 So, hello, everybody, and a very warm welcome to the British Library Food Season event of Home Cooked. I'm Angela Clutton, I am the guest director of the Food Season, and I've been working with Polly Russell, who is the season's founder and curator, to put together a whole series of talks and events and discussions, but this is unique in the British Library Food Season because it's the only event we're doing, which is as much about the people who've just appeared on screen. Hello, Julian, hello, Lindsay. It's as much about these guys as it is about you, the audience, because we really want and hope that you guys are going to get involved and share your thoughts and experiences and tales and recipes and memories and hopes and dreams and aspirations and everything else in terms of home cooking. And Polly Russell has joined us, and I'm who I was literally just talking about, who in a very good way, I think Polly is just connecting to the internet. So we are really looking forward to having this conversation and to just seeing, you know, what you will have to contribute. Some people have written in with their thoughts and their stories already, which is lovely. And so as we go along, we're going to bring you guys up on screen. But if you haven't, but you do have something you would like to share. I keep saying share with the group like it's a kind of therapy session, and it may end up feeling like a bit of therapy session. If you do have something you would like to share with the group, it's not too late. You can pop into the chat your name and maybe because a little idea of what it is that you might like to talk about. And then Lovely Brack, who is behind that big red British library label, is going to be in charge of making it possible people to appear on screen and talk. But if you have a question rather than wanting to actually appear on screen yourself, you have a question for myself or for Lindsay or Georgina. I will introduce probably in a second. If you have a question, use a Q&A. So we're all pretty zoom savvy these days, but basically chat if you would like to contribute and maybe pop up on screen and share a story. Q&A function on Zoom if you just have a question. So Lovely Georgina, Lovely Lindsay, who have joined us on this Saturday late afternoon. She's going to do a little biox for you guys, but I'm sure that as we talk more and more will come out. Say hi. Hello. Hello, did that work? You're there. Georgina, you're there darling? I think Georgina is there. So, Lindsay Behar. You are brilliant, lovely. Okay, so Lindsay Behar best known for her daily after work recipes. First in the London evening standard for eight years and then 12 years at the time. At times and now writing a cookery column for the idler. Along the way she's brought up two sons, 15 cookbooks. I'm not sure what's harder, two sons or 15 cookbooks. And we'll talk much more about those books as we go along. Lindsay is working at the moment very much on her website and sharing food. That way is called My Week in Food. And if you head to LindsayBehar.com then there's a world discovery there about Lindsay's take on home cooking in terms of food shopping, cooking, eating shops, restaurants, recipes, loads of lovely home cooking stuff there. And Lindsay will talk much more about your work as we, as we crack along. Georgina Hayden, food writer and stylist from North London, it says very formally on my bio gear, kind of up the road for me. I'm not currently in North London at this second. Georgina, where are you coming? Thank you. So I'm just trying to sort out my internet connection. Do you know what? I've got to say, I think this is the most perfect start to the kind of chaos that home cooking can sometimes be about Georgina. I'm going to carry on talking about you, you go and sort yourself out. Food writer and stylist from North London, currently in Lancashire, grew up above her grandparents, Greek Cypriot restaurant in North London, keen interest in family recipes and nostalgia around food. For 12 years, she was working with Jamie Oden's team, developing a styling recipes before going solo and writing her own books, two books, stirring slowly or two books so far, stirring slowly and to burn a very much involved around family and the shared joy around food. She also writes columns for publications, including the Telegraph, Waitress Mag, Wine Society, and if you're a fan of Channel 4 Sunday brunch, then you will probably be familiar with Georgina popping up and talking about cookbooks and other things too. So these are our wonderful contributors to talking about home cooking. And so what we're going to do, I think is just kick off talking between us. And we will then bring in you guys Georgians. So you've got a little bit of time if you have want to have a think about something you'd like to say or indeed if you'd like to ask a question. Lindsay, I'm going to come to you first just to buy Georgina a little bit more time on the internet in case that you did. And Lindsay, the reason we, one of the reasons we wanted to do this event was because of the kind of nuts year we've had in terms of home cooking, not zero in so many ways, but home cooking has really become more important, more under the microscope, just more. Give us your take on the last year for you in terms of home cooking, but then also maybe your take on home cooking more broadly over what's happened. Well, I think that everybody's, I mean, we've heard about it, people making banana bread, then they're making sourdough. But basically, and also having to adjust their cooking to what they had because you couldn't get everything that you wanted it when you wanted it. So, for me, for example, every day I made soup for lunch because everyone's at home so you've got to have something and you can't just live on bread, and you might not have any bread. So, you know, anything and everything went into soup. And I know I've done a book on soup, and it's true, anything can become a soup and is very filling and satisfying. And then the evening meal, I would make something it's sort of really either big salads or comfort dishes, you know, things that big stewing things that lots of baked potatoes and lots of sausages. I'm a big sausage fan doing things with sausages. So, you know, that's how it's gone on for me. Did you think, Lindsay, that your home cooking changed through the lockdowns versus your home cooking pre lockdowns? Yeah, I mean, hugely because as you picked up on, you know, for years and years and years I've cooked and written and after work. Meal and so I'm constantly looking at something new and my inspiration was often just going food shopping, you know, just go down the high road and the fruit and veg stall and I love glut cooking, you know, you buy two kilos of tomatoes or, you know, squashy, whatever. And then you set to, but I haven't been able to do that because we haven't been able to go out. So there's been a lot of trying to get food online. You know, you're a Cardo slot if you were lucky. And buying, you know, I buying fish from Cornwall, meat from my butcher and my fishmonger actually delivered. So that was marvelous. You just order online and then you know, my inspiration has been a bit shaky because I haven't had that kind of, oh, look at that wonderful X, Y or Z. It's interesting isn't it? And George, I don't know how you feel about this. I felt that I was really, I have been really drawing on old faithful recipes. I have felt, and this is a terrible admission for someone who writes recipes for part of her living, I have felt very uninspired to come up with new ideas. I have felt myself leaning back. What about you? And also it's just comfort, because it was such a discompobulating, traumatic, huge, huge upheaval, such a stressful time for a lot of people. I think a lot of people wanted that comfort of, you know, replicating their mum's rice pudding or a Sunday roast