The Cafe Cat

A Weekend in Canterbury | Kent

2018-04-29T19:47:00.001+01:00

Canterbury and Kent is my heartland. Not home, but the closest feeling to it. I’ve never written a guide to Canterbury before because the thought was too overwhelming – where to start? Where to eat? What to do? There’s so much to tell you. If we don’t start, however, we’re even further from finishing, so let’s call this the beginning and start with one thing at a time.

Saturday

Breakfast - Café St Pierre – Lower High Street

This place is an institute and has been going for well over 20-years, which is quite a claim for a city high street. It’s French through and through. From the wicker chairs, to the pastries gleaming in the window and the owner – Michel - who is aproned over his large belly at all times, and wearing a mischievous moustache. I can’t visit the city without an early morning croque monsieur (hands down the best I have ever had) and a chocolat chaud, all ordered in French, of course – oui, oui. If you’re feeling shy, the rear garden is the perfectly peaceful hiding spot.

Coffee - Garage Coffee – Jewry Lane

There are many cafes in Canterbury but that doesn’t mean they all do coffee well. If you’re particular, the only place for it is Garage Coffee, who roast their beans locally and occupy a spacious but clandestine spot away from the High Street, in what was formerly the medieval Anglo-Jewish quarter of the city. The Abode Hotel just next door sits on the site of a medieval synagogue. It’s a beautifully quiet spot to enjoy a mid-morning caffeine fix before heading on for a city walk.

Medieval Walk – Across the City

The city itself is fairly small and the best way to see it is to enter through the Westgate Towers (the last remaining ragstone gate of seven that once encircled the city, erected in 1390) and leisurely meander its streets in all its twists and turns. Places of particular interest, besides the Cathedral and its surrounding cobbled lanes, are the Greyfriars Gardens – the site of a Franciscan chapel which is the only building remaining from the original friary. It's set among quiet, pretty gardens running alongside the River Stour - and the Eastbridge Hospital (12^th century) - a historical sheltering house for pilgrims visiting the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Of note along the way, admiration should be paid to the Beaney Institute (1899) which is a public library, museum and gallery space; the Queen Elizabeth’s Guest Chamber (15^th Century) with its impressive pargetting; and the curious leaning house of Palace Street with its timber-frame.

Pay attention, look up, look closely – the city of Canterbury reveals layer upon layer of historical architecture, from dragon beams and decorative brackets, to the jetties and carved bressumers of Sun Street and Burgate, wrought-iron windows (check out the art deco windows above Debenhams) and - a prime example - the amazing Edwardian building that now houses Prezzo.

Once satiated, head to the Cathedral – the site of which has existed since 1070 - to find out more about the medieval and Middle Ages, especially for the story of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop who was famously murdered on the premises.

Lunch - The Veg Box Café, Burgate

After all this walking and history, you’ll need to eat. There are many chains in the city but you just need to come off the High Street to find the independents, if that’s what you’re looking for. Liz and Adam, a lovely couple, have been running a vegetarian café at one premises or another for over a decade. They are now housed at Burgate under the arches and serve deliciously comforting curries, salads, soups and much more. There’s long been little in the way of vegetarian and vegan food in the city and, while this is now changing, Liz and Adam have stood the test of time with their menu and welcoming personalities. I always have the houmous and mango chutney sandwich (sometimes I ask for a little cheese) and there’s plenty to be enjoyed here. Liz is a fanatic of seasonal food, as well as foraging and fermenting, too.

Afternoon - River Tour

While this is a fairly touristy suggestion, I don’t care. I love the river tours. Without it, you wouldn’t get to see the famous ducking stool upon which wives who talked too much (aka ‘scolds’) would meet a watery stifling or – so the story goes – where witches would meet with their deaths. The stool is attached to the sides of the Old Weavers, a stunning timber-framed building where once silk and other fabrics were spun and woven. The tour will take you alongside the Dominican Priory (founded in 1237) and also under the Kings Bridge, revealing the rear view of the Eastbridge Hospital and a more rural view of the city. You will also be privy to the tired jokes of the boatmen, who I often like to listen to from Solly’s Orchard while eating deep-fried potatoes from Ossie’s fish bar.

Shopping - Madame Oiseau, The Chaucer Bookshop

There are plenty of shops in the city but these two are my favourite. Madame Oiseau, a little chocolate shop at the end of Palace Street owned by Sandrine (it’s a few doors down from the smallest and loveliest antiques shop that rarely opens) and the Chaucer Bookshop on the Castle Street side of the city which, quite frankly, has the best card collection of any shop I’ve ever come across, plus an incredible selection of secondhand books. Don’t miss either if chocolate and books are your thing.

