- by Jenny
- Vincent Price
After my initial Covid-19 lockdown panic about getting hold of certain foodstuffs, things have calmed down a bit here in North London. I managed to get a grocery delivery last Sunday and I have kind friends who have dropped off a couple of things I couldn’t...
- by Jenny
- Judy Holliday
I had a nice surprise last week when I found out my lovely blogger chum and food illustrator extraordinaire Miriam Figueras has been making YouTube videos about her love of silent movies. I find her voice lovely and soothing and I love this one about life...
- by Jenny
- Suzanna Leigh
I am very lucky to have an excellent corner shop about 5 minutes walk from my flat. During the lockdown, I am only trundling down there when absolutely necessary but the last time I went, I nabbed two leeks. I had no idea what I would...
- by Jenny
- Mary Astor, Movie Star Cocktails, Quarantini Time!
Hello chums! Get your cocktail shakers out and join me on Instagram Live this Friday for a MOVIE STAR COCKTAIL! I was planning to make a little edited video showing this cocktail under construction but I didn’t...
- by Jenny
- Abby Dalton, Murder, She Cooked
Written in the days where you could have friends and family around for lunch! Recently I read an article which asked whether people were getting tired of food blogs which featured really long rambling personal stories to wade through before getting to the...
- by Jenny
- Joyce Grenfell
Here is some good news in these troubled times. Last Friday, just hours before the UK went into lockdown I got married! Regular readers will have heard Mr R mentioned a million times on this blog, and now I am thrilled to officially be Mrs R. Here...
- by Jenny
- Henry Fonda
Regular readers will know that I have been a food hoarder for many years. My frozen archives are legendary amongst chums, all four of the freezer drawers are packed solid. My food cupboards ditto. In the past, I have berated myself for this bad habit, but...
- by Jenny
- Carole Landis
If I am having a cocktail, four out of five times it will be a Martini. I love ’em. My Guild of Food Writer chum Richard Ehrlich knows everything there is to know about martini making and I have been to...
- by Jenny
- Angela Lansbury, Murder, She Cooked
This is a recipe that I am going to have to work on a bit for the Murder, She Cooked book as I think there must be a typo in Angela’s recipe. Here’s a scan of the recipe from Angela’s fabulous Positive Moves book. I did...
- by Jenny
- Richard Arlen
Hello sailor! I’ve been thinking about cooking for one a lot lately. (Cooking for one person, not cooking for a sailor.) A while back I wrote a blog post about making Vesper Martinis and Martini Cured Salmon Blinis for one and mused on...
- by Jenny
- Phyllis Diller
Making this soup cures all ills. I was feeling somewhat melancholy last Wednesday evening (can’t remember why now) but my fridge was FULL of random veggies and once I got going on this I felt a million times better. The glorious thing about this soup is...
- by Jenny
- Greg Morris
There was a great conversation in the film archive where I work recently about the phrase, “lost in the mists of time.” Two of the four people in the conversation had always thought the phrase was “lost in the MIDST of time.” I guess that both...
- by Jenny
- James Garner
I have lived on my own for around 15 years but I have 3 imaginary friends who keep me constant company. My best friend is Lieutenant Columbo. My most recent bosom buddy is Jessica Fletcher. But popping in and out over the years has...
- by Jenny
- Herbert Marshall
For Halloween (which seems like a lifetime ago now), I wanted to make something Vincent Price related. Over a beer a couple of days before, I ran through many potential dishes I could make and when I got to...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
Tessie loved a burger! There are lots of recipes for them in her brilliant Slimming Cookbook and by rights I should have gone for the Hammy Hamburger as Hammy was one of my nicknames at school. This was partly because my surname is Hammerton but also because...
- by Jenny
- Audrey Hepburn
I burned the top of this cake so when I took it out of the oven, I almost put it straight in the bin. It was a birthday cake for my beloved and his family for a celebratory lunch and I thought it would...
- by Jenny
- Ian Ogilvy, Murder, She Cooked, Vincent Price
“Well, who would have thunk it?” as my mum often says. I must admit, I decided to test this recipe for the Murder, She Cooked book myself as I didn’t think anyone would volunteer for it. It doesn’t sound very exciting does it? But...
- by Jenny
- Irene Dunne
I work in a film archive and all of my colleagues are just LOVELY. It’s such a fab place to work and there is always fun to be had when a birthday comes around. A big pretence is made that we’ve all forgotten all about...
- by Jenny
- Yul Brynner
When it pours with rain on a dark and cold evening, commuters in London go a bit mental. One night way back in November I had to wait in the cold and wet while 3 full buses sailed past my stop while folks in the bus...
