A bit about ‘No Cartouche’:
For anyone stumbling across this newsletter for the first time, a legitimate thought might be, really? Another recipe blog is that what the world really needs? And of course, the answer is no. So why, you might rightly ask, therefore, is that what I am putting out into the world?
Well, for a start, this is not strictly a recipe blog. It is a newsletter. A newsletter, that is, that allows me to collate my thoughts on matters regarding food. Or sustenance. Or my own greed. Depending on how you see it. And rather than recipes, what I hope to write about, pontificate on, argue with myself about, is ingredients, techniques, cookbooks, people, and yes, occasionally, recipes.
Without barricading myself in a fort of my own construct, but to give you an idea of where this might go from here, I plan to share my feelings and considerations and confusions about British food, largely. I spend much of my time as a cook and writer looking out from here, seeing what the world has to offer, and I find I often neglect what is (or at least used to be) right under my nose. Well, no longer. Stay tuned for long enough and a discussion of the likes of suet, tapioca, peppercorn sauce, lamb hotpot, and blancmange might appear in front of your very eyes.
As for me? Well, I tend to prefer to stand just off stage, prompting from the wings so to speak. I have worked as a chef for many years, I have consulted on numerous restaurant openings, I have developed recipes and written columns in other peoples voices for some of our best-known newspapers, and I have written books about Sandwiches and Picnics with a very dear friend of mine. One day, much like Sia and Kanye West, I may switch from behind the mic to being out in front, but much more likely, just like the original shadow man, Bernie Taupin, I will slice and dice and tap away at laptop keys from the safety of my suburban garden shed. I like it out here.
Each week there will be a free newsletter that goes out on a Saturday morning. There will also be an accompanying set of recipes derived from what I’ve been reflecting on that week. In order to receive the recipes alongside the newsletter, you’ll have to be a paying subscriber, an honour I vouch to be worth much more than the monetary value attributed to it.
Why subscribe?
Subscribe to get access to the weekly newsletter.
Paying subscribers will gain full access to all newsletters, as well as all the recipes and additional thoughts that might accompany them.
Stay up-to-date
You won’t have to worry about missing anything. Every new edition of the newsletter goes directly to your inbox.
Join the crew
Be part of a community of people who share your interests.
To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.
