'Is not possible!. He tell me I not know how to make-a paella! I tell him paella is-a Spanish, not Cockney-stinking eel pie! I make-a paella like my mama! My mother's recipe is big in Barcelona!'
                                                                 — Manuel (the waiter) to Basil Fawlty, The Anniversary Party, Fawlty Towers

'If you plant it, they will come'. Well, at least that's what I told my niece when I explained to her that I love urban foraging. And if there's a plentiful supply of flowers on a nature strip, then I can't help but take a sprig or two to brighten my kitchen.

'My nanna always made Yorkshire pudding. I think it was to fill us up before we had the meat and vegetables. Back in those days, Yorkshire pudding was stodgy and made with beef or pork dripping. It's nice with roast beef, potatoes baked in their jackets, and carrots, peas and gravy.'                                                  
               — Peter's mother reminiscing about Yorkshire pudding from her childhood in County Durham, England

'Somehow I was never told that rhubarb was good for me, so I grew up loving it. I loved its beautiful rose-pink colour, its sharp and surprising flavour, and the way I could trail a spoonful of proper custard through my bowl of rhubarb and admire the patterns I made.'                                                                                     
                                                                                    – Stephanie Alexander, on Rhubarb, The Cook's Companion

'I am absolutely in love with the south of Italy. It really is the soul and the spirit of the country. I’m talking about Siciliy, Campania of which Naples if the capital, Basilicata, Puglia, those sorts of areas, around the boot, the heel, the instep… and Sicily of course, the island down the bottom. In terms of food and wine, over the last twenty years I have made a personal discovery of those areas and I really can’t get enough of them.'
   —  Stefano Manfredi, in conversation with Good Things about his tome, Stefano Manfredi's Italian Food

'Cheese courses are too often overlooked, which is a crime when you have [such good] camembert. Half the cheeses were split lengthways and layered with the earthy lushness of local truffles, while the others were drizzled with honey and thyme before being baked. Both lifted the already beautiful cheeses, but for me the oozing joy of the baked version was really hard to beat.'
                    — Tommy Hoschke, Capital Gourmand, Appetite for Excellence Hunt and Gather Dinner, 2012

With the approach of the festive season, I'm literally tickled pink to share this recipe for creamy coconut ice with you — mainly because it's the best, creamiest coconut ice I have ever tasted and I know that once you've tried it you and your taste buds will love it too!

Culinary alchemist and world renowned chef, Heston Blumenthal

'I remember the wonder of being a child, when food was always exciting. But that magic I felt as a kid has often disappeared in our adult lives. I want to bring back the wonder of food on a monumental scale, to remind us just how magical food can be...  and make us all feel like kids again.'
                                                                                                                         - Heston Blumenthal, Heston's Fantastical Food