or just they were, you know, people going back to what they know. And like Lindsay said, it was the fight for the Cardo Strux and it was all that melancholy, but at the same time, I felt like I learned a lot from that time. It wasn't necessarily inspiring at all, but it was a really interesting insight and actually I think how we should be doing more. Being frugal, using our store cupboard a lot more, being a lot, you know, for me, so I suddenly had gone from, you know, juggling work, childcare, whatever to having my husband home all the time working 24 seven, having a two year old and being heavily pregnant. And, you know, I had to feed us all, all the time. And that is really boring. Sorry, but it's really dull. You know, I love food. I like that food. Great. Suddenly you're just like, I am so bored of making the same thing and different things and wasting stuff and actually you just have to be clever and I really, I would never have called myself a frugal, you know, I'm not wasteful. I don't think of myself as a wasteful cook. But I suddenly became a frugal cook and that was interesting and I really enjoyed it. I became more addicted to not throwing stuff away. And that was really cool. I quite liked that. I think I had a bit of that as well, of sort of taking not maybe almost too much pride in wanting to kind of just keep evolving things around. Lindsay, I mean, just about your soups you just talking about because one of the things I love about soups in terms of home cooking is it's a lovely evolution of maybe things that you've had in a different me or things and your fridge is that what your soups were sort of an extension of other meals. And it was three inspirations one is Christ, you know there's all that food in the, in the vegetable drawer in the fridge that's, you know, the bendy carrots and the, you know, slightly going to see celery or whatever it is, making big vegetable soups like that. And also roasting stuff, just all the vegetables roasted and then liquidize and amazing, you know, and you usual spices and to just change the flavor a little bit. And the other thing is leftovers, you know, you've got last night's leftover stew, add a stock cube and a bit of water and you've got fabulous soup, you know, it's always good. Absolutely. So it's interesting. And don't want this conversation to just be about, you know, the pandemic and lockdown because I think that is so part of that. It's very, very interesting I think about how home cooking has been affected by and I think it's also interesting that we're all women talking about home cooking and I do feel that has been touched on it much more Georgina about having your two kids and your husband at home and you know I know you quit for a living but it sounds like you were the one doing the cooking and I think that there has been a real cultural thing or women sort of the roles almost going back to women feeling that they need to be the ones cooking or sorry Georgina you're gone. No, I completely agree more and you know I would say I, I would call myself a feminist, I'm quite vocal about what my opinions. And I, you know, I work, I juggle, I'm happy about that. But at the same time, completely I feel like I've gone back 60 years in the last year you know I've gone from this hard working queer woman juggling stuff travelling whatever to a housewife and it's really hard you know because and I mean I'm feeling like I'm getting off topic now from food but you know it is hard when you're juggling you know small children and my husband who is the breadwinner has to take president with the work, you know we're settling like what century, what decade am I in? This is really weird. I think a lot of people have felt that. Yeah and I really, I mean my husband's you know he's a good cook, he's fine and he really enjoys it. So for that reason we've got two daughters right so I'm like listen I'm not having them growing up just seeing Mummy cook because obviously it's my job as well so they do inevitably see me cook. So on the weekends I'm very much like well even if you're just making pasta, you're making it and that's cool because he enjoys it, it's not me telling him I'm not like a cow but at the same time I want them to see this well-rounded house. I want Mummy to be doing the DIY and Danny to be doing the pasta pesto because that is life but I think this last year has really made us, I don't know it feels like there's definitely been going back you know two steps forward five steps back a little bit. I mean that's what I felt, I don't like you guys. I think that's really right and I think also Lindsay one of the things I wanted to talk to you about was that your glorious condiment times which you know I was a huge you know fan of and just thought it was a remark correct me if I'm about to get this wrong in terms of explaining it for anyone who doesn't know but my impression when I was reading it was that it was every weekday you would have maybe 200 words or so to write an idea and a fully fledged recipe that people cook after work. And that evening or you know another evening they didn't have the stuff in and there was a lovely little sketch that went with it and it was really, really reassuring actually to kind of open it and see that recipe that is that a fair pricey of what. Very much so and actually when I started off as you said doing something similar for the evening standard and when I got that job, my sons were about nine and 11 or something like that around that age group and I just had to do it rooted in real life you know tonight we're having macaroni cheese with, I think I called them melting tomatoes you know roast tomatoes you know try and have something a little bit different going on, but I had a subtext to myself you know Mondays usually something either leftover or vegetarian meat free Monday. And, and then I try and not have chicken every night or not have, you know, a meat based thing every night, and that is how I did for 12 years I can't believe I did it for 12 years at the times. It's interesting that that was, I felt they were recipes for home cooking, having been out for a day's work. Yes. And now we're at a point where the idea of going out for a day's work has become so complicated and who knows what will ever really go back to people you know going into places five days a week. I'm just interested Lindsay in your, your take on that change really I suppose about the kinds of recipes you were doing for that commuter worlds versus where we are now in terms of home cooking. Well, I think it's still the same, you know you can get to sort of six o'clock ish and you think, you know what are we having. And you've got to, you can either sort of be cooking the day today for tomorrow which I think is a really good idea. You can cook for your freezer so you've got, you know, a spag bowl so ragu we call it now don't we in the in the freezer so you can whip that out and you can do something with that. You know, I mean, it's keeping imaginative and also being practical but but your point about whether it's, you know something you do at the last minute after a day's work whether it's in the house or out of the house. It's, it's a sort of balance you've got to give yourself a bit of space to be able to not have to cook every day, because you've done two lots, you know, or, you know where my kids were growing up I used to make batches of mints, you know, or whatever the sort of ragu sauce and freeze it in batches and they would have it every night and not realize that they were having the same thing because it's disguised you know with as lasagna or, you know stuffed aubergines or whatever. So, you know, cooking today for tomorrow I think is quite a good one. I've got a title for a book that cooking today for tomorrow. I know I have thought of that as a title. And just remind all I'm going to stop calling the audience so I want you to all to be