Delicious UK November 2019

RECIPES AND FOOD STYLING THE FOOD TEAMPHOTOGRAPHS TOBY SCOTT STYLING WEI TANG This Italian dish is a pastryless quiche – a cross between a flan and a soufflé. According to Italian food writer Antonio Piccinardi, the word sformato derives from sformare, which means to unmould. Middle Eastern-spiced nut roast with three-potato topping SERVES 10. HANDS-ON TIME 25 MIN, OVEN TIME 1 HOUR 20-25 MIN MAKE AHEAD Make the day ahead, keep covered in the fridge, then reheat until piping hot in a low oven to serve KNOWHOW Aleppo pepper, or pul biber is not-too-hot chilli flakes from the Middle East. Buy from Waitrose or souschef.co.uk. If you can’t find it, use a good-quality paprika instead. Purple sweet potatoes have a rich flavour and creamy texture. If you can’t find them,…

PORTRAIT: TREVOR LEIGHTON. PHOTOGRAPH: MAJA SMEND We’re doing Christmas slightly differently in 2019. Why? Because many of you got in touch last year saying you’d like more time to think about what you want to cook. I get that. Christmas needs more of a lead-in than other celebrations because we tend to set so much store by it, don’t we? When you ask, we listen, so welcome to Christmas part one, with a focus on fuzzy festive dreams and getting ahead. December (part two) is our Christmas & New Year issue, and the two magazines are designed as a set to give you celebratory inspiration in bucketfuls. And of course, there’s plenty you’ll want to cook and eat right now. Getting back to the planning bit, here is an insight…

THE GREAT INDOORS 1 A VISIT TO DENNIS SEVERS’ HOUSE , an 18th-century townhouse in London’s East End, is designed around the conceit that the family who inhabit it have just left the room before your arrival, with dinner left half eaten on the table. It’s never more atmospheric and mysterious than at Christmas, when it’s decked out in Georgian splendour. 45-minute Silent Night tour, 24 November to 6 January, selected evenings 5-9pm, £17.50; dennissevershouse.co.uk 2 THE GINGERBREAD CITY IN LONDON’S SOMERSET HOUSE Leading architects design futuristic buildings, parks and public spaces around the theme of transport, all out of their own home-baked gingerbread. Hands off, please, folks… 7 December to 5 January; thegingerbreadcity.com 3 HERTFORDSHIRE’S CHI-CHI MARKET TOWN St Albans is the home of the Campaign for Real Ale…

SUBJECT: HONEST LABELLING FROM: HARRIET HIGGINS I agree with Philip Lymbery [Oct, p146]: we need legal definitions of terms like ‘free range’ and ‘outdoor reared’ for all animals to prevent companies effectively telling lies about their products. Labelling should go beyond shop shelves. Many restaurants show calories on menus; why not reveal the welfare standards of what they serve? We need to encourage transparency. What YOU’VE been making... @ambia.kx Salmon & potato bake JOIN OUR NEW READER PANEL and have more of a say in your favourite magazine. From time to time, we’ll email you to ask you to take part in surveys on various aspects of the magazine, website, podcast and more. SIGN UP AT deliciousmagazine.co.uk/readerpanel Poll of the month We asked on Twitter: does pineapple belong on a…

PHOTOGRAPHS: GARETH MORGANS, STUART WEST. COVER PHOTOGRAPH: TREVOR LEIGHTON STAR EMAIL FROM: JAYNE DANIELS Christmas has never been a happy time for me. My dad died at Christmas when I was six years old and from that time Mum always found Christmas challenging. She also passed away at Christmas, nine years ago. What’s this got to do with Delia, you may ask... Well, I’m endeavouring to change my Christmases and make them a happier time for me and my loved ones, and I use Delia’s amazing Happy Christmas book every year. My Christmas wouldn’t be the same without it, and the recipes all work perfectly, from the planning to the execution. I’m attempting to move forward and make my own traditions – it’s not easy, but Delia is the backbone…

PORTRAIT OF MARCUS: SUSAN BELL. ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHS: ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES BACK TO MY ROOTS My father was a fruit and vegetable merchant in Lancashire and hated waste. Everything got eaten, and he never brought home more from the warehouse than we needed. Back then, meat and veg were cooked to death: parsnips were a killer; sprouts I struggled with. My mum was good at baking – apple pies for the freezer, a couple of victoria sponges. I would be there with her in the kitchen, rolling pastry and lining tins. Great fun. THE GOOD LIFE A couple of years ago, my wife Jane and I bought a place with some land in Kent. We have bees, an orchard and a kitchen garden. Getting back to the soil and seeing things grow…