Strawberry fact of the week

A strawberry is a 'false' fruit. The yellow seeds that adorn the outer 'berry' are the fruit of the plant, while the 'berry' as we know it is merely an enlarged receptacle for the fruits, similar to the white cone left behind on the plant after picking a raspberry.

Lunch at Langstry's

This is where we shall be lunching on Saturday 6th July: http://www.langtrysrestaurant.com/saturday_lunch.php
"Langtry’s Restaurant has recently opened its doors in the heart of Knightsbridge and offers British dishes with unique and inventive flavour combinations. "

The menu's a little limited but seeing as the champagne flows freely until dessert... I don't think we're going to complain. A rather fitting way to celebrate and end of an era, I would say.

The Maltese Rabbit

I recently had a conversation around the eating of rabbit as a friend had mentioned that he’d had it for lunch. Now I know rabbit is widely eaten across Europe (one has only to have walked past a Parisian butcher to see the wide array of unusual animals being hung in the window) and seen as a delicacy in some cultures, I, however, cannot get my head around it.

Having lunch in Malta last year whilst out there on holiday, my boyfriend ordered rabbit. At the time I was still a strict vegetarian, and seeing those tiny bones on the plate really didn’t do much for my appetite. I do recall I ordered some type of stuffed squid, which, I was convinced, had ground mince meat in eat.

The wind was blowing, the conversation non-existent, the food less than appetising, and I think I probably got through a bottle of wine on my own to drown out the very awful situation. Needless to say, the boyfriend became the ex-boyfriend within a week of returning home from the holiday.

Malta, interestingly, does produce some decent wines, many of which I sampled on my holiday (the volume of which I would put down to attempting to getting through the holiday as painless as possible). Although I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy any back here in London, and unless you are stuck with that as your choice, there’s really not much need to drink it. The seafood was generally good, and as long you took pains to find a decent restaurant and avoid the general tourist traps, you’ll probably be alright.

I’m quite happy to be served (or cook myself) a medium rare steak, am no longer squeamish at the thought of chicken on the bone and am getting used to eating lamb. (My roasted lamb noisettes at Easter were absolutely delicious, if I do say so myself). However, rabbit, offal, brains, liver, foie gras and tongue are all on my list of animal that I shall not be trying this side of sanity.

A Taste of London

Here is the list of participating restaurants in London: Taste of London.
I'm quite keen to try Canteen. It was voted best restaurant in London in the Observer's last foodie awards and whilst not very expensive (I used to live round the corner), I have not got round to going.
Fifteen for brunch - will have to get one more in before Gabi and Sam go travelling (my very, very dear friends who live round the corner from the restaurant).
Cocoon - for a bit of Z-list Sleb spotting but the Pan-Asian cuisine is rather good.
And then perhaps Le Gavroche, for a bit of old-fashioned, posh French fare. I think it has a Michelin star?
Oooh - and maybe Bumpkin. It's the latest offering from Tom Aiken, and was subjected to much fanfare when it opened, but I'm not sure that will actually live up to the hype.

Exciting developments

A couple of exciting things happened today, one of which was a visit to the very chi-chi "The Hospital". A delicious Rose Prosecco was served, which came from the family vineyards of the CEO of the company who was doing the schmoozing - located in Naples, the cellar has 15th centaury frescos and has been in his family for centuries.

The canapés included some of the usual run-of-the-mill sort, chicken on sticks, which, other than being far too oily is just a weird concept in itself. I know it's supposed to make it easier to eat, but has anyone actually thought about the concept? A few dim sum, feta, cherry tomatoes and feta (again, on sticks) and an odd looking chicken "meatball" served on a Chinese dishing spoon that had a sauce that looked a bit like pureed strawberries. But what was rather interesting and tasty was the broccoli tempura. I'm guessing that the broccoli was cooked a great deal softer than usual, and then dipped in the tempura and very quickly deep-fried, giving it a crunchy shell and a soft and tasty centre. The combination took me rather by surprise, as I was not expecting it to be that good.


I’ve been really keen to make my own Gnocchi from scratch as I have a rather delicious recipe for gnocchi, which is served with roasted butternut, rocket, buffalo mozzarella and fresh baby pomodoro tomatoes. This evening I came home to see that one of my favourite foodie blogs, http://www.101cookbooks.com/ had just posted a an entry on making homemade gnocchi. Am considering giving it a go for my housewarming party in two weeks time.

The third exciting thing today was the announcement that from Thursday many of London’s top restaurants are going half price as part of the annual Taste of London festival in Regents Park. Evidentially this requires more research. Watch this space.

La Boqueria Mercado, Barcelona

Môreson, Franshoek

What I found really interesting about the chef at Môreson is that he is completely self-trained. There's hope for me yet.

Meatloaf

...was on the menu at Downtime (the restaurant in the building at work). Meatloaf?? Perhaps this is one retro moment taken too far.

Berries

William Butler on strawberries: "Doubtless God could have made a better berry, but doubtless God never did.

Preparing for Swedish Midsummer

Friday is Swedish Midsummer, and in Sweden this is generally time for great merriment and another chance to eat herring and traditional Swedish foods. But, since the Swedes are not going to Stockholm this year, we are having a Midsummer's party at our place on Saturday. I also now have a fridge full of Gradvalax, three different types of Herring, fish roe paste and Swedish cheese (which is similar to cheddar). I have offered to make the meatballs, which is simple enough. Then there is sallss (salad), “prince sausages”, braised cabbage (“rödkål” in Swedish) and a Sardine and potato bake, which is similar to Potato Gratin. Apparently it’s just cream, milk, Swedish-style sardines, onions, potatoes and butter. Interesting combination.