Here at Charlie Bigham’s we thought it would be impolite not to join in the celebrations; after all Will and Kate are similar to every couple out there and with their busy future ahead they will certainly need some time out together over some delicious food. Rather than creating yet another piece of Wills and Kate memorabilia we thought it would be nice to make sure our customers could have the royal treatment too. So this month we have joined up with the wonderful Handpicked Hotels who are providing a 2 night stay in one of their luxuriously indulgent country house hotels. All you need to do is enter your details here for a chance to win.

Peter and Emily (our Twosomes couple) have also been having a little fun on our special edition Royal Fish pie and I hope that we’ve managed to raise a smile or two in the process. Rather than change a perfectly delicious and classic recipe we’ve kept the Royal Fish pie exactly how you all like it. Delicate smoked haddock and salmon in a creamy parsley sauce, topped with mashed potato and a crunchy cheddar topping. So wonderful we are hoping it may be making a guest appearance at a few Royal Wedding parties!

Whatever you may be up to over the Royal bank holiday have a fantastic time with lots of great food. 

As always please do let me know what you think.

Happy eating, 

Charlie

Mothering Sunday, originally a Christian festival, has been part of our calendar for several centuries as a celebration of motherhood. In today’s fast paced world where there are endless to do lists, looming work deadlines, school runs and supermarket trips,  the celebration is now all about giving mums the day off and a chance to put their feet up.  

So whilst mum might get breakfast in bed and a lovely card from the little ones , a nice relaxing dinner to boot might be a tall order in reality. So to help celebrate all the hard working mother out there we are giving away a special goodie bag from Charlie Bigham’s and Little Dish to help you relax on your special day. Our lovely cool bag with four Charlie Bigham’s dishes, a bottle of  fine wine, one of our stylish aprons and that all important Charlie Bigham’s magnetic shopping list note pad! Plus, some Little Dish goodies for the kids.

To win these wonderfully delicious meals, simply email me charliebigham@bighams.com  with your contact details, and while you’re emailing it would be great to find out where you like to do your shopping. The winner will be announced on my Facebook page on Wednesday the 30^th March so the goodie bag can be sent out in time for the Mother’s Day weekend.

All our dishes are made exactly how you would if you had the time. I hope you’ll agree they taste so home made you could even pass them off as your own. Mum’s the word!

As always, once you have tried one of our dishes we would love to hear what you think,

Charlie

Songbirds, peacocks and other such curious fillings may have been fit for King Henry VI, but this, as I am sure many of you are relieved, is now typically a flavour just associated with nursery rhymes and childhood stories.

Pies have been around for centuries and were originally invented as a way to carry food on long and difficult journeys. The tough and not very tasty crust enabled the food to be kept fresh for longer, to be easily transported and also helped maintain nutrients. Over the years however, pies in Britain have evolved into a variety of classic recipes where the style of pastry and the format of the pie is just as important as the filling. They have become a true part of British Institution, and when done well are simply to die for.

Nothing could be better than coming home on a cold blustery and grey day to a golden and buttery puff pastry top rising slowly in a glowing oven. The wafts of the mouth-watering ale rich gravy and carefully sealed beef welcoming you at the door.  A taste this great does take time and effort to get right and I know with all of life’s hurdles and daily responsibilities it is not always possible to find the opportunity. That is exactly why I began making my range of pies..

With National pie week in full flow why not treat you and your partner to a cosy night in this weekend. All you need to do is pop the pies in the oven, then sit back relax and spend the evening chatting to the one you love.

As always please do let me know what you think!

Charlie

This amourous day has been celebrated for over 7 centuries and it certainly has brought a lot of happiness over the years. However I am sure you may agree that the ‘event’ that is now Valentines has become quite a rigmarole. 

With the high streets laden with lavish gifts, pink hearts, over priced roses there is a plethora of ways in which you may topple over with the pressure of how to approach this one day each year. Have you brought the right present? Will they like it? Have you spent enough money? Not to mention the phone call’s of sorry sir we’re fully booked, and of course if you are lucky enough to find a restaurant reservation, tables a deux crammed into every nook and cranny.

