To most people The Bard probably refers to Shakespeare. But here in Scotland the Bard refers to someone else entirely. Happy Rabbie Burns night! There are many traditions that go along with the celebration of Burns night, among them, piping in the guests, The Selkirk Grace, the singing of Burns songs, and the ever humorous […]
Raspberry lemon lacto-fermented oats
The other day I found this article on lacto-fermented oats. Hmmm… apart from a pretty un-appetizing sounding name, the whole concept was a little bit perplexing. In the title of the article it even states: “(It’s not weird at all!)”… Isn’t it?? No! It turns out it’s not weird at all, in fact it makes […]
Staffordshire oatcakes
Dating back as early as the 15th century, and synonymous with the Potteries of Stoke-on-Trent and…well…Staffordshire; Staffordshire oatcakes, where have you been all my life? When I think about oatcakes, I think of oatcakes… Delicious, crunchy, oaty, and Scottish, somewhere between a biscuit and a cracker. So when I first heard about Staffordshire oatcakes […]
Chestnut flour chocolate hazelnut biscotti
Last year at Christmas I found this recipe for a cake made with chestnut puree and chocolate. At the time chestnuts were not something that I often had at all, in fact I don’t know when the last time I’d had one would have been prior to that. In the picture the cake looked nice […]
Spelt apple carrot muffins
It is a beautiful morning here in Shetland. The sun is shining, the hills are glittering white with frost. The air is clear and the blue sky is streaked with wisps of feathery clouds. A magnificent morning to start the week, and what better to accompany such a lovely Monday but some beautiful spelt apple […]
Patatas bravas
Today I made patatas bravas… fierce potatoes… and they were delicious. I was first drawn to patatas bravas about a year ago. I love potatoes, so really any form of them is good in my books, but the magnificent name of this dish just really elevates it into the realms of epic food I’d say. […]
Wheat berry pilaf
The other day, at a complete loss as to what to make for dinner, I discovered lovely, lovely wheat berry pilaf. It was one of those days when the weekly shop had dwindled to odd remnants. The fridge was empty, the cupboards a wasteland of half used bags of grains and beans. Normally under these […]
How to make ricotta cheese
The other day I wanted to get some ricotta cheese for an up-coming recipe, but to my dismay the shop seems to have stopped carrying it. What now? Now that I’ve suddenly realized that my culinary life is incomplete without this creamy key to a plethora of recipes, I find it’s unavailable. Faced with the […]
Banana chocolate bread pudding
Today feels a little blue. The sun is shining and it’s a beautiful still, crisp winter’s day, but yesterday’s news of the death of David Bowie is still weighing on my mind. When I think about it logically, I can see that it’s all a bit silly to be sad about the death of someone […]
Carrot and ginger soup
Today it’s cold here in Shetland. Not -40 Celsius, frost bite kind of cold, but the drizzly half rain/half slush windy gray of January. In truth, the weather has probably been like this for the last few months, but during that time we’ve had festive excitement, Christmas lights, family gatherings and the cheer of the […]