I had the inauspicious task of turning 33 a few days ago. I know that’s not a cue to start shopping around for retirement homes or for picking out my favourite shade of blue rinse, but it’s hardly spring chicken territory. If I were a footballer I would be described as being in my ‘twilight,’  the game of lawn bowls is becoming more and more appealing and I’m now the precise age that Jesus was when he was crucified.

I’ve finally realised that the purpose of birthday gifts is to take your mind off all of this stuff, something shiny to divert attention. My eldest Sister came up trumps in a big way this year by buying me my first ever Japanese mandolin. I must be the last person in the world to own one of these things but I’m not really a kitchen gadget sort of guy. A mandolin, however, is going to get its mileage in my kitchen, that’s for sure - I even inexplicably used it to make a cheese and cucumber sandwich at lunchtime. But for my Thursday evening snack-attack I’ve made something that probably all new mandolin owners make within their first 48 hours, parsnip crisps with a sour cream & chive dip.

My very generous Sister also bundled in a DVD of the Bruce Lee classic, ‘Enter The Dragon,’ so that’s my Thursday night done and dusted then! Martial arts, parsnip crisps and a couple of lager beers. You could turn me into a pig in a mud bath and I’d be less content than I am right now.

Thanks Big Sis!

GDave

PS. Hey! Bruce Lee was just a few months shy of his 33rd birthday when he died! What are you trying to tell me?

Today in the Commonwealth we celebrated The Queen’s Official Birthday. The Queen’s real birthday is on 21st April but this is a day to mark her coronation to the throne and a day of pageantry and celebration for our Royal Family, armed forces and anyone who wants to revel in a bit of national pride.

I’m not much of a monarchist and about as likely to put my hand on my heart when the national anthem plays as John Lydon, but something very strange hit me during the 2003 celebrations of The Queen’s 50th anniversary, even stranger than Bryan May’s guitar solo on top of Buckingham Palace. The thing was, I actually buy into this stuff! I love the fact that The Queen is adored by millions of Britons. That Australia, who by all rights should be a republic, still voted to retain her as head of state. That Fiji, after more than 20 years of independence, still celebrate her birthday. Despite all of her offspring’s (and husband’s) misdemeanours she remains a talisman of Britishness and, for me, Englishness. I’ll leave it to Stephen and Hugh to sum up what it means to be English.

Coronation Chicken was a dish created in 1953 for The Queen’s coronation by Rosemary Hume and subsequently published in her, and Constance Spry’s, cookery book. The recipe has been changed and adapted over the years but this is quite a faithful version of Hume’s original. > > Read on > >