Michelle in full flowThe invite to the Free From Food Awards 2013 dropped into my inbox and I was all of a dither.Should I hire a limo? Are dresses long or short this season? And which hip thrust forward will give maximum slimness on the red carpet?I know. I live in cloud cuckoo land.So, on the evening of the awards, my date and I joined other smar...

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Caution: You may find these in your hair (products)I have the best hairdresser. You know you're in good hands when you can just regress in the chair and nod soporifically at the talented lady who is whispering sweet, comforting words about how she's going to make you look amazing and it will really suit your face and it will add life and layers and...

One day custard will take over the world (true story)Coming soon....These kick ass muffins that are great for hungry toddlers with food allergies.Gosh, can I just say out loud how GLAD I am - this deserves caps, bold and italics - that I no longer have toddlers? It's truly an exhausting time isn't it?May these muffins fortify you during your daily ...

A biscuit on a lolly stick sandwiched together with chocolate. Yes please.I feel so stupid because I honestly thought children went to school to LEARN. Turns out I'm completely wrong. Yes, they do a bit of learning but they also spend a huge amount of time eating. A birthday cake here, a bake sale there, an impromptu cooking lesson because it's a ...

Welsh Cakes are definitely not stupidWales. It's just soo tempting to make fun of the whole country (I'm not v. PC in case you hadn't noticed.) It's because I lived in Bristol as a child. The Welsh were our nearest neighbours and I think we were a bit jealous because they had all that beautiful scenery and the Severn Bridge.But their accent was hor...

Do you think Richard III ate pancakes?In 1982, parts of the Mary Rose (old ship, belonged to Henry VIII, sank somewhere in the Solent while trying to attack the French) were raised from the seabed. This was a complicated operation that took at least a whole day, probably more.How do I know this? Because my Mum had the TV on all day as she watched, ...

Very Important Work being done (aka stuffing your face all day)You might think that being a food judge means sitting around tasting a bit of this and a smidge of that and then saying 'mmm yummy' or 'bleurgh, no thanks'.How wrong you are.If the food judging for the Free From Food Awards 2013 is anything to go by, being a food judge means vehemently ...

I'm so very happy that Potty Mummy shared this with me on Facebook. It's Les Misérables meets allergy baking and very funny.Favourite line?"Carob doesn't work, Carob is a trap. Anyone who's had it knows it tastes like crap!"I'm going to waste a lot of time watching this today. I suggest you do too :-)And as Rowan Atkinson says (about to paraphrase...

Looking good! But - whisper - a bit small...I LOVE getting products to review. Why? Coz I can pretend I'm an authoritative guru. So gather at my feet people, look worshipful and let guru Pig tell you all about Helen's Brilliant Brown Bread Mix.Caveat Number 1: The packets are designed to be used with eggs, but after a chat with Helen's PR, we deci...

Chickpea Chowder. I can't guarantee that your kids won't retch...I can't stand kids who are fussy about food. It's wasteful, spoilt and I really should have more patience because I was a kid who was fussy about food.But in my defence, my Mum did once serve me stuffed marrow. That is definitely a crime against culinary and probably a 1970's form of ...

Liquid comfort. (And no hangover in the morning.)The recipe for the Chickpea thing is definitely coming soon.But in the meantime you should all be making Pippa Kendrick's Roasted Butternut Squash, Coconut and Chilli soup.I've tweaked the recipe to make it easier (note: always choose the lazy way if you can) and sans roasting the butternut squash, y...

Mmm. Yummy comfort foodThis recipe is coming soon. But I need a little help.In our house this meal is called 'Chick Pea Thing'. "What's for tea Mum?" "Chick Pea Thing."It's instantly recognisable and some kids groan, others whoop (more on that when I publish the recipe).However, it's not a very appealing name and it's definitely not a name that peo...

Allergy friendly goodies delivered to your door. Yes pleaseCaution: I am about to sound like an old fart...Way back when my daughter was diagnosed with food allergies (ok so it was only seven years ago) it was tough. We were down the mine at 6am baking tea bread. We swept the chimney all day and toiled away to put egg free cakes on the table. Times...

May your days be merry and bright!Do you like what I've done with my Christmas Cake this year?I can tell you that my eldest daughter and I had some good Mother-Daughter bonding therapy as we squidged icing and she chastised me for getting the shape of the tree a bit wrong. (My brain doesn't really do mathematical shapes.)Anyway, the cake is iced an...