contributing but for the people who are watching and listening to us as we're chatting, we are in a little while going to becoming to you guys who want to join in say something so please do you use the chat I'm trying to if I look distracted because I'm trying to kind of read the chat at the same time as talk and work out what we're doing and Georgina can we talk a little about Jamie Oliver. Yeah, because you'd have 12 years. And, yes, and what home cooking. He feels that the work that you as a team and Jamie's the figurehead have become culturally so important to home cooking. Absolutely when we were talking before there's so you know about after work and stuff so I was, you know, I only left a few years ago, and I was there when we did Ministry of Food. That was a really interesting one actually and actually spent some time in the British Library looking through old cookbooks looking at, you know, the Ministry of Food during the war. You travel around the country and different people's finance and teaching and spent time with WI to things like the 15 minute meal books, you know the 30 minute meals and 15 minute meals and I don't know about now but I know for a long time when I was there they were the best sellers you know they were the best sellers. And it just says a lot doesn't it like we all in the food world as food writers, food stylists, people that work in food publications we all want to work on those beauty books where we get to go to Italy, you know, I've done those books they're amazing they're the ones that keep you doing the job, you know the magic around Sweden or America where the ones that actually sell the ones that people want to read, you know is interesting they want the 15 minute meal ones they want the ones that cheat in them or quick things because as you know it's not exciting and it's not reality that's reality that's real life we want things that we can do quickly and don't think about so much so. As a food writer it was really interesting to see what people gravitated towards and what was interesting and what was the demand is for. And I still you know it's still it is still things like I get home from work, I have one two four seven months to feed, what can I do quite quickly, quite efficiently and expensively and at the end of the day for all the you know beauty books which you know I've written one by that I mean a cuisine, you know I went to Cyprus my book and it's all about my family and our restaurant and our history. At the same time. Yeah, that one, yeah. Just happen to have that on my little bookshelf. Also, we're going to talk about this later. It's an amazing book in Praise the Potato which I completely The first book. Linda's first book for 15 years. But sorry to go on to Verna. No. Like you know we all want to write their lovely books to lose yourself in and they're inspiring sort of weekend cooking and stuff at the end of the day. I think everyone has a repertoire of X amount of recipes. In the evening, I'm going to do salmon and coconut rice 15 minutes done you know we all want those recipes and it's just it was really interesting working with him and you know I think he's the most amazing guy and I still think he's brilliant. I love the idea of the truth I think for most people is exactly said it that most people have a repertoire of a couple of things. And if any of us in our working life managed to get anyone to add a couple of ours into that repertoire then I feel that's an incredible aspect of our job, hugely Dream of having something which I've written which becomes any part of someone to record. But I think there's sometimes that people who make cookbooks, they don't live their life that way that we're all, you're all doing incredibly exciting different things every single night and let's burst that bubble, perhaps. Lindsay, are you doing completely exotic, exciting, different things from all different regions of the world every single night. Not every single night. No, sometimes I have baked beans but lately I've been adding noduja or harissa to my baby beans and turning them into something a bit spicy and interesting with a couple of poached eggs and some grated cheese on the top. Wonderful, favorite meal. But because for so long, I was coming up with something slightly different to sort of twist on a fish pie, for example. I still, I still can't resist doing that, you know I drive myself mad, you know, which is why I'm very keen on cooking for the freezer, even if it's just roasting a load of tomatoes and making a tomato sauce, put it in the freezer. You know you've got that to have with some pasta and you can put a bit of pesto on it. It's interesting actually because my sons are now both grown up. And I have two grandsons who are the age that my sons were when I first started doing this after work type column. And I wrote to them and said, you know, what do you remember, you know, what, what do you remember of those days. And one of them I was absolutely amazed he listed all his favorite dishes. And at the end he said the thing is mom, all my friends think of cooking supper every night as a as a bore, a chore. And what you instilled into us is to take pleasure in the preparation and the presentation so a little bit of I always got a bit of parsley or a bit of something just to tweak it up a bit, prompts it up a bit. And it just, you know, makes it a bit special. How lovely that they feel that they felt. And actually another good tip is both of them worked in restaurants including the river cafe when Jamie was there. And they, you know, I think that's a brilliant thing for boys to do to work in a restaurant even if it's as a washer up or a waiter anything at all, because they learn not just from their mother or their father, you know, clear up after yourself, you know, they learn to be tidy and organized. Really good tips. Yeah. And I think that's very interesting thing. I can, I can go on. You go. No, just my husband was a KP when he was in late teens and you know, he doesn't, I'm my end also then I'm sure what I'm saying they're not particularly foodie family. And he, yeah, he was in a local pub washer up her and I think that is, I, you know, I never really put into together but as soon as you said that I thought yes, that makes total sense in terms of his cooking manner and his appreciation also his way his mom's putting him up. But yeah, I definitely think that's a really bad point actually. Yeah, I mean, as a mother you're nagging them about, you know, so much all the time anyway, if someone else is nagging them about clearing up, you know, and it's useful. If someone follows judging on Instagram, you can see how judging it feels like you very much sort of wrap your food life around family life and your two girls, and your, your eldest girl how old, how old is she now. She's almost four. And do you involve her in the cooking. I always have done and more so in lockdown obviously because she was at home with me for so long. And she loves it, you know, I'm really, really aware that because of lockdown she got really involved and I get to lay the table for each meal and stuff like that which is lovely. I'm also really aware that I grew up in a very foodie house, I grew up by the restaurant, my family are completely food centric. And it might, you know what, it just might not be her reality. And I sort of thought that the day I was like, I want her to grow up appreciating food knowing how to cook for herself, know how to cook after herself. I'm also really aware that was I plan my days out in London or where I'm going about which restaurant I want to eat at. So that's, that might not be what she wants from life. I can't keep pushing that, you know, I've been able to do it once they were small, but they're getting to the point now where they're like, I really don't care if someone has handmade that cluster, or if it's my deep freezer, you know, like, I sort of