WELCOME TO THE HEART OF OUR HOMES
Three well-known foodies tell Sharon Parsons why their kitchen is their favourite room – and why it has been so important in recent months
Three celebrities reveal why they love their kitchens
‘It’s where memories are made and life happens’
Presenter and author Angellica Bell is married to fellow presenter Michael Underwood, and they live in south-west London with their two young children. Angellica won Celebrity Masterchef in 2017.
‘We’ve lived in our house for 10 years and used to have a narrow galley kitchen, but a year ago we created a kitchen extension right across the back, which has completely changed how we live: it’s a real family room, but also fantastic for entertaining.
We’d waited a long time for it to happen, and had a tick list of essentials: a massive island for friends and family to gravitate to, plenty of storage, a walk-in pantry and, best of all, a Sub-zero & Wolf double oven. I bought this with money my dad left me when he died in 2006, and I waited to spend it on something special. For me, cooking good food is the most important thing – it unites everyone.
We love entertaining and had a big oak table made for the new space. Before I won Celebrity Masterchef, I would put a big pot of something in the middle of the table so everyone could help themselves, but since then, friends are always saying, “We’re still waiting for our invitation…” and want the full-on experience! I don’t mind at all – it’s fun to plan the menu. Big hits have included pumpkin gnocchi with roasted tomatoes and a blue cheese sauce, and a ginger cake with rum butter and spiced fruit compote. It’s lovely to see people’s faces when they dig in! I really missed having people round for supper during lockdown. I found myself planning what I would cook for friends once it was all over.
For family meals, I didn’t mind doing most of the cooking, though it was frustrating not being able to get some ingredients. When a friend posted me a sachet of dried yeast, I fell on it as if it were manna from heaven!
MIXING IT UP
I mixed up the menus a bit to keep mealtimes interesting. Every Sunday, we’d have a cook-in and make something new from scratch, like homemade pasta with ragù, or Caribbean chicken curry with rice, peas and plantain chips.
I also combined homeschooling with baking. The children were learning about the Great Fire of London and the book mentioned raisin buns, so we made those then sent a picture of them to the teacher. I also applied the logic of maths to baking: in the same way you make a formula work, every ingredient had to be measured out to make a cake. I found it all as much fun as they did!
Cooking is in my DNA. My gran, Mama, was a chef in St Lucia and came to the UK as part of the Windrush generation. I lived with her when I was growing up in London, and she not only taught me to cook, but also gave me a sense of what a kitchen should be like: warm, secure and happy. I remember her singing lovely calypso songs as she cooked and, oh, the spicy Caribbean aromas that used to drift out of the kitchen! Mama passed away two years ago, aged 98, and although
I can remember lots of her recipes, she never wrote them down. I write out all our favourite dishes for my children; they’re part of our family heritage.
I like to think that they’ll enjoy making them and pass them on.
One thing I did want to replicate from my childhood is the sense that the kitchen is a place where everyone can relax, and say and do what they feel. I cook and chat with my two all the time in the kitchen, and every night the four of us will sit down for dinner in here. It’s the best part of my day. We have a little ritual and always ask each other: “What is the most positive thing that happened today?” and “What would you change?” It means the children are free to express themselves properly but, most importantly, they see us doing that, too.’
Fantastic Eats! (& How To Cook Them) (Quadrille) by Angellica Bell is out now. Find Angellica on Instagram at @angellicabell
Cooking good food unites everyone