Sea Change

As you all know, food is an interest we both share, as well as many of our friends (loved your Vietnam food experiences Jo), so here's a bit of an update about some highlights since leaving NZ.

In London we ate well, including delicious lunches at Polpo and at Ottolenghi. At Polpo the small sharing plates highlights were a simple broad bean, rocket and mint bruschetta, and the pork and fennel meatballs. The Ottolenghi highlight was the salad range - they taste amazing - great mix of textures and flavours, including samphire which I'd been keen to try. The meringues were delicious too.

We had some great family outings - lunch with Ben, Hannah, Red and George at a Jamie Oliver place near Greenwich, and a dinner out at a local French place (with great cocktails) with Sarah, Clare, Paulette and Roz; as well as a picnic in Kensington Gardens

At Borough Market in London I got to purchase my first truffle, and made a simple risotto at home with it - and liked it very much.

(Vegetarians may want to turn aside at this time). A highlight of our time in London was attending "a Pig in a Day"; a butchery and charcuterie course run at River Cottage on the borders of Devon and Dorset. We hired a car and drove across, staying at a homestay nearby (who were growing their pigs and curing their own meat after a similar course, and who served us their farm bacon and eggs for breakfast).
The course presenters were great - a butcher and a chef. It was really interesting seeing the change from a familiar animal being turned into sausages, chorizo, parma ham, and bacon (all without preservatives) along with various cuts for cooking or freezing. Along the way, various parts were identified, prepared, and often whipped off to the kitchen for cooking - including sage and floured liver, brawn, and fillet. We ate all day, including a three course lunch, and came home with sausages and chorizo we'd made, as well as an enthusiasm for making Parma ham as soon as we are home. We don't think there is anything in our lease about hanging pork in the lift lobby.



We came to the boat via Rome, staying in Testaccio in a great airbnb apartment. We spent all our time in the one neighbourhood, including the local open air market which had great fresh produce. The market had recently moved (controversially) from its hundred year old location into a new purpose built building, and the stall holders still looked a little self conscious as if they too were somehow also on display. We spent a lot of time (and money) in Volpetti, a deli around the corner that specialises in charcuterie and cheeses. We pushed our baggage limits to the max, bringing parma ham, salamis, parmesan, pecorino, and Nduja Calabrese, a hot sausage you heat over boiling water and scrape onto bruschetta, or use as a base for meat sauces. Very glad to have this, as I still haven't seen a chilli since we arrived in Greece. We also brought with us some rosemary, thyme and sage, as we've found herbs add enormously to what we can make on the boat.

Today, as we are anchored in Nidri here in Greece, we will visit the butcher and get some cuts for the freezer, and I'm hoping our favourite greengrocer has some of the figs we loved last year.