Posh Chinese and Provence Rosé

This doesn't sound the most obvious combination, but a recent dinner at Hakkasan in Mayfair stylishly demonstrated how well Provence Rosé go with seriously good Chinese cuisine. A series of superb Cantonese dishes served with an elegant selection of delicate, bone dry rosés on a cold winter evening was a memorable experience. Crisp, gently aromatic wines with the most subtle pink hue were especially happy with hot fresh chillies and spring onions and cut a swathe through deep fried dishes. More predictably they were also great with delicately flavoured dim sum.

I particularly liked Stephen Cronk's flavoursome Mirabeau Côtes de Provence 2013 (available from Waitrose at £8.99, but do take a look at his entertaining website). It had a good depth of colour and refreshing structure making it a versatile partner to all the dishes. My other favourite was the paler more delicate and firm Domaine Houchart Côtes de Provence Sainte-Victoire 2013 (The Wine Society have stocked this at £8.50, but, checking their website, it seems to have sold out). This was equally versatile, but with a cool minerality – delicious, especially with the steamed brill. Both great value wines for under a tenner, although perhaps worryingly quaffable!

At this time of year, when your palate feels a little jaded or if you need a refreshing treat after a dry January, a light dry rosé could be much more energising and satisfying than a hefty red. Surprise yourself. You might not make it to Hakkasan, but bear Provence Rosé in mind for Chinese New Year in February or even for a decent takeaway.

I attended the dinner as a guest of Provence Wines.

Chilli venison casserole with chocolate

I made this Mexican 'mole' inspired casserole in the slow cooker at the weekend and, apart from having to deal with all the shallots, it was very easy indeed. What's more at this time of year it's so useful to literally throw several ingredients in the pot and a few hours later, as if by magic, have a delicious warming meal. My slow cooker was a Christmas gift from my parents last year and we use it constantly. As well as being an incredibly efficient bit of kit, there is something deeply reassuring about knowing that dinner is taken care of and you can get on with your day.

This is based on a recipe from Slow Cooking: Best New Recipes by Annette Yates and Norma Miller which doesn't look or sound terribly inspiring, but has become my slow cooking bible. It serves 6 people.

900g stewing venison, cut into cubes
3 rashers of streaky bacon
12 shallots, peeled and sliced into quarters
2 red chillies, seeds removed, finely sliced
150g cranberries
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
400ml stock (ideally venison or beef)
150ml port or red wine
freshly ground black pepper
55g dark chocolate

Firstly preheat the slow cooker to High. Place everything apart from the chocolate in the slow cooker, cover with the lid and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours. Everything goes straight in without having to fry the meat or shallots/onions first. Just before serving stir through the chocolate and check the seasoning. You might need to thicken the sauce slightly if it's a bit thin with some cornflour mixed with water.

The ingredients cook down beautifully resulting in a warmly spicy dish and meltingly tender venison. As a crunchy garnish I made a gremolata with a handful of breadcrumbs fried until golden with butter and a crushed clove of garlic, combined with finely grated orange zest and chopped parsley.

Served with steamed cabbage and a bottle of Rioja Reserva, it was a perfect winter meal.

Home made candied peel

This is a real winter favourite and something I make most years as Christmas gifts – what's not to love about home made candied peel, especially dipped in chocolate. You often see recipes for it in the run up to Christmas as it's photogenic and sounds so luxurious, but they are rarely honest about how long it can take. The method hinges on the sugar syrup dried out fully and this depends on the atmosphere. Last year mine weren't ready in time for Christmas after leaving them for a week to dry out and I think all the damp weather was the problem. However, if you start now and use a warm airing cupboard (or low oven if it comes to it), you should be fine.

You can use any citrus fruit, but I prefer orange as it goes better with chocolate. Select unwaxed fruit or failing that, scrub the skins thoroughly. Divide 6 oranges into quarters and carefully cut away the flesh from the pith and peel. Slice this into strips or leave in larger pieces to use in cooking (cakes, buns, mincemeat etc). Place in a large saucepan or preserving pan and cover with water. Over a low heat simmer until soft. Drain away the water and repeat the process. Strain the fruit and reserve the cooking water for the syrup.

