I am in the west coast of the US promoting Plenty, with a very (!) full schedule kindly provided by the adorable people at Chronicle, my American publisher. Cramming in one short day enough eating to last anyone else half a lifetime is my form of art. And so far, I have kept my standards pretty high.

Upon landing, literally, I was taken by childhood friend Yoni to Mission Chinese Food, a kind of grubby pop-up restaurant that has seemed to have turned permanent with a cult following of immense magnitude. By 7pm there were at least 20 people queuing outside, and more to arrive shortly. They don’t take bookings so queuing is the only way. And it is well worth it.

Despite the too-cool-for-school style of chefs, servers and many diners, the food is dead serious. Our most loved were the pork belly with soy cured eggs and cucumber, the tea-smoked eel rolls with pulled ham hock and the lamb and fresh noodle soup in a tingly broth. The flavours are massive (!) and that’s a lot, coming for me, but almost always perfectly-balanced. I would have tried everything on the menu, if I only could, but, alas, stomach capacity and jet-lag were creeping up on me, slowly but very surely.

Yesterday, Tuesday, was my first day of proper working (well, at least I call it work). Interview at Il Cane Rosso in the ferry building was over an egg sandwich, but not any old egg sandwich. I am talking a sumptuous take on the theme with a warm salad made with anchovy butter and capers, served on a very crunchy bread slice.

Next was a selection of macaroons from [link https://www.miette.com/ Miette], also in the ferry building. These were not the fancy French style of Pierre Herme and Laduree, but more naturally looking and tasting. The hazelnut and chocolate won a resounding yes.

Dinner was hosted by the charming Elan and Brett Emerson at their Contigo restaurant, a mega-popular place that is talked about all over town for its perfectly executed Barcelona inspired tapas. Elan and Brett were too good natured to stand up to the relentless pressures from Celia Sack of Omnivore Books, the most charming book shop I have ever seen, who took it upon herself to force me on all the best restaurants in town. So they hosted a most delicious meal inspired by Plenty. Such an honour!

Thank you Celia, Thank you Brett, Thank you Elan - And what a night!

Here’s just a few of the highlights:

Wood oven roasted Monterey sardine and avocado toast with pickled onion and smoked salt

Smashed corn on sourdough toast with La Quercia speck, Idiazbal cheese and peimentos de padron

Local king salmon baked on a fig leaf with summer beans, samphire, mustard seeds, tarragon and allioli

Must I continue?

Mike Britten, manager and most familiar face of Ottolenghi, Belgravia, is back from Italy with a very visual travel log:

Another year, another trip to my wonderful friends Neil and Richie and their home in the hills of the Piemonte region of Italy, an area abundant in naturally grown produce that is converted into some of the best quality cheeses, wines, salamis and meats I have tasted.

This trip was full of (mainly) foodie excitements:

A ten course fish supper at the Sardinian owned Trattoria Fabiana perched on the edge of a beautiful valley.

The wafer thin shaved octopus, sea bass fillet on crushed peas with hazelnut sauce and an octopus lollipop croquette were particular highlights of this girth expanding supper.

A trip to the beautiful and historic Turin.

A very tiny cheese and wine festival in Murrazzano, where we met an organic farmer who invited us to his kitchen canteen and farm for supper (more of this later).

The obligatory trip to Alba for Prosecco in the central Piazza, followed by a drive through the wine lands of Barolo and a little stop off in this medieval town perched on top of a hill. Sadly, being in Italy and it being a Monday everything was closed (Next time – wine tasting doesn’t escape me that easily!)

Finally, back to our organic farm invite. At the end of a tiny gravel lane, down a valley we find, Finnochiona Verde Farm. Literally translated as - Green Fennel Farm, locally known as The Green Gay!

Amusing but lost in translation. The beautiful food made and served here using mainly produce from this farm, worked much better than the local humour.

After watching the livestock milking, we ate peppery salami, extremely ‘hoofy’ goat’s and sheep’s cheese, super-fresh raw broad beans, excellently flavoured carne cruda (something I can never normally get my head around) followed by simple pasta and a rabbit stew.

The piece de resistance however, was the wild strawberry, Moscato and mint jelly dessert. Quite simply - stunning! The wild strawberries are everywhere across the valleys at this time of year.

The Finnochiona Verde is affiliated with W.O.O.F, an organisation that allows volunteers from all over the world to come along and learn about organic farming. No better way to get your hands dirty.

