Dom’s three-part treatise on coffee is the latest post in our Stories From The Table section – a place where we explore memories, cultural vignettes, and anthropological musings on eating and drinking. I’ve not been a coffee drinker for very long, but I have had a respect for (and possibly a little fear of) itContinue reading “Coffee: A Journey”
Category Archives: Life
5 November
Michelle Lovric explains that to write about Venice is to seek new ways to describe the effect of water on marble. Sitting at a desk in Castello, a small canal just below the window – stone, wood and marble resting on the water’s lip – I’d be inclined to agree. Except there’s a little moreContinue reading “5 November”
18 June
It began in January. An idea that bubbled up on a murky weekday evening and refused to go away. Dom and I were driving through town, talking about hot Italian summers and the trappings of a 9-5 job, when we came to it. “Why don’t we just leave it all? Move abroad, write for aContinue reading “18 June”
December 21
In the days since we last spoke I’ve taken my last trip to London for the year. I’ve also eaten all the mince pies and decided that in the New Year I will be a svelte fitness queen. I’ve written my Christmas cards while listening to carols from King’s. I’ve come down with a wretchedContinue reading “December 21”
December 13
We live in a three-bedroom house, Dom and I. But honestly, two people have no need for that many rooms. It’s a perk, having an ironing room and a big study, but it’s not essential. Especially not when you’re living in rural Northamptonshire, with far fewer risks of house parties and zero chance of friendsContinue reading “December 13”
December 7
Oh dear, it’s been a week since I last checked in. I really have been so incredibly busy with Christmas pudding making, tree decorating, and work. Mostly work. But enough with the excuses! Here’s what I’ve been up to this week (in bullet point form because I have to rush off to Aldi in 10Continue reading “December 7”
December 1
A few months ago I listened to Jilly Cooper’s Desert Island Disks. The one thing I remember from it (besides all the sexual innuendos) was her insistence that you should always keep a diary. Her reasoning was that when you’re 24 it’s impossible to remember what it was like to be 22, and the onlyContinue reading “December 1”
Laurie Colwin’s Bread
I didn’t mean to be gone for so long, promise. As always, must try harder. Anyway, let’s get to business – to the here and now: late November, deep frost, half-broken fairy lights, cup of tea resting on a pile of books, and a half-demolished panettone. That’s current-Alice in a nutshell. Nothing too exciting, butContinue reading “Laurie Colwin’s Bread”
Ravioli di Zucca e Amaretti
A few weeks ago, in our old village church, my twin sister got married. It was wonderful, and I was floating atop a fluffy wedding cloud for days afterwards. Not just because it was such a gloriously happy day, but because it objectively was the best kind of wedding. You know, the sort that sees you chauffeured to the receptionContinue reading “Ravioli di Zucca e Amaretti”
Crêpes
We used to have pancakes once a year at home, on Shrove Tuesday, when the squeezy Jif would appear at the table and my mum would stand at the stove, grumbling about what a fuss they were to cook. English pancakes were never a breakfast thing. I only remember them with the backdrop of aContinue reading “Crêpes”
To The Table 