have to whilst I feed them well and I think they have a really good diet. And I also have to chill out a bit because it was getting to the point where I was like, because, you know, when they're little they eat really well. I was like, oh my God, why do you not appreciate what you were eating. This is the most beautiful piece of whatever weird pork. She's like, I don't, you know, she just doesn't care because she's full and she might not care when she's 14 and at the same time it's one of those things as someone who is very food centric. You just have to be really careful, I think, especially with kids and, you know, pushing on them. But at the moment she loves it. She loves a TV show called My World Kitchen, which is on CBVs, and it's super cute. And they get the kids to cook from there, you know, over their family at home. And it just means that, like you were saying, Lindsay, she always lays the table and that's become a really big part. So even if we're just having jacket potato with tuna and cheese and beans and all that stuff. She lays the table for any meal and it's super cute. She's got a drawer that's low down in our kitchen with her plates and things I don't think she's mismatched. And I'm like, go on Persephone, go and get the plates. It does mean we end up eating off a lot of plastic plates, but okay, it's really nice. That's brilliant. I could carry on just chatting to you two, but I feel we need to let's embrace some of the stories that are going to come from other people. So first up, I've got a little running order of things come up. So I think first of all, Bonnie is going to come and talk to us. I think I'm hoping, oh yeah, Brett's so on this. Right. So Bonnie's camera will hopefully burst into life in a second as well, Bonnie's audio. Hi. Hello, Bonnie. Hello. Thank you so much for joining us. It's really lovely to see you. You're welcome. So you sent me a note. Do you want to talk about the note that you sent? I just sent a note because when I was first married, and I didn't really know much about cooking, and most of the budget was pretty tight. I discovered Katie Stewart in The Times newspaper. And I found her recipes not full of amazing ingredients, but full of amazing flavor. And they were easy to do. And I became hooked on them. And I bought a cookbook of hers called Cooking for Two. And it became the family Bible. And when my sister and I got married, I gave her a coffee. And one of my daughters got married, I gave her a coffee. And my youngest daughter felt left out. So she searched the internet for a copy for herself and for her sister. And we have many family favorites that come from that particular book. We discovered Stovies. Love a Stovie. Now, Bonnie, not everyone might know what a Stovie is. What's a Stovie? Well, when you have some leftover lamb, you layer it with potatoes and onion and stock and cook it for an hour. And it's just, oh, it's amazing. And also she has a really good recipe for oatmeal stuffing. Everybody in the house liked it except one of my daughters. And my husband bet her five pounds at the time that she would like it by the time she was 15. And she didn't. And she insisted on getting the money from him. I wonder if she did secretly, but she just wanted to. She turns her nose up by the still. And there's this lemon pudding that she had on one of her television programs that every time I make it, I get excited, because you put the cake mixture in the bottom. And then you pour lemon juice, corn flour and you pour it over the top of it, and you put it in the oven. And when it cooks, the lemon juice goes to the bottom. And the cake rises to the top and it's absolutely to die for. Wow. Amazing. And Bonnie, are these dishes that you, are you still making these things? Yes. Wow. I'm making them, my children are making them. It's really, she really lifted me up. Her recipes weren't over complicated. They weren't over expensive. And they were well explained. Yeah. Absolutely love it. And I think that fits with something that Georgina was just saying about the James books and that what people want are things which are maybe not full of, you know, all these different worlds of ingredients. But really connect with how people want to eat and how they want their families to eat. And I love that, that there's gone through different members of the family in different generations. Yeah. Now, my husband does the cooking. And I sit back and watch. And we took up the habit that my mother used to have. We read cookbooks like other people read a novel. You know, just sit down and read the cookbooks. So we have a large selection that we still come back to Katie Stewart. Lindsay, was she, I'm going to maybe insult somebody now and if I'm about to really forgive me because I don't know when Katie Stewart was writing for the times. I'm in my 70s. And it was when I was in my early 20s. Okay, so, so obviously a good, a good, well, not good. They're not the same time as you Lindsay, obviously. Oh, no, no, no. No, she, she was, she was a long, long time before me. There are several that after Katie Stewart, but I mean she's a really trust. She was a really trustworthy down to earth sensible cook that never. I mean, she did do television, didn't she? And she was well known, but she didn't sort of get the, we're not as, she's not as well known as Delia, for example. And she was at the same time as Delia, possibly a bit older, I don't know exactly, but yeah, a very trustworthy as you've explained that sounds wonderful. I'm now going to seek out what's a good one to get, Bonnie. What is the title of the book that you've passed around the family? Cooking for two. You'll have a lot of trouble getting it because it's out of print. So you have to be lucky if it shows up on Amazon one day. Well, I bet the British Library will have it. I'm going to. Yes. Forget about the British Library. You see how we knit everything together. Bonnie, that was really, really lovely. Thank you so much for sharing it with us. And I have discovered something that I didn't know for it. And I've, right, I didn't know before and I maybe other people have too. So that's really generous of you to share. Thank you so much. You're welcome. And so right now, the next person we go to have hasn't made I don't think it's Brett Stella here. I'm assuming Stella's not here. So I'm going to give her a few more minutes in case she does pop up. Otherwise I'm going to read hers out because it's really, really lovely. And I think we'll enjoy it. So rather than Stella, let's go. I feel like Eurovision weekend is now suddenly feel like I'm doing Eurovision. We don't have the books from France. So let's instead, let's instead go for Mary. Sorry, brown jumping around. It's going to be Mary Gibson and Mary's contribution isn't specifically about a food memory or something, but Mary wanted to talk to us about something else to do with home cooking. Hello, Mary, you there. Can you hear and see me. We can. Nice kitchen. Yeah, it's new, but there's not much cooking going on at which I've come to. I hope I can keep focused here because I'm almost desperate to say these things. I never thought I'd be one of those people who wouldn't cook much if they were on their own. But I am. Because you do need people there to eat your food as you were saying. And I still wanted to share an interesting cooking and express it. So I looked around for what I could do before the lockdown. And I couldn't find anything that was right for me. I just couldn't, you know, I know there's lots of small groups have started charities and special interests and all that, but I couldn't find what I needed. So I did start a little cookery club. And it was enjoyable, which was the main aim. But it wasn't. I mean, we used to meet about once a month and do something and hear something and talk about something. I don't have a guest speaker, you know, maybe a beekeeper or I tried to