August 2021 favourites list

This month's photos are from a yarnbombing I found a few months ago. I loved the exuberance and cheeky creativity of them, so I photographed them all. Located near the garden centre in Catford, you can see where they got the inspiration for the knitted planters from! They seemed even more cheerful in the sunshine.

Some years ago street art was just dismissed as vandalism. But I think attitudes have shifted, and we see how they improve the urban environment. Guerrilla gardening with a touch of yarnbombing might just be the next level?

I hope you enjoy this month's list and photos.

Food writing and articles: 

What's in season in August? https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/whats-in-season-august

Kavey on the subject of the intensely sour and utterly delectable taste of tamarind: https://www.kaveyeats.com/a-taste-for-tamarind

Chef share their cooking tips from choc chip cookies to roasted veggies and mashed potatoes: https://www.insider.com/chef-tips-for-recipes-everyone-should-know-how-to-make-2021-6

 

Nowadays beans and pulses are recognised as a healthy source of protein and fibre. But once upon a time, it was thought they induced lust and libido. https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/when-beans-were-the-food-of-lust/

We imagine Sylvia Plath hunched over her typewriter writing poems in her unique style. But she was also a keen cook who typed up her own recipes with great care on index cards. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/sylvia-plath-recipes

 

“Steakhouse butter” is a simple way of fancying up grilled or barbecued steak. Here’s how: https://lifehacker.com/how-to-make-steakhouse-butter-at-home-1847102251

Cooking tips which go beyond fixed recipes: https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahloewentheil/best-cooking-tips-according-to-chefs

Kavey on the subject of the intensely sour and utterly delectable taste of tamarind: https://www.kaveyeats.com/a-taste-for-tamarind

 

Recipes:

Kala Channa (or black chick peas) have an ultra nutty flavour. Here’s a black chickpea hummus recipe to ring the changes: https://aahaaramonline.com/black-chickpea-hummus/

For my friends who are growing their own tomatoes, a puff pastry tomato tart with caramelised onions: https://frugalflexitarian.com/tomato-tart-with-puff-pastry/

Heidi Swanson’s Vaghareli Makai – while summery sweetcorn is abundant: https://highgatehillkitchen.com/2015/10/15/heidi-swansons-vaghareli-makai-makhaniya-lassi/

 

Korean inspired cheeseburgers, ginger lime chicken, salmon and couscous salad with cucumber-feta dressing, salad pizza with white beans and parmesan, and yo po mian (oil sprinked noodles) with pak choi: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/week-meal-ideas-summer-burger-b1856872.html

With lavender in bloom, you might want to make use of these fragrant and edible flowers: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/recipes/lavender-shortbread

 

Tacos Norteños with chunky guacamole: https://food52.com/recipes/86188-best-tacos-nortenos-recipe

Nigel Slater’s recipes for couscous with apricots and mint, and mozzarella with tomatoes and parmesan: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2021/aug/08/nigel-slaters-recipes-for-couscous-with-apricots-and-mozzarella-with-tomatoes

A “no knead” onion bread for home baking fans. https://www.tinnedtomatoes.com/2021/01/quick-no-knead-onion-bread-no-yeast.html

Film:

Stop Making Sense (Talking Heads)

TV:

Time

Ghosts (series 1, series 2, Christmas special)

Music:

Arlo Parks - Collapsed In Sunbeams

Thom Yorke – The Eraser 

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.  

November 2020 Favourites List

Hello readers and friends,

It's time for another favourites list and I am posting this from UK Lockdown 2.0. I haven't quite lost the extra pounds I put on from last time (I have lovingly called it my Lockdown Belly). So right now, I'm doing my best to control my food impulses. Wish me luck! Thanks to the recommendations of friends, I have discovered the Pinch of Nom website. They have a keen sense food fans want big flavours, and that we can't bear some of the bland "diet" food which is so often found in the supermarket. 

Before this second UK lockdown, I had reason to pop into the workplace. On my way home, my regular train was cancelled, so I had to find another route home. In a moment of sheer serendipity, I ended up travelling via Lewisham station, to find freshly painted street art at the building site immediately outside. 

I love the imagination of contemporary street art, and the diversity of styles the artists have. Some street art is rooted in graffiti art, some inspired by comics and cartoons, some owes more to fine art, some is political, some satirical, some of it packs a message. It brightens up the urban environment and always brings colour to bustling streets. 

So this month's pictures are of the Lewisham station street art, taken back when it was fresh. You can almost smell the paint.