- by Jenny
- Murder, She Cooked, Ruta Lee
How was your Christmas kittens? I had a LOVELY time. I ate too much naturally but everything was delicious! Now I am craving a salad, and as this post has been in my drafts folder for several months, here it is! I actually made this in...
- by Jenny
- Vincent Price
This might be my last post before Christmas so I hereby wish all my readers a fabulous festive season! It was my birthday last week and look at the haul I got – haha! Anyone would think I was writing a book about Murder, She Wrote!...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
I have a lot of cooked chicken in my freezer. This is mostly because I absolutely LOVE the chicken they serve at Mr R’s local equivalent of the bar in Cheers, The Cork and Bottle in Hampstead. They serve 1/2 a chicken...
- by Jenny
- Murder, She Cooked, Raphael Sbarge
If it is beans in a soup you are after, this is it. There are a LOT of beans in this soup. In fact, there is not much soup, mainly just beans but it is TASTY. All the veggies cook down into...
- by Jenny
- Jameson Parker, Murder, She Cooked
When I was a singleton I had a couple of years of bliss living with two crazy women called Lucy and Gaby. We rented a house together in Walthamstow, E17 and had an absolute hoot. They are both highly entertaining and...
- by Jenny
- Angela Lansbury, Murder, She Cooked, Susan Anton
I have been in heaven for a week on a writing retreat in deepest, darkest Shropshire. I was here… and as A.E. Houseman put it Clunton and Clunbury,Clungunford and Clun,Are the quietest placesUnder the sun. Especially when you have a writing...
- by Jenny
- Sean Connery, The Great Bear Project
Memory is a funny old thing. I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately as I’ve been reading a lot of food memoirs and autobiographies – current obsession, Dirk Bogarde, what a WRITER! My self-generated...
- by Jenny
- Robert Quarry
I am going on a week’s writing retreat on Monday and I cannot wait. I’ll be here… More specifically here… I’ll be working on the Murder, She Wrote book and trying not to disturb the three other writers in the building with the sound of...
I once saw a series of photographs featuring the same family on the same day every year for many, many years. It was a fabulous insight into the ageing process. I have almost the same record of me ageing over the years with...
- by Jenny
- Bea Arthur
I love getting an invite out of the blue to participate in a blogathon, and Gill of Real Weegie Midget Reviews always thinks of me when she has one coming up, thanks Gill! I have participated in the Michael Caine Blogathon, the Lee Grant Blogathon, the...
- by Jenny
- Una Stubbs
A few days after my Una Stubbs Home-made Muesli post, Mr Rathbone turned up at my place with this… Who kn-una? I had no idea Una had made a fitness record but you’d better believe I’m going to get my leotard and legwarmers on soon and have...
- by Jenny
- Ron Glass
Mr Rathbone made this chicken dish as part of the Murder, She Wrote Cookalong and it was SOOOOOO GOOD I’ve decided to make it Recipe of the Month. Here’s Mr R’s lovely thorough feedback on the cooking of the dish. ************************************************************************...
- by Jenny
- Vincent Price
Halloween is coming! I have a proposal for you! Why not have a Vincent Price Curry Party? First, could I encourage you to spend a few minutes listening to the dulcet tones of Vincent describing his Lifesaver Curry? This is a video that Peter Fuller...
- by Jenny
- Marlene Dietrich
Hot on the heels of Oooooona’s Moooooosli, here comes Marleeeeeeeen’s Sardeeeeeeen. Of course, this pleasing combination of words only works when mispronouncing MarlAYYYYYna Marleeeeeeeen, but hey ho… I made a beautiful loaf of rye bread on a fabulous day in the kitchen with my chum Liz...
I live alone, and when I was single for many years, I absolutely loved a solo Friday night in. I would come home from work, make myself a Martini and listen to the Desmond Carrington Show on Radio 4. Singing along...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
Corinna and Cathy are GOOD SPORTS when they come round to my house for dinner. They probably know that something weird is going to be served up. Gourmet food Tessie’s fishcake was not. Fishcake singular you note, even though it serves four. Basically, you make a big...
- by Jenny
- Angela Lansbury, Murder, She Cooked
I wanted to make something to mark the end of the Murder, She Wrote Cookalong and a return to normal life, and this salad was always going to be it. It was fresh, healthy and delicious. Everything you would expect...
One of the best things about having a blog is connecting with folks all around the world who are game for anything! So today’s testers are based in Australia, the USA, Canada, Finland and Greece as well as here in good...
