Lime shortbread, ginger cream, passionfruit curd and raspberry coulis

Well it's been a while since I've had a chance to put a recipe up! Thought it would be nice to put up a proper summer dessert (even though it's not really sunny today!) It was when I actually made this dessert ok!?

This isn't a particularly difficult dish to make, but there are a lot of different components. You'll probably find that you have some shortbread left over, it's pretty good by itself as well.

Lime shortbread:

175g plain flour

100g butter

50g granulated sugar

zest of 1 lime

Passionfruit curd:

3 passionfruits

2 eggs

80g sugar

60g butter

Raspberry coulis:

100g raspberries

2 tbsp caster sugar

Ginger cream:

150 ml double cream

2 tbsp caster sugar

1/2 tsp ground ginger

Serves 4

Preheat the oven to 150C. To make the shortbread, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles bread crumbs. Stir in the sugar and lime zest. Bring together into a ball (adding a little water if needed) then wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least 30 mins. Once chilled, roll out until it's about 1cm thick and use a cookie cutter (or an upturned mug!) to cut out the biscuits. Bake on a greased baking sheet for 15-20 mins or until pale golden.

Whilst the shortbread is cooking, make the passion fruit curd. Mix the sugar, passion fruit flesh and eggs in a heatproof glass bowl. Place over a saucepan of boiling water and whisk until it thickens. Strain the seeds out and beath in the butter until melted. Put in the fridge.

for the coulis, place the raspberries in a saucepan with the sugar and heat gently until they begin the break up. Press through a sieve and allow to cool. To make

the ginger cream, whip the cream until stiff and fold the ginger and sugar through until well mixed.

To assemble the dessert, place the biscuits on small plate each. Spoon the curd on top, with the cream to one side. If you can do proper quenelles then good for you, I was in a rush (and slightly tipsy from Sunday lunch wine drinking). Drizzle with the coulis and serve.

Recipe: Peach and Apricot Filo Parcels

I did this as a dessert for a Greek inspired Sunday roast last week. I'm certainly making no claims for its' authenticity but I think the flavours work well together. It's also good with a fruit coulis to dip into. I've made these a few times now, they do tend to split a bit when you bake them but the filling is thicken enough that it doesn't leak out. There'll be some filo pastry left over, once I've decided what to do with it, I'll put it up on here!

1 pack of rolled filo pastry

Half a bag of dried figs

1 tin of peaches

30g melted butter

Preheat the oven to 220C and line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.

Drain the peaches of their juice and put with the dried figs in a food processor until relatively smooth.

Unroll the filo pastry and cut lengthways in half so each sheet is 2 strips about 15cm x 30cm. Using your fingers brush the pastry with some water round the edges and put a heaped teaspoon of the fig mixture onto the end of the sheet. Roll up lengthways, occasionally crimping the pastry on the sides to form a solid parcel.

Brush with melted butter and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. They may split slightly but the filling should cool solid enough. Serve with a greek yogurt and honey dip.

Recipe: Linguine with savoy cabbage and bacon

This recipe is perfect for spring! You could add a handful of fresh peas or steamed asparagus to it as well.

Serves 2

6 rashers streaky smoked bacon

half a savoy cabbage, thinly shredded

1 large onion

80ml single cream

200g linguine

Heat a large frying pan and add the bacon and onion. Fry until the bacon is crisp and the onion has softened. Add the cabbage and stir well. Set a large pan of salted water to boil. Stir fry over a medium heat for 15-20 mins until the harder stalks of the cabbage have softened slightly. Stir in the cream and season with salt and pepper. Cook the linguine according to instructions and drain. Stir this into the cabbage mixture and serve.

Recipe: Almond and Hazelnut Honeycomb

I've never made this before but my sister has made it many times as an accompaniment to desserts and I thought it would be fun. I looked over a few different recipes for it, and most of them had golden syrup instead of honey. I figured they were probably interchangeable, the consistency is the same and I thought they honey would have more flavour.

