Went to the premier of Sherlock Holmes yesterday. It was good. I’m shocked. Best Guy Richie Movie yet and really want the sequel to hurry up. See…shocking

Sherlock Holmes trailer

The long awaited Dean street town house opened last week after a pretty hairy start. The first weekend of opening was when it was raining cats and dogs, so when you are a Grade 2 listed building with a dodgy roof it’s bound to cause chaos. And it did. Some of the newly refurbished rooms were flooded, guests were evacuated and soon stories were hitting the internet. Frankly, because I’m a nosey parker this did not put me off, more intrigued me and on checking in I wanted all the gossip. It turns out it was just a small leak that only bothered a couple of the top floor bedrooms and merely as a precaution were some of the guests moved, (all very happily).

I have been excited about this opening as I am a ’super fan’ of the Soho house group. I just think they seem to think of everything a person could want and do it with such modern day elegance. A townhouse hotel in the middle of London’s Soho had me chomping at the bit with excitement especially as ‘word on the street’ was that the menu was going to be slightly more classic French and less Italian as a lot of the other Soho house ventures are.

Well the room was exquisite. We were given a small room and for London sizes there was nothing small about it. Having spent a fair bit of time in New york recently I know what small is and there was nothing cramped about this room. I actually asked to see a ‘tiny’ room which was still quite a good sized. Contained but not cramped. Anyway, as ever, everything was thought of including straighteners and a hairbrush, which I forgot, ( a couple of toothbrushes, toothpaste, (which hotels NEVER have) and wait for it, Mouthwash. You may think I’m being a wierdo but the amount of times I have stayed in the swankiest of hotels to not have even a smidgen of toothpaste, (which I always forget) to then be greeted by mouth wash and floss. I loved this place.

So dinner was calling and we went down to the gorgeous, slightly 20’s/Art Deco dining room and the menu was awesome. Filled with things you want to eat. In fact it was quite difficult to choose but in the end I went for Roasted scallops with bacon and garlic, (perfect) and Dean had the ham and rabbit terrine with picallili which was great. Dean complained the picillili lacked heat and acidity but he’s a boy and for me, being a girl it was pretty lovely.

For our mains I had a piece of very ‘in season’ Dover sole with buerre menierre, which was spot on. Deans rib eye with bernaise was enormous, almost too big which doesn’t come out of my mouth often and a little undercooked. We asked for it rare but it came in blue and on such a thick piece of steak it was a bit of a mouthful, but beautiful meat all the same. The bernaise was deelish and the goose fat chips were out of this world.

For pudding we shared a syrup pudding with custard meant for 2 but would have easily served 4. It was really good. They gave us loads of custard, (very important) and was generally a lovely end to a really rather lovely meal. 

While there had been a few tiny scrupples, the whole experience was blissful. The service was fantastic. Wines were tip-top and we rolled into bed in complete contentment. Had a great nights sleep, super breakfast and it was all washed away as we hit oxford street and more rain. I have already told EVERYONE they have to stay there and you’d be hard pushed to find a better London hotel where you can stay from £90 a night, bang slap in the centre of town.

The dean street town house

69 - 71 Dean Street
London
W1D 3SE

Tel +44 (0) 20 7434 1775
Email info@deanstreettownhouse.com

www.deanstreettownhouse.com

I have just come back from the Langham hotel on Regents street, London, after sampling an ingenious collaboration by their scrummy ‘Palm Court’ tea room and Beefeater 24 Gin: G and Tea. Gone are the days of Champagne with your swanky tea and in fact gone are the days of good old English infusions, Afternoon tea is now served with a new twist a proper G&T and an infusion made from the same aromatics used to infuse Beefeater 24 Gin, (we have orange, lemon, grapefruit, green tea, juniper, coriander seed and aniseed, said in a Greg Wallace voice) and it’s pretty nifty.

It makes perfect sense really. I remember when I was growing up my Mother and one of her greatest friends Dottie used to hit 5 o’clock and have a G&T and a piece of cake. I used to think they were incredibly sophisticated, and nowdays, as a grown up if I am going to have a drink in the afternoon its always a G&T and frankly any excuse to have cake is always a good one but with a G&T it doesnt get much better.