- by Jenny
- Carol Lawrence, Cornel Wilde, Loretta Swit, Murder, She Cooked, Ron Glass
I do a LOT of cooking so if someone offers to cook for me, I am in heaven! Some lovely, lovely people invited me to partake in the Murder, She Cooked recipes they were testing. I had a blast. Just...
I’ve been thrilled by how many people have signed up for the cookalong. Some are blogger friends I only know through the ether, some are friends in real life, and some I don’t know from Adam! I am having so much...
- by Jenny
- Shelley Winters
We interrupt the Murder, She Wrote Cookalong with a quick post about Shelley Winters! I had great plans to live my life like Shelley Winters for a day as part of the Shelley Winters blogathon organized by Gill...
My work chum Julie Gambling will probably be the first to admit that she doesn’t cook much. She offered to try Farley Grainger’s Baked Potatoes With Chives and cooked these for her folks on a visit to Norfolk. She says,...
Greg Swenson of the Recipes for Rebels website and book of the same name is a creative genius. He designed the cover of my Cooking With Columbo cookbook (and proofread it I might add!) He also designed all my lovely...
Hoorah! It’s time for the Murder, She Wrote Cookalong! I have been overwhelmed by the amount of folks who have volunteered to test recipes for the forthcoming Murder, She Cooked book and I love you all! The next few days...
- by Jenny
- Ron Masak
Tomorrow is the anniversary of the first episode of Murder, She Wrote hitting TV screens in 1984 so this is a perfect recipe to celebrate! The Murder, She Wrote Cookalong is happening in the next few days so be prepared for much...
You know the phrase, “Strangers are just friends you haven’t met yet”? Well, one of the things I LOVE about having a blog is meeting people through the internet that I KNOW would be friends if they lived around the corner....
- by Jenny
- Shirley Jones
This recipe came to me courtesy of Yinzerella over at Dinner is Served 1972. I don’t know how she could bear to part with these amazing vintage recipe cards but that’s just the kinda gal she is! They came in the post one day and I...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
I hate to waste food as much as the next hippie, but in the case of Tessie’s soup I had to make an exception. Her way of pimping up a can of condensed soup is slightly bonkers but at its heart, sensible. Add some...
- by Jenny
- Dwayne Hickman
I am fascinated by condensed soup. It is one of those things that is a run of the mill everyday staple in American supermarkets, but it’s not that easy to find here in the UK. There are currently 54 varieties of Campbell’s Condensed Soup...
- by Jenny
- Groucho Marx, The Great Bear Project
A pot roast is not an easy thing to eat on a tube platform so we changed the formula a bit for the Groucho Marx stop on The Great Bear Project. On the day before our...
- by Jenny
- Jessica Walter, Murder, She Cooked
I have gone on, and on, and on in the past about how much I love Caesar Salad so this post will be short and sweet. This is the third movie star Caesar I have tried. See here for Grace Kelly’s recipe and here for Ruth...
Yay! It’s that time of year again! The time when Yinzerella over at the marvellous Dinner is Served 1972 gathers together lots of mad pie recipes and dishes them out. I was THRILLED to get a...
- by Jenny
- Jeff Goldblum
When I heard that Realweegiemidgetreviews was running a #JeffGoldbumBlogathon I wanted IN. But a quick check on the recipe spreadsheet revealed nothing between Jeff Chandler and Jennifer Clulow, what could I do? My old friend Google came to the rescue with a brilliant snippet from a...
- by Jenny
- France Nuyen
This is a super easy and super tasty tart, with a no-fuss, no-roll just-squidge-it-in cheesy pastry. YUM. And it’s not just me that thinks it is good, the judge of the Muswell Hill and District Horticultural Society Summer Show cookery classes...
- by Jenny
- F. Murray Abraham
Yeehaw and giddy-up! This year’s cowboy day ho-down chez Battenburgbelle was just fabulous! She decided to combine our book group meet up with a Tex-Mex feast and it was so much fun. All the ladies got into...
- by Jenny
- Barbara Stanwyck, Kay & Fred's Movie Night
This photo says it all really. Can there be anything more summery and delicious than strawberries and cream? With a bit of cake thrown in? I made these a donkeys age ago but summer socialising has thrown my schedule all out of whack so they are...
- by Jenny
- Dick Van Patten
I invited the lovely Battenburg Belle round for dinner on a school night this week so I needed something fairly speedy to make. I fancied chicken so I had a quick scan through the recipes in the Murder, She Wrote Cookalong list to...
- by Jenny
- Yul Brynner
When the boss’s birthday is in the same week as Yul Brynner’s it’s a no brainer where to look for a cake recipe… This was a GREAT CAKE as it is very easy to make and I loved the suggestion of bunging fresh cream and...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
Tessie loves language. By which I mean she likes to play around with it. Her recipe titles often include shortened words. For example, in the Butt-Chive Cheese Shrimp recipe, Butt is short for butter. Gar-mar Mayonnaise is mayonnaise pimped up with marjoram and garlic powder....
