Desert Island Dishes

Surprise! I'm back with a special bonus episode with the one and only Gennaro Contaldo.   The legendary Gennaro almost doesn’t need an introduction. He’s one of the UK’s most loved chefs, he’s widely known as the man who taught Jamie Oliver all he knows about Italian cooking. He spent time entertaining us with the late, great Antonio Carluccio on ‘Two Greedy Italians’, and Channel 4’s Jamie’s Italy with Jamie Oliver.   Referred to as "everyone’s favourite nonno" - he’s written more than a dozen best-selling Italian cookbooks.He has worked across and owned some of londons top Italian restaurants  and he regularly appears on tv screens with “infectious enthusiasm and energy and a greedy need for good food”.   In his spare time he has a passion for whittling walking sticks – which is quite the tongue twister!   When asked to describe himself in 5 words he has said:“Italian, passionate, extroverted, loud and temperamental When Jamie Oliver was asked what he learnt from Gennaro he said simply - “everything…heart,

For the season finale my guest is James Martin.   James has been a mainstay on our tv screens since the mid 1990’s. It’s safe to say that Saturday mornings wouldn’t be the same without him with his hugely popular shows on the BBC’s Saturday Kitchen and now Saturday Mornings with James Martin on ITV.   He appeared on the Big Breakfast but it was arguably his role on Ready Steady Cook – a show that changed food television - that catapulted him to the kind of fame usually reserved for boy bands. At it’s peak 15 million people were tuning in to watch the show on Friday evenings and Martin with his trademark bandana and youthful good looks was a firm fan favourite.   But this was not a story of overnight success. It was built on years of hard work and perfecting his craft. James grew up on a farm in North Yorkshire where hard graft was a part of daily life from a young age. At the age of 8 he was working in restaurants and by the time he was 12 he had a catering company catering weddings. It’s no surprise then tha

My guest today this week is Julius Roberts.   Julius is a first generation millennial farmer and rising star of the food scene.   In 2016 he gave up working at the acclaimed restaurant Noble Rot in London - and Swapped the rat race for an idyllic life of pigs, goats and chickens instead. His first foray into farming was a small-holding in rural Suffolk and then last year he moved with his family to a farm in Dorset.   His charm and humble approach to life on the farm have seen him amass an army of followers online as he shares the trials and tribulations of farm life alongside his menagerie of animals. Julius describes himself as a cook, farmer and gardener on a journey to self-sufficiency In 2020 the times named him as one of the best Farmer - Foodies to follow on instagram. He says his aim is simple – to educate his audience on topics including animal welfare and seasonal cooking. Julius is a wonderful guest who I guarantee is going to make you want to move to the countryside immediately and start foraging

My guests today are Emily and Amy Chung – aka The Rangoon Sisters   These two sisters are junior doctors by day, cooks by night as they host sell-out supper clubs as part of their mission to put Burmese food on the culinary map. The sisters started their supperclub in 2013 after visiting Burma for the first time in 2012 and have since gone on to raise £10,000 for charities since then   Their number 1 fan is Grace Dent – who said that their Mohinga (fish chowder) was ‘the nicest thing she put in her mouth in 2017’   Grace Dent has said: As a restaurant critic, I constantly giggle at their humble manner of serving some of the best food I ever eat. It is always brought to the table with the words, “This probably isn’t very good but see if you like it.”    They brought out their debut cookbook last year to critical acclaim – it was in the Observer Food Monthly top 10 books of 2020. Steeped in family recipes and stories which are well written and easy to follow, it’s not hard to see why it has been such a hit.   E

My guest today is Tom Aikens.   Tom has been hailed as one of the best chefs of his generation, being the youngest British chef to hold two Michelin stars which he achieved by the tender age of just 26. His remarkable career has taken him to David Cavalier’s in Battersea, Pierre Koffman’s La Tante Claire, Pied-à-Terre and Joel Robuchon in Paris to name a few. Raised in Norfolk with a respect for fresh, seasonal ingredients, Tom is passionate about using the finest local and sustainable produce.   He has restaurants all over the world and at the start of 2020 we saw Tom return to the world of fine dining by opening the intimate, very personal twenty five cover restaurant Muse which has already won a Michelin star. When not cooking you will find Tom running marathons, cycling or running with Olympic torches.   He also works with several charities, most recent of which is Only a Pavement Away for which he has just brought out a new cookbook.     Tom has said: "My whole thing with cooking, is trying to create mem