I used Lorraine Pascale's recipe from BBC Food but added the chopped nuts for some variety. I served this with raspberry ripple chantilly cream, roasted plum tart and chocolate truffle:

I wasn't happy with the presentation, but the flavour experiment was definitely a success!

Here's my version with the nuts and honey:

1 tbsp vegetable oil
80g butter
160g caster sugar
80g honey
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
30g hazelnuts, roughly chopped
30g almonds, roughly chopped

Line a rectangular tin with greaseproof paper and rub the vegetable oil all over it, making sure it goes all the way to the top. Scatter the nuts into the tin.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the sugar and honey. Do not use a wooden spoon to stir but gently shake the pan to incorporate all the ingredients. Once they've all melted, turn the heat and boil rapidly for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. There'll be a strong caramel smell at this point as well.

Quickly add the bicarbonate of soda and stir in. Be careful because at this point it really will expand massively. Pour into the lined tin and leave to cool.

Schnapps Spiked Berry Cupcakes

Hello and sorry for my absence! I actually made these last Friday for a friend's birthday but haven't had the chance to write them up until now.

These pink cupcakes were for a friend's birthday, the brief was "as gay and fluffy as possible". Well, they certainly were that! Basically I went with the "take something glittery and girly and add alcohol" approach. Disclaimer: I'm not advocating for a second that all gay men like cutesy pink fluffy things, but this one does!

I'd made "spiked" cakes before, amaretto poured over a chocolate cake is very good, as is Baileys into brownies. You have to make sure that the cake base isn't too moist or the cake will seem too wet and sticky. If you're adding a very sweet alcohol remember
to adjust the sugar levels as well or they'll be too sickly.

I was short on time when I made these (had a GBBO style 90 minutes to make from scratch!) so I did the unthinkable and DIDN'T MAKE MY OWN FROSTING. No doubt many of you are tutting and clutching your pearls right now. A pink dyed strawberry or raspberry buttercream would work well, if you use any more alcohol in the frosting (and I wholeheartedly encourage you to, getting tipsy on cupcakes is great fun!) Just remember to add it a little at a time or you risk curdling the buttercream.

Anyhoo here's my actual recipe. Please forgive the imperial measures it's adapted from my Victoria sponge recipe which is venerable and ancient.

8oz soft butter
5oz caster sugar
4 eggs
8oz self raising flour
2 tsp pink food colouring gel
1tsp strawberry flavouring
3 tsp dried raspberry or strawberry pieces
2 shots of Archers (or whatever else you have left because no one in the flat will confess to buying it let alone drinking it)

1 tub of Betty Crocker strawberry frosting
Pink decorations (Sainsburys does a pot of Princess Sprinkles that gives a bit of variety)

Preheat the oven to 150C. Cream the butter and the sugar together and add the colouring and flavouring. Stir in one egg at a time followed by a bit of flour to stabilise the batter. Stir in the dried berries pieces. The mixture should now be relatively light but if you think it's too thick you can add a dash of milk to slacken it. You should be able to drop it off a wooden spoon easily.

Pipe or spoon the mixture directly into a lined 12 piece cupcake tin and bake in the oven for 25 mins or until golden and risen. Always follow the golden rule of never opening the oven door until at least half the cooking time has elapsed. Once they're done take them out of the tin and spoon over the Archers. You should get between 1 and 2 teaspoonfuls into each cake. Doing this whilst they're still hot will allow the alcohol to seep in better and the end result will be moist instead of soggy. If you want more booze in your cake save it for the frosting.

Once the cakes have cooled enough spread or pipe the icing onto them and cover with the Sprinkles.  You may find it easier to empty the sprinkles into a bowl and dip the cakes in.

Recipe: Peanut Butter Brownies

Put the photos up for this early as couldn't resist, but here's the recipe. If you want to serve them
warm, I suggest letting them cool before cutting then a few minutes in the microwave to reheat. Although the whole "straight from the oven" thing may sound like fun, they won't be set properly and will just run off the plate.