It seems strange to be writing about something that happened on a cold January day when we are slap bang in the middle of a heatwave here in London. But I’m catching up on...
- by Jenny
- Paul Mercurio
I’ve made this cake a few times for the Muswell Hill and District Horticultural Society Show cookery contest…. When I made this for the Spring Show this year, Mr Rathbone told me that this was his favourite of ALL the cakes I have made. Crikey!...
- by Jenny
- Dinner and a Movie, Joan Fontaine
When I told my desk-mate Lucy that I’d made a Joan Fontaine dish and watched Rebecca, she immediately did a “Joan Fontaine in Rebecca” face that made me laugh like a drain. I then did...
- by Jenny
- Ron Masak
Traditionally, when it is my turn to host the book group, I make a TEN BOY CURRY and have all the little bowls of bananas, sultanas, coconut, mango chutney etc. etc. etc. laid out on my sideboard....
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
What makes these DIET Scotch Eggs is anyone’s guess but I can tell you this, they were DELICIOUS! Why I have never made a scotch egg before I do not know. They would definitely be in my list of top...
- by Jenny
- Food Photography
I’m a member of the Bread Angels, a brigade of micro-bakers who love making bread and sharing it with friends, families, neighbours and even to complete strangers. Our motto is BAKE WELL. DO GOOD. Being part of this group has brought me so much happiness. ...
Ah, Mr. Hitchock. There is much debate about this quiche recipe. Hitch famously disliked eggs, but what is a quiche lorraine without eggs? Um, ham and some milk in a pastry case? Methinks perhaps it was raw eggs that gave him...
- by Jenny
- Peter Fonda
I made a lovely version of this recently with cherries instead of blueberries. It was DELICIOUS. I couldn’t find my spirulina so it wasn’t the usual green sludgy colour that puts my chum Greg of Recipes for Rebels off, but to me, the green is what...
- by Jenny
- Ian McShane
On impulse I bought some posh wild salmon from Planet Organic this week. I looked at the price and thought, “Imagine if I was paying for this in a restaurant, it would be TWICE as much” and took the plunge. It was utterly...
- by Jenny
- Michael Learned, Murder, She Cooked
When I was young, I absolutely LOVED The Waltons, and I cannot think of Michael Learned without thinking of her as the mother of the clan. But Michael is also in Murder, She Wrote so she’s on my test cooking schedule for the next book… Recently I...
- by Jenny
- Dinner and a Movie, Liberace
Liberace was born on this day one hundred years ago. Happy birthday Lee! Recently I got an email from my chum, food writer Orlando Murrin, asking me if I’d ever seen The Loved One which features Liberace playing an undertaker. Well yes, I had, but not for a...
- by Jenny
- Blog Awards
Yesterday was the blog’s birthday. I’ve been scribbling away here for THIRTEEN YEARS – oh my goodness. When I started this thing I was utterly miserable after a relationship break-up and now I am the happiest I have ever been. I know for sure though, that making...
- by Jenny
- Doris Day, Rita Hayworth
So sad to hear the news about Doris yesterday. I love her so much! After living under a misapprehension that she was a twee, girl next door type for many years I actually WATCHED one of her films (Pillow Talk) and immediately became a big fan....
- by Jenny
- Angela Lansbury, Murder, She Cooked
My goodness, this is a HUMDINGER of a recipe. I love cheesecake and I thought I had never made one before, but then I remembered Marion Davies’ Meadow Cheesecake. Whereas Marion’s was GOOD, Angela’s recipe is utterly BRILLIANT. Hence, it is...
- by Jenny
- Tessie O'Shea
It’s not a very appetising recipe title is it? At the beginning of this year, I pledged to make one thing a month from the Tessie O’Shea Slimming Cookbook and I am a bit behind, so expect TWO slightly weird dishes from Tessie’s 1970s kitchen this...
- by Jenny
- Dinah Shore
This morning in bed the conversation went like this: Mr Rathbone: What are you blogging about? Me: Dinah Shore’s Sunday Baked Eggs. Mr Rathbone: Whose eggs? Me: Dinah Shore’s Eggs. Mr Rathbone: Dinosaurs Eggs? I think they found some of those in the Antarctic. This...
Oh, how I wish I were in San Francisco right now! They are having a super dooper silent film festival at the wonderful Castro Theatre with a truly wonderful line up of movies. The lovely Gary Mayer of Eat Drink...