Early Evening - Wine

For a drink in the evening, there are dozens of pubs – The Thomas Becket, The Dolphin, The Parrot – but I’m a wine girl and so thoroughly recommend The Shakespeare (a quaint, candlelit wine bar in the Buttermarket), The Chocolate Café for sitting outside with a blanket and gazing up at the Cathedral, or a bottle off the shelf at the Goods Shed Farmers Market, where you can watch the vendors pack down and drink your wine into the evening.

Dinner - Café Des Amis

Another Canterbury business that has stood the test of time, Café Des Amis has been in operation for over 30-years. Housed in a 15^thcentury building just next to the Westgate Towers and overlooking the river, they offer cheap and cheerful frozen cocktails (have the passionfruit) and steaming plates of fajitas. Booking ahead is advisable, as is leaving enough room to fit everything in.

Cocktails

If the night is yet too young for you still, delicious cocktails can be found at the Falstaff Hotel - a former 15^th century coaching inn at the entrance to the city, or Bramleys – a candlelit cavern to the rear of the Oddfellows Hall on Orange Street.

Sunday

Brunch - The Wild Goose

While not within the city walls, this is a destination in itself. Within this old railway building, you will find two restaurants and a number of independent food stalls, including a cheesemaker, a butchers and a fishmongers. After exploring the produce of Kent (and maybe stocking up on cheese), head to the Wild Goose – a long table that hooks onto the corner of the building and overlooks the railway line through large and intricate windows. They offer seasonally-inspired brunches and the ideal spot for people-watching. Have the poached eggs and salsa verde.

While you’re here, it’s a wise idea to pick up one of the finest sandwiches I believe I have ever tried. Jonny Sandwich is a small vendor with big flavour – I recommend the rare roast beef with slow-roasted tomatoes on granary. Pop it in your bag for lunch, or the journey home that evening.

Walk

It’s time to get a little more rural. Sandwich in satchel, head out along the river through the Westgate and you’ll find your way turning right into the orchards and tunnels of Harbledown. If you don’t turn right and come back full circle, the path will lead you six miles onto the village Chartham where you can reward yourself with a pint at the Artichoke pub.

Sunday Roast

If you can’t make it back to Canterbury, do head to the White Horse in the medieval village of Chilham for a decent roast. If you do make it back to the city, however, The Corner House is a great spot for a proper posh Sunday roast. Many pubs in the centre will offer a standard number, but this is something really special and to be savoured.

For more information, or recommendations, please get me on Instagram or Twitter.

Being You | #CapturedInWords

2018-04-08T18:56:00.001+01:00

I sip tea from the mug

With your initial on the front

That I found at the office

Before I knew you

And thought

I wonder if this is the first letter

Of a future love's name

And took it home with me

Just in case

Drinking from it today

I pretended I was you

In all your grief

And cried a little

Comforting you with small sips

Watching the rain

And wondered if being you

Is what love might be

Wild Garlic & Truffle Pesto Scones | Celia's Saucer

2018-04-07T18:39:00.000+01:00

I haven't been home most of the weekend so, when I got back today, comfort food was needed. As wild garlic is in season and I have a jar of truffle pesto in the fridge, so this recipe was born - served with butter and honey while still warm. What a treat.

Try them for yourself.

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INGREDIENTS

175 g self-raising flour

pinch of salt

25 g butter, room temperature

1 tbsp SACLA truffle pesto

1 large egg

2 - 3 tbsps milk

1 large handful wild garlic leaves, finely chopped

1 tbsp grated parmesan

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METHOD

Heat the oven to 220 C / 200 C Fan / Gas 7, grease a baking sheet.

Add the flour and salt to a large bowl. Mix together then rub in the butter, until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in chopped wild garlic.

Beat the egg with 2 tbsp of milk and the truffle pesto, adding this to the mixture and combining with a blunt knife to make a soft dough, adding a few more drops of milk if it is too dry.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 2cm thick and use a 5cm cutter to cut out the scones. Roll out the excess dough and repeat, place onto the greased baking sheet.

Brush the scones with a little milk and sprinkle the parmesan on top.

Bake in the oven for 12 - 15mins, until risen and golden. Cool on a wire rack and serve with butter and honey while still warm.

Rhubarb & Brockman's Gin Crumble | Celia's Saucer

2018-04-05T15:28:00.000+01:00

I just can't get enough of rhubarb - poached with porridge, swirled into greek yoghurt, baked with buttery pastry... in a crumble with a splash of deliciously fruity gin? Yes, that too. This idea came to me as I was heating some beautifully candy pink rhubarb and cooking apples and I spotted a bottle of Brockman's gin on the counter. Why not use that to loosen the mixture in the pan? I ran through the botanicals in my head - coriander, juniper, wild berries and orange peel - yes, yes, yes, and yes.