Recipes:

It might not be January, but as the days get shorter and chillier, here is a comforting fish pie recipe:  http://thewatchfulcook.co.uk/2020/01/20/january-is-the-cruellest-month/

Autumnal tray bakes from Yotam Ottolenghi: Five-a-day (root vegetable) toad-in-the-hole, Curried butternut and coconut gratin, Berbere-spiced chicken, carrots and chickpeas: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2020/oct/10/yotam-ottolenghi-recipes-for-autumn-traybakes

Grilled corn succotash, a light bite or side dish from Janice at Farmer’s Girl Kitchen blog: https://www.farmersgirlkitchen.co.uk/grilled-corn-succotash/

Ragu sauce (what some call Bolognese, although it isn’t strictly accurate) takes so long to make, you might as well make lots and use it for several meals. Here’s an smart idea for when you have too much ragu, but don’t feel like having it with pasta or potatoes – “Bolognese” garlic bread: https://metro.co.uk/2020/10/22/mums-quick-hack-for-using-leftover-bolognese-sauce-in-garlic-bread-cups-goes-down-a-treat-13461603/

Jalapeño Brined Fried Chicken and Homemade Chicken Fat Tortilla Tacos from Niamh at Eat Like a Girl: https://eatlikeagirl.com/fried-jalapeno-brined-fried-chicken-homemade-chicken-fat-tortilla-tacos/

Green Couscous With Prawns from the new cookbook Roasting Pan Suppers by Rosie Sykes, as featured at Kavey Eats: https://www.kaveyeats.com/green-couscous-with-prawns

A vegan and vegetarian mushroom soup from Jacqueline Meldrum at Tinned Tomatoes: https://www.tinnedtomatoes.com/2020/08/easy-mushroom-soup.html

Food writing:

Aaron Vallance has explored a brief history of food and drink in five objects, as inspired by the collection of the British Museum: https://www.1dish4theroad.com/2020/09/british-museum-five-objects-food-drink.html

The history of chicken tikka masala: https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3103638/history-chicken-tikka-masala-why-britains-favourite-curry-has

The ingenious and sneaky ways supermarkets encourage you to spend more money than you need to: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/consumer/twenty-two-ways-supermarkets-trick-you-into-spending-more-money-1.4393323

What you might have missed at Snig’s Kitchen

Recipe post – Spicy prawns with pooris: http://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2020/11/spicy-prawns-with-pooris.html

My other writing

A guide for Bar Course advocacy students on the “legal test” in civil procedural submissions: https://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-legal-test-in-civil-submissions.html

Film:

Small Axe: Mangrove

Dark Waters

TV:

Anthony Bourdain – A Cook’s Tour

Top of the Pops – The Story of 1983

Music:

Yazoo – Upstairs At Eric’s

Neil Young with Crazy Horse – Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

Mogwai – Every Country’s Sun

Pet Shop Boys - Introspective

In My Life, Mojo Presents the new singer-songwriters - Various Artists (October 2020 issue) 

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.   

November 2019 Favourites List

Street art is a great love of mine. Once upon a time, it used to divide opinion and some saw it as little more than vandalism. But now it is seen as a sign of renewal, and councils and local authorities are welcoming and commissioning new artworks to bring colour and joy to neighbourhoods. 

This month's pictures are of a gigantic and beautiful new street artwork in Ladywell, near Lewisham. One side welcomes people to the "Village" of Ladywell, which is a cute little area that remarkably does feel like a village in the middle of London! The other....

The other side is a huge mural, in the greens, creams and purples of the Suffragette movement, celebrating the struggle for universal suffrage. Last year was the 100th anniversary of the first rights of UK women to vote. The UK were following the lead of the Isle of Man, New Zealand and Canada. Those first UK rights were a big step, and make an anniversary worthy of celebration. However, women had to own property and be over the age of 30, in sharp contrast with the position of men under that same the law of 1918, who received unqualified voting rights to men over the age of 21. Eventually, in 1928, ten years later, women received the right to vote at 21 without the need to own property.

This particular artwork celebrates the suffragettes and Rosa May Billinghurst in particular. She was a Lewisham based campaigner for votes for women. She campaigned in her tricycle, after a bout of polio meant she was unable to walk. The police took advantage of her disability, letting the tyres down on her tricycle to prevent her joining protestsand even tipping her out of her tricycle! But Rosa was made of stronger stuff. A regular protester who was arrested multiple times, she eventually joined the hunger strike for votes for women, becoming severely ill in the process. Rosa was awarded a Hunger Strike Medal For Valour by the Women's Social and Political Union for her efforts. 

Learning about Rosa has made me realise that wherever you live, there is hidden history. There are hidden heroes. Born in 1875, in Rosa's day and age, women had little power and disabled people were not expected to campaign and protest. Rosa May Billingham is an inspirational woman, one the people of Lewisham can be proud of. 

My pictures don't properly capture the sheer size and ambition of the artwork. But nevertheless, I hope you enjoy my photos, some feature the detail of the mural. 

I should add that today is the last day for registering to vote in the UK general election. You have until 23:59 to register. The brave Suffragettes didn't just fight for votes for women, but votes for people of all classes, including those without property. Register to vote and vote in the election to honour them.

