tasting life...one recipe at a time
A smoky beef chilli, chunks of beef with beans and vegetables, slow-braised in a spicy sauce, perfect for feeding a crowd! It’s Winter, its cold outside, it gets dark early and I want a warming stew, specifically some slow braised beef. I was busy outdoors at the weekend, trying to give the garden a good tidy while…
Spiced pork bonbons, with the hint of star anise. Delicious served as canapes or for adding a touch of elegance to your Sunday roast! The Christmas party season is upon us, the time of year when we like to think about drinks parties. What better to serve with drinks than a few canapes. Tasty mouthfuls…
Deliciously crisp and crunchy brandy snaps, spiced with ginger and filled with clementine cream. I love brandy snaps, it was something my Mum always had in the house at Christmas. She never made her own, but always bought a couple of boxes. Now to be honest I don’t even need them filled, nor do I…
Deliciously spiced molasses cookies, a simple delight at Christmas. These simple Christmas cookies were a regular bake in Michelle’s house in Canada when she was growing up. Traditionally made with molasses, they can be substituted with Black Treacle as that’s easier to get your hands on here. They are a really simple bake with a…
Indulgent chocolate truffles dusted in cocoa powder, delicious with your after dinner coffee. I’m not a huge eater of chocolate, but I do love a good quality chocolate, a proper treat. I also adore homemade chocolate truffles. When it comes to anything sweet I’m very good at telling Michelle “I’d like these, can you make…
A delicious baked vanilla cheesecake served with mulled plums, plum puree and a mulled plum syrup. A decadent dessert that can easily feed a crowd. The final post from our Christmas menu series and this time we are serving up a vanilla baked cheesecake. We have paired this beautifully light cheesecake with the festive flavours…
Sirloin Steak with a simple mushroom, shallot and Madiera sauce. A beautiful main course for an intimate dinner for two or for a special meal with friends and family. The next instalment of our special Christmas menu focuses on the main course. We both love to entertain, but particularly so over the festive period when…
A delicious starter of pan fried scallops, served with a creamy celeriac puree, the crunch of smoked bacon and the freshness of cucumber and apple. A perfect start to any dinner party. At this time of year Michelle and I start thinking a lot about food, even more than we usually do! It’s hard to…
An Autumn Supperclub for eight, our first official event: Last weekend saw Michelle and I hosting our first official Supperclub. Having spent “far too long” thinking about it, we decided the time was right to launch our first event for paying customers. Over the past few years we have toyed with the idea of doing…
Chocolate & hazelnut cookies, a really great quick bake with kids. Chocolate and hazelnut cookies, who doesn’t love them? Certainly not me, they are one of my favourite biscuits. However I do prefer to make my own as I find shop bought just a bit too hard and really not what I want from a…
Our apricot, almond & honey flapjacks. Ideal for simple baking with the kids during the October holidays. Flapjacks are quite simply one of my favourite sweet treats, at their absolute best when they have the right amount of chew. But rest assured I’ve eaten plenty that have been well below par! As with all baked…
A quick and simple courgette pickle, ideal when you have a glut of courgettes growing in the garden. I love making pickle using up bits and pieces of vegetables that I have growing in the garden. The courgette plants in my garden have produced a lot of fruit this summer. It’s something I always grow…
A simple pork and peanut stir-fry – a perfect mid week dinner loved by all the family. I have made this pork stir-fry, or a version of it, for years now. It’s one of those dishes that I cook often, a mid week staple. In fact it’s a recipe that I had to really think…
Chicken noodle soup is something I make all the time, particularly one with an Asian twist. My youngest daughter loves this soup, it’s her favourite, even better with a whole pak choi thrown in for good measure. The secret to a good broth is time. I love making stocks and sauces and a really good…
Simple stir fried pak choi with an Asian dressing is a savoury side dish that accompanies any main dish perfectly or works equally well with a bowl of steamed rice. This simple dish is one I love to eat so it’s cooked in my house regularly. I spent a lot of time living and working…
simple summer fruit recipes to please the entire family during the school holidays! Welcome to #cookblogshare week 30! Wow, I can’t believe we are nearing the end of July already! Based in the North-East of Scotland our children are already on the 3rd week of their summer holidays. We have been completely spoilt this year…
