Scratch-made pizza was a “road to Damascus” home-cooking moment. My oven-baked pizzas were really good. Yet whilst being tasty, and much better than pre-packaged products, they lacked that authentic pizzeria quality.
To go further in my pizza-making journey, I decided that I needed a proper pizza oven. My wife agreed. Seriously, she did … and she also discovered the Big Green Egg.
Everything tastes better with bacon, or so the saying goes. If that’s the case, then surely merging pork, bacon and sausage into one lovely package would be heavenly. Let’s find out …
Continue reading “Bacon-Wrapped Pork Shoulder with Sage and Apricot”
I still remember the warm summer’s day when I first baked a home-made pizza. It tasted fantastic, fresh flavours and a crisp thin-crust base, served with both a glass of wine and a sweet sense of victory. And the desire to make many more. Which I did.
This post covers the basics of with a ham and mushroom pizza using home-made dough. From this foundation, it’s easy to make most pizzas for baking in a standard kitchen oven, wood fired pizza oven or ceramic oven such as a Big Green Egg.
Continue reading “Oven-Baked Ham and Mushroom Pizza”
It’s time for breakfast. It’s also sunny and warm outside. I should be tidying up after our Jamaican jerk spatchcock chicken from last night … but I’m quite peckish.
Simple solution – cook an English breakfast al fresco on our Big Green Egg.
Continue reading“English Breakfast Cooked Al Fresco” Continue reading “English Breakfast Cooked Al Fresco”
Spice up your chicken with a homemade Jamaican jerk marinade. Whether it’s cooked al fresco on a Big Green Egg (or similar), or inside using an oven, this will undoubtedly delight and impress your dinner guests.
Continue reading “Jamaican Jerk Spatchcock Chicken”
When is a blog not a blog? When it is an IT project. I recently realised that The Cook’s Digest had become too focused on making it look good rather than fulfilling what I originally wanted to do … sharing our home cooking experience.
It also transpired that from the outset of this blog, my wife was, in fact, right …
Continue reading“A New Look for The Cook’s Digest” Continue reading “A New Look for The Cook’s Digest”
Last night we feasted on monster rib-eye steaks with smoked garlic, served with roasted vegetables. Paired with some lovely red wine, these were about the best steaks we have cooked. And by “we”, I mean my wife. 🙂
Continue reading “Rib-Eye Steaks with Smoked Garlic”
The rustic pub scotch egg, when made using Cumberland sausage infused with black pudding, has a few of the ingredients for a traditional English breakfast.
After the last article, I was challenged by a Facebook correspondent to see if I could work bacon into the recipe … after all, everything is better with bacon. Well why stop there? Let’s throw some mushroom in for good measure. And thus it was born.
I present to you the hand-held meal that is the English Breakfast Scotch Egg.Continue reading“English Breakfast Scotch Eggs” Continue reading “English Breakfast Scotch Eggs”
I recently found a great recipe for double-cut pork chops. This used a spice rub from Dizzy Pig that is inaccessible where I live, so I made my own rub based on the ingredients of their product. It resulted in some of the finest pork chops I have ever tasted. Enjoy! Continue reading “Glazed Double-Cut Pork Chops with a Spice Rub”
I recently added a Big Green Egg to our collection of cooking appliances. This is more than just a kitchen gadget though … partly because it is normally used outside.
A Big Green Egg is a free-standing, outdoor (mostly) charcoal-fuelled ceramic oven that can be used to cook pretty much anything. And for most dishes and meals it cooks much better than a conventional oven.Continue reading“Adventures with The Big Green Egg” Continue reading “Adventures with The Big Green Egg”
Popcorn has been going through a bit of a resurgence lately. Tastes and flavours from salted caramel through white cheddar and even Worcester sauce and sun-dried tomato are now readily available at supermarkets and online.
With the addition of an inexpensive popcorn maker to the kitchen, these can mostly be made at home. Our standard popcorn comes in from left field, using Ras el Hanout and Maple Syrup to add a spicy kick to movie nights. Or … writing a blog post :).
Continue reading “Ras El Hanout and Maple Syrup Popcorn”
I’m a sucker for a really great scotch egg. Add in a kick-ass dipping sauce, a cool cider and a sunny beer garden and that’s a great afternoon.
On a trip to a rustic pub in the sleepy village of Cartmel, I discovered the finest scotch eggs I had ever tasted, along with an outstanding taramind-based dipping sauce. My wife, who normally cannot stand scotch eggs, was instantly converted.
The chef, Gareth Webster, was kind enough to share the recipe for both eggs and sauce. They can be made at home and well worth the effort.
Continue reading“Rustic Pub Scotch Eggs” Continue reading “Rustic Pub Scotch Eggs”
The Cook's Digest 