The Tea included all sorts of finger sandwiches, just as they should be, classic. Proper cucumber, ham, egg, roast beef and smoked salmon sandwiches. There were warm scones that were as light as a feather with thick clotted cream and fruity strawberry jam and the most fantastic array of finger cakes. I will definately be going back to have tea at, (wait for it a brilliant fact coming up), the first grand hotel to serve afternoon tea.

As for Beefeater 24. Its Good. Really good in fact. So good that I might switch over from my beloved Plymouth Gin. It is made in my hometown after all. Its the new top end Beefeater Gin and it shows.

Beefeater G&T starts in January at the Palm court in the Langham hotel.

www.beefeater24.com

For pudding I wanted to make something with the mincemeat I made a few weeks back, but not mince pies as such. As I was cooking a big roast I thought I’d give a mincemeat and apple tart a go. 

I made a shortcrust pastry base. Lined the bottom with a thin layer of the mince meat, then lay 3 peeled and sliced apples that I tossed in about 55g of golden caster sugar on top. I then topped it with more pastry in a latice shape and glazed with egg and sugar. I had it drooled in double cream. It rocked and was much lighter than a normal mince pie. Give it a go.

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Donald Russell have been on my radar for quite some time as when I was at BBC Good food years ago they were always being spoken about. It has taken me 5 years to actually get my first order in and boy am I glad I did. Part of what they sent me was a small Game mixture which included a stuffed, boned pheasant and 2 stuffed boned partridges which I decided to cook with some crispy roast potatoes and parsnips, some honeyed carrots, shredded cabbage and most importantly proper gravy and bread sauce for Sunday lunch today as I had my Ma coming round.

The meat was great and so easy to cook. I have quite a bit to test from Donald Russell and I will keep you updated but for now, I am LOVING them. 

what a piggy

lunch

www.donaldrussell.com

Here are my top 5 tips to ensure a great roast and the most fantastic bread sauce recipe. I hope it helps over the Christmas period…

1. Always season your meat well and if your cooking a bird or meat that is not that fatty like Turkey or any game, you might want to layer it with plenty of streak bacon and a bit of butter.

2. Alway cook your meat for the first 20 minutes in a really hot oven, (about 220C). This will ensure a crisp skin and good colour. Then turn it down to about 180C for the rest of the cooking time.

3. Always rest your meat after its cooked. 15 minutes is normally enough. To do this transfer the meat to a plate and cover with foil, unless you are wanting crispy skin or crackling. Save any juices it seeps for the gravy.

4. For your roasties use King edward potatoes. Then par boil them until the start to break around the edges before roasting them. I have stopped using goose fat as while the flavour is great you get less of a crunch which I only seem to get with a good olive oil, (not extra virgin).

5. When making gravy always use fresh stock from the chiller cabinet at your supermarket (or home made) for best results. The reason being is that while the stock reduces it will become really viscose and sticky and really concerntrate the flavour. Cubed stock cubes are full of salt so as they reduce they become saltier. When you use fresh stock you can season at the end and concerntrate on the flavour quality.

The ultimate bread sauce recipe.

1 onion, quartered

6-8 whole cloves

6-8 whole peppercorns

2 bay leaves

600ml whole milk

3-4 thickish slices of fresh or stale white bread, trimmed of crusts and turned into breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons double cream

1/2 teaspoon butter

a pinch of ground alspice

a pinch of ground cloves

salt and pepper

Place the onion, cloves, peppercorns, bay and milk in a small saucepan. Over a low heat bring to the boil, then turn off and leave to infuse for about a hour. Drain the flavoured milk, discarding the  aromatics and reserving the milk.

Stir in the breadcrumbs, cream, butter, spices and seasoning and cook gently until thickened. Serve warm with poultry.

Went to Pizza East with one of my best friends Bella and my boyfriend, Dean for dinner tonight. Too many yummy starters to choose from; Girolle and roasted shallot bruschetta, calamari with caper mayo and mackerel escabeche with lentils were munched though. Wicked Pizza’s. We had spicy sausage and purple sprouting brocolli (good), veal meatballs, leek, panchetta, garlic and cream (great) and  San Daniele, ricotta and baby chard (OK). The pizza bases were perfect. A lot of the pizzas didn’t have tomato sauce interestingly and in some cases missed it, (see San Daniele pizza).

