Category: Xander

This golden label has been catching my magpie eye for months now. Sitting on the shelf in the co-op and winking at me like a tart in a window in Amsterdam. Regularly priced at £15 I’ve always shied away, knowing that the golden label is probably writing a cheque...

Half price duck. £8 seemed a fairly reasonable price for a duck, that’s about twice chicken – discounting the  ‘2-for-a-fiver ‘ chickens deemed unethical by the wellington boot brigade. The regular price of £16 for the above pictured duck seems somewhat pricey, at those prices I’d plump for roast lamb...

The roast duck from the day before was sliced into small pieces, as were the parsnips and roast potatoes. I ‘freshly baked’ some baguettes. Half-baked baguettes, available in most supermarkets, take about 10 minutes in the oven to become fresh, warm, crusty and delicious baguettes which make a mockery...

Last week I went to Hampstead to enjoy the glorious sunshine on the Heath with a friend. I emerged from the tube into overcast skies and we slunk off to the pub to await the return of the weather. 3pints of bitter and a burger and chips later I...

A first attempt at producing home-made dairy-free truffles rendered these rather presentable specimens. Alas! They tasted like unmitigated failure. Absolute filth. Load of balls. Plan B is to try again using coconut cream and rum (instead of almond milk and no alcohol). Plan C is to admit defeat and...

Yauatcha is a chinese restaurant on Broadwick Street, SOHO. The circumstances surrounding me going there were slightly bizarre. I found myself googling to find a recipe for macaroons, because I was wondering if I could make a dairy free version. The macaroons are essentially dairy free and then filled...

The hot weather called for a cold cold wine and an ice bucket. Ice bucket seem to be the culinary version of gold dust and unless you make a scene you get given the biggest lie in the world. A completely ineffective plastic bucket which via the magic of...

New Culture Revolution – Nottinghill. Had dinner at this chinese place I last went to about 8 years ago. All their food, as with much chinese food, is dairy free. Furthermore, they make their noodles fresh in house. I had the soft shelled crab as a starter followed by...

Rich and bitter like an aged spinster, but much nicer in the mouth. There was a chocolate fair outside the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank, I wandered around it and my eye was caught by the dairy-free stand. I wanted to sample one before I bought but...

Voila! Roughly chop onion, purple best, white almost as good. Roughly chop peppers; green and red, plenty of colour Throw in oyster muchrooms (or any mushrooms really) Coat lightly in olive oil and mixed herbs, throw a packet of sausages on top and toss the whole lot with your...