Author Archives: The Grubworm

Interruptions to the scheduled programme

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Kings Cross station

With a swipe of the stanley knife I cut the tape and sealed the last of the boxes. Vinney, the moving man from Brazil hefted the last chair down to the van and that was it. A flat empty of furniture. A kitchen with no pots or pans. A bedroom with no bed. The end of almost four years in N16.

Last Sunday we moved out of our first real home, handing over the keys to the new owners and commencing a life on the streets. Well, on family members’ floors at any rate (a BIG thank you to all the people who are putting us up). And now? Now I feel discombobulated and uncertain. Continue reading →

Harissa roast chicken

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Harissa roast chicken

Brrrrrr, it’s a bit nippy out there. At least is up here in London where the thermometer is firmly stuck around or below zero and there’s snow on the ground. So methinks it’s time for something to lift the spirits a little.

This Moroccan inspired chicken dish should bring the scents of the souk and just a hint of Saharan heat to cold kitchens. Sure it takes a bit of forethought, but this cold snap ain’t going away. Continue reading →

Polish mushroom, barley and vegetable stew

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Polish beef stew

I’ve always been a sucker for confort food, and when I saw this recipe for a Polish mushroom and barley soup on Susan’s blog, I immediately hankered after a hot bowl of the rustic looking food. And I’m pretty susceptible to good photo and recipe too.

Happily I’d been making beef stock not long before and had a freezer full of the stuff. So I set about defrosting it and hunting down the pearl barley from the back of the store cupboard. Continue reading →

French onion soup

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French onion soup without a crouton or cheese

Sitting in airport hotels as a child, excited about the impending hours in the air. On family holidays to the Dordogne, days in the car, followed by weeks in the sun. In posh London restaurants for a special occasion. The eighties for me was full of French onion soup.

And then it just disappeared. Did I stop eating it, stop noticing it? Or was it just considered untrendy and old fashioned? Whatever happened, it’s only recently I’ve begun to rediscover it. The first taste brought memories of those airports, restaurants and rustic French tables rushing back. It was pure warm nostalgia. Continue reading →

Thai style vegetable curry, with added zing! And kerpow!

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Thai style vegetable curry

I don’t tend to mess too much with Thai curries, at least not with their spicing. The rest of the ingredients are usually fair game though. But this time I decided to go one step further.

It probably helped that the recipe I first looked at was written by Nigel Slater in The Observer. And I feel comfortable with Nige (as he is known at home) and his recipes. After all, Real Fast Food was the first cookbook I ever owned. Continue reading →

Smoky and spicy quinoa with tomatoes and spinach

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Quinoa, tomato and spinach

MORE quinoa? Yep, I’m afraid so. It’s January, the time for austerity, of body as well as mind. And there’s nothing more crushingly austere than a super-douper health food grain. Right?

Wrong. Quinoa, despite its, holier-than-thou goodie two shoes reputation, is actually pretty tasty. Delicious even. I know! I was as surprised as you. Nutty, just the merest hint of crunch, and it stands up to sauces. So good, in fact, that I had to have it twice. In quick succession. Continue reading →

Spicy sweet potato and carrot soup

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Sweet potato and carrot soup

Soup is a constant. From slurping French onion soup at Gatwick as a child to being blown away by the sour spicy hit of Tom Yam on my first trip East, soup appears all over the world. It must answer a deep seated need for nourishment and warmth that goes beyond simple degrees celsius.

Sometimes, particularly when I’m under the weather, I crave a clear meaty broth, simple chicken and ginger or a more complex Pho – which many consider to be the ultimate soup. Clean, crisp and subtle flavour. Other times, when it’s cold and I’m hungry, I need a soup with substance. Something that will slide thickly over the tongue, smooth and soothing and full of taste. Continue reading →

Beef and stout stew

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Beef and stout stew

If you’re anything like me (gluttonous, food-obsessed and perpetually peckish) then healthy light meals will only get you so far on cold January nights. But bigger meatier fare doesn’t have to be totally unhealthy. It makes you happier, and a healthy mind leads to a healthy body, right? Right?.

With that in mind I spent a Sunday lovingly cooking this little beauty. And red meat aside it really isn’t particularly unhealthy. The motivation came after spotting a big ol’ hunk beef shin in Meat N16 (our local butcher), all gnarly and full of connective tissue. Just what you need for a bit of slow cooking magic. Continue reading →

Spinach, quinoa and creme fraiche with Moroccan spices

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As The Grubworm is two years old it feels like it’s time for a bit of a refresh, hence the new look. Expect more small changes over the coming weeks as the blog evolves.

It’s January, traditionally a time of restraint and moderation. And so I thought I’d kick off 2012 with something healthy and tasty. Spinach for the iron and vitamins, and quinoa because it’s damn tasty (and makes a change from cous cous or rice). Continue reading →

Taking a blog break

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Closed for Xmas

One way or another December has been a hectic month. The few times I have found myself at my keyboard, fingers poised and ready to write, nothing happens. I just kind of sit there and stare at the screen. It’s an odd feeling, but not entirely unexpected. Over the past few weeks I feel like I have been running on empty.

So I’ve decided to take a short blogging break over Christmas and new year. During that time I intend to cook and eat and drink and relax. I’ll catch up with some good books, catch some cool films and generally not do much.

I will also be coming up with a new look for The Grubworm (I can’t not do anything). I’ll be back on the 9th January 2012, all recharged and chomping at the bit to get started. Have a wonderful Christmas, New Year, Solstice or just plain winter break everyone! I’ll see you next year.