Delicious UK March 2023

I t's strange when Easter falls in early April because it means we need to give you all your long-weekend cooking ideas this month, rather than in the April issue, so you have plenty of time to rev up your anticipation and plan what to make over the long weekend. As I write, the mornings are frosty, but I'm dreaming ahead to happy gatherings, with spring flowers on the table and laughter around it. Regardless of the weather, the delicious. team and I are lull of spring-like anticipation because, after years of working at home (who thought that would go on for so long? It seems unbelievable, looking back on it), we at last have an office again – a new space with two kitchens and a studio, all set…

Soooo many to choose from, as always, but my chart-topper has to be chef Sabrina Gidda's amazing-sounding coconut curry dauphinoise (see p122) – comfort food in potato form. March eat-out tip-off I love José Pizarro's food, so it's great to hear his lively Poster Bar at London's Royal Academy of Arts has launched Pintxo Fridays, serving Spanish small bites, 5.30-8.30pm, with your drink. First one's free, too. MAGAZINE OF THE YEAR EDITOR OF THE YEAR, FOOD & DRINK…

Croque señoritas Makes 2 Hands-on time 20 min SCALE IT UP You can easily double this recipe to make 4 toasties. Butter 4 thick slices white bread. Flip 2 over and spread them with 2 tbsp quince paste. Share 80g grated manchego and 8 slices chorizo salami between the slices, then top with the other 2 bread slices (buttered-side on top) to create 2 sandwiches. To make the bechamel, put 20g butter, 1 crushed garlic clove and ½ tsp smoked paprika in a small saucepan and cook until the garlic has just started to infuse into the melted butter and smells fragrant. Add 20g plain flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually pour in 100ml milk, whisking constantly until you have a smooth, thick sauce, then stir in 1 tbsp…

YOU'RE GONNA DIG THIS BOOK “There are two things I want from my garden,” says Sarah Raven. “It has to be beautiful, and it has to produce lots of fresh, home-grown food.” So says the expert famous for reintroducing colour to the nation's green spaces after years of a style obsession for all-white (see p126 for an opportunity to meet her). Sarah's new book, A Year Full of Veg (out 2 March), is a guide to making sure your outdoor patch produces good things to eat, all year long. Growing advice is divided into categories such as ‘big producers’, ‘flavour first’ and ‘unbuyables’ (clever), with month-by-month plans for when to sow and harvest, and how to get the best out of your crops. There are geeky tips in abundance and…

PUBBY CREDS A classic country boozer, it was rescued from near-dereliction by heroic new owners. There are low ceilings to duck, exposed joists, paie-painted wood panelling and bare brick, plus a big open fire. A terrace and garden with pizza oven is under construction for early summer. It's quite foodie, but there are tables for drinkers too. THE BOOZE Spanking fresh beers from the nearby Andwell brewery; Kicking Goat craft cider from Somerset; imaginatively chosen wines, with house red and white at £24. Try an ‘orange mule’ cocktail for £12. THE FOOD Silky jerusalem artichoke velouté with a fudgily slow-cooked egg and pickled walnuts, and venison cottage pie with blackened cabbage wedge were enjoyably on trend. Sunday roasts (£20) do the right things: roasties crunch and the crackling crackles. Good…

Serve Drambuie liqueur as your final course to enhance and extend the evening the next time friends come round for dinner THE BIG BRUNCH Croque señoritas (p5) Mushroom, smoked cheese and tarragon danish pastries (pl24) Lemon, golden syrup and ricotta muffins (p67) Drambuie & whisky twist on an espresso martini (p67) Start the weekend with a proper spread: on the savoury side, choose toasties with Spanish flavours or prep-ahead pastries, then go sweet with muffins. Swap coffee for a cocktail with a kick - it is Saturday, after all! EASTER FEASTING Chicken and prawn koftas (pl20) Sea bream with spring onion and brown butter rice (p32) Golden syrup sticky date pudding (p66) Drambuie coffee grapefruit paloma (p67) Make this year's Easter lunch different with an aromatic starter and main that…