#bootstrap cook

Crumbly Almond Cookies, 12p

Last night I really, really fancied cookies, in that way that sometimes the sweet tooth takes a hold. Usually it’s late at night. Usually when I have resolved to be healthier, and better, and eat less baked goods in the smallest hours. Like, on New Years Day.

Succumbing, I pottered downstairs to the kitchen, and rummaged in my flour bin (really, a bread bin full of various flours, with the ethos…

The Only Way Is Ethics?

Choosing to go vegan is a privilege. An uncomfortable statement, and one that will undoubtedly cause a great deal of consternation among my peers, for nobody likes to be told that they have a degree of privilege, no matter how small the degree appears to be. ‘But some of the poorest diets in the world are vegan’, I hear some of you drafting your indignant replies. And there, dear reader, does the…

This recipe is known as Hot Nurse in my household for its ability to flush out a blocked up nose, soothe a sore throat, chase away a hangover and revitalise my tired head. It is a real kick in the cookies; so those of you who choose the mild curries in restaurants may want to halve the ginger and curry powder quantities. For the rest of you, ladle it into a mugand take your medicine! I keep a…

Bubbles and Squeaks, 9p

Traditionally a Monday mash-up of the Sunday roast, a comforting, easy bubble and squeak is something I have been making for years. It’s one of the first things I taught myself to cook and is still a firm favourite. If you don’t have a leftover Sunday roast lying about, here’s how to make it from scratch. I eat mine with a pile of mushrooms and some ketchup, but depending on your budget and…

Firecracker Sausages With Tragedy Mash, 61p

‘If you ever see me eating sweet potato mash out of a saucepan, you know it’s bad news’, is a phrase that most of my friends are familiar with. Sweet potato mash with chilli and cheese is my go-to tragedy food, spooned straight from the saucepan whilst watching many a re-run of old sitcoms and new comedies. It’s simple, sweet, quick and comforting. Here I’ve topped it with another favourite –…

This recipe first appeared in my cookbook, A Girl Called Jack. I originally adapted this from a beef goulash recipe in the Abel and Cole cookbook, but tweaked it and tampered with it in the way that all recipes are. Beans are cheaper than beef, financially and environmentally, and this dish is simply fine without it. I use cheap baked beans in place of haricot beans, as they are usually a third…

I first had shakshuka the morning after a very heavy night before, with a friend who had come to rescue me from the vulgarities of my own hangover. He took me to a café, ordered me shakshuka, and watched, giggling to himself, as I slowly turned from a mumbling wreck into something that vaguely resembled a human being. I have made and loved it many times since, usually in varying degrees of…

White Chocolate Tea Bread, 9p

This came about because I LOVE chocolate-chip brioche – so I decided to try to make some chocolate-chip bread as a replacement. Unfortunately, though, the chocolate chips all melted into the dough as I added warm water and I ended up with this Chocolate Tea Bread instead – but it was still delicious! Then I experimented with tea and white chocolate and stumbled on something heavenly. Bliss!

Makes…