Next up for me: Biennial Bra International Cheese Festival in September - another reason, should one be needed to take a trip to Piemonte.

Plenty is now published in Germany, Holland and the US and I just got back from a speedy promotional tour in Amsterdam and New York.

In the Dutch capital I was fortunate enough to be coupled with the much-admired (by me and everyone else) Claudia Roden who's Book of Jewish Food just got a brand new Dutch edition. We gave a cookery demonstration and a talk at the Uilenburger synagogue and then had dinner at Toscanini, my favourite Amsterdam restaurant ever since I lived there in the mid 90’s. From all the marvellous dishes the lamb’s tongue with quail egg was the one I can’t let go of.

The next day Claudia and I signed books. I had to get out quickly, though, to have the famous herring sandwich sold in small stands along the canals. This was an everyday affair for me in the old days and it was (almost) as heavenly as I had remembered.

A man on a mission, I also had to taste the famous Dutch prawn croquettes from Holtkamp, probably the best bakery in Amsterdam. I was so determined to have them I got the book shop owner to call Holtkamp and reserve some for me. What can I say? I am obsessive. I got there, breathless, at 5-to-closing-time and received a perfectly packed bag with two boxes full of croquettes. As I was leaving the sales’ assistant, clearing down, just reminded me to “defrost them for five hours before you fry them”. My heart sank with agony: how, where and when. Reluctantly, very (!), I had to give the treasure to my Michael and Peter, living in Amsterdam, who sent me this the next morning:

Well, I was on my way to New York, which was some kind of consolation, but the pent-up frustration (plane food was bad, really bad) made me grab Noga, one of my oldest friends, as soon as I arrived and take her to momofuku ssam bar and milk bar next door for David Chang’s famous pork buns and cornflakes milk. Only after wiping my mouth with glee I was truly over the croquette trauma.

The next day I was on the Martha Stewart show cooking garlic tart and couscous live, in front of an audience. I was terrified to start with but the combination of American professionalism (nothing is left to chance, though I did manage to forget the onion in the couscous), Martha’s composure and having Noga and Tamar there turned this into some kind of fun/funny reunion.

Next on the agenda for the day was a book signing at
Williams Sonoma and terrific sushi at Takahachi in the East Village with Jeffrey and Thomas. Sake hangover the following morning felt like some kind of punishment, not sure what for. Perhaps greed?

On Tuesday I cooked aubergine at Bon Appetit and made sure my American publisher didn’t feel they brought me out here for nothing but the absolute highlight was dinner at Torrisi (Food? again?) with warm home-made mozzarella and a pork salad with radicchio and a few mysterious ingredients. My friend Keren was half asleep, I was full and also completely exhausted, but we were both grinning with silly joy when leaving the restaurant.

Just before flying back, I managed to squeeze in vegetable shopping at Union square market, followed by a couple of hours with NY Times journalist cooking Swiss chard cakes at her funky Brooklyn apartment before heading back to a very sunny London.

Our shiny new restaurant, NOPI, is now in full operation. It’s not an Ottolenghi but it is beautiful, delicious and proves very popular already. You can book a table, upstairs or downstairs, read our blog or just enjoy the pictures...

Photographs by Keiko Oikawa

We are delighted to announce our next set of classes at Leiths, starting September 2011.

As advertised earlier, there will be a short window of opportunities to sign in to the classes, due to their great popularity. Leiths' booking line (020 87496400) will be open on the 8th March only, from 9am onwards, until places run out. We advice you to be persistent and keep on trying even if the line is busy. Once connected, you'll be able to book a class for up to 2 people.

We hope you all have success in booking and looking forward to teaching you soon!

September 10th, with Sami Tamimi
Sweet potato patties with cumin and coriander
Turkish beef and leek meatballs
Basmati and wild rice with chickpeas, currants and herbs
Roasted beetroot and plum salad
Fresh berries with orange blossom syrup and cream

October 15th, with Yotam Ottolenghi
Warm haloumi and chicory with pomegranate and walnut
Aubergine with herbs
Baked okra with tomato and preserved lemon
Quinoa and fennel salad
Poached quince with star anise, blackberries and vanilla ice-cream

November 19th, with Sami Tamimi
Padron pepper fritters
Braised lamb meatballs with yoghurt and herbs
Saffron couscous with butter and chervil
Green bean salad with mustard seeds and tarragon
Fig and grappa trifle

December 10th, with Yotam Ottolenghi
Char-grilled squash with labneh and pickled walnut salsa
Whole quail stuffed with pork, pine nuts and herbs, braised in tamarind
Freekeh pilaf
Mixed herb salad with lemon and honey dressing
Baked pears in white wine and cardamom, served with crème fraiche

Noam, Garry, Karl and Yotam - just got back from a short break in Thailand, where food (surprise, surprise) was the star.

