The British Larder Inspirational recipe diary

The glorious sunshine has finally made it’s appearance, the barbecue got a dusting and so did my salad bowl collection. Strolling through Borough market early on a Saturday morning my mum commented on the mix and match of cultures in London. This made me realise that we are very lucky indeed to have such a fantastic mixture of foodie influences from all over the world.

I paid my  regular visit to Brindisa to stock up on my favourite sherry vinegar and then off to Monmouth coffee for a caffeine fix followed by a stop at Neils Yard to choose a tub of goats curd and some Montgomery cheddar.

After a hard day’s shopping I do not intentionally want to spend many hours in front of the cooker. I love cooking but do not misunderstand me but sometimes dinner must be super quick. With my shopping bags unpacked,  my kitchen cupboards

As you have most probably gathered, we are pea fanatics, especially fresh new season garden peas from our own garden. Here is another pea delight that is delicious and perfect for a bright summers day. The vibrant colour and fresh taste makes this recipe extra special and worth a try.

The peas, mizuna and lambs lettuce were all harvested from my garden, if your peas are not ready you can use the frozen version.

A slice of freshly boiled ham is a wonderful reminder of home cooking. We eat well as we love cooking at home and are predominantly scratch cooks. I forget sometimes how time consuming some dishes and recipes can be. As food and cooking is part of our lives, we do not mind spending that extra few hours for a melt in the mouth moment. You might find this recipe a bit over the top, therefore I

Before I launched the British larder I would have not looked twice at social networks, I thought that Twitter was a waste of time and Facebook is one of the great evils of this world.

I have been proven to be completely wrong, if I had not joined Twitter I would have never known about Polly Robinson from Food Safari UK.

I find the Suffolk coast line most intriguing,which explains  our many visits.The Aldeburgh Food festival has become a highlight on our yearly foodie calendar. It’s a family affair and together with Ross’s parents, Annerly and Duke the dog , we make an annual pilgrimage to Aldeburgh to savour the best food that Suffolk has to offer.

Twitter worked it’s magic and I saw a message posted by Polly about the Sea Food Safari that was due to take place. Keen and interested we joined in on the

This might sound bizarre, most chefs have a signature dish, mine is a signature jam. This strawberry and redcurrant jam is my star recipe, and I’m proud of it.

The combination of these two red fruits works brilliantly together and this recipe works for me every time.

I do not believe in buying pectin enriched sugar or even adding pectin to my jams, I simply believe in following the method correctly, stick to the rules and persevere until the right temperatures  are reached.        I also believe in cooking jam in small batches, this way it is easier to control and to eliminate problems.

The choice of fruit plays a big role in the success of my tasty jams. I choose the variety  ‘Cambridge Favourite’  strawberries for my jam. I go to my local PYO so that I can select the very ripe ones, this ensures that my jam is packed