So I did it. And here's the recipe:

Serves four

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INGREDIENTS

3 large sticks of rhubarb, roughly chopped

2 large cooking apples, peeled and roughly chopped

50ml Brockman's Gin

2 tbsp brown sugar

175g plain flour

25g oats

100g ground almonds

200g cold butter

100g brown sugar (you can add more but I prefer mine not too sweet)

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METHOD

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4

Heat rhubarb, apples, 2 tbsp brown sugar and gin together over a medium-high heat until it breaks down

Transfer to your crumble dish of choice

Rub flour and butter together until they resemble breadcrumbs

Mix in remaining ingredients and scatter over crumble

Cook for 45-minutes

Serve with custard, creme fraiche, ice cream (or all three)

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For more rhubarb recipes, head here

PS. I am in no way endorsed by Brockman's, unless you count living with someone who works with the brand and has a few bottles hanging about the house... I once also created this Scallop & Gin Ceviche.

Chestnut Mushroom, Browned Shallots & Marjoram Soup | Celia's Saucer

2018-04-02T14:47:00.001+01:00

It's going to be another spring where the winter doesn't quite beat a hasty retreat but, rather, the cold will clutch at where it can. For this kind of unsteady seasonal shift, there's soup.

Use ingredients that are wholesome, nourishing and speak of green spring flavour as it emerges - wild garlic, leeks, broccoli - and marry them up with robust, perennial herbs and earthy vegetables that weather the winter.

This recipe came about after a hankering for french onion soup and deciding that sweet, early spring shallots would be better here - especially if they were cooked slowly and browned all over in butter. The damp weather made me think of mushrooms, and a fond memory of a new neighbour bringing me a bunch of marjoram on a cold, spring day in 2014 and how I delighted in the pine like smell that filled the kitchen.

The recipe? Here you are.

Serves two

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INGREDIENTS

4 shallots, finely sliced

Knob of butter

Splash of olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, crushed (or a good squidge of lazy garlic)

2 sticks of celery, finely chopped

400g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

1 or 2 potatoes, diced

Chicken stock to cover

Small handful fresh marjoram (if using dry, be sparing as it's much stronger)

Smoked salt / pepper to season

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METHOD

Slowly brown the shallots over a medium heat in the butter and splash of oil for as long as your patience wears - mine only last about 30-minutes but longer is better

Add garlic and saute for a couple of minutes before adding celery, mushrooms and potato and continuing to cook until coated with oil and softened

Cover with stock and bring to the boil

Turn heat to medium/high and simmer for 15-20mins

When cooler, blend until smooth - chuck in the fresh marjoram along the way

Serve with black pepper and a sprinkling of smoked salt

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Visit here for more unique soup recipes

A Weekend Walk #23

2018-03-18T17:54:00.001+00:00

1918 | #CapturedInWords

2018-03-08T13:02:00.000+00:00

(Continued from Moon Faces)

There were a dozen moons that night. She counted them from the wheelbarrow as George raced them around the perimeter of the barley fields, a stray blade tucked between his teeth in concentration, his hands clutching both handles. Laughing in delight, counting one, two, three, four, each moon greeted her with a different expression: the peekaboo moon slotted between the trees, the heavy gawping orb weighted on the horizon, the undulating glimmer, the milk moon face of May.

A siren sounded, catching in the turn of the wheels as George drew to a halt, howling as if it were drawn from the mouth of the moon, ululating as the wheels turned once more in the direction of safety. Again they raced, only this time with an urgency that frightened Celia, the sharp jolts from the earth that ran with them jarring her vision. Caught in momentum the only constant in sight was the horizon, now divided between a menacing umbra and quaking light. The moon arrested her in different expressions: bleeding in dissolution, screaming in its constant, fractured light, gathering form again in permanence, bearing witness.

Stillness came again that evening, swathed entirely in darkness but for the swell of light at the curtains. The tide of her heartbeat roared in her ears of endless mother blood: the moon of eternal knowing, of inescapable observation. But a daughter in her bed - later a mother - my grandmother, captured under the moon of countless faces. Passing a century of perspective, this night and every night yet, I sit beneath the glow of our infinite womanly context.

