (far right) which was fluffy and delicious

Sunday 25 November 2012

#Project366 – week 45

Why is it that no matter how cold it is outside, you can always enjoy a scoop of creamy gelato or (slightly healthier) frozen yoghurt? Despite the calendar shifting to November in this week’s reflection from my challenge to capture a food-related photograph every day for a year, I didn’t hesitate to tuck into an icy sweet treat…

#309 - Sweet Tooth Factory's banana and chocolate cake

Day #309 – Wandered round the Turner Prize and felt very unimpressed…but this banana chocolate chip cake by Sweet Tooth Factory is a real work of art!

Saturday 24 November 2012

#Project366 – week 44

Enjoying all things in moderation in this flashback from my #Project366 daily food-photography challenge…

#302 - M1lk brunch

Day #302 – Checking out the impressive brunch options at M1lk in Balham and keeping it balanced with a vibrant combo of scrambled egg, spinach, smashed avocado and smoked salmon

Wednesday 21 November 2012

Sticky sausages to warm you up this winter

Sticky roasted sausages
Sticky roasted sausages
I've always been a sucker for sausages, but am an unapologetic snob about the quality level that a banger has to meet before I'm willing to take a bite. Even as a cash-strapped university student I recognised that it was worth shelling out for weiners that were packed with at least 80% real meat, as cheaper imitations filled with gristle and fat were the wurst...(!)

Monday 19 November 2012

#Project366 – week 43

In Nigel Slater’s fascinating autobiography Toast he describes the traditional English dishes that he grew up on, and how incredible it was to try Italian classics like spaghetti bolognese for the first time. Nowadays mixing up our weekly menu with different cuisines from across the world is common place, as perfectly highlighted in this flashback of daily photographs from late October…

#295 - Wahaca's steak Sonara salad

Day #295 – A change from my usual street food order at Wahaca, a virtuous chargrilled steak and avocado spicy Sonara salad served in an ingenious (less healthy, deep-fried!) tortilla basket

Saturday 17 November 2012

#Project366 – week 42

Proof that my 2012 blogging goal to capture a food-related photograph every day for a year was still going strong in mid-October…

#288 - Community Kitchen wrap

Day #288 – Sustenance in the form of fellow Cheese and Wine festival trader Community Kitchen Ltd’s skilfully handmade flatbread wrap with spicy minced lamb and chickpea tagine

Thursday 15 November 2012

#Project366 – week 41

Fantastic meals at to two of Soho’s most reputable eateries, plus an outdoor food festival showcasing the finest independent produce…it’s weeks like this when I realise how lucky I am as a gastronome to be living in London…

#281 - fritto misto at Polpo

Day #281 - Amazing fritto misto as part of an Italian grazing lunch at Polpo with Katy Truss (full review coming soon)

Wednesday 14 November 2012

#Project366 – week 40

There’s a definite Autumnal vibe about these #Project366 snapshots from the first week in October, when I decided to increase my intake of “power foods” to try and prevent the curse of the common cold…

#274 - raspberry and apple crumble

Day #274 - Final chance to enjoy some summery raspberries, combined with sharp apples into a crunchy crumble as a treat for my boyfriend before he jetted off to America to help Barack Obama get re-elected

Tuesday 13 November 2012

#Project366 – week 39

My #Project366 challenge has been toughest when I’ve hit intensely busy periods in my working life – and week 39 reflects one of the most extreme example of this. Other than the run-up to an election, conference week is the most frantic time for me as the Liberal Democrats’ Visits Manager, with the national media pool eager for daily photo opportunities and interview slots with the Party Leader, plus a number of meetings with members to coordinate. Often I barely had time to rehydrate with a bottle of water, let alone eat anything more exciting than a cereal bar. There were points when I was genuinely concerned that I would be forced to skip a day in my challenge, but thankfully I was able to snap the odd quick picture here and there, and take another step towards my goal to capture a food-related photograph every day for a year…

#267 - Grand Hotel room service
Day #267 – Romantic room service dinner for my boyfriend and I before we both spent the evening working at separate internal events

Saturday 10 November 2012

Find me on Instagram...@katy_riddle!

I'm so busy with work during the week that the weekends are my main opportunity for "foodie fun", checking out the latest independent produce at local food markets, developing my palate for foreign delicacies at new supperclubs and challenging my own culinary skills by testing recipes in the kitchen.

Wednesday 7 November 2012

#Project366 – week 38

Fruit, meat, cheese, seafood, cake…I feel like practically every food group (!) has been represented in these snapshots of the eats and treats I enjoyed one week way back in mid-September…

#260 - apple slices and peanut butter

Day #260Healthy carb-free evening snack of crunchy Braeburn apple dipped in creamy peanut butter

Friday 2 November 2012

#Project 366 – week 37

I’ve discussed previously the combined tactics of regular exercise and constant calorie counting that I use to keep in shape. Looking back on these snapshots from mid-September, I’ve realised that sometimes #project366 acts as a tool for maintaining my willpower…I won’t allow myself to tuck in to the giant box of doughnuts in the office or add a shot of gin to my slimline tonic so I’ll just capture a photo of it instead. It’s almost cathartic – it’s a way of rewarding my healthy eating choices and savouring the moments of indulgence when I’m permitted to relax my regular dietary restrictions…

#253 - Spamalot

Day #253 – Attending the final performance of the hilarious Monty Python’s Spamalot for my Dad's birthday treat

#Project366 – week 36

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. When I first challenged myself to capture a food-related photography every day in 2012, I debated what format would be best: either posting the images before going to bed each night, or following the format of the Shutterbean blog that inspired my own #Project366 and simply post a round-up article every week?

I opted for the weekly version, as I thought would be more comprehensive and prevent my site looking overloaded. But on reflection now, I wish I’d plumped for shorter posts more frequently, so that I could go into more detail about all of my gastronomic experiences and share new content with my readers more regularly. Whilst I’ve pushed myself to ensure I don’t skip any snapshots, the truth is that “real life” often overrules my best-laid blogging plans, and so I currently find myself a colossal EIGHT WEEKS behind in my updates.

As someone fixated with achieving perfection, this is obviously an unsatisfactory situation…but my OCD-style nature also prevents me from switching the pattern when I’m so close to reaching my goal (I can’t give myself a break!). So I’m going to do my best to whizz through the last few months’ worth of flashbacks and get back to speed, ready for the finale. I hope these pictures bring back warming memories of the moment when the seasons started to shift and everything turned golden brown…

#246 - Kings Cross Ice-Cream Festival

Day #246 - Checking out the ice-cream festival in Kings Cross…to be honest I was disappointed, as there were huge queues of people waiting to buy their punnets which meant that it wasn’t possible to check out any of the vendors or do any tastings before making your mind up on which scoop to supersize