There’s been a lot of buzz about Jim Lahey’s techniques over the last couple of years. There’s no doubt that he’s a dedicated baker, and that his approach is worth considering; not least because it’s a set of simple rules that will give more consistent results, and good results, than a novice baker can hope [...]
Tagged baking, book review, breadI wasn’t going to read this book, being acquainted with Ms Day-Lewis’s writing of yore for the Sunday supplements. In my mind I hear a hectoring, strident voice, talking about the fashionable issues: organic, sustainable, seasonal, Aga, farmhouse kitchen; listen to her Amazon video if you’d like to hear exactly what nightmare runs in my [...]
Tagged book review, cookeryI am a big fan of the Good Eats show, even though my only access to it is via YouTube, and I have Alton Brown’s three previous books from the series. There are 80 episodes covered in this first installment of three books (not two, as the Product Description claims), each with a short discussion [...]
Tagged book review, cookeryI have a hate/hate relationship with BT Openworld. Let’s be clear; I have no choice but to use them, as they have access points at all the places I visit and might need a connection. All the old coffee shop access points in my area have been converted to BT Openworld, taking them at a [...]
Tagged iphone, iPod/iPhoneIt has taken me some time to get around to reading this book – close to 40 years, if I remember that far back clearly (which mostly I do). I remember seeing the great film classic version when I was young, many times; to be honest, it didn’t really grip me, although the switch into [...]
Tagged book reviewAnglers talk of this book with reverence, or did so when I was in my teens. Back then I can recall taking a look, and finding it rather impenetrable, written in an archaic style. All of this is still true, but I found it an interesting read none the less. There is certainly a lot [...]
Tagged book reviewI picked this up in Waterstones, after a quick browse. It is more or less a book version of Ben’s blog, which in turn is related to his column in the Guardian. It’s a reasonably entertaining exposé of newspaper journalism concerning health stories. The main topics covered are: nutritionists, MMR, and homeopathy. In order: he [...]
Tagged book reviewThis is the first in a series of posts reviewing books, as I read them. Older book reviews here are mostly archives of reviews that I have posted to Amazon, some for computing books, others for cookery books. I first read A Princess of Mars in my early teens (I was possibly 12 at the [...]
Tagged book reviewSitting right here in a cafe (Stell’s, Redlands, CA), I have been listening to a play list from the 60s. Ordinarily that would be great – much Neil Young, CSN, Nick Drake, and many tracks that I am familiar with from the first time around (and the cafe owners presumably aren’t). But I was fantasising [...]
Our hire car, supposed to be compact/intermediate, was a Mitsubishi Eclipse – which I detest. It has two doors, alcantara trim on the seats, and people say “ooh, sporty!”. The acceleration isn’t too bad, either, although the vagaries of automatic gearboxes (it’s a hire car, what do you expect?) make it surprising hard to tell. [...]