July

and powering on despite no power

I’m just hopping on here quickly to share a few delicious things. As usual, I’m so busy I feel overwhelmed. A seemingly continuous state of affairs that I will need to address soon. Our dear power utility has come back online after an excruciatingly inconvenient patch of load-shedding which totally ruined my schedule. I’m managing to get back on track and am so lucky to have incredible clients. If you managed to find your way here and want to stick around for future deliciousness then:

Out & About

The Bailey has been open in Bree street for just over a month and I went to check it out. I loved the brasserie with its classically French-inspired menu and table-side gueridon service. I snapped a lot of pictures of this beautiful Cape Town venue which you can check out here.

Marble reopened after a light renovation

I loved my whirlwind visit to Jozi which co-coincided with the reopening of Marble after its recent facelift. It’s such an incredibly beautiful restaurant that continues to shine under David Higg’s realm. The bar area is one of my favourites in Johannesburg with spectacular sunset views over the city. They make a perfect martini.

The Pantry below Marble in the garage forecourt is open 24/7 and is an accessible and well-stocked food shop. You can pretty much get everything there which is beyond fabulous and convenient.

Discount code

The wonderful Babylonstoren is offering all my readers a whopping 15% OFF everything on their website for the month of July. They do free delivery nationwide to the main centers. This is not to be missed. I love their olive oil range in tins which are featured in my easy no-knead focaccia recipe. These would make great gifts too. You can check out my reel on Instagram if you missed it.

Shop Babylonstoren with this link and use SAM at checkout to get your 15% off

I love everything they do on the farm but you must try their white chocolate yoghurt, herbed yoghurt cheese, and clementine juice. Obviously, all their farm fruit and vegetables are perfection.

Recent recipes on my blog

Baked trout with herbs and lemon

This super simple dish is my latest obsession because it tastes like a restaurant meal but is effortless to make (Disclaimer - I do leave the bones in because I can’t be bothered to pin bone them before).

Air fryer roast chicken

I tested out my air fryer with a roast chicken with a clementine and ginger recipe and it was so good. It shaves about half an hour off the cooking time making it super convenient for a week-night supper. Adapted from my orange and ginger recipe.

Best hummingbird sheet cake

I turned my all-time favourite hummingbird cake into a sheet cake. This banana and pineapple cake with cream cheese frosting is a much-loved recipe. This tray cake rendition is perfect for a party.

Easy no-knead foccaccia

This is the easiest no-knead focaccia recipe and is life-changing. You can let it rest overnight or make it on the same day. All it needs is 3 ingredients and time. Very little effort is involved here with a high reward.

My best truffle mac & cheese

I had the ultimate mac & cheese at the Loch & Tyne near Windsor. Here is my version which is utterly delicious and decadent. I used a beautiful Black Perigord truffle from Anthonij Rupert Wyne to finish it off. Check out my blog for all the details.

Easy tomato and spinach baked ravioli

Perfect for a weeknight supper, I used store-bought ravioli here. The cream cheese gives this tomato sauce a luscious creamy texture and savoury flavour.

7 delicious winter soups

I share a few of my favourite soup recipes to get us through winter.

Wine time

I attended the DeWetshof Limestone Hill 2022 launch at The Silo Hotel. It was the first time they hosted a lunch since 2019 which made it extra special. It’s one of my favourite unwooded Chardonnays at such an accessible price point.

Kanonkop released their 2019 Paul Sauer and I was invited to the tasting. It’s always such a privilege to taste one of South Africa’s top wines with a couple of older vintages.

Waterford

Waterford launched a brand new wine and we went to the Joburg event at Nice in Parkhurst. It was a festive tasting of their range of wines including the Antigo, a Bordeaux Blend. It’s a classically opulent well balanced wine that is perfect to drink now and will age well.

Thanks so much for being here and see you next month.

Sam x