So after a long hard winter that seemed like it would never end and strange unpredictable weather it seems that Summer 2018 is finally with us. Hubbie was home for a couple of weeks from Bahrain and we made the most of the glorious weather. Plenty was packed into his time at home; Taste of London (my 7th Taste his 1st); a wonderful afternoon at the Kentish coast and a couple of dinner parties where I tested out a few new recipes of mine.
Taste of London
We were lucky to be invited to Taste of London by Shawbury Wines. We bought a LOT of vino which was delivered very promptly and will no doubt be drunk over the coming summer months. As usual a great day was had, full of food and drink. I found some wonderful sauces by The Sauce Shop. The buffalo sauce was so yummy I bought 2 bottles and the habenero ketchup was gorgeous fire in a bottle. Im looking forward to using the buffalo sauce to marinade chicken wings and the ketchup has been used (v cautiously) in some pasta. These sauces are just the ticket for people like me who cant bear unnecessary sugar in their chilli sauces. Another awesome purchase was a wonderful artisan Japanese knife from The Japanese Knife Company. Whenever I go to Taste I’m always ogling the knives at this stand. The guys are so knowledgeable and passionate about their products. I was lucky enough this time to get one of my own! HIghlights of the restaurants exhibiting were Sagardi whose display of beef is always so so dramatic and beautiful, veggies look away!! All in all a very good day out. This was my 7th year at Taste London and its changed quite a bit. A lot of the big names have fallen away, leaving way for young, new talent – which is great to see. However the organisers need to be careful that ‘Taste’ doesn’t become a massive drinkfest with a bit of food. There was an awful lot of alcohol on show……….
Whitstable
An impromptu early evening visit to Tankerton on the Kent Coast was prompted by the glorious weather. We had a lip smacking fish and chip dinner at Ossie’s in Tankerton where the fish and chips were excellent, service very good and the bill was very reasonable too. Thoroughly recommended! Dinner was followed by a lovely stroll along Tankerton Slopes and an ice cream (with flake!) by the water’s edge. A beautiful summer’s evening and less than 30 mins from our home. Stunning!
Cooking New Stuff!
With hubbie being home we had quite a bit of entertaining to do and I wasted no time in trying out a few new recipes on my more than willing guinea pigs! The crab and shrimp pakoras went down really very well indeed with huge batches consumed with satisfied ‘ooo’s and aaaaaah’s’. Anyone that knows me knows I am not a dessert person but with the acquisition of my Kitchen Aid mixer I’m falling in love with baking and making puds. There is a different kind of appreciation you get from a well done pud which is different to anything savoury. My lemon posset and vanilla shortbread rounds were one such pud. Our guests wanted to lick the ramekins and that’s good enough appreciation for me! I’ll be posting the recipes on the site so watch this space!
