All That I'm Eating

Recipe ideas for budget meals, everyday cooking and a little indulgence. Travel inspiration and restaurant reviews too.

What I’ve learnt from doing a few cookery demonstrations

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Food Demo Caroline Taylor
2012 was the first year that I stood up in front of people and cooked something. I did two demos that year and cooked different dishes at each one. They both went well; I didn’t trip up, forget anything or burn myself so I’d call it a roaring success. There was a little incident with some beetroot juice but the less said about that the better. This year I had three cookery demonstrations planned in all at different food festivals: Eat Reading, Petersfield and Newbury. So after cooking in front of a crowd five times I thought it would be useful to pass on what I’ve learnt.
  • First and most importantly cook something that you like and that you are passionate about. This is for two reasons: you will cook it better and you can talk about it with ease.
  • Practice, practice, practice. It’s amazing how much longer or shorter something takes outside than inside. For example it can take an age to bring a pan of water to boil on a gas hob with the wind blowing. If you are well rehearsed then if something doesn’t go quite to plan you won’t panic.
  • Take notes with you that you can refer to. I would have forgotten to add some ingredients if I didn’t have my notes to remind me!
  • Think about some interesting things you can talk about. You need some facts or stories to fill in the gaps between boiling, chopping or grating otherwise you’ll just be standing in silence. 
  • Get the audience involved; talk to them, ask them questions. In my experience it’s far more enjoyable for the audience and you if you engage with them.
  • Make sure you know what equipment is provided and what you might need to bring yourself. It’s remarkable how many times I could have been short of a peeler if I hadn’t taken one just in case!
  • Relax. I just think that I’m in my own kitchen showing a friend how to cook something. If you’re calm and relaxed you’ll enjoy yourself much more.

I always get really nervous before I start cooking so this year I cooked the same dishes for every demo I did; it got easier every time I cooked it. The time seems to fly by and at the end I have no idea where the last 30 minutes went, what happened or what I said but the food always gets eaten up and a few members of the audience come and ask questions which is always nice. If you’re thinking of doing a demo yourself I hope the above will be helpful information; you never know unless you try. read more

Cocktail Making at Lola Lo Oxford

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cocktail making lola lo Oxford
I enjoy watching people make cocktails. Particularly when it’s an impressive display of throwing ingredients together and seemingly defying gravity. It’s all quite spectacular but is only worthwhile if the finished drink tastes half decent. I’ve always wanted to give it a go; behind a bar, cocktail umbrellas at the ready, knowing what it is I’m meant to be doing. It’s not quite the same mixing it up in your own kitchen so when Lola Lo asked if I wanted to try one of their master classes I couldn’t say no.

I must start by apologising for the photos; I was having too much of a good time (and had my cocktail goggles on) while I was there to think about it! I also have to tell you that our hosts Annie and John were wonderful; I arrived a little late and out of breath and they didn’t mind at all. In fact I was presented with a glass of Champagne and a flower necklace to wear.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from a cocktail class, I thought it would be mostly watching but actually it was really hands on. We set about making three cocktails. They were demonstrated by John first, we tasted it and then he watched us make our own versions. I was so surprised at what a difference a small amount of gomme or lime can make to the overall flavour of a cocktail. Just a dash too much gomme can transform the cocktail from balanced to overly sweet. At the same time, if your biceps aren’t up to squeezing out enough lime juice the sourness can change astoundingly. The first cocktail we made was a Mai Tai; a mix of rum, Cointreau, lime juice, almond syrup and gomme. The balance of sweet to sour was great in this and I was really surprised how much I enjoyed the almond flavour. The next cocktail (served in the blue figure) was a Moai; rum, Cointreau, lime, grenadine, Angostura bitters and ginger beer. Again I was really surprised by the mix of flavours as I don’t normally like ginger beer but I really liked this mix. The last cocktail we made was the Captain Coconut; rum, coconut liqueur, passion fruit, lime, gomme, cream of coconut and peach liqueur. I loved this one because it was served in a frozen coconut! The tropical flavours were enhanced by the furry receptacle. All of the cocktails we made were ones I wouldn’t normally order but after trying them I definitely would. I was feeling very pleased with myself thus far. I hadn’t spilt anything on myself (or anywhere else), everything I had made was delicious and I was a little bit tipsy. I thought it was all over and I was happy with what I’d learned, but no. Off we went around the corner and there was a table full of spirits, mixers, ice and all sorts for us to invent our own cocktails. I’m not a competitive person, unless food or cooking is involved. I thought this was a great end to the evening; a chance to utilise all your acquired cocktail knowledge. Although when you’ve already had three cocktails your powers of concentration and reason are somewhat inhibited. We had to make one short cocktail and one long cocktail. My short cocktail was a mix of gin, apricot brandy, lime and grenadine. My long cocktail was a mix of rum, strawberry liqueur, lime and apple juice. The jury was out on who had won (I’m pretty sure it was me) but it was easier to keep the peace!