170g butter
450g caster sugar
50g peanut butter
150g dark chocolate
120g plain flour
60g cocoa powder
5 eggs, beaten

In a large saucepan, melt the butter and sugar on a very low heat until the butter has melted through. Don't let it get too hot or it will caramelise. Keep stirring it with a wooden spoon as well or it will stick to the bottom of the pan. Add in the peanut butter and stir until incorporated completely. Mix in the chocolate in small chunks and stir on the lowest possible heat until melted in.

Remove the pan from the heat. Sift the flour and cocoa powder into the pan and mix in, pouring the eggs in as well. Keep stirring as fast as you can to incorporate the eggs, as they will begin to cook slightly as soon as they hit the hot chocolate mixture, and no one wants scrambled eggs in their brownies! Pour into a greaseproof paper lined tin and bake at 200C for about 30 mins.

They should have a slight crust on top but still be very squidgy inside. Once cooled, cut into squares. I served mine with peanut butter ice cream, but the flavours would also lend themselves well to banana I think. Maybe I'll eat one for breakfast with a banana and call it detox?

Pancakes - traditional or innovative?

Throughout the day I've seen people's opinions going back and forth on Twitter, Facebook and in the office about how one should have pancakes on Shrove Tuesday. Now I'll admit, I'm a fan of the lemon and sugar. It's nice and easy and the lemon cuts through the richness of the pancake perfectly. But what it doesn't make (unless you eat a whole pile of them) is a meal. So there's definitely an excuse for at least one savoury option. I usually end up cooking pancakes for a group, this year my housemates and a few others so it's worth having a little variety. Here are my ideas if you want to have a little something different. Photos will be up later on Twitter and Facebook.

Ham and Gruyere - sprinkle the grated cheese onto the pancake whilst it's still cooking in the pan to get it to melt in slightly.

Marmalade and Dark Chocolate - This seemed to be the dessert of choice in every restaurant in Croatia when I was on holiday there a few weeks ago. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water and warm the marmalade in a bowl in the microwave for a few seconds to make it spreadable.

Cherry and Almond - When I've done this before I've used tinned cherries as it's much cheaper. Mix equal parts butter, sugar and ground almonds and bake on greaseproof paper for 10 mins on 200C then crumble over the pancakes and cherries.

A Valentines Dinner

Forgotten to book a table? Bit late now!

Luckily you can still cook something at home to impress your loved one. And the plus side is that it will be a hell of a lot cheaper than going out to a restaurant.

Here's a menu that's sure to put you both in the mood! I calculated this menu at about £35 in total, and that was from Ocado. The timings I've given are for an 8pm dinner for two people with a little leftovers, perhaps an energy boost later in the evening? ;)

Pomegranate and prosecco cocktail

Avocado, sun dried tomato and parma ham salad

Chicken Aurora

Roasted new potatoes

Braised asparagus

Layers of chocolate and raspberry

Here's what you'll need to buy:

1 bottle of prosecco
1 carton pomegranate juice

1 avocado
1 small tub sun dried tomatoes in olive oil
parma ham
rocket

2 chicken breasts
2 red peppers
olive oil
1 onion
1 clove garlic
150ml single cream
1 stock cube
100ml water
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 small bag new potatoes
1 pack asparagus

1 carton fresh raspberries
2 tbsp icing sugar
200g dark chocolate
150ml single cream

1815: Melt the chocolate and cream together in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Make sure the water doesn't touch the bowl.

1830: Blitz half the raspberries with the sugar and push through a sieve. Set to one side. Pour the chocolate mix into two ramekins and place in the fridge.

1845: Preheat the oven to 220C. Chop the peppers and the onion roughly into inch square pieces. Add in the garlic clove whole.  Toss in the olive oil and season. Do the same with the potatoes separately. You can then either use a large roasting tin and separate them with some foil in the middle, or use two separate tins.

1900: Put the potatoes and peppers/onion mix in the oven. Heat a little oil in a large frying pan or hob proof casserole dish and add the chicken breasts. Brown them on a medium heat, turning frequently.

