THE BITTER ONE

A guest Dinner Party from Alexina Anatole

SURPRISE! It’s me with a sneaky bonus episode from an amazing guest host!!! Yay!!

Alexina’s menu to serve 2 people -

Burnt Aubergine Dip

Tomato and Lapsang Souchong Salad

Bavette with Chicory, Soy and Orange

Stout Sticky Toffee Pudding

In 2020, Alexina Anatole turned her back on a career in finance to focus on her one true love - food, and hasn’t looked back. Growing up in Paris and then South London with both British and Saint Lucian heritage, it’s unsurprising that food is the centre of her universe. I am so thrilled to have Alexina as my first ever guest Dinner Party host - she is a powerhouse and as someone who hosts monthly supper clubs in her own home she knows a thing or two. What I love about Alexina’s approach to recipes and cooking is her thoroughness. She researches and researches and makes every effort to understand the inception of an ingredient, technique or dish. So when she comes to use it or cook it she is armed with knowledge, engagement and connection, enabling her to cook thoughtfully and masterfully. Her debut cookbook, Bitter is out today and it is just the most divine book that celebrates the wonder of bitter flavours and how to use them. I have spoken often in here about the need for balance in cooking and one of the best ways to achieve it is by harnessing bitterness. It offers so much dimension and sophistication to recipes and this is evident in every single one of Alexina’s.

I am delighted to share with you today 4 beautiful dishes from Bitter chosen by Alexina that work fabulously as a Dinner Party for 2 aka, The Bitter One.

The starters here, Burnt Aubergine Dip and Tomato and Lapsang Souchong Salad, only use a few ingredients and yet are somehow incredibly complex, sexy and chic dishes.

Bavette Steak with Chicory, Soy and Orange is so utterly divine and also bloody clever. Humble bavette is pan fried rare, finished in butter and then while it rests you quickly cook the chicory in the same pan and that’s it. Minimal work but such an incredible, hearty dish.

Finally it’s everyone’s favourite but with a bitter twist - Stout Sticky Toffee Pudding. This recipe makes 3 perfect little puds so you have one each and a third to share ie. the best news I've had in ages. Plus the sauce is made with stout so it has a rounded, yeastiness that goes so well with the intense toffee vibes. GORGE.