Intimate Inanimate | #CapturedInWords

2018-03-07T20:03:00.000+00:00

Paint flecks on wrists

Thermal fabric cloyed on hips

Close to your skin

These inanimate things

That moved with you

Alive, pulsing

Across sinews

Your Jerusalem cross

Rising, and falling

On your clean, milk chest

I muse

'You cannot be late, or dimiss them'

With penetrating silence

These things to me now

On the bodies of others

More than you were

That's left of you to me

Intimately betrayed

On the flesh of strangers

Wuyi Oolong Poached Pears & Brown Sugar Meringue | Celia's Saucer

2018-02-25T20:37:00.002+00:00

Oolong is considered the connoisseur's choice of tea owing to an incredible breadth of character and complexity across this tea type - from the creamy, floral notes of Iron Buddha - aka Tieguanyin - to the rich and roasted complexity of Big Red Robe.

I love to experiment with the latter when it comes to pairing it with food or, even sometimes, as an ingredient. At JING I developed a short series of Christmas tea recipes and pairings. This one was inspired by my aunt and friend Ann who always has a box of brown sugar meringue in the cupboard. Something about the character of them inspired this combination. It was so good, my colleague polished off four in a row.

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INGREDIENTS

For the meringue

3 eggs whites

3 oz caster sugar

3 oz soft dark brown sugar

For the poached pears

4 conference pears

400ml boiling water

12g JING Wuyi Oolong Tea

160g caster sugar

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METHOD

For the meringue

Preheat oven to 120. Whisk egg whites until stiff and shiny. Slowly whisk in the sugar ounce by ounce, alternating caster to dark brown. Pipe or dollop into large rounds onto greaseproof paper. Bake in the oven for 2hrs, turn off the temperature and leave in the oven without opening the door for up to 5hrs / overnight

For the poached pears

Infuse the tea with the boiling water for ten minutes, set aside to steep. Peel the pears carefully. Over a medium/hot heat, add sugar and tea. Bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the pears and cover with paper. Simmer for 20 minutes, turning the pears halfway through. Remove pears and bring liquid back to the boil. Reduce to a thicker syrup. Dollop crème fraiche onto your meringues, top with the pears and spoon syrup over the top.

Recipe (and more information on the pairing) appears here.

Brilliantly Blue | #CapturedInWords

2018-02-11T21:17:00.001+00:00

I've known dandy peacocks

Strutting, swaggering

Blazing brilliantly blue

Dancing to conquer

Ruffled, enraptured

Hens hearts fractured

One before the next

One after the other

I once knew a woman

Who owned a lone cock

Weeping in the mirror

She gifted his solitude

In his image he struck

At the air

In a sudden terrible screech

That awful, wretched sound

I dreamt that a swan

Swiftly took his throat

And his life

Breaking his bleats

And his neck in two

He cried out no more

I wept and clapped in anguished delight

#CapturedInWords

I have a terrible habit of never finishing what I set out to write and you know what? That’s fine. For me, writing is a progressive, evolutionary act and so I try to publish in short, first drafts to give myself less of a hard time and the freedom to capture whatever I feel at a given time.

You can follow along on Instagram with the hashtag. I’d love it if you added your own, too.

Rhubarb & Blood Orange Upside Down Cake | Celia's Saucer

2018-01-29T20:37:00.001+00:00

Want to brighten up your winter? Make this cake.

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INGREDIENTS

TOPPING

450g rhubarb, trimmed

150g granulated sugar

Finely grated zest from half a blood orange

55g butter

Pinch of salt

CAKE

85 grams butter, softened

125g light or dark brown sugar

50 grams granulated sugar (although I forgot to put this in)

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon cardamom

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

120 ml buttermilk (I made this by adding 1/2 blood orange juice to whole milk)

195g plain flour

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METHOD

Heat oven: To 180°C.

Make topping: In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, trim your rhubarb to lengths that will fit across the bottom in one direction, i.e. some short and some taller. Remove rhubarb and cut each stalk lengthwise into thin (about 1/4-inch thick) ribbons. If your rhubarb is already quite thin, you might just want to halve each piece lengthwise.

Sprinkle sugar into skillet and add lemon zest; use your fingers to mix the zest into the sugar; the grit of the sugar will help release the most flavor from it. Add butter and salt and heat skillet over medium until butter has melted, stirring frequently. Add rhubarb and cook, turning gently, for 3 to 4 minutes, until it has softened slightly and released some of its liquid. Remove from heat and set skillet aside.

Make cake: In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined, then vanilla. Sprinkle mixture with baking powder, salt, and all the spices and beat well to thoroughly mix them in. Add buttermilk; mixture will have a curdly texture but don’t worry, it’s all going to even out. Scrape down bowl and add flour; beat only until it disappears.