Now, I know I wasn’t actually in Polynesia during the master class but I felt a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of the Oxford city streets above. I might come across as a bit ignorant now but I had no idea about the history of all cocktails. I thought they were a relatively recent thing but with this class not only do you learn how to make the cocktails but you learn the whole story behind them to. My particular favourite being the story of the Long Island Iced Tea (one of my preferred cocktails) which came about when clear spirits were mixed with cola and poured from a teapot during a period of prohibition. I really enjoyed the class and think it’s a great idea for a party or if you want to get to know a bit more about mixing up drinks. read more

Happy 3rd Blog Birthday

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Chicken and Chorizo Tartlets baked and ready to eat

Happy third blog birthday to me. And a big thank you to you for sticking with it! What a three years it has been and how things have changed. I have learnt a lot and had some great experiences thanks to this blog. And so to celebrate I have the (what I have dubbed) All That I’m Eating Top Ten Eats. Here’s my most popular posts since day one.

1. Chicken and Chorizo Tartlets

I loved these little tarts as they were so easy to make and it meant I could use my little tart tins too. A great way to use up leftover chicken. Recipe here. =&0=& This is one of my all time favourite recipes and I make it frequently. As you can tell the photos for this aren’t great as it was taken in the days where I was still using my phone. Recipe here. 3. Zillionaire’s Shortbread  I didn’t make this very long ago and it has gone down a storm. Not hard to see why! This is probably the tastiest, heaviest (in weight!) and most indulgent thing I have baked. Recipe here. 4. Victoria Sponge with Balsamic Strawberry Jam Adding a little balsamic vinegar to some strawberry jam was a marvellous idea if I do say so myself. A classic sponge with a bit of a twist. Recipe here. 5. Purple Cabbage Soup Purple cabbage is always a bit of a tricky vegetable to have around but this soup keeps the colour and texture vibrant. Recipe here. 6. The Real Italian Pizza Company at Bath A pretty average meal so I’m surprised that this is at number 6! Review here. =&3=&

On the radio!

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All That I'm Eating at BBC Radio Berkshire

I was invited to be on BBC Radio Berkshire yesterday. If you would like to take a listen you can find the link here (it’s since been taken down). It was a great experience and I spoke about all sorts of things but mostly food! I was on from 3pm for 45 minutes so if you only want to hear the food bit you might need to do a little fast forwarding! 

My first published food column

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Caroline's Kitchen Reading Post
Sometimes things happen at just the right time. I recently had some sad news and things are still on the mend but there are a few bits going on which give me a reason to smile. Amongst these is the publication of my first food column in The Reading Post. The column is about foraging and what to make with any treats you may find. It’s amazing to think how many people might read this column entitled, ‘Caroline’s Kitchen’, and I hope they give a recipe a try.

You can also read the article online read more

My first published food photo

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I was sent an email last month asking if I would be interested in cooking a meal and having the photograph published in a magazine. It was completely out of the blue if I’m honest, it was entirely unexpected, I was incredibly flattered and, of course, said yes please.

