Have you heard the one about Panama hats? The joke is that these iconic woven straw hats actually originated not in Panama but in Ecuador where artisans have been weaving them from the plaited leaves of the toquilla palm plant since the early 1600s. The confusion evidently crept in during the construction of the Panama Canal when many workers wore these hats for sun protection, and Americans began incorrectly associating them with Panama rather than Ecuador. And if that did not rock your world view enough, India ink was not developed in India but in China over 2,000 years ago. When it reached Europe in the 17th century though, it came via Indian trade routes as India was a major European trading partner and was inaccurately called “India ink. Similarly, the long-haired cats that we know as Persian cats did not originate in Persia (modern day Iran) but in Turkey and parts of eastern Russia. Once again, they were mislabelled Persian when they arrived in western Europe because they came via Persian trade routes, and the name stuck.
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Easy banana pecan loaf
When is a banana loaf not just a banana loaf? When it is a baked memory. Any pub quiz afficionado can tell you that smell is the sense that triggers the strongest memories, but much has also been written about the emotional connection between your perception of a specific taste and a memory. In Remembrance […]
Click here for a full portionBeef, ginger & butternut squash stew in the Wonderbag™ (GF, dairy-free)
In an era where the message of “every person for themselves” seems to be the rallying cry of more and more political manifestos and empathy for those less fortunate than ourselves is on a downward spiral around the world, what are the chances of an inventor creating a product with a worldwide potential market […]
Click here for a full portionDeconstructed avocado Ritz with ruby grapefruit (GF, pescatarian, dairy free)
Last summer I visited Sicily for the first time – and what a feast for the senses that was! The markets were packed with vendors noisily calling out their wares; the freshly squeezed Sicilian lemon juice was mouth puckeringly tart; the red peppers were intensely re that they looked Photoshopped; and for the first […]
Click here for a full portionL’Atelier Robuchon, Mayfair (2024) [CLOSED]
“In forming new friendships, forget not old friends.” – Roman Proverb As somebody who loves food and lives in London, it is remarkably easy to form new “friendships” with restaurants – on average, between 100 and 200 new restaurants open every year in the city! But there is always something comforting and reassuring in returning […]
Click here for a full portionPerfect broccoli and Stilton soup (keto, low carb, GF)
“The poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese.” So wrote English writer Gilbert K Chesterton in the early 1900s. And it is true – ask a poetry fan for a poem they know about food and they can probably come up with a mention of wine or bread or plums or […]
Click here for a full portionMasalchi by Atul Kochhar – Indian street food in Wembley
One of the odd upsides of the Covid pandemic and London’s interminable lockdowns is that it has now been so long since I visited some parts of London that arriving there (now that things are opening up again) is almost as novel and exciting as visiting a new city. On a recent visit to Soho […]
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