Make a syrup by dissolving 600g granulated sugar in 300ml water, bring it to the boil and let it bubble until slightly thickened. Add the cooked peel. Over a low heat allow it to simmer gently until the peel has absorbed all the syrup – this might take two hours or so and swirl the pan occasionally in case the peel is sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Once all the syrup has been absorbed, arrange the peel on drying racks spaced so the air can circulate. I put the racks on large trays lined with cling film or baking parchment as the sticky syrup drips off the fruit and makes a real mess (I learned this the hard way first time around). Rearrange them every couple of days.

Once fully dry, if you like, dip the peel in melted dark chocolate, alternatively, larger pieces can be snipped up to use in cooking. Store in airtight containers. To say it's better than shop bought candied peel is quite an understatement. It's fabulous with Vin Santo, but Tokaji and other well flavoured sweet wines also work beautifully.

Duck, cherry and beetroot salad with Lambrusco

A couple of weeks ago we were treated to a particularly memorable meal at Quo Vadis that featured a main course salad of duck with cherries and beetroot, topped with crunchy toasted breadcrumbs. It was the perfect dish for a warm summer evening. Grown up and satisfying, yet not too earnest – large pieces of crisp, salty duck skin were a deliciously naughty touch.

We had friends round for dinner last Friday and I recreated it as a starter. Flicking through my new copy of Diana Henry's A Change of Appetite I noticed a recipe for goat's cheese and cherry salad in which she macerates the cherries in brandy or grappa, along with olive oil, white balsamic vinegar and lemon juice. I used kirsch, olive oil and apple balsamic (I don't yet have any white balsamic) and found the dressing didn't need any lemon juice, leaving them for a couple of hours or so before combining with salad leaves, sliced cooked beetroot and the flesh and skin from duck legs I'd roasted earlier. The crunchy breadcrumbs were made by roasting chunks of bread in the pan used for the duck. Once they had dried out I scraped the pan thoroughly to incorporate all the tasty duck bits and then pounded the toasted bread in a pestle and mortar.

We enjoyed it with a bottle of Albinea Canali Lambrusco Ottocentonero from the Wine Society (a steal at £7.95) – dry, fresh and appetising with plenty of lush cherry fruit and spot on with the salad. It was a steal at £7.95, but has (not surprisingly) sold out. However, their other Lambrusco would also be worth trying, but keep an eye out elsewhere, especially while dining out, for proper dry examples (not to be confused with the naff sweet versions of the past). Following New York's lead, interest in this 'forgotten gem' is growing in the UK where, for example, Ottolenghi restaurants report booming sales. Great news for summer drinking.

Greek hospitality

For the best part of 20 years, since one of my best friends hooked up with and then married Nikos from Athens, I have been at the receiving end of generous Greek hospitality. Our recent visit culminated with a memorable lunch at their weekend house on the coast in Nea Makri near Marathon. As is usually the case in good weather, the food is cooked on the grill in the garden – in this case squid and octopus for starter, followed by a large, family-sized sea bream.

The food is always wonderfully simple, showing off local, seasonal ingredients. My friends are fortunate in benefitting from a family-owned olive and citrus grove and they make their own vinegar and wine (like many Greek households). We made a vinegar and oil dressing for the squid and octopus, whereas the fish was dressed (anointed) with an emulsion of lemon juice and oil. We sipped some ouzo with the starter (octopus and aniseed are a match made in Mediterranean heaven) and salty, mineral Assyrtiko from Santorini was ideal with the fish. Plenty of bread and salad were passed around.

My friends tend to round off a meal with fresh fruit, so we climbed up onto the roof and picked apricots from the tree and ate them gazing across the water to the island of Evia. A distinctive and memorable end to our holiday. Efharisto poli!

Food shopping with Nikos

It was lovely being reminded what great hosts the Greeks can be. Our friends in Athens have a family house near Marathon in a town called Nea Makri where they enjoy long relaxed meals at the weekend. This part of Attika is a large fertile coastal plain that has traditionally provided Athens with an abundance of fresh produce.

While there, I was taken food shopping by my friend Nikos – a real treat at the end of May as you can see from the pictures. For simple, seasonal food, you couldn't have asked for more. I was particularly taken by the smiley chap with the furnace-like rotisserie. Apparently, he usually sells out by lunchtime when he wheels it in and shuts up shop for the day. He opened it up for me so I could appreciate the white hot charcoal and delectable aromas. I look forward to trying one of those sheep heads another time. Maybe.