1930: Remove the pepper mixture from the oven and pour into a saucepan. Turn the oven off but leave the potatoes in there. Add the stock cube, paprika and water, stirring until the stock cube is mixed in. Blitz until smooth as possible and pour through a sieve to get rid of the pepper skin. Stir in the cream, and pour over the chicken breasts. Cover and leave on a very low heat on the hob.

1945: Peel and chop the avocado and arrange on a plate with the rocket, sundried tomatoes and parma ham. Pour about 1/3 of a glass of pomegranate juice and top up with prosecco. Pour the raspberry coulis mix over the now set chocolate ganache and scatter with raspberries before putting back in the fridge.

2000: Serve the salad and drink.

The chicken will sit happily if covered on a low heat for at least 30 mins. Approximately 15 minutes before you serve the chicken, heat a griddle pan with a little olive oil and cook the asparagus. The dessert can be served at any time over the evening.

Recipe: Cranachan Truffles

Decided to make some truffles for my friend Simon for his birthday (late as well!) and thought, what does he like? When we used to live together we'd get through a fair amount of whiskey in front of our (working!) fireplace so I thought I'd try for something to evoke that. Cranachan in its traditional form is raspberries in honey and raspberry jelly or coulis with whisky infused whipped cream and toasted oats. Looks really pretty in a glass. I tried whiskey truffles by Matthieu de Gottal at the London Chocolate Festival in Islington in December and although mine are by no means as sophisticated as his, it really is a great combination of flavours.

These are simple truffles and I really would recommend using the best ingredients you can.

200g very dark chocolate (something like Green and Black's is ideal for this)
50g butter
50ml whiskey (Glenfiddich single malt in my case!)
2 tbsp dried raspberry pieces
2 tsp honey (I went outrageous and used Manuka honey as I happened to have some in)
50g rolled oats
4 tbsp cocoa powder
edible gold spray
gold draguees

Melt the chocolate and the butter together in a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of water. Make sure the water doesn't touch the chocolate or it will go grainy.

Heat a small frying pan and toast the oats until slightly browned. Keep a close eye on them, they will burn very easily if not moved around the pan. Once they're done, grind to a fine powder with a pestle and mortar.

Slowly add the whiskey and the honey to the chocolate mixture and stir in the dried raspberries. Mix in the oat powder and leave in the fridge for a few hours until more or less solid. Break up with a spoon and roll small truffle sized balls in the cocoa powder until coated. Place each truffle in a petit four case and spray with the gold spray (for that added bling!) I topped mine with a gold draguee as well.

Recipe: Pan fried steak, caramelised onions, garlic spinach and potato wedges

So yesterday was a bit of a celebration for me, after several months of looking I finally secured a new full time job. It's been really great to have this blog to keep me occupied in the gap in between but I'm looking forward to getting back into full time employment as of next Monday. Look out for cool office lunch ideas, quick suppers and slow cooker recipes coming your way soon. I may even become one of those people who shows up to the office with their salad in a Kilner jar, who knows?

Anyway, for now here is my steak with all the trimmings. I don't cook steaks very often as I'm quite fussy about how it's cooked and I like it really tender. There seems to be a lot of conflicting information out there as to how to cook it, some of which I followed and some of which I blatantly disregarded! In all honesty it was perhaps a little too well done in the middle but the dark glossy top of the steak was absolutely perfect!

1 rump steak (I should probably extol the virtues of organic beef from the butcher but I just got it from the supermarket. It was Finest though!)
1 tsp rock salt
1 onion
3 tbsp sugar
50g butter
1 large potato
4 tbsp vegetable oil
3 "bricks" frozen spinach
1 clove garlic

Contrary to most of the meat dishes I cook, the steak is actually the quick thing here. To prepare it, take it out of its packaging and rub half the oil and rock salt into it. It will sit perfectly happily out of the fridge despite the label's dire warning of use immediately. In fact it will be better for it as it will be more tender if not straight out of the cold. But if you get food poisoning I'm taking no responsibility! Preheat the oven to 220C. Slice the potato into wedges and coat with the other half of the oil and half the rock salt. Lay into a roasting tin/baking tray skin sides down (they won't stick as much this way). Set the timer for 25 mins, you want them to be mostly golden brown with some darker crispy bits on the edges.

