Hey folks.....introducing myself.....

[crazychef]

Introductions are always.......exciting, or exacting...depending on how you look at it.......
Still, it's all fun........
I am so in between projects now....sold my restaurant last June, then did a bit of consultative work with a private house on weddings and banquets.
(I am very(!) old(!!!) fashioned, in that I am crazy for tradional classical cuisine. Then... I do appreciate that the world is so wonderfully small, and we all get excited by wonderful sensations, flavours, so I reckon I am modern. Gimmicks(to me!!) such as nouvelle cuisine and, now, molecular art do not do it for me, chiefly, in that in my experience, real people like real food......lovingly thought over. I suppose my greatest gripe is that with all the new art food, real food is detexturised, and.....for those not in the know, without the basic skills, novelty is the order of norm. Umm.....and the food is over handled. I work on the beauty of simplicity, less is more and all that.... and am I coming across as stuffy?
By all means, an understanding of the art is fab.....I champion that.......)
Presently I am working with colleagues of old, catching up on food fashion, or not!! I spend a lot of time mentoring and training younglings....and since I am self employed, I am working towards raising awareness on staff welfare; I collect old cook books.....came across an old Mrs Beeton-in the most obscure, dark, dingy, side street down a basement shop in Brighton,-leather bound, 1000 pages, and for £1000. Phew.....got dizzy, passed out, and in the next instant it was gone!!! Crickey!!!!
Mid life crisis just set in, bought an old World War Two replica bike with side car....hoping to be travelling thru Africa taking in orphans in the not too distant future. Now thinking about a dog.....choccy labrador...don't ask!!!!!
The other end of -in between projects -is we are converting a barn into a restaurant, with a most unusual theme to it....-six months to finish....yes, I shall keep you posted!!!
My passions are eating....really...and good wine!!
And fabulous, unpretentious Champagne!!!
And crazy friends to share all these with....and trying new products-food!
From last Christmas we had a batch of kinky Berry cider, and a stonking pear cider to try and....wow!!!!
Happiness, and food pleasure is my game.
New friends and foodies are part of the game, everyday......

Peace and love........

crazychef.......

[Maywen]

A £1000.00 Mrs Beeton? I have a few of these lying around.
Do you know how old it was?
The fisrt edition was published in 1865 and is still being published to this day. Maywen

[crazychef]

Yeah, it was a £1000, first Edition, leather bound. and so thick, heavy; the paper was sturdy, as if waxed, and what a smell. I reckon the smell alone made it worth that much.....hahahahaha!!! This was easily eight years ago, and still very vivid, coz of the shock!!!! I must say I am very much realistic in my purchases; over time I have acquired two volumes, All About Cookery and Everyday Cookery, from second hand charity shops-amazing finds. I have another, dog-eared to death taken from my mother who was given it whilst at convent school in the fifties...., no cover and no back-definitey older than time!!!!-amazing books.
Do you run a business selling old books? Or do you collect them?
Came across a collection of recipes from Hampton Court.....Henry VIII...astounding in execution(sic pun!!!). Worth one's while, verily!