Here at Charlie Bigham’s we believe that for the perfect Valentine’s there really is nothing better than a cosy night in; eating delicious food, chatting, laughing and simple enjoying each other’s company.

Life is already too hectic for any extra hassle on Valentine’s Day so treat your loved one to a Charlie Bigham’s special Valentine’s Steak & Ale pie. Prepared with all the care and attention you would if you had the time, and what’s more giving you back some time to pop some bubbly in the fridge, light the candles whilst it is browning nicely in the oven.

As always with my food please do let me know what you think (and if you can spot the difference on the new Steak and Ale pack!)

Whether you are energised from the fresh start to the year with healthy ambitions to cut down on your ‘wine cellar’ visits, taking up a new hobbies or maybe even life changing plans such as moving house or starting a family we would love you to add one more pledge to your list!

Here at Charlie Bigham’s it is our job and mission to help all the busy couples out there enjoy more what we call ‘Twosome’ moments. This is simply taking time out from busy schedules to spend time with your partner, catching up, chatting and laughing over some really lovely food. A pastime that slowly disappears as our lives are taking over by hectic work rotas, family life and other daily activities.

So all you need to do is put at least one night a week aside where once the kids are in bed or the laptops are switched off you sit down together and eat some delicious food. Furthermore with our wonderful range of delicious dishes you  do not even have to slave over the stove for that home cooked taste and fresh ingredients.

Why not try our deliciously delicate fish pie with our traditional homemade parsley sauce topped with creamy mashed potato and Cheddar topping. A wonderfully warming dish on a cold wintery evening! As always please do drop me a line and let me know what you think…

Good luck keeping up the resolutions!

We were welcomed into the chef’s kitchen with a delicious warm glass of Danish mulled wine, brimming with winter spices, splashes of various liqueurs all brought together with a gentle hit of chilli and cayenne. A perfect way to warm right through to your toes on these cold wintery evenings! We were then introduced to a smorgasbord of wintery ingredients laid out on the kitchen table – candied fruit peel, hazelnuts, brandy, spices, sultanas dried apricots, macadamia nuts and, of course, the wonderful candied whole orange for that ultimate Christmas surprise.

If you have not yet made your Christmas pudding, don’t panic as it is traditionally made on the first weekend in advent (4 weeks before Christmas) so you are just in time! What’s more Chef Torben has kindly sent me his simple 5 step recipe for the candied orange in case you would like to add a twist to your pudding this year:

1) Wash your the pith free tangerines or clementines (you can use small oranges instead)

2) Pierce a couple of holes in each fruit with a toothpick.

3) Place in a sauce pan and cover with a mix made up of orange juice and water

4) Add a spoonful of honey and Muscavado sugar, 2 cinnamon sticks, 2 whole star anise

5) Poach for 2 – 2.5 hrs

I am banking on my attempt at the Hidden orange Christmas pudding being worth even more than Heston’s – his was a limited edition of 25,000 and mine is a limited edition of 1. Any offers?

PS Do drop me a line to let me know what Christmas delights you are cooking up this weekend.

I think chillies are almost magical –  a simple ingredient but one that can transform a dish to a whole new level, lifting flavours and a providing a firm but gentle kick!  There is now an enormous range of chillies to choose from in terms of both size and colour. Over the summer I’ve been growing a few Hungarian Hot Wax (easy to grow and a good all round chilli) but I also enjoy the occasional foray into some of the more exotic varieties (maybe a small Bird Eye chilli, a Thai Pea Chilli, a Scotch Bonnet or even a nice smoky chipotle chilli from Mexico). If you really want to understand the world of chillies you need to check out the Scoville Scale, which rates every capsicum (all peppers and chillies) on a heat scale from 1 to 16,000,000! The great thing is however hot the chilli there is always a way to cook with it: go on be brave and try slicing up some Scotch Bonnets (Scoville 325,000) and mixing them with a little sugar and white wine vinegar: in my experience a surprisingly good side relish.

