Dusting the cobwebs

The blog is cobwebbing somewhat! I apologies but time is at a premium at the mo so all my energies have been focusing on creating new and exciting food at the kiosk with its new container seating area! If you haven’t been down to Nottingham’s newest quirky independent dining spot get your sen down there!

So what the hell have we been up to I hear you cry? Well I will tell you. 

as all ways questionable spelling whilst doing up the container!

Since the last post I have mainly been concentrating efforts on getting the container sorted; which as I have always lived in rented accommodation I’ve never had anything done building wise to my house so it was quite a shock to the system. Dust dust dust and more dust. But thanks to the boy, Trev, Mike and Andrew it got sorted. I spent a few late nights sanding painting and dusting!

the container under construction

Apart from sanding and dusting I have been doing lots of menu planning for the evenings that we are now doing in the container on Saturday and Friday nights. India, Kaiya and I went on a “staff training” day to London to get some inspiration. We went and met up with my cousin Char who directed us to all the cool spots in Brixton Village we did some serious coffee and cake sampling then went off for lunch in the sunshine at the lido. We also checked out some container inspiration on the south bank at Wahaca and lubricated ourselves with a few cocktails and finally Caravan for some tapas with friends. 

coffee at Rosie's

sun , beer and a scotch egg at the lido!

snacks and booze at Wahaca

You may have also noticed that we have some new staff aboard the good ship Kiosk I’m sure most of you will know them but I thought it would only be polite to introduce them!

The wonderful Rachel who you may recognize from Sherwood crafty events and will defo recognize her quirky retro textile art; Rach is joining us as a part time waitress and little bit of everything assistant!   

Also The lovely Hattie who you may also recognise from craft events she is a super star knitter and is also joining us as a part time waitress and little bit of everything assistant.

Kiosk at night photo thanks to Matthew Robertson

So the new opening hours are mon –thur 9-4 pm fri-sat 9-4 and 7pm –till late we are open again on  Sunday 10-2.

Hope to see you soon

xbx

Kiosk Apprentice

India is my wonderful apprentice and as part of her course I'm getting her to develop recipes specifically for the Kiosk and write a blog post about them. This month her project was to develop a substantial, relatively healthy brownie with an edge let me tell you this bird has got edge (she made candied bacon on tuesday she is only 18 !!! bloody amazing). Any way I'll let you read her evaluation of the process, just to let you know Indi will be writing a monthly blog post about all her finding and new recipie that you can sample in the Kiosk.

Due to the fact that some of our customers are intolerant to wheat or gluten, we thought it would be a good idea to experiment with some recipes using different substitutes for flour and sugar. We settled on brownies, as these had always been a popular choice. For the first batch, we found a recipe for bean brownies. These turned out pretty well, although some customers commented that they had an unusual texture. Using the bean brownie recipe as a starting point, we developed our own recipe, substituting beans for sweet potato, agave nectar for maple syrup and coconut for ground almonds. After a few attempts, we finally got the proportions right. The end result was a deep, rich, deliciously moist brownie. Some customers commented that they were almost truffle like in texture. Quite literally, the icing on the cake was the addition of a sticky coco ganache drizzled on top, sprinkled with some chopped pistachios. These brownies are irresistible not only for those who are wheat intolerant; even we find it hard to keep our fingers off them. And with them being sugar free and wheat free, we don’t even have to feel guilty about it! Pop down to The Kiosk to sample these treats, along with all our other mouth watering offerings

The Container

You have probably noticed the shipping container on the terrace of the Kiosk. Loads of people have seen it and most likely think it is just going to stay as a metal shelter. Well It’s not. We (the landlord Mike (and team), Simon and I) are going to convert this metal shell into an urban eatery.

As you may know I wanted a temporary but unique shelter for the Kiosk during winter (admittedly it’s a bit late), this will enable me to open whatever the weather and in the evenings. I wanted the space to be different and to provide the diners with an experience. So to give you an idea of what it will look like when it’s finished I have made this illustration hope you like it.

New year......

I remember that feeling before you went back to school, even when I was working in schools I would get it, that sort of slight feeling of dread at what the year holds! Well this year it’s different, something that has come as a surprise to me, even though I was as tired as a dog and kept losing my voice last year I am excited about the new possibilities that lie ahead. When I look back over the last 6 months I think bloody hell! With a little help from my friends I’ve done it! And now I’ve got to keep doing it!

So what have we got planned for January I hear you ask!

January for me is going to be like a massive experimental melting pot of ideas! Basically my wonderful land lord Mike has bought me an amazing Christmas present a great big shipping container to convert and plonk on the terrace , yes Sherwood is going to have its own little piece of Shoreditch (all we need now is a few girls in ill-fitting sundresses and leather shorts, some blokes in super tight skinny jeans and of course the ridicules haircuts and big 80’s style glasses to hang out in the yard!) a few little images of it before it gets converted!

So yes that means we will have indoor facilities and it does mean we will be able to do evenings!!!! I’m soooooooooo excited! My plan is to start off doing Friday and Saturday nights and if small groups want to use the space in the week for privet parties, book clubs and the like I’m more than happy to open for them (if arrange beforehand obviously!). I hear you ask is this the end of the Underground Restaurant? Defiantly not I love doing pop ups ,so I’m going to try and do one a month at my house (this basically means I will have to clean my house at least once a month, a great plan really to keep my house tidy!). Also if you’re up for having a pop up in your own house let me know! During the run up to the opening of the container I will be doing a few fund raising pop ups to fund the interior of the container, so keep your eyes peeled!

The other really exciting thing that I am doing is eat yourself healthy, happy and hardy pop up in collaboration with Millie Pollitt. Just getting this together has really made me look at my diet and amend it to support my body (I owe my voice coming back to a combination of advice from Millie and my acupuncturist!), so keep your eyes peeled for this event.

I thought I’d do a quick photo journal of the last year so you can get an Idea of what has happened for me, where I have come from where I am now. 

I made this when I got made redundant to give me some sort of focus.

some photos I did with Jess Hayes-Gill and my bread

Doing food for Molly Queen and the Beeston Bee ladies market has really help with my confidence and you know what it's fun! 

 

doing the garden and getting the shop ready!

this is how I received the shop!

I thought a bit of before and after would be good!

yep basically it was full of the previous owners tables chairs and gone off milk! really!

THE OPENING!

My shop after extreme make over!

cooking and eating with my cuz removed 2 beaut!

my wedding cake!

going for a photo shoot for Zest magazine

being in Zest Magazine

I really want to do this to say Ta very much too all the support, love and encouragement I have had from you all. Thanks your fucking brilliant,big love and good luck for this year.

xbx