get flow off the bake off, but well, anyway. But, you know, I knew that I would love to see, you know, much bigger talks and wider, you know, maybe meet in historic kitchens, whatever. I came to the conclusion that what we needed and I couldn't believe that it didn't exist was a sort of like the Royal Horticultural Society only for cooking instead of gardening. I don't, I can't find anything like that. So I have must admit I've been writing to people trying to see if I can connect or find out whether something like that is going on. And, you know, some people have been encouraging, which makes me think it is a good idea. And really that that's what I want to do connect with those people that you know I'm not aware whether I could maybe have a role, although, you know, I can think of lots of things that I would like them to be doing. And so really I would like to ask whether anything like that is going on. Interesting thing, George, I'm going to bring you in on this, because I think that Mary, and it's lovely to hear from you. Thank you for joining us. And I think you're touching on a few things which are really interesting. And certainly over the last year, I feel that a real lens has been put on the importance of home cooking. We talked about it, you know, in our initial conversation and how meaningful home cooking can be also quite daunting and other things as well. But there can be real reassurance to be had in sharing home cooking experiences, which I think is what you're talking about. And Georgina, I'm interested to get your take on that and sort of the wider importance of connecting through home cooking. Yeah, it's an absolutely brilliant idea. I don't think anything like that exists on a really massive scale. I guess the only thing that you could maybe like it to and I could be wrong, maybe I'm misinterpreting what you're saying is something like the WI in that, you know, connection, that's just women, or maybe it isn't anymore, I don't know. But you know, it's a sort of connection and we have the Guild of Food Writers, which is the Guild for people who write about food. But I think it's absolutely brilliant idea. And one of the things I've, you know, I'm sure we've all noticed in lockdown are communities and things coming together in small areas. Even in the borough in London that I live in, there's there's loads going on. There's the church down the road, they've got a community cafe, but as well as being a community cafe, they feed vulnerable people, people who need, you know, who on their own. I know another thing that I do is I volunteer with a charity and I host tea parties for elderly people that are on their own. So that's something that happens once a month. And I guess there's so many different branches of stuff like this that do exist, but they're all on a local level, aren't they? So I think like a Guild, another sort of Guild that isn't just for food, you know, isn't those of us that are employed within the industry, but it's for everybody. That would be amazing. Well, someone has written in, Mary, I have to say everyone who's watching is loving this idea. Great idea. So it is. And someone has written in saying that they'd love to join a Guild of Home Cooks. Yeah. We're going to call. Not necessarily, not just for everybody I'm thinking really, I mean, one of the things that has struck me and we've all had so much time to think about these things is how much people want to do the right thing, psychologically. Now, an umbrella organization for everybody that was interested in food, amateurs and professionals, I'm thinking, you know, could collaborate in so many ways. I mean, one of the, and one of the things that I like about my club is that this youngsters come to it, you know, I don't think youngsters get the opportunity. I can't believe there is, you know, any hobby that you have, whether it's flying or swimming or whatever, has an organization doesn't it that promotes it, but young people are interested in food. I don't see anything. Mary, I run. I run a cookbook club bar market. Yeah, you might enjoy. That's very multi-generational. We have a really lovely mix of people who take part in that we're doing it online at the moment, but we will go back to doing real life events and we have, you know, it's not certainly not, you know, and the kind of scale of national thing that you're, you know, hoping what happened Mary but we have like 1000 members and we gather together in small groups or in larger groups and if you I want to promote something that I'm doing in an awkward way but you might enjoy it if you head to the Bar market website. You'll see the cookbook club there and that might be something that you find interesting but I really feel you've touched a bit of a real point of interest of people who are watching. A lot of people who are writing on the messages Mary saying how much they think people going wonderful idea wonderful idea. Influences. Really, you know, it's true that something like this does need a leader, you know, and I'm not saying, you know, you should do it but it does need a leader. But, you know, whenever I mention it people do think it's a good idea. And I'm going to, if I may just say one more thing that is a sort of tag on idea which is, you know, all these debonyms are going to be pulled down before they can be brought up as what we need which is a really good food hub in each town and city. I mean I know we've been buying online and everything and you know found some great suppliers, but not everywhere has a great market and I know some northern towns have great markets and everything but I'm thinking, if you had a hub, you know, it would include the sort of things that they have a blood glow and, you know, touristy things but also a really good way of supplying food to local, you know, where there was a, I mean farmers markets don't really do it for me or but they could be done a bit differently and they I feel I know what you're saying with that and the idea of learning empty. I live in Palmer's Green, which is heartbreaking high street at the moment because there's so many places that are closing down big, you know, units of shops that are just getting empty and as you're talking, you know, you're getting slightly emotional thinking about, you know, how can I turn one of those into some sort of, you know, local community food hub where I am going to move on but I think you've really sparked something with people and hats off to you for wanting to get this idea out there and talk about it and see if you can stimulate momentum for it and I'm really grateful to you for joining us today. I'm really grateful to you. Thank you for joining us, that was really lovely. Thank you Mary. Lindsay, what's your feeling on. Well, I live in Chiswick in West London, and what I've noticed actually like you my high street is a really depressing place. So many shops have closed down. It's beginning to liven up a bit now but it's been devastated. However, we've got lots of new food markets. I live very close to Chiswick House and there's three, three weekends a month. There's a huge food market there, you know, everything that you can possibly think of. There's now some people local cooks have just started a cheese market. I mean, it's, there are very good bakers. I can't complain about the food but I don't know of any organization locally that anywhere near fits Mary's idea. I mean I think Georgina's likening it to the WI is the closest I can think of but maybe it's a Jamie initiative. I'll put it to the big man, see what he says, his next project. Seriously, it's a great idea. It is a lovely idea. You know, we're all realizing the importance of community in different ways in online communities, real life communities. I think that's one of the things that has come out of all this and also home cooking is that to bring all that together is potentially really exciting for people. So