My friend Yadrian came to dinner last night. I wanted to thank him for helping me select a DVD projector and we decided on La Dolce Vita to show it off. I’ve never seen this film but Yadrian loves it. I didn’t realise that he had studied film and philosophy at university, but it […]
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When I saw that this month’s Daring Cooks Challenge was Ceviche I was a bit daunted but I had a go anyhow. As Mae West said, “I’ll try anything once, twice if I like it, three times to make sure.” Luckily Bing provided a recipe and I rustled it up last night. Hmm. All very...
Bee Boy came round last night with a lovely cardboard box full of 78s. He’d grabbed a batch from his local charity shop and there were some real gems. Favourite was a brilliant tango by Xavier Cugat and second fave an Ethel Smith rendition of “Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps”. We devoured the leftover Vatrouskis, some of...
Silver Screen Suppers Towers is as clean as a new pin. My parents are coming to visit for the very first time tomorrow and I want to make a very good impression. It’s a big deal for me have taken the step to find somewhere to live on my lonesome and I really hope they...
While we are on the subject of THE DUKE, here’s a report from Jeanne over there in the USof A on John’s Cheese Casserole. Jeanne really liked this cheesy dish and proclaimed it to be not only delicious but FABULOUS. Her version turned out really light and much more like a souffle than she expected....
Back to business. I have come out of my funk, partly because Ruthie sent me some photos of us in matching aprons that were taken in Texas. I was laughing so hard at them that when the phone rang at work I could barely speak. You can see one on the About page. This was...
It is pancake day and that means tomorrow is the beginning of Lent. This year I have decided to give up MEN for Lent. 40 days and 40 nights without men. Do you think I can do it? I think I can. To be honest, although it may seem from this blog as though I...
Unlike Garbo I do not want to be left alone. I’d rather have a playmate at the moment. There was nobody to share the meatballs last night. I agree with another of our test cooks who thinks that dividing her meatballs mixture into 12 makes very LARGE meatballs. I made 20 smaller ones and ate...
I’m holding my head a bit today Joan. Terrifically hungover. Last night was the annual and totally fabulous OSCARS party at Olivier and Nick’s house. This year we were 12 and everyone looked very festive and posh in their bow ties, fancy frocks, top hats and face paint… I made Joan’s Bisquick Cheese Straws (with...
I wish they still made stockings like this. My knees could do with some big old hearts to cover up the bruises got from falling over in the street last week. It was quite a spectacular one as I was holding a large open umbrella above my head. Mary Poppins I wasn’t… The ladies of...
Join us in making some AMW Tea Cakes sometime in March. I have been VERY industrious this evening. I have finished editing the demonstration movie, worked out how to put music on it, bunged it up on the YouTube and sent out this month’s newsletter. Only subscribers get to see the movie so please be...
I feel a bit like that myself today Anna May. I am pleased to report that when I left for work this morning there was a MAN asleep in my bed. Ha ha! I wonder if he’ll still be there when I get home? I’m not saying who it was but here’s a clue. As...
I have had to establish a Silver Screen Suppers Witness Protection Programme for Mr and Mrs X in North London who have tested the Matzo Balls recipe for me. Before explaining why, I must say that the Matzo Balls are my nemesis. Can a Matzo Ball be a nemesis? Or should I say that this...
Fortified by some of Mae West’s salad I made a big dent in the copyright clearance task last night. I’m having to approach all the copyright holders for these recipes (where known) and possibly the stars’ estates too. I am quite looking forward to corresponding with relatives of Mae, Joan, Bette and the like. Could...
I’ve been on holiday! Just back from a phenomenal trip to Blackpool for the Showzam Festival. Spent most of my time in the superlative Tower Ballroom and for the first time DANCED on the perfectly sprung floor. Saw three different hula hoop acts, some very perplexing magic, wonderful showgirls, indoor fountains, clowns, tightrope walkers, aerialists,...
Happy Valentine’s Day my lovelies. I thought I was going to be like Charlie Brown all day, checking my mail box for Valentines and finding NOTHING however, I was THRILLED that I received one. Who from I wonder?! Also my diagonal desk mate told me that I was “super hot” and the coffee dude put...
The lovely Arthur came for his birthday dinner and we had a Jimmy Stewart extravaganza. Although the provenance of the chicken recipe is dubious the apple pie is definitely Jimmy’s own. Shame I forgot the cheese in the pastry but it was still delicious (and I didn’t burn it this time…) The chicken was yummy...
Eee by gum. Charley proclaimed this to be probably the best Silver Screen Suppers dinner so far, and as he has been the recipient of so many, that is saying something. But even though I do say so myself, it was indeed delicious. What I love about so many of these recipes is their simplicity....