Poros and the Aspros Gatos (White Cat) taverna

While we were in Greece during half term we had the good fortune of spending a few days on Poros. Poros, one of the Saronic Gulf Islands, is conveniently located about an hour from Piraeus on the hydrofoil, but you can drive there via Corinth and Epidavros (where you can stop for lunch and a swim – first pic below). A narrow channel separates it from the Peloponnese mainland where you can park on the seafront in Galatas and take a shuttle across the water. If you're travelling from Piraeus on the hydrofoil (Sea Cat), it's on the same route as Hydra and Spetses. All wonderful destinations. As well as being important during ancient times, these islands played a crucial strategic role during the Greek Revolution of the 1820s and were previously occupied by the Venetians during their lengthy battles with the Ottomans. This is all evident today strolling around the picturesque, steep narrow streets of these islands.

I have long been a fan of Hydra and Spetses, but this was my first visit to Poros (other than admiring it from the hydrofoil). It turns out that Poros ticks many boxes. As well as its interesting history and beautiful location, it is divided into two distinct parts linked by an isthmus. Small steep Sferia is dominated by the bustling, well serviced town and busy marina, whereas the larger green, forested Kalavria has child friendly, sandy beaches ideal for safe swimming, snorkelling and water sports. I was travelling with my daughter, so all these features suited us perfectly. We were also lucky in that the little village house we rented had a small garden with a pool where we were tempted to laze around all day, gazing at our stunning view.

Furthermore, Poros boasts allegedly one of the best tavernas in the Greek islands. The Aspros Gatos (White Cat) is elegantly located just across the tiny isthmus offering stunning views back to Poros Town and across the water to Galatas, increasingly twinkly as the light fades. The taverna dates back to 1909 and is still run by the same family and their charming, enthusiastic staff. Our two meals there included delicious seasonal stuffed vegetables (especially big juicy lemon scented tomatoes) and cheese and herb pies made with delicately crunchy home made filo pastry. A particular highlight was super tender, slow cooked veal in lemon sauce. More local citrus fruit appeared in their orange pie – a sort of baked batter pudding comprising oranges, eggs, vanilla, crushed filo pastry and then soaked with an orange syrup. I drank small carafes of local wine and the prices were incredibly reasonable.

Simply baked fish and veg with Knorr Flavour Pot

The people at Knorr recently sent me some of their new Flavour Pots to try out. If I'm not using home-made stock (usually chicken) and I need to pep things up I use Marigold powdered stock or Oxo cubes,  so I didn't mind giving these little pots of seasoning paste a whirl.

They sent a selection of flavours and a hamper of fresh produce from Waitrose so, in a sort of Masterchef fashion, I created a dish based on these ingredients. Using some sea bream I'd bought the day before, I assembled a light, spring inspired fish supper.

As you can see I cut up the peppers and fennel, arranging them in the baking tray before placing the fish on top. Then I combined the mixed herb Flavour Pot with about a glass of white wine, topping up with water to pour into the tray. I left it unseasoned in order to test the strength of the Flavour Pot, covered it loosely with foil and baked it in the oven at 180°C for about 20 minutes. The result was a tasty, easy (and healthy) meal.

Since then I've been trying out the other flavours. The curry flavoured pot was good and pokey in a prawn biryani (that went brilliantly with Veuve Clicquot demi-sec) and the garlic flavoured pot worked well with some braised vegetables. My main gripe is with the plastic packaging as they are single serve portions (I'd prefer small glass jars – think pesto or tomato purée), but otherwise a helpful addition to your larder.

Ikea rhubarb cordial and other goodies

Apart from a naughty plate of meatballs and chips you don't tend to go looking for food and drink at Ikea. However, it's always worth having a nose around their food shop once you've passed through the main checkout. We've developed a taste for their rhubarb cordial since they offered it on tasting a few visits ago. It isn't too sweet, so makes a tasty adult soft drink, especially with soda or sparkling mineral water. Daughter Alice likes it too. Mind you, she prefers French sirops to our squashes, so no surprise there.

At the same time I picked up some encouraging looking little pots of herring and seaweed caviar. With some cream cheese and biscuits, they're excellent for instant nibbles for drinks. The seaweed 'caviar' is particularly good in a tasty saline way.

Proper home made pizza

We had a big new experience a couple of Saturdays ago. We made pizza – from scratch. My husband (who doesn't do much baking) decided to research recipes for pizza dough, found this by John Torode and in the afternoon got cracking. A few hours later we arranged our favourite toppings in bowls and made a simple tomato sauce by simmering tinned chopped tomatoes until thick.