Once the potatoes are in the oven, thinly slice the onions and melt half the butter in a small saucepan. Add the onions and sugar and stir to coat. Turn the heat down to low and leave with a lid on for the remainder of the potato cooking time. They should soften and go slightly sticky and a golden brown. If they are still too sloppy and pale by the time the wedges are done, you can whack the heat up to high and stir them vigorously,  but beware, the caramel can catch quickly leaving you with a dark brown stained saucepan to soak (and in my case, a disapproving housemate).

Melt the rest of the butter in a small frying pan (this is a big use all the things kinda dinner!) and finely chop or mince the garlic. Fry gently for 3-4 minutes then add the spinach bricks. Leave to defrost and cook through gently, stirring occasionally.

When there's about 15 minutes left on the timer for the wedges, heat the remaining oil in a griddle pan on as high as you can possibly go on your hob. Be prepared to turn your extractor fan on to full, open your windows and use a chopping board to frantically wave away excess heat from your face. Also check for housemate's clean laundry in the next room, they may not appreciate it smelling like a barbecue pit (oops). Once the oil is smoking, add the steak to the pan. It will sizzle, and there will be a big cloud of steam. Some of the oil might spit out at you. Don't be frightened! Set a timer straight away for 1 minute, then once this goes off, flip the steak over (another big steam cloud here, brace yourself!) and time for another minute. This is just giving a crust to the steak, it won't cook the inside. After the second side is charred on the outside, turn the heat down to low. The next bit of timing is up to you. The general guideline seems to be 2 minutes per side for rare, 3 for medium and 4 for well done, but I guess it depends how quickly  your pan cools, how thick your steak is etc. I cooked for 3 minutes per side on mine and to be honest it was a tad overdone for me, but I'll know for next time. Leave the steak to rest for a further 3 minutes in the pan. Whilst you're doing this you can serve everything else on the plate. Add the classy dollop of ketchup (note to self, do this AFTER arty farty kitchen cookery) and you're good to go!

Review: Amarcord

Amarcord London
75 Southampton Row
London WC1B 4ET
0207 636 5250
amarcordlondon.co.uk 

So yesterday was my 28th birthday (why thank you, so very kind, you're right I DON'T look that old!).

Having already had the big party with friends at The Parcel Yard in Kings Cross I just wanted a quiet family Sunday lunch and Amarcord in Bloomsbury provided us with exactly that.

When we got to the restaurant we were the only people there. I don't think they have a big lunch crowd on a Sunday being a little bit out of the way from most of central London's tourist spots. They have another branch round the corner from the British Museum which I think is probably a little busier for lunches. We had a few other people coming in, one booked table, the rest just footfall but throughout our whole time there it was pretty quiet. I can imagine that a full evening service is loud, vibrant and good fun! The staff who looked after us were friendly and professional and made a few jokes (about my advanced AGE, but we won't go into that).

Food is very good. This is not a place that's doing anything particular innovative. These are not flavours and impressions of Italy, artificially modernized and grafted onto a foam or a powder. There is no deconstruction. Everything says what it does on the tin. There's a spaghetti bolognese, a mushroom risotto and a tiramisu. But each one was very well done. Portion size is reasonable as well, you're not frightened off by a pile of spaghetti that's aimed more at a family of four, nor are you left to surreptitiously google the nearest McDonalds for the way home (something I've actually done after a meal once!). My starter was delicious, the salty dry meat of the prosciutto complementing the sweet juicy melon. Other members of our party had seafood which was apparently very fresh and perfectly cooked. Deciding against being adventurous, I went for a lasagne as a main course. The ratio of meat ragu to pasta (which, again, tasted fresh) was exactly right, and went very well with the side of green beans, simply dressed with butter and black pepper. The house special of tiramisu was light and creamy with enough sharp bitter espresso to offset the sweet liqueur.