very many people who live on their own, you know, and just it's really hard. It's really what we're saying earlier, how hard it is to kind of keep up inspiration momentum when you when you're cooking for people cooking on your own. I know that my mom when she was on her own, you know, she just she cooked all her life for us as a family and then just, you know, not. And I think those people could really benefit from something like that. And weirdly as well, you know yourself that if you for whatever reason you stop cooking, you lose confidence very easily, don't you? Really quickly. It's extraordinary that. Interesting. Or if something happens, you know, something happens in life or, you know, I went through a traumatic event and then I basically stopped cooking for a while and I told you know it can be anything it can be so many things can affect people's confidence or situations. I think absolutely honest. It's been recorded. Yeah, it is actually. Yeah. Okay, cool. You could send it off to people afterwards. Let's move on because we have other people who are hoping to join in which is lovely. I'm going to go for Jane Boo Brett Brett behind the British Library sign. If we can bring Jane up. This is going to take us in a bit of a different direction. Everyone's been very good with their cameras and things and going to all work. Hello, Jane, thank you for joining us. Hello. It's lovely to be here. The thing I personally I'd like to say based on what you've just been talking about it was not what I was originally. I just want to say I live alone. I've always lived alone and I cook all the time for myself. I have a collection of over 500 cookery books. So I may be unusual, but I just want because I get I hear a lot about people saying I live alone so I don't want to cook and I just want to be putting the word for the people who live alone who actually cook. Good for you, Jane. I mean, that's brilliant. And I think you're really right. You know, it's not helpful to lump, you know, people into one generalization. And so I think that's a really, really good point to make. Try, you know, when I do, I mean, because I just love, I mean, I love food and I love cooking and I try stuff and I will buy things and I will go online to buy stuff. If I can share it with other people, fantastic. But if I don't, then I, I, I freeze, I freeze it. But I mean, the last year, I've been more likely to be up in my pajamas doing some cooking to relieve my stress. And has it worked? Do you find it relaxing? Yes, I do. It's been great. But yeah, so I just wanted to say that wasn't, but I also want to say, I think my family is probably quite unusual in the fact that my father was a very keen cook. And in fact, apparently he could cook when my parents got married, my mother couldn't, because he came from a family had a step mother and apparently the one thing she was happy for him to do was go in the kitchen. Whereas my mother went to boarding school and then lived at home, she was a vicar's daughter and they hadn't. So she never did. I mean, she was actually very good cook, but she was never particularly interested. So even though my father was the senior manager in a multinational company, because he cooked to relax, I was always had a man in the house who cooked and did the most exciting. He took all the cooking and shopping because he said otherwise he would just never eat because my mother would be out in the garden or reading a book. So I think I'm unusual to have that. But I can remember as the child he used to he went to work in India for a while and came back actually with cookery book that he bought in India. So we were having curries cooked at home in Manchester and I've got it. I don't know whether you can see that. And I know it's back to front, but that's the actual book. It's called Hindu cookery. I know it's the Camry and it was published in India in 1963. So he brought that back. Can we have a quick look inside? Could you maybe open a couple of pages for us? Yes, if you can. Yeah, absolutely. I'm trying to find some. I mean, it's very thin. So yeah, it's sort of, I'd say it'll all be back to the front. Okay. Any sketches or anything in there at all, Jo? No, because it's obviously it's very thin paper and there's no illustrations at all. But very, so like for instance, I mean very detailed instructions about how to prepare rice and wash rice and clean it and such. Fantastic. Although it's interesting to see in the sort of books, you know, they always have, they always advertise other books in the front. And they actually include some delicious dishes without meat by Ambrose Heath. I think it's still how to make sweets, candies and fudge by Ethel and Phaeron. So it's quite interesting that those books were being published. But I was just going to say our favorite, favorite meal after a roast leg of lamb, which I'm fairly sure they got from House and Gardens because they were quite aspirational. My parents was lamb in white wine sauce, which I always thought was in white wine sauce until my brother broke it to me. And I think it's fascinating that apparently they cooked it in woodpecker cider. When you sent that note through earlier, Jane, that actually made me laugh out loud. I thought it was absolutely brilliant. It was still delicious, I have to say. Sure. And the other thing was, I mean this is back, but one of the things I can remember doing, and this sounds horrendous when I think about these poor people. My parents would have parties at home. When I was about five or six, the job I would be given would be to make frosted grapes. And I think the grapes must have been peeled. But then I had two bowls and sticky fingers and I would dip a grape in a bowl of raw egg white then in castor sugar. And it was then left to dry. And these were apparently eaten by these poor people. No doubt with me licking fingers and such like in between. And these frosted grapes, when were they like to go with the drink or were they? I think they were the go with the coffee and something at the end of the meal. Delicious. I might have to try that. We never got any reports of, well I never heard any of our guests coming down with them. The groups just got slowly smaller and smaller. People said, yeah, don't go around there. Yeah, so it's just things like that. My mother always had tummy problems and she used to make her own Christmas cakes and mincemeat. But she got told by somebody, I had this idea that all the dried fruit needed to be chopped. But she clearly didn't. We must have had one of those mincers because I was, and I checked this with my brother and he agreed it was true. Every Christmas for a few weeks beforehand, our job while sitting watching television genuinely was to cut every single piece of dried fruit in half. But like what kind of dried fruit do you do? Fultanas, raisins, currants. We're cutting Fultanas in half. We would be stacked in front of the television. That is one way to keep your kids out of trouble, isn't it? I checked with my brother because I thought, really, did we really do that? I mean, he made the best Christmas cakes. I have to tell you, they were fantastic. But yeah, we cut every single piece of dried fruit in half. Wow. That is completely incredible. Jane, thank you so much for that. Lovely to have you with us and really lovely to hear those little stories. Thank you so much. Thank you. And interestingly also what Jane said about the pleasure of cooking for one has sparked much agreement with that thought on the chat, which is really interesting. It just shows, doesn't it? But it's so easy to kind of say, like I was saying about my mom, you know, when she was on her own, she really kind of fell out of love with cooking. But there's an awful lot of people who, and we all find pleasure in cooking, but if you live on your own, you can still have an enormous pleasure in home cooking. And I think we're really, as