Check your rhubarb base to make sure all the pieces are in the order you’d like them to be; nudge around any that are not, then dollop cake batter over rhubarb mixture in small spoonfuls and smooth top as best as you can.

Bake cake: For about 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted deep into the cake (but not the topping underneath) comes out batter-free. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to loosen. Place a larger plate upside down over the skillet and use two covered hands to flip cake out onto it. If any rhubarb is stuck in the pan or slides down the side, just return it to the top of the cake cake.

Serve: Warm or at room temperature. Makes a really rather beautiful breakfast.

*Inspired by Smitten Kitchen

Rhubarb Cardamom Crisp | Celia's Saucer

2018-01-21T18:12:00.003+00:00

While it's still really quite cold out there, we're slowly but surely inching into the spring, as evident by the arrival of seasonal blood oranges, and the candy pink of forced rhubarb: we're well into winter and almost beyond.

In the spirit of warming the cold that's surely here, the thaw to come, and a cupboard full of nuts, a rhubarb cardamom crisp was born.

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INGREDIENTS

100g mixed nuts and seeds

100g plain flour, plus 3 tbsp

3/4 tsp ground cardamom

80g lightly salted butter

50g dark brown sugar

4-5 sticks of forced rhubarb

Zest ½ orange

1 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger

175g caster sugar

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METHOD

Heat the oven to 190°C/fan170°C/gas 5. Spread the nuts and seeds over a baking tray and roast for 4 minutes until they have darkened slightly and smell nutty. Leave to cool, then coarsely chop by hand.

For the topping, sift 100g of the flour and the cinnamon into a bowl, then rub in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the dark brown sugar and chopped nuts.

Cut the rhubarb into 2.5cm pieces and put into a mixing bowl. Cut the pared orange zest across into small, thin pieces that resemble pine needles, then add them to the rhubarb with the grated ginger, caster sugar and the remaining flour. Mix together well and set aside for 15-20 minutes, stirring now and then, until the fruit is covered in a moist, sugary-floury mixture.

Spread the fruit in a shallow 2 litre ovenproof dish and sprinkle over the topping. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes until the rhubarb is tender and the top is golden brown.

Inspired by a recipe from Delicious Magazine

Boats Look Different | #CapturedInWords

2018-01-20T00:30:00.000+00:00

You make me want to polish furniture

Although dust never slighted me

Buffering the smears away

A shine growing brighter

With each careful touch

Where’s there’s detail

I’m inspired in its capture

Withdrawing it to betray

How I’ve wrought you

In your own reflection

Boats look different to me now

They could go somewhere

With you and me at the helm

Sailing plainly

To a destination for the two of us

Vegan Lentil Fideuà | Celia's Saucer

2018-01-08T16:36:00.002+00:00

Aka 'Shorbat Adas'

Ok, so I'm really going to town with the name of this given that it was inspired by a Middle Eastern recipe, and I just chucked some Spanish fideua in for bulk.

I really can't deny that it's a blooming marvellous and quick vegan eat though, so I thought I had best share the recipe and let you get on with it.

For all those attempting Veganuary, may these lentils be with you.

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INGREDIENTS

250g yellow split peas
100g fideua (aka vermicelli)
1 white onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Splash of olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 bay leaf
Vegetable stock to cover

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METHOD

Heat oil on medium-high heat
Add onion and garlic and cook until translucent
Add spices (inc.bay leaf), 1 minute
Add lentils, 1 minute
Cover with stock, bring to boil, turn down to a simmer and leave to cook for 40-mins, topping up with water if needed
During the last three minutes, add fideua until cooked through

Serve with fresh lemon juice, seasoning and fresh coriander.

Grandma's Curtains | #CapturedInWords

2018-01-01T20:17:00.001+00:00

When afternoons were often spent tucked under the blanket with grandma,

we would delight in our own ways.

She, with aspirin, Cornish wafers, and the television set; I, fixated on the light sinking into dusk across the floral curtains - static and voices thrumming on the hem of my world there.

From the safety of our mutual comfort,I’d watch the blooming roses as they swelled with the shadows, hovering in half form between a print held captive in the sum of threads and the shapes projected from the fading day looming behind them.

I would witness there this soft shift, a metamorphic menace lingering in the unknown. Depths and swathes of gloom casting me into a dimension without boundaries, ceaseless in its space, eclipsing even the edges of grandmas warm body beside me. The cold darkness coming not only for the curtains, but for us too.

