Was last Saturday with the likes of Jocky from the Fat Duck, Leon and Dock kitchen competing. I came a very respectable third with my chilli that was made from rib, cheek and shin of beef, smoked pigs cheeks, fire roasted chillies and tomatoes and lashings of Mexican beer. Super pleased about this BTW.

The event was so well attended and great fun. look out for them in the future by following them on twitter @tweat_up. I do believe the next one is all about the love of my life, the roast dinner!

It’s all I think about at the moment. Curing flavours, Is it okay to use saltpetre? Is Saltpetre and pink salt the same? How long is the right time for the perfect cure? How long do I braise the brisket for? Fat on or off? Bagel or rye bread.

I am very dull.

Now, I am the first to admit I have been really rubbish at blogging since I became addicted to twitter. I feel like I gass on about too much on there anyway, but I know I must do better so here goes.

Things have been going nuts. In the past 3 weeks I have filmed 2 shows, (BBC3s Young baker of the year and Perfect for Good Food) and a couple of tasters and pilots so fingers crossed I’ll be back on the telly in a big way soon.

In other news I have become obsessed with buying a smoker. Not a cold smoker but a proper all singing all dancing hot smoker. I want to learn how to make proper smoked ribs and smoke pork cheeks and butts and short ribs and garlic and potatoes (basically everything I can get my hands on).

I worked with some cool American barbeque dudes a few years back and learnt how to pit barbeque and brine and make badass rubs, barbeque sauce and slaws and now due to a weird obsession with Diners drive ins and dives I want to learn to barbeque properly. If anyone knows anything about proper USA bar-b-que then I want to know everything there is to know about it.

Bye for now I shall leave you with my favourite song on the subject… bar-b-que

So some of you may only have gotten to know me recently from Cookery school starting on Channel 4. But last year, I did another channel 4 show called Cook yourself thin and released my first solo book. Gizzis kitchen magic. I keep getting asked on Facebook and twitter if I have a book so for those of you that are looking. Here it is…  Gizzi’s Kitchen Magic

Stilton is my favourite cheese. I adore the stuff. Want it on or in most food I eat. Be it a simple Stilton and spring onion Rarebit, Melted into Mac and cheese or over my cauliflower cheese. I am always looking for new ways to cook with it so I am doing a twitter competition where I want a recipe written in 140 characters with Stilton as the hero ingredient. I will announce the winner on Friday 18th before lunch. The prize. A copy of Gizzis kitchen magic.

Good luck!

I am working on a new project that has been such an eye opener for me. I didn’t know much about autism before the guys at Raw productions for T4 contacted me to help them in their campaigning show ‘Battlefront’. One of their campaigners, a 16 year old girl called Bella, is campaigning as her brother is autistic and has had trouble getting employment.

So with the help of  Scott Mills, Kate Nash and myself she is opening up a cafe with autistic volunteers. I have written a menu that has things like a slow cooked lamb ragu lasagna and chorizo, cheese and spring onion quesedilla’s with guacamole and salsa and will be cooking with and training the volunteers.

I am so looking forward to working with the guys and proving to employers that these kids are totally employable.

If you are around this weekend ‘Bellas cafe’ will be at the Clerkenwell kitchen and you should pop your head in. www.theclerkenwellkitchen.co.uk

Love

Gizzix

So finally, after months of filming and basically being off the radar and most of you thinking I must be dead Cookery school finally comes out on Monday the 31st. That a week away!

Me and Richard Corrigan (Bentleys, Corrigans Mayfair) set up a cookery school for a variety of skilled students and push them to the maximum level. There is sweat, tears, tantrums, casualty visits, bonkers personalities and some really special food. I think what you will get most from the show is some really great tips on how to develop your skills as a cook and not only are we showing you super recipes but we explain why things work and what to do if they don’t.

I hope you all like the show. Its the scariest thing I have ever done and am more nervous about this than anything. Its 50 episodes of telly guys. Thats almost 3 months of me and Richard on your telly everyday.

The answer is that there is not a wrong one. They all rock, but the finer ones are the ones that aerate your cheese and make a little go a very long way. Non of them claim to do this, it is merely something I discovered by default, when it took me ages to grate a lump of cheese which went from a small block into a mountain of fluffy airy cheese. I took the same handful, but it must have been at least half my usual amount from when using another type of grater.

They are brilliant in all their guises though and are a fab way to get loads of flavour into your food without the fat. They are super sharp when you first get them so watch your fingers!

I hope you like them….xx

So its started and all with THE most hilarious montage. Noone wants to see themselves stuffing there gobs in slow motion! Kind of wanted to die on the spot when I saw it!

So it kicked off today with my super-duper sausage rolls. They are special as they are stuffed with ketchup and chutney and just really scrummy. If you have never made them before then you should have a go as a fresh sausage roll it such a treat. Not like the frozen rubbish your probably used to. I sometimes serve them with gravy, mash and peas for a real treat! Not very CYT I know but once in a while it has to be allowed.

So tomorrow Im doing my rosemary infused millionares shortbread, which is probably one of my signature dishes so I hope you like it.

Anyway, over and out for now. xxxx

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all your lovely comment recently. I want you all to know that I am reading each and every one of them and listening to everything you have to say.

Something that keeps popping up on twitter, facebook and here is that you would like to see more veggy recipes. YOu are absolutely right. All you veggies out there will be plaesed to hear that I am opening up a pop up cafe in East London with innocent smoothies for about a week at the end of October and low and behold, ALL of the food is going to be Veggie. There will be recipes galore too.

I have spent the past month developing seasonal, local produced veg recipes that are all mouthwatering and I hope, quite surprising. Today for example I am playing around with some root vegetable bhajis on a piece of grilled paneer with a sag dhal, yoghurt and rose harrisa. So expect really gutsy flavours!

I will post more about the cafe closer to the time and I hope this makes up for the lack of veggie recipes so far and I vow from now on to include more in anything I do.

Love

Gizzix