Tell us about your favourite food memory from your childhood...

I grew up in Brighton with my mum and two younger brothers. All my standout food memories are treats I shared with them. I think very fondly of walking down to the beach to get hot mackerel sandwiches, a suggestion from my mum that never failed to get us excited. We would all get the same thing, freshly caught grilled mackerel in a buttered floury bap with just lemon. Delicious heaven. Oh! And also eating boiled eggs and toasty fingers in bed with my granny which I still do whenever I can.

What would your advice be to someone who is new to cooking and is looking to put more love into the ritual of preparing food at home?

I really do love cooking for people I care about, but on my terms… Hilariously, as much as I would enjoy referring to myself as someone who ‘cooks with love’; if I dig deep, I’m probably quite a stubborn cook. Anyone I’ve cooked for will attest to the fact that I’m opinionated about what I like, SO, if you’re after advice on cooking with stubbornness… I would say - ‘trust your palette and take visible deep breaths when a guest suggests something that isn’t to your taste’. But, if you do want advice on cooking with love, trying to relax and enjoy the moment is basic advice but the best advice I think. Something I need to remind myself of quite often!

Tell us about one of your cooking rituals at home... What’s your favourite thing about having friends and family round for dinner?

An unintentional ritual is spending an illegal amount of time planning a particular set of dishes then changing my mind about all of them about 10 minutes before I’m meant to be cooking. As for intentional rituals, I don’t have many. I’m not great at multitasking so I very often forget to put music on and realise I’ve been chopping in complete silence only after half an hour. The people I cook for most often know this about me and quietly take over responsibility of music, making me a drink, setting the table etc. I love seeing that going on in my periphery - harmonious preparation. My favourite thing about cooking for others is just being able to help facilitate an evening where everyone feels happy, full and relaxed.

Tell us about one of the most memorable meals someone important in your life has cooked for you...

My Dad seriously doesn’t deserve this title as my Mum cooked for me my whole childhood, (dinner at Dad’s was more often me cooking packets of spinach and ricotta tortellini for the both of us). So I suppose this meal is memorable for its singularity. My Dad doesn’t cook but decided he wanted to impress me and my Mum with a home cooked meal from scratch (literally the only time in my life this has happened). One summer he decided to grow veg in a small patch of the garden - for some reason he went exclusively with ‘potatoes and onions’. He made Lancashire cheese and onion pie (my Grandma’s recipe), boiled potatoes and some buttered greens. It was fine and he was so proud. I found the whole thing very sweet and funny.

QUICK FIRE 

Taste that most makes you think of home:

Dahl.

Favourite song to cook to:

It depends… at Towpath it’s often Britney at the moment. At home alone probably Taylor Swift. At home with company, their choice. In lockdown it was exclusively the Hamilton soundtrack for a few months

You have friends coming round for an impromptu dinner, what do you cook? Pasta with whatever’s in the fridge/cupboard.

Could be broccoli and anchovy with pangratatto (keeping breadcrumbs in the freezer has been a gamechanger) or a putanesca. As long as there’s garlic chilli and olive oil, it’s going to be delicious.

What do you cook when you don’t have many ingredients in the house/you haven’t been shopping yet?

If it’s just for me, I often do a bowl of sushi rice with an egg, some garlicy soy greens or smashed cucumber. And then I keep the cupboard pretty well stocked with relevant condiments like furikake and shichimi togarashi that really lift it.

Your most proud career moment to date:

Getting to work at Towpath Cafe.

Best place for a tasty dinner in your local area: Rasa on Stoke Newington Church Street.

Favourite summer lunch: Perfect tomatoes. On toast, as a salad, or just on their own with a bit of salt…

Best summer cocktail/mocktail:

I don’t like anything very sweet and generally stick to vodka martini, vermouth/Campari and soda or maybe a margarita.

The ingredient you’re most looking forward to incorporating into your dishes this season:

Stone fruits! Peaches, apricots, cherries. My absolute favourites

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