Cullen Skink | Celia's Saucer

2017-12-15T13:25:00.003+00:00

My mother, sister and I travelled slowly to the Isle of Skye from Glasgow as the autumn of 2016 drew to a close. It was the first time I had been to Scotland and I was glued to my window as we wound along the roads - staggering in their majestic beauty - stopping from time to time to pause and breathe, and to restore ourselves with a meal.

More often than not, it was a bowl of Cullen Skink that we opted for - a popular Scottish soup of smoked haddock poached in milk and served with soft potatoes. Simple but so delicious, it's really very hard not to lick the bowl or plead for more.

I'm a little obsessed with fresh herbs and salty things, so my version comes with dill and chicken stock, as well as a squeeze of lemon just before eating.

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INGREDIENTS

1tablespoon butter

1 medium onion

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1cm cubes

300ml water

250g smoked haddock

250ml milk

1 chicken stock cube

salt and pepper to taste

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METHOD

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then add onion and fry gently until transparent. Cook for about 5 minutes but do not allow to brown.

Add potatoes and water and bring to boil. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile in another pan, cover the haddock with the milk and cook gently for about five minutes until just tender. Remove from the milk and, when cool enough to touch, flake gently into large pieces, removing bones.

Add milk, stock, and flaked fish to saucepan containing potatoes and other ingredients and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper, fresh dill and a squeeze of lemon.

This recipe originally appeared on BBC Good Food.

Moon Faces | #CapturedInWords

2017-12-10T09:55:00.000+00:00

(Carrying on from Milk Moon)

There were a dozen moons that night. She counted them from the wheelbarrow as George raced them around the perimeter of the barley fields, a stray blade tucked between his teeth in concentration, his hands clutching both handles. Laughing in delight, counting one, two, three, four, each moon greeted her with a different expression: the peekaboo moon slotted between the trees; the heavy gawping orb weighted on the horizon; the undulating glimmer; the milk moon face of May.

A siren sounded, catching in the faltering turn of the wheels as George came to a momentary halt, howling as if it were drawn from the mouth of the moon and only rising in insistence as the wheels turned once more in the direction of safety. Again they raced, only this time with an urgency that frightened Celia deeply, feeling the sharp jolts from the earth that ran with them, jarring her vision. Caught in momentum, the only constant in sight was the horizon, now divided between a menacing umbra and quaking light. The moon arrested her in different expressions: bleeding in dissolution; screaming in its constant, fractured light; gathering form again in permanence; bearing its eternal witness.

You can follow along on Instagram with the hashtag. I’d love it if you added your own, too.

Paneer Masala with Blackened Spring Onion | Celia's Saucer

2017-12-03T18:56:00.003+00:00

Paneer Masala, you steal my heart with your buttery, tomato sauce soured with the taste of fenugreek but sweetened with honey and a swirl of cream. I took inspiration from a recipe from Veg Recipes of India but added my own twist with aubergine, blackened spring onions and a little fresh dill. Oh, and some edamame beans for good measure. Why ever not? Green beans are great, too.

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INGREDIENTS

Cashew Paste

20 cashew nuts

Boiling water to cover
Blitz after 10-mins soaking

Tomato Base

5 large tomatoes diced

One good squirt of tomato puree

Garlic Ginger Paste

3 cloves garlic

Thumb sized piece of ginger, roughly chopped
Mixed roughly

Core Ingredients

Bay Leaf

Large knob of butter or ghee

1/2 tsp chilli powder

Boiling water

250g paneer

1tsp garam masala

1tsp fenugreek leaves

1/2 tsp sugar or a tsp of honey

300ml Chicken stock (or veg)

Four spring onions

Two large handfuls spinach

One aubergine, chopped roughly

Two large handfuls frozen edamame beans

Two tbsps cream

Chopped coriander

Chopped dill

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METHOD

Add butter - and a little oil to stop the butter from catching - and, when bubbling, add bay leaf and cook until its aroma reaches your nose.

Add your ginger-garlic paste and aubergine, saute-ing for a couple of minutes.

Add your tomatoes and puree, cooking for five minutes before adding chilli powder and continue to saute until the oil starts to leave the sides of the pan and emulsify with the sauce.

Add your cashew paste and saute until the oil from the nuts has emulsified with the sauce.

Add stock and honey and simmer on a low flame for 25 minutes.

While it simmers, place spring onions under a very hot grill and cook until roughly blackened all over.

Add your paneer, spinach and edamame beans and cook through for five minutes.

Finally, stir through with fenugreek leaves, garam masala and cream - and a little more honey and some salt if you fancy - and top with blackened spring onions, fresh coriander and a little dill, plus black pepper.

