I managed to win the battle to keep the kitchen's original pantry, a beautiful large larder with space for everything you could possibly need. I have fantasised about hanging hams from the beams and keeping my cheese, salad and vegetables on the terracotta slab and out of the flavour destroying fridge. Well I am waiting for the paint to dry in the pantry so tomorrow I can enjoy it.
I don't need much space to cook in, as most chefs can knock out meals in the tiniest of spaces, and a 3 metre run of worktop is enough for me. My biggest expense though has been my cooker. We had a tiny budget of three grand to do everything - building work, painting, flooring, units and new appliances so spending £800 on an 8 burner range cooker ate up a fair bit of our budget. It has been worth it though - cooking is my only real passion, save the odd game to see the Swans and a cocktail now and again - so why not get the best I could afford. In addition to the many rings, it has 2 ovens and a separate grill, all gas.All in all it is the perfect cook's kitchen - a proper pantry, ample workspace, somewhere to perch and a fab cooker and as I've waited 4 years for it I think the time has come to do some serious cooking. If you love food do you find that people ask you 'what would be your final meal' ? I have been asked that many many times and have often given different answers each time. In a sense my first meal in my dream kitchen is similar to that question. What do I love, what do I cook. And do you know what you can keep your fancy meals and molecular gastronomy all I wanted to cook and eat was a proper roast dinner. And so that is what I made - Slow roast shoulder of pork with onion dauphinoise, roast pototoes, roast parsnips, peas and real gravy.
What would you have cooked?
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