Here at Charlie Bigham’s we take our chillies pretty seriously and know that when we are cooking with them its important to get the right balance : not so hot that they mask flavour but also not too mild that they lack a bit of punch to get those taste buds tingling. The perfect Charlie Bigham’s dish to try and let us know if we’ve struck the right balance is our newly revamped  Green Thai Chicken Curry.  I think it packs the perfect punch whilst allowing you to taste all those wonderful fresh Thai flavours but let me know if you agree.

 A final tip for all you chilli loving chefs out there:  the strength of chillies vary between seasons (it’s all down to the amount of sun they get when they are ripening). In the UK this means there are plenty of mild chillies around in the summer (UK home grown and therefore almost invariably let down by the British Summer on their sun quotient) but as we move to the winter (and imported chillies) the heat tends to go up. Watch out for a bit of winter spice.

When did life change? Why are we all so frenetic, with a never ending list of tasks to do and places to go? I find that there is rarely a moment in the week when my feet touch the ground, let alone there being enough time to stop, relax, eat a proper meal and have a decent chat. All too often before we know it, the daily grind has created a list of looming work deadlines , long journeys to work, packed out social diaries and, for some of us, the additional joys of providing an endless taxi service for the kids! Does this all sound familiar?

A recent survey conducted on busy couples showed that 20% of couple relate to Ben and Karen’s hectic lifestyle from the TV show ‘Outnumbered’. I certainly know from my life (wife, four kids, dog, cat, terrapin, chickens …) that I feel a bit of empathy and  I am sure Peter and Emily would agree as well!

One of the fallouts from this is that people are finding less time to cook and enjoy a proper meal, at home with their partner. Only 30% of couples sit down together for even one meal in an average week (and even when they do more 10% of them are distracted by their IPhone, Blackberry or other gadgetry).

Well good news! Our new range of Charlie Bigham’s recipes is all about helping you steal back some time. With a little help from my chefs you will have time to prepare a truly delicious meal for you and your partner  - but without the time & hassle of preparing it from scratch.

What will you do with a bit of extra time? Sit in total blissful silence for a few precious minutes, read a bed time story to the kids, or maybe it will give you a moment to pop some wine in the fridge, lay the table and then relax with a good book.

Do let me know what you like to do with your ‘Stolen back time’ and of course, what you think of our food.

The great thing is if you choose the right magic ingredient it will transform an average meal into something delectably tasty and might even transport you to a wonderful imaginary setting in an idyllic location.

For me such an ingredient is a really good quality, artisan Spanish chorizo. Rich, smoky pork sausage piquantly flavoured with a mix of paprika, garlic and seasoning – the perfect balance of flavours and quality to take you away to the undulating hills of Catalonia. Close your eyes and a glass of chilled Fino appears in your hand, you breathe in the earthy smells of a rural village tapas bar, maybe you even hear a guitar strumming in the background …. There is no doubt that the quality and authenticity of the real McCoy might cost a little more but the results will be worth every penny.

Recently wandering around some of London’s brilliant food markets I have noticed an ever growing popularity of the Hot Chorizo sandwich, something I first came across in Borough Market next to the legendary  Brindisa shop (importers of all things Spanish). Simple ingredients, simply delicious and so easy I thought why not try this at home!

Fry off some whole chorizo halved length ways, grill some large pieces of juicy red pepper until soft (remember to peel off the skin once grilled!), pop into a fresh floury ciabatta roll with a handful of rocket and a dash of good quality olive oil y ya esta!

At Charlie Bigham’s you won’t be surprised to hear that we are pretty big fans of chorizo so if you’ve got no time to make your own chorizo sani why not try my smoky rich Catalan Chicken which I hope you will find as authentic and tasty. Delicious with some patatas bravas if you have the time or some freshly cooked rice if you’re in a hurry. And, of course, made all the better when washed down with copious quantities of a smooth and velvety ruby red Rioja!

If  you have a favourite ingredient you just could not live without, I would love to hear from you..

We’re also planning some brilliant competitions over the next few months so keep a look out on Ocado and in your local Waitrose. And if you’d like to be one of the first to hear the news from Bigham’s, make sure you sign up to our newsletter.

We hope you approve of our new look! As always we’d love to hear your thoughts so do drop us a line.