Enjoy with warm naan or paratha, and rice mixed through with fresh lemon juice.

Postcards from Kent | #4

2017-11-12T20:24:00.001+00:00

Spiced Pumpkin & Caramel Cake | Celia's Saucer

2017-10-15T19:48:00.001+01:00

Physalis are one of the prettiest fruits: a crisp, papery husk shrouding the tomato-like berry inside. When it turns to autumn my mind turns towards how to use them. And so this cake came to be. Taking inspiration from a popular recipe (below) and marrying it with my autumnal intent, a cloudy October afternoon was spent layering it together and, later, it was enjoyed by candlelight with my sister and friend and a hot cup of Chinese Wuyi Oolong tea.

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For the cake

80ml vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing

450g pack vanilla or white cake mix (or make your own cake mix, see tip below)

½ x 425g can pumpkin purée

125ml full-fat milk

4 large eggs

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (mix it yourself by combining ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp nutmeg and a pinch of ground cloves)

For the spread

4 tbsp dulce de leche from a jar

For the filling

225g full-fat cream cheese

125g icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

½ x 425g can pumpkin purée - I completely forgot to put this in

440ml double cream

For the filling

225g full-fat cream cheese

125g icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

½ x 425g can pumpkin purée

440ml double cream

1 x punnet physalis

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Method

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease and line the bases of two 23cm cake tins. In a big bowl, beat the oil, cake mix, pumpkin purée, milk, eggs and spice mixture until smooth. Pour the mixture into the cake tins and bake for 22-25 mins until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tins while you make the filling.

Beat the cream cheese briefly in a medium bowl until fluffy, then add the icing sugar, spice and pumpkin purée and beat until smooth. Be careful not to overbeat or it will go runny. In another bowl, whip the cream and fold it gently into the cream cheese mixture.

Recipe from BBC Good Food.

A Weekend Walk #22

2017-10-14T20:03:00.000+01:00

Memories of a Seasalter sunset in July, 2017.

Cherry & Star Anise Dark Chocolate Brownies | Celia's Saucer

2017-10-01T20:18:00.002+01:00

That's the thing about Nigella's brownie recipe - apart from handily requiring only one pan - you can add anything to it. Over the years I've done just that: nuts, seeds, spices, ground tea and, now, jam. This wasn't any jam mind you, since I'd gone to Margate to get it. The journey wasn't specifically for that reason but I always make sure to call upon the beautiful Simona at Bottega Caruso - an Italian speciality shop tucked away inside the Old Kent Market - to listen to her lovely stories and invariably leave with a host of ingredients hailing from her village in Campania, Naples. Last time I picked up the most incredible Colatura di Alici, which is an anchovy essence, but I didn't go putting that in any brownies. Brownies. Yes. And jam. Cherry and star anise jam to be precise. I tossed in some walnuts for texture, too (although almonds might have been more fitting). I'm not saying you have to use this particular jam though, no, why not have a play? Do consider the chocolate you're using, though. Mine was a particularly acidic but fruity number from Phil at LAND - Nicaliso, Nicaragua 71% dark chocolate - I thought that the character of this bar would simply extend that of the jam, but with a syrupy finish.

All good brownies must go with tea (or coffee), so I selected JING (who else?) Red Dragon, which is an endearing black tea: ripe and tart, a malty aroma, notes of caramel, chocolate and black cherry and a thick texture. It was originally sought as an exclusive for Richard Ekkebus* but is now available through the website and it's an office fave.

To the recipe then? Ok.

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Makes approx. 36 brownies

Ingredients

375 g soft unsalted butter

375 g good quality dark chocolate

6 large eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

500 g caster sugar

225 g plain flour

1 teaspoon salt

300 g chopped walnuts

Jar of your favourite jam

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Instructions

Prepare a tin measuring 33 x 23 x 5.5 cm and line with foil.

Preheat oven to 180C/gas mark 4.

Melt the butter and chocolate together in a large heavy-based pan. Don't overheat or the chocolate can become grainy.

When the chocolate and butter has melted take off the heat and let cool a while.

Meanwhile beat the eggs and sugar in the mixer or by hand.

Measure out your flour, add the salt and set aside.

Once your chocolate mixture has cooled, pour it into the beaten eggs, sugar and vanilla extract mix. Beat again until well combined.

Sift in the flour and ground tea, if using, and beat until combined.

Scrape out into your prepared tin, add blobs of jam across the surface of the mixture (as much or as little as you like) and run a knife through in a figure of eight to distribute.

Bake for about 25-30 minutes.

When cooked the top should have a dry, pale crust, but the middle should be super gooey and jammy. Bake for longer or less depending on desired consistency.

