Profile

shady lane

Jersey girl living the expat life in London

  • Location: London, UK
  • Favorite foods: Thai, Chinese (even the cheap Panda Express-type in weak moments!), Afro-Caribbean, anything with coconut milk

Cereal Eats: If You Could Bring Back One Discontinued Cereal...

Current me probably wouldn't like it, but as a kid I was obsessed with Pop-Tarts cereal. It came in two flavors, strawberry and brown sugar cinnamon.

The Ramen Rater's Top 10 Instant Noodles of 2013

My family is from West Africa and Indomie has a huge foothold in that market. It's long been my favorite ramen, to the point that I beg people to let me make it for them so they can understand! So not surprised to see it on the list twice.

Ask A Sommelier: What's Your Favorite Non-Wine Drink?

I love Aperol Spritz, but how is a Prosecco-based cocktail a non-wine drink?

vienna, prague, and berlin SANS PORK

Can't recall restaurant names but in Berlin you can do no wrong taste or Kosher-wise going ethnic, especially Turkish. I ate at a great Thai place whose name escapes me. In Vienna you should be able to find veal schnitzel - Kalbfleisch not Schweinfleisch! (Kalb = calf, Schwein = swine/pig, like English)

Why does everything now have to have an egg on it?

I hate eggs and have sent back more than a few dishes with menu descriptions that do not reveal a dreaded fried egg on top.

I can't wait for this trend to pass.

The Vegan Experience: Why Does Everyone Assume Vegans Are Health Nuts?

I took January off of meat and poultry as an experiment, but around the same time I realized that I'm almost certainly lactose intolerant (intolerant parents + unexplained stomach aches - milk = mystery solved). I've been mocked at work for having various nut milks I'm testing out in the office fridge. But I can't stop eating cheese every now and then and I'm back on meat now. So if anyone sees me eating either they ask "what about your diet?" with faux concern. I think they like to imagine I've fallen off the wagon or something.

I hate onions. Help!

I hated onions until I was about 24, now I absolutely love them. It just takes time to get used to them. Caramelize some onions at home, the smell will waft over you until you won't be able to resist eating them.

Traditional Jewish Mandelbrot (Mandel Bread)

"Mandelbrot" is German/Yiddish for almond bread, so the name's got to change if you're using walnuts. Almonds are such a great flavor too so I have no idea why you'd leave them out.

British Bites: Crumpets

@WaxBrain And not just any honey. Set honey. It was made for crumpets.

We Try the New Red Velvet Doughnut at Dunkin' Donuts

I had the Munchkin version and it was identical in taste to the brown chocolate ones. I was very glad I didn't go for the whole donut.

Does Thanksgiving = Christmas on your table?

Growing up they were the same because my parents are from a former British colony and were used to eating turkey at Christmas before they ever knew about Thanksgiving.

When I have Christmas in my own household it will be ham and salmon instead.

Do you wash...

I cannot see the logic in washing poultry or eggs, the heat that they will be cooked at is more than high enough to kill any bacteria. What a waste of water!

6 International Sodas We Need To Try

Yay I got Fanta Passion on the list! Maybe we can convince other Coca Cola distributors to carry the flavor outside of Tanzania/Kenya. There's even a Facebook group about it http://www.facebook.com/pages/Passion-Fanta/262798764035

What's Your Favorite International Soda?

I was obsessed with Fanta Passion, a passion-fruit flavored version sold in east Africa. Still the best soda I've ever had.

Airline Food on International Flights

In general, international flights by non-US airlines will always have a better food selection, and you will rarely if ever be charged for drinks. I've paid the same for a United flight from London-New York but had less, worse food, and no included wine/beer compared to the Virgin Atlantic and British Airways flights (which I now take exclusively).

Obviously it's too late for your trip but I always recommend taking the local airline of the destination country for a long-haul flight. American airline companies are very behind the rest of the big companies as far as in-flight services.

Is there something I'm missing with the major coffee chains?

When I lived on the west coast I just couldn't "get" Peet's. Tastes so bitter.

I'm an ex-Starbucks employee and I made plenty of pots of coffee in my time. It is dark but certainly not burnt. We had a timer set and had to dump any coffee that sat in the urn - I think it was every 90 minutes but we almost always ran out before the time was up anyway. Not saying you have to like it, but it is not burnt coffee unless you only order filter coffee 5 minutes before the store is closing at night.

Cocktails On Tap: What Are Your Thoughts?

They have taps for Pimm's Cups at a few bars around London, and they taste pretty much the same as the freshly made version. It's not the most labor intensive cocktail though.

Sichuan-Style Chicken Salad

@protesilaus If I don't eat the whole bag on the plane...

Cheap Eats Around Leicester Square, London

It's a bit of a mini chain now but I still love the food at Busaba Eathai, which has a few locations near Leicester Square.

The best cheap eats in London are in East London though, which is good for anyone coming for the Olympics.

Annoying TV Product Placement

I'm an American living in England. The original MasterChef on BBC, while enjoyable, is painfully low budget. The Australian and US versions are much better because they have bigger budgets allowed by product placement - which is still banned on British broadcast channels. So I don't mind it, to be honest.

Cold Pizza on Menu?

Cold pizza is an abomination. It retains none of the texture and the cheese is a horrible consistency. I used to think people said they liked cold pizza because they were too impatient to warm it up. But paying for cold pizza - why would you ever?!

Sichuan-Style Chicken Salad

@protesilaus I feel your pain. I am in London and have failed to find this at either a Chinese or Japanese specialty store. I am actually considering asking the place I get tan tan ramen from where they get theirs.

Why British and Irish Crisps Are Brilliant

I don't like the meat flavored ones at all, but the Walkers Sensation line is to die for. There is a chili and goat cheese flavor that I dare not buy because I can inhale an entire bag.

