Hibernation

It has suddenly got very dark, and so hard to get out of bed in the morning. I keep thinking the right thing to do would be to stay at home, pour a glass of something delicious, light a candle and listen to something soothing. Luckily, this weekend that was exactly what we did.

Colourful Chaos

In the garden, everything has collapsed due to a lack of staking, and now it all looks like a bit of a sorry heap. But, it is a very colourful heap which makes me feel happy when I come downstairs on these dark October mornings. The first frost is around the corner so today I will look at these flowers for a few extra minutes before they turn black and the long wait for the new season starts.

Paris shopping

Went to Paris for 36 hours and this is what I came back with. Something that smells good and a few things that taste good.

New Season

Outside it is dark and windy. Inside I am adding splashes of colour to brighten things up. At the weekend we had the first fire of the season. Autumn is definitely here.

Mushrooms and Beans on Toast with Garlic, Lemon, Parsley and Chili

One of my favourite lunchtime quick fixes, humble mushrooms on toast become quite luxurious with a few added ingredients. Fragrant, comforting and ready in 10 minutes. This is not a precise recipe and things can easily be omitted or substituted - just use what is in the fridge and cupboards.

Mushrooms

Butter Beans

Lemon

Fresh Parsley

Freash Thyme

Garlic

Dried Chili

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Sourdough Toast

Butter

Slice the garlic, chop the mushrooms roughly and crush the dried chili. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and chuck in the garlic and dried chili. After a minute or two, add the mushrooms and thyme. Fry until the mushrooms start to colour, then squeeze over some lemon juice. After another minute or so, add the beans and let them warm through. Season generously with salt and pepper and stir in the parsley. Serve on buttered toast and finish with some grated lemon zest on top and, if you are feeling spicy, a bit of extra chili.

Still life

On my dressing table.

Garlic and Parmesan Hasselback Potatoes

I can't believe I haven't made Hasselback Potatoes once since I moved to London 12 years ago! Until now, that is. They are so good and a really nice alternative to normal (but always lovely) roast potatoes. The other week I suddenly remembered about these gorgeous thinly sliced crispy things and decided to add a couple of ingredients to the original recipe to make them truly scrumptious. Here it goes:

Potatoes

Butter

Garlic

Parmesan Cheese

Salt and Pepper

Wash the potatoes and dry them with some kitchen towel. Slice as thinly as you possibly can for ultimate crispiness, being careful not to cut all the way through the potatoes so they stay whole. The trick to this is to put a wooden spoon handle right next to the potato whilst you slice it to stop the knife going all the way down. Make a garlic butter by adding a few crushed cloves and plenty of salt and pepper to some room temperature butter. Put a knob of this on each potato, grate some Parmesan over the top and bake in the oven for around an hour at 180 degrees. Dig in!