A gentle, fragrant curd with freshly squeezed tangerines and their bittersweet zest. It was a good relaxing morning today: we listened to Drive-in Saturdays, a double-feature movie podcast by Dorian and Saoirse, Mr. Pear made me tea in my favourite mug, and I had crumpets with plenty of homemade tangerine curd. I was also at the same time reading a … Continue reading
Another wonderful preserve from Beatrice Ojakangas, this time a sweet, simple rose gold jam, one of my favourites. Perfect for brightening up the cold months. ‘You’ll love the aroma of this jam cooking,’ Ojakangas writes. Yes. Sour pink rhubarb, sunny pineapple and deep, rich vanilla come together in an unexpectedly lovely way: it’s truly lovely, so syrupy and … Continue reading
I love how these look like snowballs. That, plus the fact they’re made of pulverised roast chestnuts, is the reason I made them a couple of years ago and why I made them again this year. Couldn’t remember how they were supposed to taste like, but I after several bakings, I can confirm these cookies … Continue reading
A bigger batch of these cranberry-studded biscuits with the addition of pistachios. I love the gold, green, and deep red together. These are my favourite holiday cookies because I find them well-balanced and not too sweet. Sweet-tart dried cranberries and fragrant clementines always evoke the holidays for me, and here they perfectly brighten up a rich shortbread. A handful of pistachios … Continue reading
A smaller, easier, quicker version of that famed orange tart. A little flaky, buttery pastry, 2 oranges, 2 spoonfuls of sugar, and you’ll have a stunning dessert. Let me tediously list some of the boring reasons I made them this way: My freezer is a shoebox which can’t always accommodate a whole tart, like the original recipe requires; … Continue reading
My favourite salted caramel sauce, made with a goodly amount of golden syrup, and my second-favourite hot chocolate, the sort actually made from scratch. I’ll be straight with you: my favourite hot chocolate is a powder mix and I make it in a microwave. I sincerely love it, not just the associated nostalgia. Now, I … Continue reading
Sometimes I like my soups like this, rich, thick and velvety. This recipe was conceived and written during a bout of sleeplessness. Unlike me, Mr. Pear is consistently excellent at sleeping – barely 2 minutes and zonk. It’s comical. While he sleeps I try to exhaust myself in the quietest way possible, but the inside of my head itches … Continue reading
I hope you’ve all had excellent winter holidays, celebrated in all the ways which made your hearts sing and your bellies full. Tell me what you ate and what you made. I celebrated Christmas up in Sheffield with my friend Mary, a large ginger striped housecat called Whiskers, and Mr. Pear. For the main meal … Continue reading
Quite unlike Tara’s charming rhubarb story, the main way I’ve come by rhubarb recently is squatting on the pavement, picking out stalks from a crate. Once I encountered a slug so tiny that it was like the crescent of dirt beneath one’s fingernail. It glistened on the rhubarb stem. I flicked it off: no need for a … Continue reading
Have I been tiresome towards you, friends? Have I been bequeathing you many multi-stage, fussy recipes? Yes. Yes, I have. Have something truly simple. (It does require a blender, though. ETA: I suppose you could also stick it into a lidded jar and shake well.) Blood orange season is, obviously, in full swing. I think … Continue reading
The Furious Pear Pie 
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