If you don’t know already I am very lucky to have another half with a degree in photography. I’m not convinced it’s quite what he envisaged taking regular photos of but what started off as a little help and encouragement turned into me being able to concentrate on the cooking and not having to think about all the things I don’t understand! Look back through some of my photos from 2010 and you’ll see what I mean. read more

Petersfield Food Festival 2012 and my second Cookery Demo

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petersfield food festival 2012
 Petersfield is not too far from me and I went to their food festival last year. It boasted a marvellous selection and variety of stalls. I happily ate my way around last year and was looking forward to going again this year. The only difference was that this year I was to be part of the festival and do a cookery demonstration.

The sky looked as though it wasn’t going to be on our side but the sun was shining away by the afternoon. Before and after the demo I had a good look around at the stands and producers, there were some great stalls and I sampled an awful lot of lovely food. Below is a small selection of producers who I was able to have a nice long chat to. 

It’s not food but I thought these little wooden ducks were very sweet. There were quite a few craft stalls dotted within the food stands which made it more varied. Last year there were lots of cake and cupcake stands but this year there were more cheese stands than any other. A few even sold out of cheese before the festival was over.

The first stall I found was The Bloomberry Juice Co who make brilliant juice drinks, each one with a berry and a bloom inside. My favourite was Apple, Blueberry and Lavender. They also do an Orange, Honey and Elderflower which is just my cup of tea! I liked these because they weren’t too sweet and had honest, natural flavours.  read more

Cookery Demo

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All That I'm Eating, Caroline Taylor, cookery demo
You may have heard that I had my first live cookery demo at the weekend. I’ve done a few smaller ones before but they were more a case of me trying to persuade people to try my wares as they walk past; people seem to think I’m trying to sell something so they tend to steer clear. Or maybe people don’t want to eat cabbage at 9am on a Sunday morning. This time it was all proper; kitchen, stage, mirrors above the worktop and everything. Fortunately it was inside so I didn’t have to contend with the weather as well as my nerves. I had no idea what to expect and not a clue how it was going to go. There were a few things that I had in mind to say but nothing particular. I had a bit of time to prep and get organised before I started but that went by in a flash.

My demonstration was all about asparagus; three different ways to cook it and three different flavours to complement it. Firstly boiled asparagus with lemon, orange and black pepper butter, secondly griddled asparagus with crème fraîche and chive dip and lastly raw asparagus salad. The boiled asparagus had to sadly be left out of the demo as I was using an induction hob and the pan I had brought to boil in wouldn’t work. Luckily my griddle pan was hob compatible so there were two bunches griddled and one bunch raw. It was remarkable that I managed to get it all ready at the same time, I didn’t leave anything out and it even looked slightly presentable.  read more

Food Bloggers Unplugged

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Food Bloggers Unplugged

I have seen a few of the Food Bloggers Unplugged posts and I think it’s such a good idea. We read each others posts all the time but how much do we actually know about the people writing, taking photos and talking to us. The lovely Urvashi from her Botanical Baker blog tagged me for this one! 

What or who inspired you to start your blog?
I was encouraged to start my blog as a kind gesture to get me to shut up. I wouldn’t stop talking about food and instead of bombarding my boyfriend, he suggested I start blogging. read more

Farmers’ Markets: The Unsung Heroes

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compass brewery tannenbaum beer
Praises are regularly sung about all the fantastic ingredients you can get from farmers’ markets. Fruit, vegetables, meat, cheese are all wonderful artisan ingredients that are picked up and turned into a glorious meal at home. What about those things which you don’t use in another meal; the ones that are ready to eat?  Here are some of my farmers’ market heroes, the stalls and people you turn to to cheer up your stomach and put a big smile on your face.

Beer is an exception I suppose as it can be used as an ingredient or enjoyed on its own. This beer from Compass Brewery is a rather festive beverage; it’s balanced with Oxfordshire spruce needles. Where else could you get something that local and forever varying?

I’m not one for beer usually but I did enjoy a smidgen of this one. I can certainly vouch for the fruit wines available at the farmers’ market. I used some Cassis to poach some quinces a little while ago and it was divine. read more

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