Remember that brownies will carry on cooking once removed from the oven.

*Richard Ekkebus is the international culinary director for Mandarin Oriental

Carrot, Orange and Tarragon Soup | Celia's Saucer

2017-09-28T20:01:00.000+01:00

When I was younger, I didn't spend much time with my mother and stepfather, so busy was I with books and my bike, until I acknowledged our shared love of dining out and that my job as a pot wash wasn't going to get me much further than a copy of Just Seventeen and a bag of cola cubes.

Hundreds of meals thus ensued: the Indian at Hartley Whitney, the Chinese at Yateley, and the place I want to talk about: the Riverside Vegetaria, Kingston. It's still there, right now, and run by Ritchie who lives by the motto of 'love all, serve all'. I'm totally down with that, Ritchie, and in awe that he's been at it since 1989, which is almost as long as I have been alive. Just along the river, with views looking out across the Thames, Ritchie saw a gap for good vegetarian food. This was the late eighties, so you could say he was ahead of his time for there really were very few veggie places in London, let alone in meat-and-two-veg Surrey. It was somewhat a destination.

One day - aged 15 - I spotted 'Carrot and Orange Soup' on the menu and thought 'Good grief, how does that work?' but work it does, so much so that seventeen years later, I haven't forgotten it and decided finally to recreate it from the senses. I threw tarragon in for good measure because I generally want to put tarragon with everything.

Fragrant olive oil from the zest, really quite strong garlic, sweet carrots and an earthy hand from leeks and celery, and I was on the right nostalgic track.

It was just as good as I remembered. I urge you to try it, too.

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Serves four

Ingredients

8 carrots

1 shallot - sliced lengthways

Stock to cover (veg, or - scandalously - chicken)

1 orange - zested and juiced

Small handful of fresh tarragon - chopped

1/2 leek

Knob of butter

2 cloves garlic - sliced

1 stick celery - chopped

Garnish with coarse mixture of sea salt, more tarragon, black pepper and sunflower seeds

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Instructions

Melt butter knob

Saute onion until translucent

Add garlic and cook until delicious raw smell has faded

Add leeks and celery, saute for a few further minutes

Cover and sweat for five mins

Add carrots and orange zest

Cover and sweat for five more mins

Pour over boiling stock

Low boil for 40 minutes

Add half of the orange juice and the fresh tarrgon

Blend

Top with garnish

Serve

Treacle & Honey Soda Bread | Celia's Saucer

2017-09-14T19:54:00.000+01:00

I had this bread once at local restaurant - Finsbury Park's awesome SEASON - and it took a number of attempts before I had to message the owner and simply ask for his specific recipe.

This is why the image is so triumphant. I finally got the bread I had been dreaming of and always had to order extra of whenever I visited.

Only I smeared mine in butter and sprinkled it with cinnamon and sugar.

Just to add my own twist.

This is really very excellent toasted for up to three days afterwards. If it lasts that long.

Enjoy! (I did)

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Ingredients

500ml whole milk

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

250g plain flour

250g Wholemeal plain flour

1 tsp sea salt

15g bicarbonate of soda

150g porridge oats

30g honey

30g treacle

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas Mark 5.

Grease a 900g loaf tin and set aside.

Start by placing the milk into a jug. Pour the lemon juice into the milk and stir. Set aside until it’s required in the next step of the recipe. The lemon juice will sour the milk and render homemade buttermilk.

Sift the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine. Add the oats, but reserve two tablespoons to sprinkle on top of the loaf. Stir again.

Now, whisk the honey and treacle into the milk. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl and stir gently to just combine. Gently spoon the bread mixture into your prepared loaf tin. Smooth off the top of the loaf and sprinkle with the reserved oats.

Bake for 45-55 minutes until browned and the crumb is crisp. Allow to cool in the tin for ten minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully.

Serve when warm with a thick wedge of butter, a sprinkling of cinnamon and a little soft brown sugar.

A Penetrable Whole | #CapturedInWords

2017-08-28T20:27:00.002+01:00

You once said

That man would fuck sand

If he could

As if to abandon responsibility

On behalf of mankind

Or illuminate a sick stream

That runs like blood

In the veins of animals

Reducing men to beasts

And sand to conquerable territory

Those lusty desert plains

This object then, sand

The receiver

You diminished in its uncountable seed

To a penetrable whole

Drawing commonalities with the human form

As a destination

For your sad entitlement

Imagine fucking sand

Inescapably falling

Grain by grain away from its entirety

Impenetrable

Unconquerable

Man would fuck sand

If he could