@markemorse the squirrel flavor was a marketing gimmick for a limited time. They also had an English Breakfast one, which seems pretty gross.

Have You Tried Bamba, the Israeli Puffed Peanut Butter Snack?

Never realized they were Israeli. I always see them when I'm in Germany. I love peanuts and peanut butter but these don't do it for me!

British Bites: Boxty and Bacon

Part of Ireland is in Britain, though. And if Wikipedia is to be believed boxty is traditional in Ulster, which is in Northern Ireland. You're fine, Sydney!

Biscoff spread and salted caramel from France - what to make?

I'm just back for a short trip to France, and in between cheeses and bottles of wine, I managed to fit in a jar of Biscoff (speculoos) spread and a jar of salted caramel I found in a tiny local shop. I'm trying to think of things to do with them other than spreading them on bread and/or spooning them directly into my mouth. For the salted caramel I might try a millionaire's shortbread, but I have enough to make more than one recipe. And for the Biscoff I have no idea - anyone tried making blondies out of it?

Grill pan waffles?

I was watching Jamie Oliver's Christmas special on Channel 4 here in the UK, and he showed a recipe for waffles that can be made in a grill pan. I love waffles but don't have an iron as it's just one extra thing to carry around for someone like me who rents an apartment.

Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/chefs/jamie-oliver/griddle-pan-waffles-with-epic-hot-chocolate-recipe

Do you guys think it would actually work? I looked great on the show and am very tempted to try it out.

Why do my pancakes suck?

I grew up happily making and eating Aunt Jemima pancakes. Now I'm living abroad, and although you can get tasty premade pancakes at British supermarkets, I still like whipping up a batch at home.

I have tried two recipes: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/simply-perfect-pancakes-recipe

and

http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/24/recipe-of-the-day-everyday-pancakes/

Both came out way flatter than I would have liked.

Any tips or ideas as to why I'm having such a hard time here? Is is possible that British baking powder has less leavening action? Or am I over/undermixing?

Sicilian shrimp pasta - looking for a recipe

I just returned from a trip to Sicily and enjoyed a week of delicious food. For the most part, I've been able to track down recipes for some of my favorite dishes (e.g pasta alla norma).

However, I had one dish that stayed with me - it was called Spaghetti con Scampi. The sauce was tomato based but had a strong fishy flavor (in a good way) - as if maybe the tomatoes were reduced down with fish stock. I haven't been able to find any recipes for it as outside Italy spaghetti with scampi refers to the garlic and wine-based dish.

Anyone familiar with this dish - and any ideas about how to reproduce it?

Non-Soy Milk Substitute?

Due to a medical condition and upcoming treatment, I have to embark on a low-iodine diet for the next few weeks. While I knew to avoid iodized salt and seafood, I was surprised to learn that all dairy products and soy products are also off limits.

I'm in the UK and my local supermarket offers oat milk and rice milk. I've heard a lot about almond milk but they don't have it and I'm not able to go out of my way to find it.

Does anyone know which one is more palatable for a normal skim-cow-milk drinker? I don't want to buy a carton that goes to waste, as my partner will certainly not join me in drinking it!

Barbecue Pizza Sauce

Barbecue Pizza Sauce

Barbecue sauce on pizza, yay or nay? I couldn't decide, so came up with this hybrid that has the deep tomato flavor of pizza sauce, but also comes with a sweet and tangy barbecue kick. More

Honey Baked Chicken

Honey Baked Chicken

The chicken, believe it or not, is not the star of the show here (though it's not at all shabby). It's the marinade. This basic recipe will help you expand your Thai cooking repertoire by creating many different flavor variants using other Thai seasonings. More

Scone Thugs-'n'-Harmony

Scone Thugs-'n'-Harmony

But hip hop and high tea aside, these Scone Thugs are pretty awesome: delicate, buttery, and packed with loads of bright lemon zest. Cake flour and plenty of butter give them a wonderfully tender crumb. And while they're gorgeous on their own, we certainly wouldn't balk at Jensen's suggestion for topping them with lemon curd or rhubarb jam. More

Spiced Chicken with Brown Butter

Spiced Chicken with Brown Butter

The technique for this dish comes from Nigel Slater's superb Real Fast Food: You mix together fragrant spices like cumin and coriander along with some minced garlic into room temperature butter, and paint it all over the chicken. As it melts off the chicken and crisps the skin, it collects in the dish and continues to cook until it becomes nutty brown. At the same time, all the spices are toasted in the bubbling fat, so you end up with golden, juicy chicken and some phenomenal curry-esque brown butter to spoon over everything. More

'The Food Matters Cookbook': Mark Bittman's New Crab Cakes

'The Food Matters Cookbook': Mark Bittman's New Crab Cakes

Embracing a less-is-more philosophy when it comes to animal products, these New Crab Cakes are made with equal parts lump crab (preferably responsibly caught and American-sourced) and creamy, mild celery root. If it sounds like an odd combination, all I can say is, don't knock it until you try it. There's something about the sweet shredded celery root that mimics the texture of crab beautifully. More

New York-Style White Pizza

New York-Style White Pizza

White Pizza. Photograph by The Pizza Review Everyone has a food that they love so much or crave so often that they will eat it even after just having finished Thanksgiving dinner. For me, that food is white pizza. If... More

Cakespy: Homemade Starbucks-Style Cranberry Bliss Bars

Cakespy: Homemade Starbucks-Style Cranberry Bliss Bars

While they don't taste exactly like the ones at Starbucks, they are pretty excellent in their own right, with an extremely dense, moist cake studded with tart cranberries, spicy ginger and sweet white chocolate, all crowned with a winter wonderland of rich cream cheese frosting and white chocolate drizzle. More