Cheeks and lips

I've had the week off work this week to celebrate both our anniversary and my birthday. Naturally for me this goes hand in hand with some decadent dining....and a few bottles of wine and a couple of martinis.

Have you ever sampled braised ox cheeks or tulips? These were just some of the delights on the tasting menu at Club Gascon. I know in these days of the credit crunch it's highly frowned upon to be splurging out on such extravagances at £75 per person (inclusive of wines), but I just felt the need.

Well, I can highly recommend it.....the menu is divine. Plus, a bonus of the credit crunch is that service in restaurants and shops seems to have gone up ten notches, so I don't resent that 12.5% service charge so much when the waiter genuinely seems to care about his product.

Stop Messing About

Eton Mess is basically what happens to a Pavlova once I have it in front of me. So, I think unless you're going to present this decadent dessert with a bit of comedy thrown in, as we have in the picture further down this page, then why bother wasting the time to balance your meringue nest on top of the carefully sculpted fruit and cream base - just mess it all up.

It couldn't be easier - fruit, cream and meringue nests mixed together and dolloped into a Martini glass. There's nothing to it and it's delicious.

I don't know what feels naughtier - eating Eton Mess or watching Nigella preparing it...