My guest today is Ben Lebus.   Ben is the founder of the online cooking and content platform – Mob Kitchen whose mission it is to help students and young professionals prepare restaurant-quality meals on a budget. Through everything from recipe videos to cook-alongs and competitions, MOB encourages a laid back and 'get stuck in' attitude in the kitchen.   After noticing that none of his student friends were cooking, upon graduating from university, with no background in food, Ben armed with nothing but a kitchen, a camera and some recipe ideas he started creating overhead videos that people could actually cook. Ever since then the company has earned a loyal and ever-growing following of well over a million fans – the MOB. With four Amazon bestselling cookbooks under their belt, Mob Kitchen have just released a new book called Comfort Mob.   One online publication I came across described Ben’s style as a “mashup of Hugh Grant’s public schoolboy charm and Jamie Oliver’s zeal and relish for food”. -- Buy the

Wow! Can't believe we have reached the 100th episode! A very exciting milestone - thank you for all your support and for listening each week. My guest today is Jo Malone CBE. I’m sure most of you listening will be familiar with her name. Your mind is probably instantly transported to a world of delicious scents and candles – two things synonymous with Jo. Jo Malone CBE is responsible for creating some of the world’s most-loved fragrances ever since she launched her cult namesake brand in 1994. After leaving Jo Malone in 2006, Jo launched Jo Loves  which is about ‘all the things that makes her heart beat’. But what you might not know is the incredible story of how she got to where she is today. A story which involves a magician, a famous Countess and her incredible sense of smell that took her from life on a council estate, leaving school with no qualifications to becoming one of the biggest success stories of recent times by creating two global brands . Her story really shows the resilience of a person who

My guest today is Rachel Ama. Rachel is the rising star of the London vegan scene, her passion for vibrant, colourful food has seen her amass an army of followers online after she went vegan 7 years ago. She started her Youtube channel to show how just easy and delicious it was to cook vegan food and Since then she has gone from strength to strength . She won the Observer Food Monthly Rising Star award in 2019, has presented the Food Programme on Radio 4 and has just released her second cookbook. She grew up in North London with her Mum, but her recipes are also heavily influenced by her Caribbean and African roots. She has a clever knack for putting a vegan spin on classic dishes with a real emphasis on flavour. She has been described as vegan goals. She inspires, she cooks she dances and most of all she’s passionate about vegan life.   -- Rachel’s new book: One Pot: Three Ways is out now! -- Thank you to our sponsor Cooks Matches. Find them on Instagram @cooksmatches and head to their website www.cook

We are back! My guest today is Michel Roux. Michel is a legendary figure in the world of food – he’s a chef and restaurateur - he’s the Michelin starred owner of London’s iconic Le Gavroche, founded by his father and uncle in the 1960’s. Celebrating over 50 years in business the Roux’s have built a gastronomic dynasty. His grandparents and their parents before them were charcutiers so food has always been a family affair. Perhaps it was inevitable that Michel would fall in love with food as his family had done before him – the story goes that he was practically born in a kitchen when his mother went into labour during service at his fathers restaurant. Beyond restaurants, you may well know Michel from his extensive television career, he was a judge on Masterchef the professionals for 6 years , has been a regular on Saturday Kitchen and has fronted BBC 2’s Food and Drink. His latest project is his brilliant new series for Food Network – called Michel Roux’s French Country Cooking. -- Michel Roux's French

My guest today is Rukmini Iyer Rukmini is a former lawyer turned bestselling author of the Roasting Tin series which have now sold over half a million copies. Amongst her army of followers – who call themselves the TinLads. She counts Nigella Lawson as a fan as well as other famous names from Jay Rayner to Judy Murray. The concept of the Roasting Tin books is deceptively simple, Mini’s recipes lure people in with the idea of the one-pot supper. But people return time and time again because the recipes taste even better than the lack of washing up feels. A pioneer of the _and I quote: ‘put everything in a roasting tin and shove it in the oven’ school of cookery, Mini’s fourth cookbook features tasty, no-fuss dishes from across the globe. As well as writing cookbooks, Rukmini styles and writes recipes for numerous brands and publications, including Waitrose, The Guardian and Fortnum and Mason. Of her success and the reaction to her books, Mini says – ‘It’s one thing having fans who are like, "this is great for