It's all over now. Orders are out, kitchens are clean, tired chefs and shop assistants are on their way home, and we all get a few days to rest. Thank you - to ALL Ottolenghi staff - for a smooth and fun Christmas!

Please please excuse what may seem like a shameless, brazen and cynical promotional attempt, which we normally don’t do, but there is just so much at the moment that we just can’t wait for everybody to slowly find out.

First, we have our holiday menus, where we offer you the opportunity to work a little less at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Basically, you can order from Ottolenghi any part of your holiday meal – starters, mains, sides, nibbles, sweets, condiments – or the complete, whole meal . We supply everything packed with clear heating and serving instructions.

Then, there’s a range of Iranian products that, as far as we know, we are the only ones in London to sell. They are quite magical.

Pashmak (Persian Fairy Floss), nougat and toffee brittle, are all made in Iran. Pashmak is the original type of candy floss / cotton candy, just like the ones kids get in fairs but of top quality. The version we have is hand-spun, and made from sesame and sugar. In this way, it has much more flavour and looks incredible. Although a little expensive, a little goes a long way. Pashmak is served on its own or as an accompaniment to fruits, cakes, ice creams, puddings and desserts, or just as a sweetmeat with coffee.

The Nougat is made with manna, (yes, manna from heaven!), a natural sweetner which imparts a distinct sweetness without being cloying.

Perbellini Artisan Panettone, Pandoro di Verona Perbellini, Fior d'Albicocca perbellini. This is a range of enriched seasonal sweet breads made in traditional methods and in small batches near Verona. Both flavour and packaging are ultimate examples of Italian elegant restraint.

Then there are Ottolenghi Christmas cakes, covered in marzipan, with fruit that has been macerating in rum and brandy since the summer.

There’s actually much more, but for that you’ll need to come to us... Happy Holidays!

So much was cramped into the three days of the World Chef Showcase, part of The Sydney International Food Festival, that I am not sure what happened when anymore. And the jet-lag isn’t helping much either.

I can tell you that Sydney’s skies were more than welcoming on my second visit to this charismatic city in less than eight months.

My assistant (and much more than that), Ling, and I spent our first two days pigging out on food without stopping. Dinner at Marque was unique, with beetroot and foie gras macaroon being the absolute highlight. Even better was lunch with Brad, Ex-Ottolenghi Islington, at Bodega tapas bar where sashimi Kingfish on toast with cuttlefish ceviche was king. The brawn (jellied pig’s head) was a good contender to the throne.

Pastries were astounding, as usual, at Bourke Street Bakery and The Book Kitchen next door.

On Friday all the big name chefs arrived and we were panicking a bit. We had to do all our prep in various kitchens and then trolley it all through the long corridors and massive lifts of the Star City casino complex, which is, literally, the size of a medium city. But the team, headed by Andrew North, was as helpful as can be, considering a massive group of big-egoed chefs were monopolizing their kitchens and staff, and all (almost... wait for labneh) went smoothly.

On Saturday morning I could even have a quick peek at what others were doing, before getting on with our show, which was, so I’m told, a success. Phew... I demonstrated a baked red mullet, wrapped in Swiss chard, with chreime sauce, braised eggs with lamb, tahini and sumac, and quinoa salad with dried Iranian lime and labneh. A little drama of the yoghurt not draining quick enough to form a lebneh was averted by substituting with feta. Did it work? I did see some happy faces around.

The line-up of chefs over the next couple of days was completely inspiring, but more so were the dishes they came up with. There isn’t enough space here to describe a fraction of all the stupendous things. The images tell half of it (Thanks to Crave Sydney International Food Festival and photographer Belinda Rolland):

Very reluctantly and completely sleep deprived, Ling and I dragged our sorry little faces to breakfast on Harbour Bridge at 6am (!!) on Sunday morning. Despite the rain and the funny anoraks, it was well worth the agony. The site of this awesome construction lined with real grass and strewn with 6000 people all having their breakfast together was fantastic. Only in Australia!

