MARVELOUS MEAT FREE BBQ "PULLED PORK"

I'm always looking around for meat free alternatives of my favorite meaty dishes to make so I can enjoy them with the vegetarian at home and recently I've been noticing "pulled pork" made from jack fruit popping up more and more online and in magazines. I really didn't understand how a fruit could taste like pork but upon giving it a try I completely get it. Jack fruit breaks up into little strands to create that pulled pork effect and flavoring it by slow cooking in a homemade BBQ really does work. It's a revelation!

PATARA LONDON (MATTYB RECOMMENDS)

Searching around the Royal Albert Hall for somewhere to eat we stumbled across Patara's website and were instantly drawn to the promise of "Fine Thai Cuisine". We do love our Thai food and it was great to see that they offered a vegetarian banquet too. So on a warm Thursday evening we headed off to South Kensington, ready to tuck into some meat free delights! We had made reservations for our visit but we needn't of worried as there wasn't anyone in Patara when we rocked up. Great, we had our pick of tables and so we took a seat in corner of the dining room right by the window.

PERFECT PESTO PASTA

I've been getting a bit more adventurous lately when it comes to trying food that I thought I didn't like. I did it with satay when we were in Singapore (I now love the stuff!) and this weekend we decided to make some homemade pesto to see if it's better than the ready made stuff that I don't like. Well I like basil, garlic, lemon, pine nuts and parmesan so why wouldn't I like them all blended together. Turns out homemade pesto is well lush, super easy to make and I'm gutted I've been missing out for so long.

YUU KITCHEN LONDON (MATTYB RECOMMENDS)

The discovery of Yuu Kitchen was once again another "using TripAdvisor to find restaurants close to our hotel" jobby. Still having a love affair with Asian food after our trip to Bali/Singapore, I loved the look their fun take on Asian classics, some of which had been given a fresh twist that sounded brilliant. There was only one way to find out if this was true and that was to go and try them for ourselves. 

LULLY LEMON POSSETS

This post was actually meant to be a recipe for scones but once again I managed to make a batch of scones which were like bullets and so they went into the bin and these lemon possets were born instead from the lemons and cream that were going to be served with the scones. I looked on the bright side though, out of disaster came the most simplest and yummiest of desserts which you can whip up in no time in the morning and leave to set ready to eat in the evening whilst you crack on with the rest of your day!

MATTY'S VEGGIE "BB" CURRY

One of the food based highlights of our holiday to Bali recently was our meal at Skai Beach Club and the chef's signature chicken "Too-Too". This was a twist on the traditional Balinese be tutu dish, a fragrant and spicy yellow curry that is absolutely to die for. I've tried to recreate a vegetarian version here using Quorn pieces instead of chicken which I toss into my own slow cooked take on this yummy sauce along with some vegetables, which I'm calling my "BB" curry (see what I did there!).

SUPER SPECIAL SPICED SPECULAAS

Last December we were really lucky to go on a free trip to Amsterdam thanks to a prize that I won at work. We went around St Nicholas Day, a festival to mark the arrival of Sinterklass (Santa Claus!) and all over the capital you could see traditional Speculaas biscuits being baked and sold as part of the celebrations. I adored them so and I vouched to try and recreate them when I got home. 6 months later, I finally got round to doing just that. I'll be honest, they weren't exactly the same but I still think they are still super special!

STAR CINNAMON SINGAPORE (MATTYB RECOMMENDS)

I wouldn't normally recommend food which you can pick up in a food court but then again I had never been to Star Cinnamon until recently. We stumbled across Star Cinnamon in the basement of the Bugis Junction shopping centre on our way home from visiting the Gardens By The Bay in Singapore and we couldn't help but be enticed by the wonderful cinnamon buns on display. We just had to try some so we stood and began to make our selections. What a hard choice this was going to be!

SATAY BY THE BAY SINGAPORE (MATTYB RECOMMENDS)

On our second day in Singapore we spent most of the day taking in the sights of Gardens By The Bay, a spectacular garden and conservation hub right in the heart of the city centre. An incredible place in the centre of such a modern city calls for incredible food and so a trip to it's very own hawker centre, Satay By The Bay seemed like a no brainer. A more tourist friendly hawker centre compared to those you'll find in the city, would it's food be able to match the wonders of the attractions and scenery of the gardens?

CHUNKY CHOCOLATE AND ALMOND COOKIES

Chocolate Cookies are great and homemade ones are even better so this weekend I decided to make some whilst I waited for the forecasted thunder storms to arrive. Chocolate cookies are also great for bakers to make when they are skint like I was this weekend as you only need a few ingredients that you should have knocking around in your kitchen. I even had some leftover flaked almonds in my pantry too I decided to add them to my cookie dough for a bit of texture and they made a great companion to the chocolate chunks in the cookies.