Scorpion pepper plant – June 2015

17 Jun

Unfortunately, after a long and dark British winter, we are now down to just one pepper plant (hence the switch to singular!). But, with the summer sun now (kind of) arriving, it’s really starting to thrive and has even begun producing flowers. We may get those elusive peppers after all!

The only problem is that the flowers seem to be falling off soon after they bloom. I looked this up and apparently it’s called ‘blossom drop’, which can be caused by changes in temperature, uneven watering or too much nitrogen in the soil. I’m not sure which one is the culprit in our case though – could be a combination of all three!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Cream Cheese Frosting

10 Oct

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Since it’s getting near Halloween, I have to throw in a little American-style spice. Try these amazing pumpkin muffins from The Pioneer Woman. Cream cheese icing may seem strange, but it’s great for those who aren’t really fans of the normal sickly sweet variety (like me). I’ve pasted her recipe below, with a few of my own notes.

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Mexican Slaw

3 Oct

Slaw Diptic

So we’re ripping off restaurant dishes again! This spicy Mexican coleslaw is inspired by the one at Wahaca (I know, a chain, but a pretty good one). This side dish is seriously one of my favourite things to eat there and it’s actually pretty healthy too since it uses much less mayo than traditional slaws. This is our version.

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Scorpion pepper plants – September 2014

10 Sep

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Much bigger now and sprouting more branches. Still no sign of peppers though 😦 

Chicken Liquor (formerly Wishbone)

17 Aug

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What we tried

Chicken Shop wings, Buffalo wings, Tobacco 0nions, Slaw, fries

Verdict

Succulent and crispy, as wings should be.

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The British (serves 60 million)

15 Aug

by Benjamin Zephaniah

Take some Picts, Celts and Silures
And let them settle,
Then overrun them with Roman conquerors.
Remove the Romans after approximately 400 years
Add lots of Norman French to some Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings, then stir vigorously.

Mix some hot Chileans, cool Jamaicans, Dominicans,
Trinidadians and Bajans with some Ethiopians, Chinese,
Vietnamese and Sudanese.
Then take a blend of Somalians, Sri Lankans, Nigerians And Pakistanis,
Combine with some Guyanese
And turn up the heat.
Sprinkle some fresh Indians, Malaysians, Bosnians,
Iraqis and Bangladeshis together with some
Afghans, Spanish, Turkish, Kurdish, Japanese And Palestinians
Then add to the melting pot.
Leave the ingredients to simmer.
As they mix and blend allow their languages to flourish
Binding them together with English.
Allow time to be cool.
Add some unity, understanding, and respect for the future,
Serve with justice
And enjoy.

Note: All the ingredients are equally important. Treating one ingredient better than another will leave a bitter unpleasant taste.

Warning: An unequal spread of justice will damage the people and cause pain. Give justice and equality to all.

Lemongrass Pork Ribs

12 Aug

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Our approximation of the Kaosarn ones we like so much.

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Pepper plants – August 2014

11 Aug

7

Still no sign of fruit 😦 We spoke to a pepper guy at Camden Market who told us Scorpions flower late in the UK (or maybe not at all the first year…), but suggested we get some plant food for them – see them here with their new feeding bottles (and bigger pots). Fingers crossed!

Fish, Wings & Tings

30 Jul

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What we tried

Codfish fritters, pepper prawns

Verdict

Glad to have Trini food represented in Brixton, but missing some key ingredients.

 

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Kaosarn

20 Jun

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What we tried

Cee Krong Moo Tod Ta-Krai (deep fried pork ribs with lemongrass), Som Tum Thai (spicy papaya salad) and sticky rice, Massaman curry, Panang gai (red curry with chicken), Koo Pad Kra-Praw (meat fried with hole Basil – preferably with pork), Gai Tod (Thai-style fried chicken) and probably other things!

Verdict

Simply the best Thai food I’ve had outside of Thailand.

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