My Passion: Culinary skills make me popular with the family!

I first found my passion for being a foodie bore at the start of the millennium. I contracted a spinal cord virus and was really ill for three years. While I was recovering, my mum used to come round and cook meals for me and my son, Zander.

They were so delicious compared to the ready meals we used to survive on, I decided to enrol at Bishop Burton College and did the School of Food and Wine course. I went from not being able to boil an egg or make mash without a recipe to creating wonderful gastronomic creations like lobster thermidor, beef wellington and delicious puds including panna cotta and homemade ice-cream.

I was so hooked with my new found skills I went on to do the City and Guilds certificate and diploma courses in professional cookery so I am a qualified chef – not that I would ever want to swap my coaching work for a chef’s job – far too much stress cooking all those meals to order. I did once do a wedding for a friend for 80 guests. I did the afternoon reception and supper for the evening party on the hottest day of the year. It was not only the bride and groom who made their vows, I made my own vows that day – never to cook as a job ever again!

I got quite carried away with creating amazing pack-up lunches for my son and one time at a parents’ evening, his teacher said that everything was great about my son and his school work apart from one thing – his teacher went on to say he would not share his interesting looking pack-ups.

I enjoy combining my love of entertaining with my other passion – to be outside in the fresh air, so barbecues are high on my list of fun time. My only food pet hate are UFOs – those Unidentifiable Frozen Objects lurking in the freezer, that you were so sure you would remember what they were, you didn’t bother to label them.

I once made a fancy meal, served it with what I thought was gravy, to find out after I poured it, it was melted homemade chocolate sauce. At least those calamities are a thing of the past and I get praise not complaints nowadays!