a society, we're getting better and better with the idea of self care without sounding too much like a cliche or very sort of millennial, whatever. We are getting better the day of self care. And whilst eating well shouldn't be seen as self care. I think there is that element, especially on your own. And I know when I've lived on my own or whatever, or cooked for myself. Yeah, of course, it's really tempting just to put some toast in and have some cheese on toast or whatever. But actually, when you make the effort. So in my first book, I actually wrote a chapter on meals for one, because it is it's really important and it is that idea of just looking after yourself, even if it is a bowl of soup, or one of my four back things is noodles. I find noodles very quickly needed to cook for myself. And I think I say, and my sister's the same she lives on her own and she's in her 40s now and and you know she she she she limits she's not the best cook she's like very happy with an M&S ready meal. But even that there's nothing wrong with that you know like she always takes up she does this little thing on Instagram and it's like, of course, it really doesn't matter if it's one 10. It's all about looking after yourself isn't it and actually more so in your own. Yeah, Lindsay. Well, you just as you talk I'm remembering my younger brother went through a sort of very bad period. And he lost self esteem and, you know, living on his own terrible state and somebody said to him, stop by making yourself a little fruit salad for breakfast. And the the act of preparing everything halving the grapes, slicing the banana, whatever it's think of it as, you know, you're doing something for yourself. And I think that that's a very good base point to come from particularly if you're on your own you're looking after yourself you know it doesn't have to be complicated it's just but make yourself a nice little, whatever it is. That's so interesting. And we're coming up to the last 15 minutes and so in a moment we're going to go for questions have been coming in rather than people who would like to contribute so if anyone does have a burning questions that they would like. Please pop it into Q&A it's easier if you pop it into Q&A rather than into chat because in the chat it might get lost in all the lovely feedback of the people contributing so if you have a question try and pop it into Q&A there'd be better chance of me seeing it. Stella sadly hasn't made it but I'm going to read Stella's out, not the whole thing but I'm going to give you a flavour of it because it's really lovely so. And that's Stella is it, Brett is Stella's here please feel free to bring her up and make Stella appear. So, Stella's story is about cheese and onion pie. I'm dying to ask that oh she's northern so I'm like Astrid and for me, cheese and onion pie is a real Lancashire dish. So, I'm betting that Stella's family are Lancashire and I will ask her on the email afterwards. But so she's talking about her nan's cheese and onion pie and this sort of years of pursuit of her and her family trying to find the recipe because they didn't have the recipe. And so they kept trying out different recipes for cheese and onion pies to get to the one that was closest to their grandmother's one. And this is a lovely story I wish Stella was here, this lovely kind of story of trying different ones and cheese flans and quiches and trying those snippets of magazines and different cookbooks and this sort of new pursuit of their grandmother's cheese and onion pie. And then eventually they found it in a recipe book and so essentially and then suddenly there's this lovely story about trying all these cheese and onion pies and really wanting to kind of connect to their grandmother's recipe. And suddenly we found a small rather unassuming snippet that had been cut out from magazine and been written on a sign it was used and tried so they found it within their grandmother's things. And they followed the recipe and as soon as it came out of the oven we knew it was the right one. And so we recognised the cheerful golden crust on top bubbling away as it emerged, where we tasted of course we knew we'd hit the jackpot. And we've transported back to my noun's kitchen where any new visitor will be immediately plied with food. And so thanks to the recipe the cheese pie and of course my name live on. Wonderful. Can you tell me as a Lancashire girl what goes in how do you make a cheese and onion pies. I can't say this completely really I've never made one. Well I haven't either that's why I've got my cast in in laws. And, well, I don't think my mother in law makes it but we've definitely eaten our fair share of them. But I feel like this potato. Yeah, it's quite thick. I feel like it's potato based. And it's like chopped up and I thought there's obviously cheese I think it is literally like how you do a meat and potato pie, but instead of meat, it's got cheese. Because cheese can melt badly can't it, you know, or Lancashire it would obviously be a Lancashire. Right I'm attempting to share my screen. Because we got pictures. Wow, that looks gorgeous. And there's a recipe to. Do you think there are eggs in there? Yeah, I reckon. Let's see. See if I can make this bigger. Oh no I don't think there are two eggs. Yeah. You have a good eyesight. I'm literally like that on the screen though aren't I? Yeah. Oh she hasn't got, say so. That's interesting. Because the one I'm picturing is a pastry, the ones we're not, when you say cheese and onion pie, in my head they're pastry, the ones we've had are pastry tops. Yes. Was that to me more like a quiche? Yeah I think that's right. Yeah like a flan like it says. That sounds lovely. But what a lovely story. I love that story. Although I did think you were going to take a turn. And I thought you were going to tell me, I thought it was going to be like a moniker and friend situation where Phoebe's grand cookie recipe is this insane cooking recipe and moniker makes all the cookies in the world and it ends up being in the back of the Nestle record or something. Actually, you know, Greg's cheese, onion. And then our Bessie's and they never knew. Yes. Right I'm going to go to a couple of questions. I'm loving this. It's just so nice. So right so Jacqueline Robinson says she has a serious cookbook habit, which has got more pronounced over lockdown. This is Jackie speaking. I will never live long enough to cook all the dishes I want to try. Any tips on thinning a cookbook collection. How do you decide which is a keeper, Lindsay, looking at those shelves behind you. This is nothing I have thousands and thousands and thousands of cookbook I really do. And I don't know how to thin them. I just love them like you I love them and I like, was it Mary who said that they read cookbooks like a novel I to do that and I have got to have an omelette and a glass of wine by Elizabeth David it's her writings a book of her writings. And if I'm feeling really fed up with being a cookery writer which can happen. I go and read that and she makes me laugh out loud, you know, it's, she's a writer who's into food and cooking obviously, and just real pleasure so I can't possibly help on this I don't know how I'm going to put the question a different way then Lindsay, you obviously love cookbooks and you won't part with them. How do you, when there are so many cookbooks, how do you choose which ones to bring into your collection. Ah, hmm. Well, that might be a write up by somebody else or I, you know, I get sent stuff by publishers and I think oh that sounds nice so you know, get that one. This is a weird thing to say I don't if you have this Georgina I use my own cookbooks more than any others. It's fascinating isn't it well it's not, it's a fact. Yeah, because it's the way you know it is so innate to you isn't it. Yeah. So much about how your cookbooks are a reflection of how you actually live and