Unexpected house guest this evening which was LOVELY. James was hoping someone would be up for a Friday night drink after work and because everyone was in hibernation except me, he came over for some chicken with rice and the first ever screening of a full length film on the new DVD projector. Gentlemen Prefer...
Just a quick post to say that we have a new recipe of the month. I’ve just sent the newsletter out, subscribers get an extra treat – a link to a little demonstration film I made. I haven’t made this available to the whole world because I’m constantly appalled at the RUDE comments some people...
Oh what a weekend! A fantastic night out with Nazimova, Marijana, Sasha, Jasminka and many folk I haven’t seen for a long while jumping up and down to the Penny Black Remedy – man they ROCKED! And to the other extreme, a photo shoot with three clasically trained musicians I’ll be performing with in the...
Charley and Corinna came round for din dins last night and it was just lovely. I’d been so looking forward to catching up with them both. Anna’s dish was good, but not as good as the time I made it for Edmund. I think I should have used more garlic so I’ll put that in...
It’s Burns Night tomorrow and I’ve just discovered a whole section on Scottish delicacies in one of my film star cook books. Am making Flora’s Nutties to take to Paulette’s where we will introduce 10 year old Shirley to the delights of Robbie and try and make her read out the Address to a Haggis:...
Oh how I LOVE those Audio Gold boys. They are so kind to me. They found me some speakers and a GORGEOUS Ferrograph amp (who knew I’d need one of those too?) They fiddled around with the amp, cleaning all the connections, showing me the splendour of the inside with all its lovingly hand crafted...
There is a batch of Anna May Wong Tea Cakes in the oven as I am planning a little trip to Audio Gold this afternoon. Not just because I’d like to see the lovely men that work there and one of them has already confirmed that he has my stylus in my pocket but also...
The plan tonight was to make a Claudette Colbert Cake for James Rumsey’s homecoming. But I suddenly remembered James saying he didn’t like lemony things so a Rita Hayworth Cake it is instead. It is smelling GOOD. Am very pleased to report a lovely date number 2 with Mr PH. He really is very charming. ...
I am halfway through a batch of chocolate mousse and am trying to make a little film demonstration showing how it is done to include in the next newsletter. LORD my face is lopsided, I never realised! It’s something to do with seeing yourself on video rather than in the mirror – we are so...
Here’s Constance “donning the silks” as I believe the Panther once put it and posing with a curtain. It’s a good look isn’t it? I might try it next time someone tries to take a photo of me. I’ve been putting off re-testing this recipe for ages and I don’t know why as it has...
This will be an extraordinary post almost entirely about cassoulet and not really about film stars (or my love life) as I’m reporting on my first Daring Cooks challenge. This is a monthly challenge where all over the world food bloggers make the same recipe and all post about it on the same day. This...
I’ve set myself a rigorous testing schedule for 2011 and can already see it’s going to be hard to stick to it. I’m back in the wonderful world of internet dating and it is a right bun fight already! Paid my subscription on Monday and have been on two assignations this week. The first guy...
My flat is full of the delicious smell of beef dripping rendering! What a bizzare endeavour this cassoulet is proving to be. Today I went in search of “salt pork” with little hope of finding it but EUREKA the crazy butcher on Camden High Street (so out of place amongst the goths) came up trumps....
It’s day one of a three day recipe. Tonight I salted the duck legs for Simone’s Cassoulet which I’ll be throwing together for Charley on Sunday night. I am making duck confit don’t you know?! This is going to be quite a challenge. There are a lot of strange MEATS involved. We are back to...
Graham Crackers are in the house WHOOP WHOOP! The lovely Moya is here from NYC and brought me some in her handbag. I am very excited and have all kinds of plans for them. It was so great to see her, probably about 15 years since we’d caught up and she looks exactly the same....
Ooooh Roland’s Rissoles were GOOD! I have so much mixure left though. I may attempt to make little canape rissoles for tomorrow night’s New Year’s Eve extravaganza chez Charley and Corinna. I am so proud of myself. It’s been a busy night. Fed Paulette’s cats on the way home from work and tidied the place...
It’s Rissoles Night, it’s Rissoles Night, it’s Rissoles Night! Well, it will be in about 15 hours time. I woke up at 4.15am and got so excited about the prospect of Roland’s Rissoles I couldn’t get back to sleep so have decided to rise and shine and just get on with stuff. December, as Rosalind...
Oh what a week it has been! DJing at The Savoy AND Claridges in the same week. How very glam! Masses of free cocktails at the former and one each paid for at Claridges – four cocktails and a bowl of peanuts was £80. Not joking. We got some good photos though. All sorts of...
I’m going to have a big bruise on my bum after falling over at my humdinger of a birthday party last night. AGAIN I didn’t get to bed until 4am. What a shocker. I’m going to make a list of who rocked up with their 45rpm singles last night but I think there must have...
