Shitake “Bitterballen”

A favourite bar snack in The Netherlands is Bitterballen. Small, round, deep-fried croquettes formed from bechamel sauce and meat, served with mustard, and usually accompanied by a drink. These days it is not unusual to find vegetarian versions, but the ones I’ve tried so far have been no match for the real deal. So I decided […]

Coconut Shortbread

In the 1930s, our Scottish great-grandmother collected and wrote down recipes throughout the war years in a thick, hardbound notebook. Rations made basic ingredients hard to get hold of. Inside the front cover, written in long hand and black ink it reads; “Where butter is mentioned, margarine is meant.” Today we made shortbread using coconut oil, rather […]