cook that's wonderful. And, you know, when I, I got into being a cookery writer you know doing that potato book, having been a restaurant critic for many years. So, I, my, my initial collection was built up you know for example Claudia Rodin, I learned how to make dolmades from from, whether Lebanese ones but you know to stuff a vine leaf from Claudia Rodin and how to make couscous and, you know, it's just if I would go somewhere eat something and think how on earth do you make that and talk to myself to cook like that. So, Georgina any tips on how Jacqueline might be able to thin her collection. Well, I just think that I've got quite a big bookshelf in my kitchen and I've got loads of cookbooks and I'm doing this cookbook club Sunday brunch I get sent lots of cookbooks which is from publishers which sounds like I can actually enjoy and it is and obviously it's a privilege but I just get sent too many that I just can't keep hold of them or I can't and I know I would love to. But there are so many so the way I do it is I have some rotation, so I have all my favorites that are out all the time. And then I have a shelf and then I have a shelf at the end of the island, and that has all the new releases, and all the ones that maybe I haven't really had a chance to look through yeah or whatever. And the way I do it is if I've had something for a certain period of time and I felt like I just haven't gravitated towards it, and I haven't read it maybe by how you used it. I then put it in a box and that box goes in storage in the loft in the cupboard or whatever. And then if like a year later I still have no reference for it, then I will give it away to someone who I think would enjoy it. And maybe is interested in that kind of food or cooking or whatever so it's just it's I keep hold of stuff for quite a long time and and I kind of do the same thing with my daughter's toys right so she's growing up. If I feel like she hasn't played that doll I'm quite ruthless I can't be doing with crap everywhere so if I feel like she's been playing something for quite a while, I will then hide it for a month from her. If she doesn't ask for it, it then goes to charity shop you know and it's kind of the same with cookbooks like I have all the ones I go back to all the time. I love to have thousands of books everywhere the reality is I could, but I'm just never going to use them all so whilst I'm definitely not ruthless I still have a lot I do have to go through them quite frequently. I need to do a bit more about I have just my study floor is basically all the books it's ridiculous. And I just find it's so hard to get rid of anything because I just think I might need them for some reference. It's a reference thing I agree. It's I find it's so hard and we you know we have a small in North London that there is some there really isn't the space and so it is just, I mean I wouldn't show toy then for a second in my mind about putting the camera on and show you my floor and realize that that way madness late right more questions so. Melinda is asking, do the panel have a favorite recipe that's good two or three days in a row, I think it's maybe go back something you said Lindsay. I'm cooking for one most of the time have a tiny freezer that's my usual pattern, not all leftovers are satisfying so it's a favorite recipe that's good for two or three days in a row. Lindsay I think you mentioned earlier about doing a sort of regular idea. Yeah, I mean if you make up a. What would you call it a that a you know enough for two or three or four of some mints, you know it could be mints pork mints lamb, whatever you like. And then you, you can freeze it in batches and cook like that cook just for yourself. And then sort of go again a bit later. Last night, for example I made the night before last I made a pork and caraway and sauerkraut sort of stew, and there was, I made enough for four and they were just two of us. And then last night I turned it into a pie with some puff pastry and got another meal that was slightly different, you know with different potatoes. So it was a simple idea. Georgina. I am for we for my baby was born in July last year, the first time I managed to do lots of preparation, because with my other daughter we were living in a building site and that is no whatever I had to build us out when she was born. So I took a lot of joy in really I literally took my freezer apart, put it out on my lawn. I went mental with the cleaning, and I just filled it with loads of Tupperware. And I didn't obviously, you know, it wasn't just feeding me as a new mom and my husband it was also feeding our daughter so it has to be really versatile stuff I could use repeatedly but also stuff I know she would eat so was I would maybe just eat curries whatever she's not going to eat So one of the things that I discovered that I really love was it crap. Yeah, I'm saying it right it's a it's basically Russian or Ukrainian way of slowly cooking lots of vegetables, and they call it caviar. So it's usually aubergine can be courgette, and it's a way of using up a glut of seasonal veg and preserving it so the way you might make the tomato sauce or whatever. It's a method or is it correct any ingredients name is just the name. So it means caviar. And I, yeah I made loads of it cry I made loads of this courgette and aubergine caviar and because I know for me it had aubergine courgette tomatoes way to carrots loads of nutrition which I knew we would all need you know because once you can call up for a pizza I was like well I want to make sure we're having lots of vegetables and nutrition in a time when we have a much time. So I made loads and loads of it and I froze it. And it was just really versatile because you can have it on, you know, you can have on toast, but you wouldn't have caviar with eggs, you can toss it through pasta. You can jazz it up with some meats and have it with things like you know with any protein and any carbohydrate basically. So that was really, I really got into that, as well as things like ragu, one of my favourites is, you know, just like curry, I love chicken rendang I'll make a massive batch of chicken rendang and I'll have that in various sizes. Sometimes, you know, I'll have just rice it's meant to be, and other times I'll let it down with coconut milk and make it soupier and have it with noodles so it was just stuff like that and it was really interesting practice because I'd never really been that organised my freezer before it was just some of his storing food until it went out of date. But it was really fun. But yeah, I'd say if you want to go down the vegetarian route as well, there's some, you know, some lovely stuff you can do there. Yeah, lovely. And we have other questions which I just sadly don't feel we have time to get to. And lots of lovely comments and chats been really nice and we'll save the chat and I'll send it on to you. Actually, I don't know how to do that Brett behind the British Library if you know how to save the chat so I know people can do it save the chat. Because there's really nice kind of comments and people kind of joining in the conversation on there with us which has been lovely. Huge thanks Lindsay and Georgina for spending time with us and sharing your insights and recollections and the rest of it. Thanks for having us. Yes, thanks for having us. And huge thanks to all of you who have watched and thought and written on the chat and sent in questions and especially to those of you who popped up on screen and joined in and really made it feel like what we hoped it would be that it was your gathering of people. Sadly online rather than in real life but it still felt for me like a real gathering of people sharing thoughts about home cooking and that was very definitely what we hoped. So huge thanks to everybody really. And I'm going to go go make dinner all back to more home cooking. Lovely to see you.