OOh I am TIRED. I was out last night until 4 in the morning! Anyone who is aware of my sleeping habits will know this is incredibly late for me – usually asleep by 10pm. It’s my birthday week and I’ve been celebrating every single night. On Tuesday I saw Mr Winklepickers and got about...
What a lovely lunch on Sunday. Jeanne was here from Atlanta – we had never met before but have corresponded about many Silver Screen Suppers recipes. She makes me laugh like a drain with her emails and pictures of things like Gene Kelly’s Greatest Man Sandwich in the World with a big bite taken out...
Happy Thanksgiving to all our American readers (and everyone in fact). Today I am giving thanks for the fact that tonight I have my first proper date in approximately three years. And I’m also giving thanks for all the wonderful people who are test cooking these recipes for us. Today I received FANTASTIC pictures from...
Oh those LIPS Loretta. Lovely. The wonderful Will in Warrington has made Loretta’s Walnut Loaf and it came as some surprise to me when I saw his pics with accompanying vegetables that it was a savoury dish. Even though I typed the recipe out for him at some point I was imagining it like a...
The Goulash has been in the slow cooker overnight and I’m about to construct a big batch of BISQUICK so that I can make some JC Cheese Straws as I have a BIG lunch party today. It’s a bit of a welcome-back-the-newlyweds party for Grace and Douglas. Wedding guests William, Cary, James and Daryl are...
I knew it was coming, but I took my eye off the ball and here it is! (thanks for the tip off Jeanne!) The Holy Grail of Silver Screen Suppers recipes – a real Marilyn recipe. Until now the best we had was the fact that she liked to serve carrots and peas together as...
Had a long conversation about how cold it gets on a houseboat with Jan at work. He has just bought one and I told him he would soon become obsessed with trying to keep the fire alight when he wasn’t there. When I lived on the little floating caravan beside Swan Island it was all...
I’m off to Charley’s for dinner tonight so have made some of his favourite pudding – Ginger’s Coffee Parfait – and used up the last of my homemade Bisquick making some of Joan’s cheese straws. I’ve eaten about 18 of those already, I think they are GORGEOUS. Hope I have room for Charley’s chicken dinner....
Ee by gum! It’s Our Gracie’s turn to host the recipe of the month cookalong. I made her Toad in the Hole when I lived on the houseboat and remember it being rather tasty. I’ll have another go at it this week I think. It’s that sausagey kind of time of the year… Budapest was...
Just about to jump on a plane with Rosalind for our annual “romantic mini-break”. Boys never take us on one so we take ourselves once a year. We have done Wareham, France, Stroud, Berlin, Copenhagen and this year it is BUDAPEST. So I am handing over the blog todat to a guest blogger. The lovely...
Exhuasted but very happy after a trip to Bath for the wedding of the century 2. At the risk of breaking the hearts of classic Hollywood fans all around the world I have to announce that I was at the marriage of the lovely Matthew of Movietone News and the absolutely gorgeous Angela of Golden...
Much good humoured hilarity this week when Nazimova brought in the “Pumpkin Pie a la Robert” she had made from this month’s special recipe. Naz is from Belgrade and had sent me an email saying that she’d never had Pumpkin Pie so had no idea what it should look or taste like. Unfortunately she missed...
Home Movie Day at the Cinema Museum in Kennington was fabulous. I spun the shellac for 3 hours in the afternoon as an accompaniment to some fantastic home movies. There were some 1960s chicks with some REMARKABLE hairdos up on the big screen for all to see! There’s a photo of me with George who...
A gloriously silly evening at Paulette and Ivor’s house last night which involved Angus acting as sous-chef for the Brown Bette. It turned out surpisingly yummy, especially considering that I was so drunk by the time I got around to making it I kept having to weigh everything two or three times. Much hilarity was...
Oh how I am loving the spinster life! Had a fabulous day today. Wallowed in bed with coffee and The Archers until 11.15 then made myself some Fritters for brunch. Yum yum yum. Mooched up to Alexander Palace to go and see my friend Shane’s art installation. Fully intended to quickly show my face and...
‘Ave a banana! I am still singing “A Sweater, A Sarong and a Peekaboo Bang” after a lovely evening at Matthew and Angela’s house for dinner on Friday. We watched this classic ditty performed by Paulette Goddard, Dorothy Lamour and Veronica Lake as we scoffed some of Dorothy’s ice-cream. I still marvel at how delicious...
Just back from the wedding of the century, Grace and Douglas are now HITCHED and what a wonderful day it was! Great to spend time with lots of the Walthamstow posse, there was much crazy dancing – especially from Cary who was doing his “Rock Lobster” moves and making me laugh. I DJd on the...