Cheap Prosecco, kick arse atmosphere and good chit chat were had in abundance, but alas, had no room for pud. Going back ASAP to try the chicken livers and polenta and bone marrow and parsley, plus more of the bonkers pizza concoctions. My new favourite place.

OK, I’m going to be the first to admit it. This cupcake craze is starting to get on my goat. I am bored bored bored of being asked to come up with ‘a funky cupcake recipe’ or to ‘bring along some cupcakes to so-and-so meeting’. I think the problem is that a really good cupcake is as rare as rocking horse shit over here. One of the only notable companies who are getting it right in the true New York fashion are the Hummingbird Bakery. They have a perfect mix of fluffy cake with superlight buttercream and all in the most marvelous flavours. I’m a sucker for red velvet!

So to hear that they are opening a central London store (Wardour street) comes as no surprise. I went to the launch tonight and it delivered. The cupcakes are still the coolest and most inventive, knocking their competitors flying. Gin and tonic, Strawberry Daquiri, Mojito and Pina Colada cupcakes were there to greet us - proving this point. 

The worrying thing is, that the whole ‘cupcake’ thing is only just beginning and these critters have plenty more in them yet to come. I would simply say, don’t bother buying them from anywhere else.

155a Wardour Street,
Soho,
London,
W1F 8WG

www.hummingbirdbakery.com

Have known this for sometime now but can now spill the Beans. Am going to be filming a mini series for “This morning’ as of tomorrow that will air some time in January. Really excited. Will be a skills/masterclass piece that will have a few cool twists. Excite, excite, excite..

I’m in the independent today - check it out…

www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/features/dress-code-gizzi-erskine-punk-chef-1835282.html

I have just got in from a truly horrific experience and one that I never want to repeat. I am a HUGE fan of Taste Festival as it came from a great idea that by letting all the really gastro restaurants in London do tasters of their food it would give us, the general public, an idea of whether we wanted to part with our hard earned cash and eat there properly. A sample - if you please. The restaurant quality was always top notch and the food always fantastic. 

I remember going to the first ever one in Somerset House while I was working at BBC Good Food Magazine about 5 years ago. I found it a revelation and as it expanded the quality got better and better, moving from the courtyard of Somerset house to Regents park and packing in more restaurants and even some of the UKs best food heros all showing off their artisan nibbles. I have demonstrated there a couple of time and it really is the place to go to rub shoulders with the cooking elite and fill up on their wares.

It seems though that Taste Festival has self-combusted and turned into yet another tragic trade show. Maybe it was due to this event being the Christmas one, or maybe that it took me 2 hours to do a 20 minute journey from Hackney to the Excel on a rainy Sunday, but I think really it had a lot to do with the poor choice of restaurants on show with rather dismal menus. The emphasis seemed to have been taken away from the restaurant business and geared more towards selling tacky food products.

I really do not want to tar all the product stands with this brush but if you were faced with sparkling pure Vodka and rose beer how would you feel? Both were palatable enough but, really!? Mind you one product that could be deemed gimmicky that was frankly scrumptious was an alcoholic ginger beer. I am going to  lay a bet that this time next year all the cool kids will be slurping this stuff at the pubs and festivals. I am going to review it properly but for now check them out: www.crabbies.co.uk

The only two restaurants that did it for me were Bentleys and Club Gascon, but thats hardly surprising as they were the only two worthy restaurants there. OK maybe Banares too, but Atul, the quality of your food was really poor today, I had two lamb chops that were as tough as old boots. The oysters at Bentleys were sublime and I had a mean fois gras with popcorn, and duck with sweet potato puree and Christmas stuffing that were pretty special from Club Gascon.

I would just like to plead with the organisers of the festival to get it back to what it was. A great restaurant show that showcased how the British food scene has advanced from year to year. None of this trade show business. We have the Good Food show for that and frankly they do it much better.