Food writing: 

 

An excellent and informative book review of MiMi Aye's Mandalay Burmese cookbook by Nicky Bramley at Kavey Eats blog. I am slowly cooking my way through this wonderful cookbook. One for your kitchen shelf! https://www.kaveyeats.com/2019/10/review-mandalay-burmese-kitchen-by-mimi-aye.html

 

What's in season for November? Parsnips, pears, celeriac and kale: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/whats-season-november

 

A thoughtful article about New York's famous Jewish delis, focussing in particular on Gottlieb's in Williamsburg: https://roadsandkingdoms.com/2019/keeping-it-kosher/

 

17 supermarket houmous products recalled over possibility of salmonella: Aldi, ASDA, Lidl, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Spar affected. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/houmous-recall-salmonella-sainsburys-morrisons-aldi-nandos-symptoms-a9177201.html

 

How to make your cooking Masterchef worthy:

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/food/a29335143/8-chef-approved-tips-to-take-your-cooking-from-mediocre-to-masterchef/

 

What might be a food trend in 2020? The Indy asked Whole Foods. Do you agree?

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/whole-foods-trends-regenerative-agriculture-flour-alcohol-2020-vegan-nut-butter-a9166501.html

Recipes: 

Batch cooking at the weekend can help cut the work in making midweek suppers. Here are some ideas for Autumn:

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/oct/29/wanted-make-ahead-autumn-recipes-that-will-last-all-week

 

Jamie Oliver is exploring meat free eating with his new book. Whether you are vegetarian or flexitarian, these recipes look worth a try. I particularly like the look of the stuffed aubergines.

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/recipes/jamie-oliver-cookbook-vegetarian-recipes-curried-aubergine-pad-thai-a9092471.html

 

Lamb Cutlets With Mint, Chilli & Golden Potatoes. The potatoes here are steamed and then fried, to make them golden and delicious. From Nigella Lawson: https://www.nigella.com/recipes/lamb-cutlets-with-mint-chilli-and-golden-potatoes

I would make this in my cast iron casserole pan, herby cream sauce with chicken thighs and mushrooms. Comforting and Autumnal!

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/food-recipes/a46042/mushroom-chicken-skillet-with-herbed-cream-sauce-recipe/

 

If you're going to make a Jack O'Lantern for Halloween, please don't waste the insides of your pumpkin! Here's a pumpkin soup recipe to warm you up and prevent food wastage: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/pumpkinsoup_89904

When I am at work, I'll confess, I'm lazy and if I make porridge, it is in the microwave. But at the weekend, taking my time is more possible. This is a herby and gently spiced take on humble porridge: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/recipes/five-spice-pear-porridgewith-roasted-cobnutsyogurtand-rosemary/

 

I love Sake with Japanese food, its flavours are always clear, precise and delicate. It seems to me to be incredible something made from rice can smell flowery or have flavours like wood or aniseed. But Sake can also be used for cocktails, and here is a Sake Cider Fizz for Sunday afternoon! https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/entertain/sake-cider-fizz/

 

Want to get ahead this weekend for next week's food? This is a freezable and reheatable soup. Celeriac, bacon and pearl barley soup: https://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/celeriac-bacon-and-barley-soup/

 

Anglo-Italian cottage pie? Yes, please! https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/oct/28/rachel-roddy-cottage-pie-recipe

 

It is Bonfire Night tomorrow, and jacket potatoes have often been a staple - easy to wrap up in foil and eat with your hands. This is like a fish pie and jacket potato combo for standing out in the cold and watching the fireworks:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/recipes/baked-potato-cod-fish-pie-recipe/

 

Su Scott grew up in Seoul, South Korea, where kimchi is a very important part of the food culture. Here is her kimchi jjigae recipe - a stew for ripened kimchi, with mushrooms and tofu. This recipe won the Observer Food Monthly 219 award for best reader's recipe:

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/oct/23/ofm-awards-2019-best-readers-recipe-kimchi-jjigae-su-scott

 

 

What you might have missed at Snig's Kitchen: 

Double spiced parsnip soup - a soup of serendipity: http://snigskitchen.blogspot.com/2019/11/double-spiced-parsnip-soup.html

The story of the Billable Hour Cookbook. Features a legendary crumble, an intrepid editor and the lawyers of Twitter and their friends. All working together to raise money for Save The Children: https://snigskitchen.tumblr.com/post/189290377259/one-evening-barrister-gordon-exall-who-writes-an

 

My other writings: 

Starting your civil submission - an advocacy blog post: http://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2019/10/starting-your-civil-submission.html

5 steps to take when you haven't passed an exam: http://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2019/11/5-steps-to-take-when-you-havent-passed.html

TV:

Plebs Season 5

World On Fire

Traitors

Music:

Nils Frahm – Felt

 

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.