Overall if you're looking for somewhere warm, friendly and traditional, a proper Italian trattoria in London, this is the ideal venue. Will definitely be returning!

Recipe: Butternut and haricot bean casserole

Reckon it's about time for another recipe on here, and in keeping with my promises earlier this month, it's time for some healthy eating! This was basically a staple dish from my university days, the beans are very cheap (even cheaper if you use dried ones!) and it's perfect for the freezing cold weather we're having in London right now.

Half a medium sized butternut squash

1 large red onion

1 large red pepper

1 large potato

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

2 cloves of garlic

1 tin of haricot beans (works well with cannellini, butter and kidney beans too)

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 stock cube made up with half a pint of water

salt and pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

Chop the squash, potato, onion and pepper into roughly 1cm cubes. We're not going for perfection here, this is a proper rustic dish! Peel and mince the garlic.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or casserole dish. Add the vegetables and garlic until softened slightly. Keep the heat down low so the squash and potato don't stick to the bottom of the pan. Slowly pour in the stock and tomatoes followed by the basil, paprika and seasoning. Drain the beans and pour in, stirring well. Bring the heat up so the casserole is slowly simmering. Put a lid on the pan and leave to cook through for half an hour or until the vegetables have softened.

Here's a tip for thickening without adding flour. Ladle out some of the casserole into a beaker and blend with a hand blender until smooth. Stir this back into the main pot. 

A good way to use up the rest of the butternut squash is to cut into into cubes (making sure to scrape out the seeds and fibrous parts). Drizzle over some olive oil and a little smoked paprika and bake at 220C for about 30 mins. It's great served with sausages and a little homemade slaw of red cabbage, onion, carrot and yogurt. Delicious, colourful and low carb!

Is it a good idea to start a diet in January?

Advice seems to be all over the place for this, so here's a few of my ideas. I'm certainly not a doctor or a nutritionist (would a nutritionist share a recipe for this?!) but these just seem common sense. 

Breakfast on New Year's Day?

It's been suggested that one of the top reasons for a successful diet or any kind of lifestyle change is a support network. January is filled with people getting up early to go to the gym, buying up kale and making their own yogurt. Even if 90% are back to their old habits by Valentine's Day, the fact is in January they're on it, and they're on it hard. Sharing your experiences with friends, family or colleagues can make that goal shape or size seem a little more attainable. Even if people around you have a different approach, this can cause debate and give you a chance to try out different ideas, or conversely make you believe more in what you're doing yourself. On a more shallow note, starting in January gives a good 5-6 months until the prospect of showing skin on the beach, a sensible period of time to lose weight or to tone.

Not exactly ideal for a run!

But fun though it might be to imagine going for a run with a group of friends, or sharing a salad with your colleagues, we have to remember that this is January in the UK, If we're lucky, it's just dark and wet. More likely it's freezing cold and there's a constant threat of snow. This is not an ideal situation if you're trying to eat more healthily, in fact it becomes very easy to crave warming, stodgy foods to stave off the feeling of cold. The short daylight hours also make it harder to fit in that run or that bike ride. 

Before you worry that it's all doom and gloom and we should just keep eating like it's Christmas for the rest of the year in a vague attempt to feel satisfied, it has to be said there's a certain feeling of satisfaction that comes from drawing a line under overindulgence at Christmas and making a new start. For many of us, December is the time of year when we eat and drink more than we usually would. Personally, I've found myself saying to myself at a party "I'll switch back to the mulled wine after this salted caramel eggnog, bit healthier," as though red wine heated with brandy and sugar is a "healthy option"! After behaviour like that it seems natural to want to swing the other way. 

But there's a little problem with having that clean cut between December and January. Unless you're either very greedy or very well organised, you'll probably start January with a few goodies still

Tins of biscuits seem to appear all over the house in January

floating around. A quick rummage has found a full sized panettone (good until the end of the month) and a tin of ginger and chilli biscuits. Perhaps the best way to integrate these into your January diet is to simply have them in moderation, one biscuit instead of half the tin.

