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Pappy's Texas BBQ Restaurant Popup
I'd never really visited the Lake District before, but a couple of months ago we were invited to visit Pappy's Texas BBQ smokehouse in Kendal to see how they turn big chunks of raw meat into smoky slices of utter delight. We didn't have time on that trip to see any actual lakes, so I was thrilled when Robin, who owns Pappy's invited us to visit a popup restaurant they were running at the Windermere Hotel. We booked for 2 nights at the hotel and made a proper weekend of it. As it happened, it was also our 33rd wedding anniversary.

Homity Pie
During the Second World War, food, and especially meat, was rationed in the UK. People were encouraged to grow their own vegetables in their gardens or allotments, and homity pie is a recipe that emerged at that time. The veggies - leeks, potatoes, onions - are very easy to grow in the British climate. After the war, homity pie kind of faded away, but re-emerged as a staple on the menu of Cranks Vegetarian Restaurant in London in the Sixties. It's a really tasty dish, and quite easy to make.

English Breakfast Pie
I wouldn't say an English breakfast in a pie is the Holy Grail of the pie-maker's art, but it's certainly challenging. You have a bunch of elements, some wet, some dry and one of them runny, and for most of them, being baked in a pie isn't the best way to cook them. But it's always fun to try.

A Real Texas Smokehouse in England
One of my long-standing YouTube subscribers got in touch with me recently saying he'd like to send me some smoked meat samples from his local Texan smokehouse. Fair enough, I don't usually know where my subscribers are located - they're scattered all over the world, and quite a lot of them are in Texas. So it was a bit of a surprise when I checked the link he sent me to Pappy's Texas Barbeque. It's in Kendal, Cumbria.

Potted Beef
Potted beef began life centuries ago as a way to preserve meat - but probably only for a few weeks or months. The idea was to cook beef down until really tender, then mash it to a paste, ram it into a small pot and seal the top with melted butter. So once you broke the butter seal, the paste would start to deteriorate, which is why it was always sold in small pots. Potted beef is really great on a piece of toast, on a cracker, or in a sandwich. And it's quite easy to make.

Strawberry Jam
Jams and preserves have been made for centuries as a way of preserving excess soft fruit. Frequently, shop-bought jam contains much more sugar than fruit, but if you make your own, you know exactly what's in it. Homemade jam is quite easy and quick - you can easily make a small batch in about half an hour.

Bouillabaisse with Rouille
Originally, bouillabaise would be made by fishermen in Marseilles and the French Mediterranean coast to use up any unsold fish and trimmings. These days, it tends to be a little more fancy. For the best flavour, make your own fish stock.

French Onion Soup
French Onion Soup, or Soupe à l'Oignon Gratinée has been around in France since the 18th Century, but became popular in the US and UK in the 1960s. The croute on top soaks up some of the some and gives it body, but the key to a wonderful soup is a fantastic beef stock.

Omorc Air Fryer Review
Air fryers - the saviour of the universe? Maybe not, but certainly a great way to cook 'fried' foods without drenching them in unhealthy fat. In this article and video, I review a big shiny 5.5 litre fryer from Omorc. UPDATE: this product is no longer available.

Haggis Scotch Egg
The traditional Scotch egg doesn't have much of a connection with Scotland - it was invented in London by Fortnum & Mason. But you can make it more Scottish by adding some haggis to the sausagemeat. Another variation is the Manchester Egg - a pickled egg wrapped in black pudding.

Duck a l'Orange | Sous Vide
The French call it canard a l'orange, English speakers will call it duck with orange sauce or, if they're feeling exotic, duck a l'orange. This simple but tasty dish became massively popular outside France in the sixties and seventies. I'm using sous vide to cook my duck breasts because it gives incredibly tender meat.

Christmas Pizza
Christmas dinner pizza sounds weird - let's be honest, it IS weird - but it's very tasty and easy to put together, especially if you use a pre-made pizza base.

Eggnog
Eggnog is thought to have evolved from posset in the 13th Century. Egg nog is very popular in the US and Canada, but less so in the UK. Eggnog is very easy to make and tastes delicious - it's almost like an alcoholic custard made from eggs, milk, cream and dark spritis such as rum, brandy or Bourbon.

Christmas Burger
As Christmas approaches, I've noticed burger shops, especially independent ones, creating their own version of a Christmas burger. Many of them are not very Christmassy. I decided to create my own, using as many of the elements of a traditional Christmas dinner as possible.

Wagon Wheels | Moon Pies
Wagon Wheels, almost identical to the US Moon Pies, are a childhood treat. But like many things you remember having as a child, the modern version seems smaller and, to a grown-up palate, unbearably sweet. However, if you make your own, they can be any size you like, not too sweet, and they're not actually difficult to make.

Hunter's Chicken
Whenever I've had hunter's chicken in a pub, the chicken breast has always been dry and unpleasant. With my recipe, we have cheese inside and a wrapping of bacon outside to keep the chicken deliciously moist. Add more cheese on top and some barbecue sauce and you have a quick and tasty meal.

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