To begin with

Have you ever bought a recipe book? How about received one as a gift?
Did you use it?
I have a shelf full which sit there mournfully neglected. Covered in dust and the fine layer of grease which eventually coats uncleaned kitchen surfaces. A tragedy.
Now I love cooking, but I'm pretty time poor. I tend to belong to the fry random stuff school of cookery, seasoning to taste. I'm not bad at it, and the food I produce tastes pretty good to me, but it doesn't lead to the finest repertoire in the world. I was single for years and tended to either rush things to get out of the house or cook to impress my diabetic housemate. I now find myself in a lovely relationship, and we both enjoy a bit of good eating. We were pouring over the recipes books on her shelf one day looking for inspiration and we opened this one:

All New Meals in Minutes by Ainsley Harriott

I hardly watch any telly, but I'm vaguely aware of this guy from the pantheon of celebrity chefs. I've no idea about his style mind you.
Anyway, the girlfriend (hereafter known as L.) made the recipe from the book, Seared Tuna with Aubergine Chutney.
It was astounding. One of the nicest things I've ever tasted, in or out of a restaurant.
Flicking through the book, the whole lot looks pretty appealing. So we decided to methodically go through the book, making every last dish in it, as accurately as possible.
That's what this is all about. Hopefully this blog won't fall by the wayside like some I've attempted in the past...

By the way I don't have any commercial angle at all. I've never worked for the BBC, and I don't want this to turn into some kind of advert. I just thought it was a nice idea.