My first cookery demo at Le Creuset in Leeds

Last week was quite nerve-wracking on several accounts, but the most nervous-making thing I did was my first EVER cookery demonstration. The lovely people at Le Creuset have very kindly invited me into some of their UK stores to demo recipes from my cookbook, Friends, Food, Family, and we kicked off in Leeds, in their beautiful store in the Victoria Quarter.

(The next one was this evening – Tuesday – in Muswell Hill, London N10, and then I am in Belfast on this coming Thursday, the 30 October .- More details here.)

Upstairs, the store still has many of its original Victorian features.

I decided to make sweetcorn fritters, caramelised onions, guacamole, and queso fundido with chorizo. I didn’t think there was much point in demo-ing something like a stew, which is basically quite a lot of chopping and then sitting in a pot on the stove. So we went for lots of frying and chopping instead…

It’s quite odd cooking from one’s own book: instead of just chucking things in as I go on, I have to make sure I follow the correct method to the letter.

I arrived early, and measured everything out in advance into little Le Creuset ramekins, to save making any mistakes.

Remy came along to help as my commis. (And was brilliant.)

I’m pleased to say that everything worked out perfectly – well, I forgot to fry off the onions for the queso fundido, but I count that as a minor mistake! It still tasted delicious without them.

I’d like to say a big thank you to the lovely people who came along, especially delightful Laura from A Forte for Fashion who wrote up the evening here, and who has kindly let me run two of her images here. I thoroughly enjoyed every part of it, which was definitely due in part to being made to feel so at home by you all. And, of course, huge thanks to Sam and the team at Le Creuset Leeds who made everything so easy for us.

All photos by Sasha Wilkins, except no 2 by Henri Hunter, and no 6 & 12 by Laura from A Forte for Fashion.