My guest today is Romy Gill MBE Romy is an award winning self-taught British-Indian chef and food writer and broadcaster. She has written for publications including the guardian, the telegraph and the evening standard. She’s a regular on TV with her appearances as guest judge on Celebrity Masterchef. She is a judge on the BBC’s food and farming awards and in 2016 she was awarded an MBE in the Queens 90th birthday honours list. Romy’s style of Indian cooking combines Indian and British cuisine; she combines spices and flavours that she grew up with in India, with ingredients that she was only introduced to when she moved to the UK. She started her cooking career with supperclubs, spices, sauces and chutneys and then she went on to open her own restaurant - Romy’s Kitchen in South Gloucestershire. She released her first cookbook last year and  is now amongst many other things a chef on the new adaptation of Ready Steady Cook. Thank you so much for listening. So so many delicious dishes talked about! Don’t forg

My guest today is Angela Scanlon.  Angela is a TV presenter,  Radio host and most recently a podcaster. Originally from Ireland, she moved to London  in 2014 and her career has gone from strength to strength.  She first made her name as a stylist and fashion journalist before becoming a fixture on Irish television, appearing on the likes of Xposé and Off the Rails, as well as Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch. She’s since been described as the BBC’s golden girl with presenting jobs including Robot Wars, the One Show and her own radio show on BBC radio 2. Vogue has described Angela as being known for her “humour, directness and upbeat cheerfulness” Thank you so much for listening and wishing you all a very happy Christmas wherever you might be and whatever the circumstances – and really hope you enjoy todays episode. Don’t forget that you can rate review and subscribe to the podcast on Itunes – it gives the show a little boost and helps others to find it which is exciting! If you don’t already and you would like to,

My guest today is Ryan Riley Ryan is a food writer, stylist and entrepreneur. He is the founder of Life Kitchen which offers free cookery classes across the UK to people living with cancer.  Life Kitchen devises recipes for those on chemotherapy and teaches them to cook, despite loss of taste.  Last year he opened his own phycial cookery school in Sunderland. Ryan has a contacts book that most culinary professionals would give anything for. His friends and supporters include the biggest names from the world of food from Nigella Lawson to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver, all of whom are champions and fierce supporters of Life Kitchen.  Ryan has written a book of the same name in which he shares innovative recipes which bring the pleasure of eating back to people living with cancer. This came out earlier this year and now his  second cookbook,  A Life Kitchen Christmas has been released – with more than 20 recipes both quick and easy to do  which is free to order from his website. Ryan has said: “

My guest today is Vicky Bennison. Vicky is the mastermind behind the viral sensation Pasta Grannies. Pasta Grannies is the most gorgeous concept of Italian nonnas sharing their pasta recipes and it started life as a Youtube channel 5 years ago and now has over 400,000 hugely engaged subscribers, 431,000 Instagram followers and a myriad of celebrity fans. Vicky has travelled all over Italy filming the pasta grannies and every week she releases a video of a different granny cooking a different pasta recipe. It’s a celebration of these women and in her own words it’s a kind of Noah's Ark of handmade pasta techniques. She released the first Pasta Grannies cookbook last year which won a coveted James Beard award and unveils the secrets of Italy’s best home cooks. Thank you so much for listening. Don’t forget you can find me on instagram @desertislanddishes If you haven’t yet left a rating now is your moment! And your good deed for the week could be recommending Desert Island Dishes to your friends and colleagues.