Is the angle of that fork bugging the hell out of you too?!Christmas is now Priority 1, Code Red URGENT! because there are just two sleeps until the big day.In a minute I'll tell you a brilliant way to alleviate stress. But first, could I give a mildly feminist discourse?Ladies, has the bulk of this extra Christmas work fallen to you? Have you been...

Is this pudding any good?If we're to believe the chatter, the world is going to end tomorrow.And it can, because the pinnacle of human achievement has been reached.By Asda.Yes, you heard, ASDA!This behemoth of cut price consumption is selling a gluten free Christmas pudding. 'Big whoop' you say, 'so is Hale and Hearty.' That's true, but the fourth ...

Allergy friendly food CAN look gorgeousSo in my last post, I alluded to an unsavoury incident that may - or may not - have happened in my kitchen.So here's what really occurred...When I was fine-tuning my red velvet cake recipe, I decided to try making a 20cm cake as well as cupcakes. So I scraped the mix into the tin and placed it in the oven. All...

Couldn't get a pic of Nigella or Jamie (copyright) so here's a pretty pic insteadIt's Christmas, so I'm allowed to go completely off piste. Here goes...Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Hugh and Lorraine are in the spotlight today after a report by public health experts at Newcastle University. The report analysed some of the celebs' popular recipes an...

Santa is LOVING my Christmas pudding!Well it is just INSANE out there isn't it?Only eight sleeps to go - the kids torture me every morning with a countdown - and my list is like the magic porridge pot; it just will not stop multiplying itself.Thankfully Michelle at Foods Matter is calm, composed and completely on top of things.And she's put togethe...

Eat me. NOW.Weird stuff is happening.I keep baking (weird occurrence number 1).It keeps working (weird occurrence number 2).I keep actually photographing the food instead of thinking 'I have no time!' (weird occurrence number 3)I then plan to post the recipe (weird occu...you've got the gist).Astonishing.I plan to post this sometime before Dec 25th...

Aww, cutesy Christmas sceneStand by because I'm going to share with you. (Stiff Upper Brits need to look away now.)My childhood was fairly chaotic. Quite a few of life's traumatic events were dolloped onto my plate and it's truly amazing that I don't mainline Class A drugs on a daily basis. Most people actually think I'm sane. (Until they get me p...

Pudology. What gorgeous artwork!I'm suspicious. There's a new kid on the allergy block and she's done something amazing. She's made dairy free, gluten free, egg free desserts that taste delicious.That you buy with unlaundered money, in broad daylight from a reputable supplier. You don't have to visit the Russian badlands to obtain them, or carry a ...

Ta-daaa! A cake without eggs!Years ago a terrible thought was keeping me awake at night: "It's my daughter's birthday soon. How will I bake an egg free, dairy free cake for her?"Introducing...bread without gluten!But I had faith in the internet. I KNEW other people must have this problem, they would have done all the hard work for me.No dairy in th...

This recipe is gorgeous, you must make it. (No false modesty here)As a child, I hated museums/galleries/monuments/insert boring cultural type place here.And I really hated the way adults sounded so amazed at what they were seeing. (It was clearly just an act to get me interested.) *Eye roll*But see me last week catching the train to London with my ...

Full of Autumn zing. Great with fireworks.And after Halloween, (please click this link, I love the photo!) comes Bonfire Night and our annual ceremonial burning of poor old Guy Fawkes. It's been over 400 years since Guy was caught... us Brits really hold onto a grudge, don't we?If I get my derriere into the correct gear, you should have this recipe...

Yikes! This pic was taken when I knew NOTHING about photography. Observe the harsh sunlight. Yuk. I am not ashamed to say that Halloween annoys me. Loyal readers know that I've blathered on about it before. And even though I used to enjoy Trick or Treating, I'm over that now.Yes, I should be carving pumpkins and helping my children with outfits, bu...

I'm loving the fancy cupcake cases. They are tres chic, no?I grew up expecting to work and earn money. Not for me the lounging around in a gym while someone else pays the rent, I always wanted to pay my way. So, arriving in my mid-thirties, I did not expect to find myself a 'stay-at-home-mum' in Paris, relying on my husband with no immediate prosp...