I trust you are signed up to our mailing list? If so you’ll have received Mae’s Pumpkin Pie recipe today. There is a very special prize on the table for all of our test cooks this month – a chance to come to my house for dinner! I will be making the legendary Joan Crawford...
Some might say it is a rotten rainy night in London but I rather like it – especially as I’ve been in all evening rather than scouting for boys at the Circulus gig. I rather fancied seeing if I could bag myself a bearded boy but the lure of an almost full bag of spinach...
Tonight I went on the first blind date I have been on in approximately 4 years I reckon (I’m not counting the George Clooney lookalike as he was a friend of Ava’s and therefore had a personal recommendation). Surprisingly, it was a highly enjoyable experience. I really liked the guy, he was good looking, lovely...
My lovely new table and chairs were put to good use on Sunday as I had four fabulous chums over for a Sheik related dinner. The menu was supposed to be: Adolph Menjou’s Venetian Spiced Cheese, Rudolph Valentino’s Secret Spaghetti Sauce and Agnes Ayres’ Chocolate Mousse but I ran out of time so we had...
I really intended making Carole’s soup tonight but I admit it, I got too drunk. Since moving into the Palace of Solitude, Fridays have become the most significant night in my (un)social calendar. I wriggle out of all and any invitations and scurry home so that I can be sitting in an armchair with the...
What would you say if I told you that I have made my OWN Bisquick? I found a recipe on the internet and decided that as we can’t get it in the UK (and our supermarkets don’t seem to have anything approaching its genius) I decided to rustle up my very own stash of Bisquick....
Ooh, I had an outfit a bit like that on Second Life. Been so long since I went there though I’ll have forgotten how to do everything I’m sure. I did enjoy meditating by the fountains with doves flying around though. Oh and I did like my little witches’ familiar – a little owl with...
I’m feeling a bit like that today Sonja! Not sure if it is the weather (beautiful hot sunny day here in London), my new “Friends of the Zoo” membership (Tuesday is Zooday from now on) or just general joyfulness for no apparent reason. I’m not going to knock it though. Wonder how I hang on...
Slightly chaotic at Silver Screen Suppers Towers tonight as I attempt a singleton’s version of Joan’s recipe designed to serve eight people. She sure did love to entertain. I am left with the sneaking suspicion that because I had to divide 2 tablespoons of crushed all bran between 8, the resultant guess of two pinches...
A momentous day today for Renee who after 7 years working for the Archive is now off to another job, still within the company but not where I can hear her cracking up with laughter about something almost every day. She’s been behind my right shoulder for about a year now and I will really...
Today I am featuring my first ever guest post. C. Aubrey’s review of his attempt at Joan’s Pork Chops made me laugh out loud so I thought I would feature it here in full. Through consultation with Matthew Coniam over at www.movietone-news.com we have worked out that C. Aubrey must be the author of this...
Well I wasn’t expecting to enjoy that but I did! A weird combination on paper, but on toast, not bad! Picture here… Mind you, my enjoyment may have been partly to do with a raging hangover caused by much beer, wine and whiskey consumed yesterday during Grace’s hen do. Lord it was a day and...
Had a fantastic time last night at the Wind-Up. It’s Walthamstow Arts Trail week and Mo had made an incredible outfit from 78rpm record covers – cardboard ones making the body of the dress and train and folded paper one making frilly decorations and a fabulous hat. Genius. Tony Tunes brought along some Charlestons for...
This is my favourite Joan Crawford “look” and if I had the guts I’d have my hair like this. I’d wear the same kind of trashy outfits she wears in “Rain” too, she looked superb even though she was playing a woman of ill repute. Her full-on lips caused quite a sensation in the fan...
Rosalind and Jimmy are true friends. Even though they didn’t like the sound of Joan’s Banana Salad (bananas / mayonnaise / peanuts / lettuce) they both tried some. Jimmy’s initial one word comment upon tasting it of: “NO!” was pretty succinct. He elaborated on the fact that mayonnaise had “no business getting in there with...
Joan’s steak was a big success with Charley. He said something along the lines of “enormo-cheese!” when it came out of the oven which in Charley speak is a compliment to the chef. It really was a delicious hunk of cheesy mustardy meat, I could eat another chunk of that right now! Luckily for me,...
Aw Errol – you were such a softy really. Are you on a BOAT with that cat?! I’m recovering from a late night DJing job at probably the nicest wedding we have ever played at. The bride was so HAPPY. I’ve been to so many weddings lately where the bride just doesn’t seem to be...
I am only going to forgive Joan for her Almond Soup because she is wearing such a nice hat. What can I say about it without being rude? It was not to my taste is probably the best way of putting it. Still, Gary C is in town tonight and I’ll be serving this up...
