Genius behind the beards

As I wait in the office for a race against time for the delivery men to beat the oncoming snow (a long story about a meeting room table), I thought I'd apologise for the long hiatus in blogging. Part of this is just sheer pressure of work allied with lack of energy. So apart from the usual chores, I've rather been collapsing in front of the TV, sticking in a DVD.

And what have I been watching? Two series: Eating in the Sun - Nadia Sawalha and The Hairy Bikers' Food Tour of Britain. What both have in common are amateur cooks going into professional kitchens and the huge courage that that needs; Nadia's has the benefit of some stunning sunshine, her lovely smile and some great chefs.

The former is brilliant and very enjoyable, but it simply isn't as good as the Hairy Bikers FToB. I'm so glad I recorded it, because it is so long (30 x 45 minutes is such a lot of programming) I really can't see it ever being released on DVD - it's 22.5 hours of recording and was something of a labour of love recording it (done because it was on at a time I couldn't watch it) and then burning the DVDs - not a quick process!

Someone in reviewing it said it was a bit formulaic - that may be true, as each episode starts with about 15-20 minutes of searching for the special dish of a particular county, and cooking it for the denizens, and the remainder in a chef's challenge against one of the best chefs in each county (including the great and beloved Nigel Haworth). But there is no repetition, unlike MasterChef. And what is really, really good is not only the sheer fun of it, but also the genuine exploration of each county's food products and their incorporation into the challenge dishes. This is like Rick Stein's Food Heroes, but far more of it. Absolutely cheers me up, whatever mood I'm in. I could rave on about how good they are for hours!

But suffice it to say that they remind me a lot of two other food heroines of mine, the two fat ladies!