7 things for 7 days...#5

Apologies for the lack of blogposts over the past couple of weeks - if you follow me on Twitter, you'll know that I'm currently busy campaigning with the Liberal Democrats in the Eastleigh parliamentary by-election. Normal service will be resumed here shortly, but in the meantime I hope you'll enjoy this flashback of my favourite foodie moments and other random musings from my past week...

1. Way back in the mists of time when I first started this blog I lived in Winchester. One of my top places to entertain any visiting friends and relatives was a pan-Asian restaurant called Tanoshii Fusion, which my boyfriend and I returned to late last Friday for a romantic dinner after a disastrous Valentine's Day (don't ask!). Their tender roasted duck with a sticky tamarind sauce was the stand-out dish of the night, but everything we ordered was as skilfully cooked and beautifully presented as I'd remembered (see my Instagram for more). The complimentary plate of icecreams to share was the ideal end to our delicious meal, especially as it included my favourite flavour of rich honeycomb and dark chocolate.

It's Christmas every day for #littlecat

It's Chriiiiiistmaaaaas!


I'm not sure if I'm excited about presents or nervous about cooking the big festive feast myself for the first time but I've woken up super-early this Christmas morning!

Yesterday my boyfriend and I surpassed all previous baking attempts by making this decadent Yule log, which we're looking forward to sampling large quantities of today! If anyone can think of a good use for the leftover chocolate ganache and amaretti cream let me know, or we'll be eating it straight from the bowl...perhaps it's time I made amaretto tiramisu again...?!

I was delighted to see on Twitter that a few people (including my own Dad!) were making my Coca Cola ham with sweet mustard glaze for their Christmas Day breakfast...I'd love to hear any feedback and hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Chocolate cheesecake brownies and jigsaws

When you've been happily dating someone special for a while, you forget what life was ever like before.

Back then, you felt like "He's Just Not That Into You" was a documentary about your relationship history. Back then, you admired that special someone from afar through star-struck eyes, and dreamt of the day they would finally wake up and notice you.

Now, you forget how lucky you are to be enveloped in the love and support of someone so awesome every single day.

Hopelessly devoted to Hotel Chocolat – Ideal Valentine’s Day Gifts

When it comes to gift-giving, my boyfriend and I have become increasingly hopeless. After shelling out significant chunks of our hard-earned cash last summer to settle down together in our little London flat, we sensibly decided to postpone Christmas 2011 and instead put the pennies in a jar for a special occasion in 2012. Whilst I don’t regret us putting our heads before our hearts and balancing our budget at this early stage, I am quite embarrassed that our greetings cards for the festive season still remain unwritten and stashed away by our respective bedsides!

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I was keen to redress this recent failure and show my man how much he means to me. But what could I get a technological guru who listens to the latest tunes on Spotify and downloads new books directly to his Kindle?!

Magnificent meatballs to leave him wanting amore

I’ve received an urgent recipe request on my Facebook fanpage for the perfect meal for a romantic night in. Like a savvy lady’s pre-date beauty regime, the dish needs to be dressed to impress without breaking the bank balance or taking hours to prepare.

For me, Italian food is ideal for inspiring intimacy – and the classic combination of pasta and meatballs is the ultimate embodiment of this. The heady scent of rich tomatoes and fresh herbs instantly conjures up images of gondolas gliding over Venetian canals, and what better way to get into the mood for amore than by recreating the infamous spaghetti-sharing scene from Lady and the Tramp?!

Heartwarming apple and blackberry crumbles

It’s been a year since my better half and I made the first tentative steps towards a relationship. Wanting to celebrate, but feeling somewhat skint after recently making the (slightly larger!) step of moving in together, my boyfriend offered to spend the evening cooking any dish my heart desired in the comfort of our new home.


It’ll be no surprise to hear that my love of gastronomy means that 95% of meals eaten by our foundling nuclear family are produced by me - so this was a particularly gallant (some might even say brave!) suggestion. To show my gratitude, I felt it was only fair if he were compensated for this potentially painful hour slaving over a hot stove by being treated to his favourite pudding: apple and blackberry crumble.

A proper "pukka" pie

When it comes to food, we all have our own preferences and peculiarities. After all, eating is the very definition of a matter of taste - indeed, one person’s manna from heaven may well be another’s vision of hellish torture. 

This subjectivity extends not only to the flavour combinations we enjoy, but also to the quality of ingredients and standards of production that we will accept. The sticking point for me is sausages - I refuse to consume a banger containing less than 75% meat. But my boyfriend’s crusade of choice is the quest for the perfect pie. In his eyes, a proper pie is a meaty filling encased entirely in pastry, and a pie “without sides” is nothing more than a stew with a pastry lid.

"Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all" - Harriet Van Horne