The Botanical Kitchen
Recipes, travel and the occasional rant
We planted radishes in our allotment just before the start of the school holidays and within weeks we had a lovely crop. We bought a cheap packer of multi-coloured radish and each colour seemed to vary in taste It was also interesting to experiment with the development of that spicy taste these little fireballs are […]
I wanted to share with you the story of Draupadi. She’s a mum like me. She’s also a grandmother that I aspire to be one day. She lives in a remote village in Uttarkhand in Northern India. She’s part of a unique, tribal community that sadly suffers from discrimination, violence and exploitation because of this […]
This is a super simple, super quick frittata recipe. I’ve used it for my girls in their school picnicsand I thought I’d post the recipe up to honour Italy’s win over England in Euro 2012 Quarter Finals. You can make all sorts of substitutions with whatever fillings you like. You can also pour the mixture […]
I discovered rocket late in life – a few years ago when I was having lunch with a friend I noticed she was eating this green stuff that I had always thought was ‘garnish’. She told me it was Arugula. As you might have guessed she’s American. I’ve also heard it called Ruccola in some […]
We have a family tradition which we observe most weekends. Pizza Saturday. It’s rather silly really but we like but it’s a good excuse to leave a little dining formality behind and enjoy a TV dinner with The X factor, Britain’s Got Talent or most recently The Voice. My girls are rather obsessed with Jesse Jay. […]
I love eating fresh carrots but I read that more of the lovely beta carotene is released during cooking. I had a few old ones lying around that I decided to use up for a quiche style supper. To make them (About 6) For the pastry 200g plain flour 100g cold unsalted butter Pinch salt […]
I was sent some Black Garlic to try recently. It was during a savoury biscuit phase I was going through while freelancing at home. I was determined to create great tasting savoury biscuits for my girls to enjoy with a glass of milk. I came up with these. Enjoy! You’ll need 50g butter 100g oats […]
This recipe is from the book “Nature” by Alain Ducasse. I have adapted the dip to include some lovely Black Garlic as I was sent some to try. You can buy this now at most supermarkets or order online in the US via Black Garlic or in the UK via South West Garlic – an […]
I love courgettes at any time of year and this quick dish combines them with lemons and herbs to make a great canapé filling. If you don’t fancy making puff pastry, use shortcrust pastry or even toasted ciabatta pieces. The courgette filling can be made a few days in advance and kept in the fridge. Don’t freeze […]
If you’ve had a good look round this blog, you’ll notice lots of little food. I’m a big fan. This is such a brilliant recipe. You can have it in the pastry cases as I’ve described below or simply as a little salad inside a leaf of gem lettuce or on top of some parchment […]
I have never smoked anything before. Seriously. Not as in cigarettes, naughty things or food so this was a real challenge in my head. It was beaututifully simple though and filled my kitchen with the most amazing smells. First from the tea smoking, then the buttery walnuts and then the beautiful tarragon leaves. The recipe […]
If, like me, you get an inkling for cheese in the evenings with your glass of red wine this is a brilliant recipe for you. They keep really well in an airtight container for about a week but never last that long in my house! These also taste amaaaazing with some Thistle Pate that was […]