Favourite dish of the night (zero leftovers). Mr R: “They were bloody good.  Not up to Ottolenghi’s meat ball standards of course.” Me: “Do you want to say that to Ida’s face?”  

FROCK! And big powder puffs to lean on. And a gasper on the go… Loverleeeeeeeeee. Ida’s Mousse is setting in the freezer for Friday – the ladies are coming over for dinner and I’ve been slaving away to get things pre-prepared. That Lemon Mousse is every dieter’s downfall. I’ve had to curb my enthusiasm for...

“Keeping a feminine approach is vital – men hate bossy females.” I’m taking a break from the unpackathon to watch Strictly and report on the gorgeous Jessica’s experience of Ida’s mousse. I’ve spent more or less all day doing the lock-up rock-up and scrabbling around in bags and boxes. Unrolling newspaper wrapped mystery items has...

I’ve been swept off my feet by a man I met at the Cafe de Paris. One minute I was jigging around on the dance floor, next minute I was having my face snogged off round the back of the VIP area. How marvelous. Last night he came round for dinner. I was going to...

“Keeping a feminine approach is vital – men hate bossy females.” Don’t you love getting a new pair of shoes home and checking the end of the box to see what they have been christened? These shoes are called “Ida Lupino”. By someone… Not the actual designer or manufacturer in Bali I would have thought,...

“My agent had once told me that he was going to make me the Janet Gaynor of England – I was going to play all the sweet roles.” I’ve been in a bit of a spin since my last entry. Just after I finished Marlene’s delicious lamb chops and was just about to find out...

Have you ever made something that was so delicious you just couldn’t believe you had made it yourself? So it was last night when I rustled up Ida’s Lemon Mousse which I ran out of time for on Saturday. OMIGOD. That is the most delicious desert EVER. A winner, a winner, a winner. I ate...