We like thin, crisp bases, so rolled out the dough as thinly as possible and started assembling pizzas. Once ready for the hot oven, they were transferred to our brand new baking stone. After about 20 minutes the crunchy, bubbling treats were ready. We're fans of the wood fired pizzas from Firezza and  (even though we say this ourselves) these were as good. The dough could have done with more seasoning (the recipe includes sugar, rather than salt), but the baking stone allowed the thin bases to puff up and cook brilliantly.

The previous month we'd enjoyed home made pizzas with friends who have a rather glamorous Chadwick pizza oven which cooks them in 4 minutes. Although ours took longer, for the three of us it worked out fine and the results were brilliant. A great way to spend a Saturday evening.

Veuve Clicquot demi-sec and lemon madeleines

I'm rather partial to drinking Champagne with food and just before Easter Veuve Clicquot sent me a bottle of their demi-sec to taste with some lemon madeleines. I have concerns about sparkling wine and desserts. It's quite traditional in France to serve smart fizz with dessert and, sadly, desserts are generally far too sweet to do it any justice and leaving it tasting dry and sharp in comparison. However, the combination looks pretty and has uplifting sense of occasion, so I can understand the appeal.

That said, when I tried the Veuve demi-sec with the madeleines, I was genuinely surprised. Demi-sec Champagne can taste a bit two-faced or confused, with the sweetness seeming confected and awkward alongside crisp acidity. This was not the case with the Veuve demi-sec whose honeyed sweetness was harmoniously integrated – unexpectedly good with the madeleines as they were not that sweet. We also enjoyed the demi-sec with a spicy main course – prawn biryani with yoghurt and mango chutney. This worked brilliantly (although perhaps not quite what Veuve Clicquot had in mind).

Stockists include Laithwaites (£40), Tanners (£39) and Majestic (£45 or a more realistic £29.98 if you buy two bottles).

Brasserie l'Ouest, Lyon

Quite honestly, this could be one of the best lunches I've ever had. As we were leaving Les Pasquiers in Beaujolais, our hosts Guillaume and Marylène Peyraverney recommended a few restaurants for lunch in Lyon as we were continuing our journey south. The Peyraverneys lived in Lyon until they took over Les Pasquiers earlier last year and given how much we'd enjoyed lunch at Domaine de la Madone which they'd suggested, we were keen to ask for more advice.

Nathan was driving and I had no idea where we were going – neither did he really as all he'd done was keyed the address into the satnav following Guillaume's instructions. I'd been chatting with Marylène in the kitchen at the time, so didn't know what had been discussed.

Anyway, it was one of those days when everything just fell into place. The weather was bright and sunny, our drive took us through the southerly Beaujolais crus before we picked up the A6 to Lyon and the satnav did its thing, directing us to a cool industrial site on the leafy banks of the Saône river on the outskirts of Lyon. Given the predictable image of dining in Lyon is based on traditional bouchons in the city centre, this airy, modern brasserie was quite unexpected. L'Ouest is part of the Nordsud chain of brasseries established by the hero of Lyonnaise cuisine, Paul Bocuse.

We parked beside the river and, without a booking, settled down inside at one end of a large shared table with views across the terrace to the Saône and around the buzzy restaurant and the open kitchen. It was a busy Friday lunchtime with a fascinating mixed urban crowd. The rotisserie caught our eye, so we instantly ear-marked the roast Montrevel chicken from the set menu for our main course. For starter Nathan had tartare of fresh salmon with dill and I had melon with Serrano ham – almost too generous a portion to finish. I managed though. Daughter Alice did splendidly with the menu enfant – salmon fillets with buttered noodles.

Having already been bowled over by the starters, our chicken arrived which was exceptionally good. Juicy, richly flavoured corn fed chicken with a buttery sauce and a medley of seasonal vegetables. Beautifully simple. Keen to have some Rhône wine as that's where we were heading, glasses of St Joseph blanc partnered the dish brilliantly.

On to dessert and Nathan was very happy with his raspberry tarte sablée and I was delighted with my rum baba, served deconstructed with the bottle of rum left on the table (I wasn't driving). Alice had ice cream. With two coffees, this lunchtime feast came to less than 100 Euros (the set lunch cost 32.50 Euros, 35.50 if you included cheese; menu enfant 11.50). Fantastic.