fennel is a long-standing favourite vegetable of mine, it wasn’t something that i ate when i was growing up – i don’t think we could get it in malawi – and i’m not sure when or why i tried it but now it’s something i instinctively reach for when i’m at the market.

raw fennel in salads is a particular favourite and yet it’s something i often forget about. my default approach involves lemon juice, olive oil and garlic but this simple salad with its zingy asian flavours made a nice change.

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there are some dishes you make that you just know you are going to be made time and again. this happened the first time i made a vegetarian shepherd’s pie. the original recipe was quite simple with lentils and a few vegetables in a tomatoey sauce topped with mash but over the years the recipe has evolved.

the current version i make is fabulous – one batch which would easily feed 8 was wolfed down by 3 hungry greedy girls! i’ve made this version a few times now and am not struck by inspiration about what tweaks to try next, so i thought i’d share it with you to see what you think. it could be, of course, that this is the ultimate shepherd’s pie and no changes are needed!

this is also my contribution to “waiter, there’s something in my...” the new food blogging event which, this month, is being hosted by jeanne at cook sister.

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well, that’s one new year’s resolution sorted out – last week we had supper at locanda locatelli. and we had a fabulous time!

we decided to go for an early booking so we could completely indulge and not feel too full of food to sleep - serious greed was definitely at play as i planned our visit.

aperitifs of prosecco for david and an orange champagne cocktail for me kept us company as we came to terms with quite how greedy we were going to be. starters, pasta and mains were all lined up with an eye to dessert and a hand in the bread basket… (superb bread of course, with grassy olive oil for dipping)

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this is my final post about our trip to strathdon, and having been home for a few days it’s nice to look at some of the photos i took – as the week went on they got progressively less white as the snow melted and the landscape revealed.

we ate in all the time, apart from one lovely meal at the darroch learg restaurant. we went on valentine’s day and had the very un-london experience of the usual menu, at the usual prices and without any timed sittings. the obligatory “rose for the laydee” was provided though! we chose their taster menu and had some fabulous dishes, all in decent sized portions so there was no “oops, it’s gone and i barely got a taste.”

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