Blueberry Hill Cakes kitchen opening party - champagne, cake and more cake

The lovely Rachel and Ella from Blueberry Hill Cakes were kind enough to invite me to the opening party for their new kitchen last night. It's an exciting time for this small company - until last month the girls were creating cakes for weddings, parties, farmer's markets and even Harrods in Ella's flat. This is their first commercial kitchen which means they can now fulfil orders in a fully kitted out space... and Ella is no longer living amongst boxes, baking tins and cupcake cases!

Rachel and Ella had made a whole host of cakes for the celebration - mini pink stacked cakes, raspberry swirled meringues, their signature chocolate brownies and, my favourite, the tiniest gingerbread men I have ever seen.

For beauty alone, the spread was impressive - especially given the girls had been in the kitchen since 6am that morning to sort that day's orders (wedding cakes, birthday cakes, afternoon tea deliveries...) Luckily it tasted pretty special too.

All washed down with lots of champagne of course.

We also attempted to decorate our own cupcakes... it started fairly sensibly until my husband got involved and created a Mr Whippy version.

And finally, here's some more pictures of their wonderful cakes, in case you haven't been drooling enough...

Rachel and Ella also specialise in delivering afternoon teas direct to your door. So you can experience the luxury of high tea - a great British institution - in the comfort of your own home. Blueberry Hill afternoon teas start from just £15pp and include scones, sandwiches, cakes, bubbly and more. Especially for the Jubilee, they will also deliver an afternoon tea direct to your picnic spot - in four central London parks... all you need to bring is a blanket! What better way to celebrate HRH's 60 year reign...

If this has whetted your appetite for cake, you can sample Blueberry Hill's delights (including a special Jubilee range of cakes, biscuits and gingerbread) in London's Wholefoods stores, or place an order through their website www.blueberryhillcakes.co.uk

The flavours of Spring and a valley of snowdrops

Spring across England is beautiful and full of unexpected surprises. London lunch breaks amongst the daffodils in St James' Park; finding a new farm shop on the way down to Cornwall (in St Kew) that sells the most amazing sourdough bread, eggs from their own quail and Cornish rape seed oil; and in Devon, discovering a valley full of snowdrops in the middle of Exmoor...

For me, the smells and flavours that encapsulate Spring are floral. Roses, violets, bluebells, hyacinth and bridal crown narcissus. This salad sums up the taste of the season - light, fresh, tangy goat's cheese (from the cheese monger on Venn Street Market), crisp young pea shoots, the sweetness from baby figs and finished with a wonderful rose-scented olive oil. This oil (from Fortnum and Mason) is pretty pricey at £14 for a small bottle but the flavour is incredible - like eating a bouquet of roses!

Served on a rye and walnut toast and drizzled with a fig balsamic, this salad would work well as a starter or light lunch. A few pink rose petals would also be a perfect spring touch to finish it off. 

Spaghetti Il Nero di Sepia - with sea bream, Indonesian tiger prawns and black garlic

I've been looking for a bulb of black garlic since visiting Ferdie's Food Lab at the end of last year, and sampling Simon's prawns with fermented garlic. It's sweet, sticky, and unlike anything else you will taste (although it is slightly reminiscent of blackened, burnt onions, but much much sweeter and without the bitterness).

I finally managed to track it down and paired it with spaghetti Il Nero di Sepia (squid ink spaghetti), which we brought back from Priano last year... in keeping with the black theme.

Sea Bream fillets, giant Indonesian tiger prawns (absolute beasts), thinly sliced radish and plenty of lemon to add a sharp tang to the sticky sweetness of the garlic...

http://iblog4.me/

Columbia Road Flower Market...

I've lived in London for nearly seven years now but only made it to Columbia Road Flower Market recently. Bustling flower stalls, pots and plants stacked head high, flower sellers shouting bargains at you as you walk past. It's crazy, busy, noisy and vibrant.

 

There's also some great foodie finds. Fresh oysters shucked as you wait, french cheeses, pork rillettes,  croque monsieur, chocolate brownies, natural wines...

Look out for the friendly faces demanding to be fed... classic puppy eyes. We weren't allowed to share our charcuterie or pork rillette with him though...

There's a Lily Vanilli cafe too, tucked away on Ezra Street behind the market - sadly they serve their coffee in paper cups but still, it's a great spot to stop and take a break from the madness of Columbia Road (and warm up). Well worth a visit to East London...

Confit duck salad, with tiny tangerines, pink striped beetroot and radish

Whenever I go to France, I always bring a tin of Confit de Canard back with me. Duck legs preserved in duck fat. I try to convince myself that this treat is healthy, as you don't actually cook the legs in fat, but roast them until crispy and falling apart. 

Nonetheless. I do try and serve the confit with something fresh and sharp to counteract the salty richness of the duck.

Today, thinly sliced radish, beautifully striped beetroot and tiny tangerines - super sweet and juicy. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice is all you need.

Crispy salt and pink peppercorn baby squid with lime and schezuan pepper yoghurt

Sharp lime, tempered with cool yoghurt. Schezuan pepper is it's antithesis. It does something strange to the mouth. Numbs the tongue and tingles the taste buds.

Baby squid, dusted with flour, crushed pink peppercorns and salt. Fried until golden brown.

This didn't stay around for long.

Sea bream with fennel, crispy tentacles and caramelised kumquats

Kumquats are an unusual fruit. A sharp, lemon-like citrus centre, encased with a distinctly orangey casing that, instead of having a bitter outer rind like an orange, is sweet and fragrant.

Citrus always compliments fish well so, when I spotted these kumquats at Borough market, I thought they would make the perfect pairing with a pan fried fillet of sea bream and sauteed fennel.

The kumquats were caramelised until sticky and the sea bream was topped with crispy garlic tentacles from baby squid.