Infusions.

When I was 9 or so, my mum had a friend, who we’ll call P, who became quite ill and started seeing a Chinese doctor. Well after that, every time she’d come and stay, she’d brew these big pots of the most DISGUSTING smelling herbs on the stove. And she’d stay for quite a while, and the smell would always be there, and, being the brat that I was, it got to... Read More

All purpose Gluten Free Flour

Remember how I got sick in Mexico a couple of weeks ago? I haven’t been able to touch unfermented wheat ever since. Which, if you look at most of the things I write about, has come to be slightly distressing. I love coffee cakes and tarts and cookies. Almost as much as I love… hmm, actually, MORE than I love shoes. My tummy has been so damn sensitive that it feels like... Read More

Basic sweet tart crust

I think that people are quite scared of pastries because they hear all kinds of horror stories like “You NEED super cold hands or it’ll flop and be overworked and you’ll present a mess to your family for dinner and you’ll be so embarrassed that you’ll curl up in a ball and die right there and all that people will remember is a horrible pastry crust.” Or, that it’s... Read More

Make your own medicinal herbal honeys and elixirs.

Making your own herbal medicines is ridiculously easy, and a nice little pharmacopeia can usually be put together from plants that you can find around where you live. A few of my favourite gentle herbs to make medicines with are the following:   Holly-leaf cherry Cherry: Blossoms and bark. Use the most fragrant ones you can find– they should smell slightly sweet, slightly... Read More