We are back! I'm so happy to be back recording and what a guest to kick off the new season with! My guest today is Dawn O’Porter.   Dawn is an author, broadcaster, writer, podcaster and journalist. Having trained at drama school, Dawn become a TV presenter, rising to fame with her critically acclaimed BBC documentary Super Slim Me. Many more TV shows followed and in 2013 began a new passion for Dawn as she began writing more seriously and started a new chapter of her career. She released her first novel which got shortlisted for the Waterstone’s children book prize, more books followed -  she’s now written 7 and she has continued to have huge writing success as a Sunday Times Bestseller. Dawn lives in Los Angeles with her movie star husband, two young sons and her dog Potato. Dawn has said, "I love food. I realise that’s a basic statement and might not sound like it warrants a whole load of page-time but for me it does. Food is the great passion and pleasure of my life. Reading cookbooks, shopping for ingred

My guest today is Alison Roman Alison is a cook, writer and author. Her first book - Dining In – a best selling cookbook of recipes she calls “highly cookable”. Now there’s a much anticipated second cookbook: called Nothing Fancy. Alison is a contributor to Bon Appetit magazine and has a regular column in the New York Times. Described as the New York Nigella, with well over 200,000 followers on instagram. She has the ability to make recipes go viral – you may well have heard of her salted chocolate-chunk shortbread cookies – known simply on the internet as “the cookies”. Find Alison on Instagram @alisoneroman and you can find me @margienomura. Thank you so much for listening, if you enjoyed today's episode don't forget to rate, review and subscribe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

we are back! And my guest today is Nadiya Hussain. Nadiya won the Great British Bake Off in 2015 and won not only the competition but our hearts in the process, securing her the position of National Treasure. She has gone on to write a whole host of cookbooks both for adults and children, she’s turned her hand to writing novels and has presented multiple series for the BBC. She says: I don’t know if I can still call myself a stay at home mum anymore but it feels like I am still one but with the added bonus of doing the most amazing job. I don’t have a title but when anyone asks my kids ‘what does mummy do?’ they always respond with ‘she lives her dreams’. So I suppose that is exactly what I’m doing. So there we are. Feels so lovely to be back. Thank you for listening don’t forget to tell all your friends about the podcast – the more the merrier! And I will see you next week for more desert island dishes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest today is Jacqueline Gold Jacqueline is one of the UK’s most successful business women as CEO of Anne Summers. Starting at the company at the age of just 19 on an internship she spotted a gap in the market and worked to reinvent the brand and turn Ann Summers into the business it is today. Ann Summers now has 125 stores and over 4000 parties held each week along with a multi million pound turnover. She’s a strong advocate of female empowerment, has set up the WOW incentive on twitter and was awarded a CBE in 2016. Thank you to Penguin Random House for sponsoring this episode and I'm excited to get stuck in to Green by Elly Pear. The link to which is just below: https://amzn.to/2M2p4aY Thank you for listening. Don’t forget you can find me on instagram, www.instagram.com/margienomura. If you haven’t yet left a 5* rating now is your moment! And your good deed for the week could be recommending Desert Island Dishes to your friends and colleagues. I love bringing it to you every week and your reviews rea

My guest today is Marcus Wareing Marcus is one of the most respected and acclaimed chefs working in Britain today. His contribution to British food and his passion for nurturing the next generation of cookery talent has earned him both respect and accolades. His career began at the age of 18 and he now has a restaurant empire to his name, 2 Michelin stars, seven cookbooks and a successful television career with his role of judge on Masterchef the Professionals. When asked to describe his style of cooking, Marcus has said, it’s…'not British cuisine, not French cuisine – it’s Marcus cuisine.' Thank you to Penguin Random House for sponsoring this episode and I'm excited to get stuck in to Green by Elly Pear. The link to which is just below: https://amzn.to/2M2p4aY Thank you for listening. Don’t forget you can find me on instagram, www.instagram.com/margienomura. If you haven’t yet left a 5* rating now is your moment! And your good deed for the week could be recommending Desert Island Dishes to your friends a

My guest today is Alice Liveing Alice started her career on the stage as a dancer, singer and actress touring the country in the musical Annie. She is now a 3 x best selling author, she’s a personal trainer, and Women’s Health columnist, a magazine for which she has graced the cover twice and is also behind their number one app. Alice is on a mission is to change the way women feel about exercise and it’s a mission that has earnt her well over 630,000 followers on Instagram. She’s launched a range of active wear with Primark. And amidst all this she still continues to work on a 1:1 basis with her personal training clients. Alice has been described as being pint sized but powerful, which I love! Thank you to Sweaty Betty for sponsoring this episode - there is a very generous 20% for you to use online using the code “Desertislanddishes” – that’s all one word. Thank you for listening. Don’t forget you can find me on instagram, www.instagram.com/margienomura. If you haven’t yet left a 5* rating now is your mo