When you do finish all your chocolates and cookies and cheese, this is a pretty good time of year to be stocking up on the healthy snacks. Most major supermarkets choose this time to run promotions on nuts, fruit, vegetables and lean meat, making this an economically attractive time to start a diet. This is good news for most of us, for whom January is the long gap between paychecks where we have to keep an eye on the bank balance a bit more than we do normally. Mind you, if financial affairs are concerning you, starting a diet that is radically different to your current lifestyle can be an expensive prospect.

So in summary, be aware that January is seen as a time to diet, and use it to your advantage. Share your experiences with everyone else and use that strength to try and break out of the "January only" healthy lifestyle. If you're worried about money, don't make any changes that are too radical and remember to scrutinise offers in shops, are they really healthy, will you really eat them? Don't worry about having the odd biscuit or chocolate that's leftover from Christmas, just work it into your plan. Remember it's better to slowly ease into a new lifestyle over a period of weeks than to dive into a completely different and unsustainable diet.

I'm hoping to share a few healthier recipes and tips over the next few weeks, but no doubt there will be some cakes and things in for good measure. As they old saying goes, you don't make friends with salad!

3 Restaurants in London to Try in 2015

Bored of the same old restaurants in London? Try these for a change! You'll notice there are no Michelin stars, no dress codes and no extensive wine lists. London has some of the world's best restaurants, with probably one of the most varied food scenes available of any city, and these restaurants below should give you a chance to try some of them.

Hopefully this list will give you some alternatives to the usual suspects of the high street, and a chance to discover some of the capital's hidden gems.

Brasserie Zedel

www.brasseriezedel.com
20 Sherwood Street
London
W1F 7ED
02077344888

If you're looking to impress, this stunning restaurant in a former hotel ballroom adjacent to Piccadilly Circus is sheer perfection. Doesn't look like much from the outside, but once you go through the street cafe and down the stairs you realise what a big deal this place is. A traditional French brasserie with all the trimmings, this is a restaurant that serves grated carrot as a starter and gets away with it. Frankly, there's nothing on the menu that's particularly daring, but then there doesn't have to be. Giving a little bit of Paris in London, this is traditional French food done pretty well for the price. The wine menu is also well put together with the useful option of a carafe for those that won't manage a full bottle.

Mildreds
www.mildreds.co.uk

45 Lexington Street

London

W1F 9AN 

0207 494 1634

One of the great Soho institutions, and one of the top rated vegetarian restaurants in the country. I've taken friends here who will only eat a meal with meat in it and they love this place as well. The menu is from a mixture of different cuisines so this is a good option for a group where no one can narrow the choice down by country or style of cooking. Something to remember, vegetarian cooking has little influence on desserts, the desserts on offer here are quite simply AMAZING. One of my favourite dessert dishes ever was served here, quince and cranberry rum baba with honey ice cream. Simple but delicious, honey ice cream needs to be more of a thing. Only downside to this place is the size. This is a very small restaurant and they don't take bookings, so it will usually mean having to stand at the small bar near the door until you're called forward. On the plus side, the staff here are incredibly organised.

Little Bay Kilburn
www.littlebaykilburn.co.uk

228 Belsize Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 4BT

0207 372 4699

Such a quirky little place. Feels a bit homemade and the menu has a few oddities but this is a good, fun neighbourhood restaurant. It's cosy, warm and slightly romantic with it's little tables and candles in wine bottles. It's also very good value for money, especially before 7pm. To make a bit more space in the small restaurant they have stacked some tables up on top of each other, meaning you get to climb up a little staircase to your table. There's a few of these around London, but this is the one I know best. One of their main courses is chicken stuffed with lamb, strange but good! I've also sat in here for nearly 4 hours on a date once, we were the only ones left and they were quietly clearing up around us but trying not to interrupt.