If you read my Cookbook Club post last month, you’ll know that this is the second month Jan from Family Bites, Mardi from eat. live. travel. write and I get together and have a potluck of sorts where we each cook from one same cookbook author. This time around we met at Jan’s cosy home complete with a comforting fireplace and some pretty stellar food.
Our mission was to make an appetizer, a main and a dessert from one of Nigella Lawson’s books. It felt almost strange to have picked her as our guest of honor given how horrid the recent headlines concerning her have been in the last couple weeks. We decided to cook from her recipes long before any of them surfaced, but it did feel sort of eery. I’ve been a fan of her for several years — I remember being on a photo shoot when I interned for BBC Good Food a few years ago, and having a candid discussion about her with the photographer, who also happened to have been the photographer of her Nigella Christmas cookbook. The photographer’s assistant had been on the shoot for 6 weeks as well, in Nigella’s home, and they were both completely smitten. To be honest, I don’t really care whether or not the allegations are true.I’m more appalled that we even have to hear about such details regarding her private life — especially when there are children involved. It’s one thing for us to be concerned about whether or not our mayor Rob Ford is sober while on the job he’s been elected to do for the city, but in Nigella’s case, it’s really none of our business.
Now back to the food! I prepared this Butternut Salad topped with toasted pine nuts, arugula and plump golden raisins, It seems pretty perfect for this time of year, It was light, bright and really quite delicious. Jan made Nigella;s Beef Stew with Anchovies and Thyme with mashed potatoes, and Mardi made her oh-so-gooey Flourless Chocolate Brownies with Hot Chocolate Sauce. While we kept our dish of choice a surprise until our gathering, we ended up with a great mix of flavours and a very balanced meal.
Monica
December 2, 2013 at 9:40 pm (11 years ago)Your cookbook club sounds like such fun!! And I am also a huge fan of Nigella – I’ve watched her shows for so long and enjoyed so many of her books. I feel I owe her a lot just for that…and I certainly wish her peace and the best. No more drama! : ) And your salad looks so beautiful…
Ruby @ The Ruby Red Apron
December 3, 2013 at 12:20 am (11 years ago)This salad looks beautiful! Love the pretty bright colors! I’m also a fan of Nigella … however, I wasn’t aware of all this drama going on. I hope it all gets resolved soon!
Joanne
December 3, 2013 at 7:37 am (11 years ago)I’m obviously not up on the latest Nigella gossip because I have no idea what you’re referring to. And maybe that’s for the best? This salad looks fabulous. The perfect healthy eats for winter!
deana@lostpastremembered
December 3, 2013 at 11:34 am (11 years ago)You do make the prettiest dishes. I am with you on Nigella. It’s not like she is an emblem for temperance. A few wagging tongues of nasty people can do so much damage. In this day and age, who hasn’t had a bit of something they shouldn’t? It’s her business anyway. Leave her alone.
Ashley | Spoonful of Flavor
December 3, 2013 at 9:00 pm (11 years ago)What a beautiful and fresh salad! I really love adding butternut squash to as many dishes as I can during this time of year.
Jan @ Family Bites
December 8, 2013 at 9:20 am (11 years ago)This was a great night and I’m already looking forward to our next get-together!
John@Kitchen Riffs
December 8, 2013 at 9:22 pm (11 years ago)Gosh, this looks like such a good dish! Your cookbook club sounds like tons of fun! I should start one of those. 😉 Good stuff – thanks.
Mardi (eat. live. travel. write.)
December 8, 2013 at 9:52 pm (11 years ago)This was a highlight of the night’s food for me 🙂 Thanks so much for bringing it! Looking forward to Feb already!
Consuelo @ Honey & Figs
December 9, 2013 at 4:08 pm (11 years ago)I love butternut squash in salads, it adds such a lovely flavor and looks beautiful. This salad sounds amazing, and your pics are great! xo
Heather // girlichef
December 9, 2013 at 8:09 pm (11 years ago)Anything with roasted butternut squash AND arugula in the same vicinity makes me happy. And so does Nigella <3.
Kelly
December 10, 2013 at 5:52 am (11 years ago)This salad looks wonderful and so fresh. Love butternut squash and arugula!
jennifer
December 10, 2013 at 6:48 am (11 years ago)It’s a great combo — I was tempted to add just a few morsels of tangy goat cheese but forced myself to stick to the recipe. And it was fantastic nonetheless!
Liz
December 11, 2013 at 8:55 pm (11 years ago)What a gorgeous salad! Your food styling is outstanding…and I know this must taste amazing.
Patty
December 11, 2013 at 11:01 pm (11 years ago)This could be a favorite salad too!!! Beautiful photo-so inviting and fresh looking 😉
Amy @ Elephant Eats
December 13, 2013 at 2:12 pm (11 years ago)I love Nigella and I don’t care what the tabloids say! Or even if it’s true, honestly, cuz she’s still a damn good cook 😉 This salad is so simple and delicious….arugula is my go-to lettuce 🙂
Julia
October 3, 2015 at 2:16 pm (9 years ago)Love butternut squash. This looks delicious. You site is beautiful!
Jennifer Bartoli
October 4, 2015 at 8:39 am (9 years ago)Thank you for your kind words Julia!