The Friday 5 #109

This month’s cookbook giveaway, ‘house’ wines, favourite cooking pans and THE perfect breakfast.

So I did get to do a Friday 5 after all!

I got an unexpected afternoon off in NI yesterday which left time for an afternoon snooze, a few pages of Sebastian Barry’s Old God’s Time (thanks, Helen S for the suggestion) and a bit of catching up on the computer. I’m listening to Philippe Jaroussky singing Handel’s Cara Sposa as I write.

I’ve also not been doing quite enough sightseeing to warrant a postcard not least most of the projects I’ve been viewing with my good friend Pete Hannan are still under wraps. Suffice it to say I’ve come across some of the most extraordinary oysters I’ve ever eaten.

I can tell you about my breakfast though, ruminate about house wines and cooking pans and draw your attention to this month’s cookbook giveaway from one of my favourite authors Meera Sodha, author of East and Fresh India.

Also thankyou to those of you who have responded to my last post on much-loved cookbooks. On reflection I was maybe being a bit negative about quiche. I think I was simply frustrated that there wasn’t enough pastry for the recipe I tried. I need to make another one.

Mark Diacono has a homity pie with caraway pastry in his glorious new book Vegetables I can’t wait to try. He made a reel about it on his instagram recently (using twice the amount of pastry, incidentally, as the quiche recipe I made the other day).

Anyway I’d love it if some of you would make a quiche or a savoury tart from one of your favourite cookbooks and either post or send me a pic of the result. On instagram if you’re on instagram with the hashtag #welllovedcookbookchallenge so I can find it. Or via Substack Notes, direct message or email to fionabeckett AT substack DOT com if you’re not. (Spelling that out so I don’t get inundated with spam!)