Welcome to this month's list of my favourite stuff. I hope you've had a good month since last time. I've been pottering around, teaching, doing meetings, getting ready for assessment season and all the stuff which happens in academia at this time of year.
I have also been messing around in the kitchen. My kind of home cooking isn't the cheffy sort. But I like something tasty and home made, rather than something to prick and ping.
I like to share my food pictures on Twitter and Instagram. Social media has given me the chance to get in touch with other foodies and cooking enthusiasts. We enjoy sharing our food pictures, swapping recipes and trading cooking tips.
But imagine my surprise this month when I made a Smoked haddock and cannellini bean recipe, only to receive praise from the Queen of Foodie Twitter, Nigella Lawson herself. Commenting on the picture of the dish, which I made to Nigella's recipe, Lawson said "That looks so good!"
The initial shock, removed all of my words from my jangled mind, and rendered me speechless. But I calmed down and I posted my reaction on Twitter, summing it up "I'm reeling. Forget getting married, graduating twice, getting Called to the Bar. This is it, my ultimate achievement: praise from Nigella Lawson on my cooking. I can hang up my apron."
To paraphrase John Torode of Masterchef "cooking doesn't get any better than this!"
So here is my list of lovely stuff for this month, along with pictures of my latest homecooking exploits. Perhaps they won't all meet with Nigella's approval. But they were all tasty and got totally demolished!
Onto this months pickings...
Food writing and articles:
What is in season in June? Aubergines, beetroot, broad beans, cauliflower, cherries, French beans, globe artichokes and gooseberries: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/whats-season-june
Cookbook review – Kavey reviews Mark Diacono’s new book “Herb”: https://www.kaveyeats.com/herb-by-mark-diacono
Five of Anthony Bourdain’s favourites places to eat: https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2021/may/19/five-of-anthony-bourdains-favourite-food-destinations
Some great tips for cooking with garlic. I like the idea of putting the tiny cloves in stock and roasting upside down in a ramekin. I already use a crusher with zero shame. https://lifehacker.com/13-better-ways-to-cook-with-garlic-1846977755
Emojis and food culture: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/food_emojis
Thoughts about the military coup in Myanmar and the iconic Burmese dish Lahpet Thote (pickled tea leaf salad): https://asia.nikkei.com/Editor-s-Picks/Tea-Leaves/When-comfort-food-is-no-longer-a-refuge
Are there really any processed foods which are better than natural? Surprise yourself: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210521-which-processed-foods-are-better-than-natural
Nic Miller writes about shopping lists – from Michaelangelo to today’s more humble equivalents: https://topographickitchens.substack.com/p/shopping-lists
In Chinese culture, after birth, the new mum isolates for a month called
zuo yue zi (坐月子) for healing. Only special foods can be eaten.
Kaila Yu has written this moving piece about cooking these dishes for her
sister in law. https://www.glamour.com/story/chinese-postpartum-cuisine-motherhood
Recipes:
After we fell hard for Nigella Lawson and Ash Sarkar’s fish finger bhorta, isn’t it high time we embraced a Bengali potato bhorta? https://www.thefooddictator.com/the-hirshon-bangladeshi-aloo-bhorta-%e0%a6%86%e0%a6%b2%e0%a7%81-%e0%a6%ad%e0%a6%b0%e0%a7%8d/
Marinaded lamb with haricot bean mash: https://www.recipesmadeeasy.co.uk/lamb-with-bean-mash/
Nisha Katona’s South Indian (chicken) meatball curry: https://www.itv.com/thismorning/articles/nisha-katonas-spiced-meatballs-in-curry
Marcus Rashford and Tom Kerridge have teamed up to help families make easy food at home at low cost and without lots of kitchen equipment. Try out four of their 50+ recipes here: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/may/29/easy-tortilla-pizza-creamy-chicken-pie-kettle-omelette-shakshuka-traybake-marcus-rashford-and-tom-kerridge-easy-family-recipes
Tlayudas with pea hummus, sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella. A recipe from the streets of Oaxaca from Thomasina Miers: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/may/31/thomasina-miers-recipe-ylayuda-pea-hummus-mexican-style-pizza
Nigella’s Thai chicken noodle soup: https://www.nigella.com/recipes/thai-chicken-noodle-soup
My other writings
How to structure your practice focussed LLM dissertation: http://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2021/06/how-to-structure-your-llm-dissertation.html
TV:
We Are Ladyparts
Innocent (Series 1 and 2)
The Virtues
Films:
X + Y
Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band
Music:
Joni Mitchell – Blue
The Band – Music From Big Pink
The Band - The Band (the Brown album)
Radiohead - Amnesiac
The Smiths – Louder Than Bombs
Please note: as with every monthly Favourites List, all of these items have been selected by me simply because I love them. I do not receive any money, benefits in kind or other incentive for posting these links or recommendations.