And then there were 2

Small humans. Two beautiful wee boys who are our responsibility. Mine. And their Dads. And our collective village's.

It's up to us to help them grow into kind and thoughtful big humans and for me, the weight of that responsibility is absolutely terrifying. When it comes to parenting, and general life really, but definitely parenting, I have no idea what I'm doing most moments of the day.

Don't worry. This will never be, and could never become a mummy blog because it sometimes takes me a minute to realise that the continual chorus of Mumma, Mum, MUMMMY is aimed at me. Like oh- that's right. It's me you're after. I'm the Mum.

What's me being a potentially mediocre Mum got to do with food, you ask? Well these boys, they need feeding. A lot. The littlest love only needs milk at the moment, but before long, like his brother, he too will be demanding three dinners because he hasn't liked the first two and helping himself to a palm full of 'sprinkle' or bloody expensive Sel Gris De Guerande to chuck onto his 'crumpled eggs'.

Once upon a time, in what feels like a life long ago, I was standing on the edge of the food scene. I started food blogging in a burgeoning time when blogging wasn't really a thing yet. It began with a very poorly written blog post about how terribly shit a certain chain breakfast place was and led to a world of exclusive dinners, being picked up in private cars to view cocktail making championships and packages of beautiful produce appearing on the doorstep.

It ended abruptly with a Master's degree that was supposed open doors into the food writing world but actually awakened some cliched crippling self doubt, writer's block and very little desire to ever write again. Until now.

While that old food life has passed and we're onto the next, something remains the same. The nagging preoccupation with food. Growing, eating, cooking, drinking. Nourishing and sharing.

This time round, my food life is much slower, less restauranty and somehow more earthy. We live in the country so we're naturally more in tune with the seasons. Sometimes it features a glass of something special, but most often is a more robust (but no less delicious) local ham and cheese toastie or a super luxurious tin of Ortiz anchovies eaten at home with friends and family.

To my boys: I can't promise a lot of things. I can't teach you calculous or physics or give good movie advice- but I can promise that I will show you you how to cook and how to eat well. We will garden, and you'll see plants grow from a seed into a sustainable meal. Sadly but importantly, you'll realise that animals you love will grow but also, one day will die.

You'll get older and may gather that 'food as sustenance only' couldn't be further from our family philosophy. I hope you'll understand the value of a potato pulled straight from the earth and know that with some care it can taste as opulent as any grand gourmet offering. You'll definitely experience ridiculous extended family fights about menus for Christmas lunch - the quest to keep tradition alive vs something fresh and different. Most importantly, you'll see that building a longer table rather than a larger fence is the best way to be, and that the table should be laden with whatever you can throw together. The food is important but the company more so- and the table will be the centrepiece for many of your wonderful memories, just as it is mine.

So this is just a little labour of love. Somewhere to document this food life.

It's not quite a blog, and not really a website, more a food lover's diary where you'll happen upon an array of information, interviews, reviews, articles and an agony aunt/uncle column for guest writers to answer all those burning food, booze and garden questions.

A kind of curated collection of all things Gastronomic.

Cheers x