After a quick Q&A session with Joanna Savill, the energetic and completely charming organizer of the festival (oh, and Melly brought me this mind-blowing watermelon and strawberry cake with roses and pistachios from Black Star Pastry), I rushed off to the Ivy complex, where Ling and I, along with a bunch of imaginative, mostly Lebanese and Turkish chefs, prepared (sort of, David O’Brien’s team at the Ivy was more than instrumental) a gala dinner for 200 guests. It was a sweet night, in many ways.

After all the madness of the weekend all we wanted to do is take it easy. And easy we did. Lunch at cafe Sopra at Fratelli Fresh in Waterloo, walk in the botanical garden, Bondi beach, the fish markets and that’s it.

Back home now. Sydney’s a sweet, quickly-blurring memory and so much to do...

ALL CLASSES ARE NOW FULL. PLEASE DON'T CALL

We are happy to announce our next set of classes at Leiths, starting January 2011, with the new booking system in place.

As advertised earlier, there will be a short window of opportunities to sign in to the classes, due to their great popularity. Leiths' booking line (020 87496400) will be open for 2 days only, on the 20th and 21st of October, 9am to 4pm. We advice you to be persistent and keep on trying even if the line is busy. Once connected, you'll be able to book a class for up to 2 people.

Good luck and looking forward to seeing you next year!

15 January, with Sami Tamimi
Purple sprouting broccoli with chilli, garlic and feta
Root mash with wine braised shallots
Lamb and feta kebabs
Kohlrabi and white cabbage slaw with lemon zest, tarragon, dill and sesame seeds
Plum, grappa and hazelnut trifle

12 February, with Yotam Ottolenghi
Bulgur and cauliflower tabouleh with red onion, pomegranate and sweet spices
Smoked aubergine salad with red onion, yellow pepper, tomato and cumin
Swiss chard cakes with Greek yoghurt
Purple sprouting broccoli with chilli, garlic and lemon
Busbusa: semolina, orange and coconut cake

19 March, with Sami Tamimi
Courgette fritters with Greek yoghurt and mint sauce
Char-grilled chicken, orange and herb salad
Roast beetroot and red onion salad
French beans with tarragon, sesame and garlic
Baked rhubarb with meringue and yoghurt cream

9 April, with Yotam Ottolenghi
Sweet potato patties with cumin and coriander
Pork belly and fresh fennel salad with sumac, lemon and mint
Saffron couscous with chervil
Caramelised fennel with goat’s curd and fennel seeds
Baked pears in white wine and cardamom

14 May, with Sami Tamimi
Baked artichokes and broad beans
Chicken and courgette burgers with spring onion and yoghurt-dill sauce
Saffron rice with barberries, pistachio and mixed herbs
Okra with tomato, preserved lemon and coriander
Limoncello and mascarpone trifle

11 June, with Yotam Ottolenghi
Roasted aubergine with preserved lemon and chilli yoghurt
Halibut in Chreime (North African sauce)
French bean salad with fennel, roast cherry tomato and basil oil
Bulgar and herb pilaf
Baked cherries with meringue and yoghurt cream

9 July, with Sami Tamimi
Sweet potato patties with cumin and coriander
Butterbean mash with lemon juice, garlic, spring onion and sumac
Yoghurt flatbread
Roasted aubergine with a sharp salsa of walnut, pomegranate and coriander
Caramelised fennel with goat’s curd and fennel seeds
Fresh strawberries with orange blossom syrup and cream

It was one of the most productive chef meetings we’ve had so far. Almost everybody was there, bar Adriano, Garry and Francis (we sort of excuse them), and the ideas were both original and delicious. It was short as well.

Myles’ beetroot mash with ginger puree and duka was immediately popular. Sami stunned us all with some amazingly looking and tasting fairs using Odyssey’s giant butterbeans: No. 1 with burnt aubergine, pomegranate and mint (so Ottolenghi); No. 2 with avocado and chilli (so Mexico); no. 1 won by a small margin. Becky’s puy lentils with Jerusalem artichoke and truffle oil were a clear hit, beating Yotam’s lentils with roasted peppers and manuka honey. 1-0.

Then there was Mark’s aubergine with cinnamon, chilli and maple, served with pecorino, which was a real surprise (who would have thought? Not about Mark, about the cinnamom) and a great hit. Ling’s take on Waldorf, but Ottolenghi-fied, was spot one: celeriac, green apple, quinoa, red onion and poppy seeds with pickled chilli and a sharp dressing. Raphael brought couscous and freekeh salad with dried tomato and grilled courgettes. Also a triumph.

