• London_Mummy on November 28, 2025

  I'm rereading this book, which I love. Each & every recipe I tried from it turned out well: even if, on first reading the recipe, it appeared simple or familiar, on eating it was gorgeous & sophisticated. It also contains some rare or unusually-combined ingredients. I speculate, since it is an anthology of recipes, including many of my favourite authors', that they knew that their recipe would be read & judged by expert peers, so they really tried their hardest.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Brown butter and miso linguine [Luiz Hara]

  • London_Mummy on February 05, 2026

    This was much nicer than expected & no doubt really delicious when the recipe is followed precisely. My motivation was to start using up 400 g of miso left behind by a family member, so I made several substitutions: wholemeal tagliatelle for linguine; white onion for shallot; cashew nuts for pine nuts; coriander for parsley; mixed salad leaves for microgreens. It had a rich flavour so topping with cheese would have been too much & it really needed the greens. I probably will make it again because it is so quick & easy, & I would serve it with radicchio, cavolo nero or other bitter leaves.

• Red kidney beans and potato curry (Rajma alu curry) [Chetna Makan]

  • London_Mummy on February 04, 2026

    This is a very tasty, straightforward recipe for a classic dish. I added a bit extra potato because of the wintery weather.

• Perfect spanakopita [Felicity Cloake]

  • London_Mummy on February 08, 2026

    Haha, ironically, given that it is one of Felicity Cloake's "perfect" recipes, I am simply relieved that this turned out OK! I decided to make a spiral instead, like the Waitrose spanakopita. After I started in a 23 cm tin, I realised I'd have to transfer it to a 20 cm tin. The transfer went OK. Then as I was about to put it in the oven, I realised that I had forgotten to add the eggs! I tried to dismantle it then decided it would risk it all disintegrating, so, instead, I poured the beaten egg on top. Never mind, the imperfect spankopita is good enough for its destiny of a cosy family supper.

• Pandan chiffon cake [Helen Goh]

  • London_Mummy on March 01, 2026

    I bought pandan leaves when in Chinatown to watch the New Year festivities and decided to try this cake. She is very stern about using only an ungreased non-nonstick chiffon tin but I didn't want to buy one for a one-off recipe so I used my ungreased nonstick bundt tin. I will see tomorrow if it comes out of the tin at all and if it is fluffy or not. PS It came out of the bundt tin whole, is fluffy & smells gorgeous.