Love, love, love this cartoon!I've written an article about coping with food allergies during this fun time of 'Back to School'. The lovely Michelle Berriedale-Johnson has published it on the Foods Matter websites and you can read it by clicking HERE.And can I just do a happy, excited little jig about the cartoon that was commissioned for the piece...

Gluten free Onion Focaccia. No, that's not a swear wordMy children are getting older. Not only does this make me feel like a liver-spotted crone, it presents me with a problem.The problem of swearing and whether the kids are ever allowed to swear at home.A few years ago my children told me they knew all the swear words. I didn't believe them, so th...

Feeding croissants to a child with a milk allergyHands up if you've fed your child something to which you KNOW they are allergic?Me. I have.Why? Because since she was diagnosed with multiple food allergies* I've been getting conflicting advice. She's allergic to milk? Feed her butter!The day she did her first food challenge in hospital in Franc...

Trashy, sickly, beautifulI'm reading a VERY interesting book about habit loops and willpower. 'The Power of Habit' by Charles Duhigg. You should buy it, it's fascinating. In one part - oh and please don't be thinking that this is a proper book review - an experiment is described about testing willpower.It's radishes for youAll participants are p...

'Look into my eyes...I'll stop you being vegan'If truth be told, I don't really love fish. I find them a bit repulsive with their scales, scary mouths and darting ways. But I support their right to live and that's one of the reasons I don't eat them. Although a Trigger fish once 'charged' me repeatedly during a dive and scared the neoprene off m...

Spicy Nettle Soup. Sounds so wrong, tastes so good.Apparently there are only six degrees of separation between me and everyone else on the planet.That's quite a cool thought because I've always fancied dinner with Richard Branson.But it also means I'm quite closely linked to the bag lady who lives under a bridge.I've nothing against bag ladies, but...

Can you guess what it is yet?Coming next.Got any ideas what it is and what it's made from?!A bientot mes anges...Pig xAs© Pig in the Kitchen All Rights Reserved var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-17572395-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/jav...

Egg free mayonnaise, hot sauce 'n' chips Fabric circa 1973 Because only then was camping cool "I love not camping!"My passport cover depicts a glamorous, smiling woman in front of a hotel."I love not camping!" reads the slogan. My friends snigger and think no more of it.But I am deadly serious. In my book, camping is one of the most primitive for...

If you listen to any of the morbidly obese / Diabetes epidemic / fat tax chatter, then you know that comfort eating is wrong.WRONG I say!Feeling anxious, sad or angry? You may not consume pleasurable foods to make yourself feel better, have some ground psyllium husk and a glass of juice instead!Well here's a surprising discovery¦Since we moved bac...

Roast Butternut Squash, Coconut and Chilli SoupPippa Kendrick is really irritating. For a start she's pretty, funny andpersonable. And now she's published acookbook for allergy sufferers of the take-me-to-bed-and-drool-over-me variety.Actually, she's published the cookbook that I used to dreamof publishing. Full of gorgeous pictures, thick, luxu...

Chicks, a missing disciple and a very yummy cakeWhere normally there is some witty prose, a mildly interesting anecdote or something so random you genuinely worry that I have early-onset Alzheimers; today there is nothing.Inspiration has gone AWOL. It has sloped off with that other rotter, Judas, and is nowhere to be seen.I could inflict some stre...

Look at this bad boy!This is coming soon my darlings!And yes I will reveal the identity of the secret ingredient.And now I have to clean the house. God I hate reality.Pig x As© Pig in the Kitchen All Rights Reserved var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-17572395-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga =...

Let's make some whoopieOf course I'm far too busy making whoopie to write you a ditty about Valentine's day and then follow up with the carrot whoopie pie recipe. But I promise I will soon. This week. For deffs.And by 'making whoopie' I mean watching Family Guy in the same room as my husband. You may now feel smug and more in love than me.Whoop...

It was Harold Wilson who said: A week is a long time in politics . And I'm sure Chris Huhne would agree. Far be it from me to pervert the course of a historical quotation, oh but actually I'm going to tinker just a teensy bit.Ahem, clear throat and drum roll please... "A week is a long time in food allergies". Just a week ago there I was venting ...

Sometimes even the best 'allergy' biscuits aren't good enoughIt's easy for me because I don't have allergies. See me absent-mindedly throw a piece of cheese into my mouth and watch as I scarf down a buttery croissant glazed in egg. And have you tried the honey glazed mixed nuts from Waitrose? Yum.My youngest daughter sees me do all of the above. ...