Expect all these wonders on the coming menu, starting next week. Oh, and almost forgot, welcome back Scully!

It’s been way too long in the pipeline. Finding the right space wasn’t easy, particularly with our constantly adjusting demands. But at the end we managed to find a site for a new restaurant. And what a site it is!

The old home to the mythical Sugar Club (run by our friend, the chef Peter Gordon) with the ideal location on Warwick Street on the edge of Soho, around the corner from Regent Street and the beautiful Golden Square, we couldn’t have asked for more. The elegant proportions of the interior are as charming as can be.

But to all you great Ottolenghi fans, we must set the record straight and clarify right away that this is not another Ottolenghi. It won’t even be called Ottolenghi. It won’t be selling food or pastries to go or have the casual communal dining. This will be a straightforward restaurant and we will do all it takes to turn it into a great restaurant.

If you want to know more, follow our provisional blog documenting the setting up of our new venture. And please, wish us luck.

This is one of the most delicious, yet simple, recipes in Plenty, with a picture by Jonathan Lovekin that didn't make it to print.

read more

I didn’t really want it to end. But all sweet things must, eventually, come to an end and so I had to say a sad goodbye to my charming group of students at the Arvon foundation in Totleigh Barton, Devon, and to the centre’s inspiring managers Claire and Olly. Oh, and also to Mr Doggles, a dog who’s much more than just a dog.

I spent a week at Totleigh giving a course in creative writing, alongside Peter Gordon.

Both Peter and I, we later sheepishly admitted to each other, arrived at the centre with serious trepidations. We hadn’t a clue how to teach food writing, or, for that matter, any other form of creative writing. I guess we both secretly trusted the other to get out of this one safely.

As a matter of fact, it wasn’t half as trying as we had imagined. Claire and Olly put us at ease in seconds, with their calm and naturally reassuring demeanours. The beauty of the place and its long and solid literary history also managed to calm our nerves. And Mr. Doggles, of course, with his canine lovability and persistent barking fevers.

But it was only after the first encounter with our students - all so obviously different from each other and having a vast variety of culinary and literary agendas, yet with tons of humour and big personalities – that we realised that all is safe.

The rest was pure fun: from the chicken auction in Hatherleigh to the eventful readings in the barn, from the one-on-one tutorials, where some brutal honesty was often called for, to writing restaurant reviews, from group cooking in the afternoons, where the standard continuously deteriorated, to fumed roars of laughter around the massive dinner table dissecting the organ of one infamous TV chef.

I guess that in the end it worked out so well because our week was about so much more than just creative writing. It was about self expression, changing direction and exposure; it was about courage to embellish, uncovering a voice and leaving safe grounds; and it was about simple human (and dog) interaction.

Due to the phenomenal response to the Saturday classes we run together with Leiths School for Food and Wine, we had to come up with a new booking system with greater clarity and, hopefully, eliminating the frustration of the long waiting list.

Basically, a new list of courses will be advertised every six months. After several weeks, Leiths will open their phones for bookings over two clearly designated days. Those who don’t manage to secure a place in those two days will, unfortunately, have to wait for the next time. To start with, Leiths will restrict booking to one course per person calling.

This may seem a bit harsh but we believe this is the most effective and fairest way to ease the disappointment created by the existing system, where courses are booked out as soon as they are advertised and before many can’t even get a chance to check whether they are available or not.

Here is the system in detail:
• Leiths’ website and the Ottolenghi site will make it clear when the next menus and dates are going to be displayed.
• The new menus will be displayed for several weeks before booking starts.
• The website will give two dedicated booking dates for the next series of classes.
• You will need to make bookings by telephone to Leiths School of Food and Wine on 02087496400 between 9.00am and 4.00pm on those dates.
• You may book for yourself and one friend if you wish.
• When the places are all full, Leiths will then take a waiting list of 15 people.
• Gift vouchers for Ottolenghi courses will only be available during the 2 days of bookings.

The next Ottolenghi menus and dates will be on the Leiths website and Ottolenghi website from 20th of September 2010.

You will be able to book onto these courses if you call Leiths on 02087496400 on the 20th and 21st of October, 9am – 4pm, or until places run out.

Thank you so much for supporting Ottolenghi classes at Leiths and we are sorry such a formal arrangement has been necessary, but we hope you understand and find it easier to use.