Gordon Ramsay reaches boiling point in Chelsea, 1999

Gordon Ramsay is in the kitchen of Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea, and it’s hot, intense and frenzied, wrote fly-on-the-wall reporter Nicci Gerard in the Observer on 24 January 1999.‘Over everyone towers Ramsay, barking orders, spraying expletives across the room… tasting, shouting (“Fucking unbelievable!”), calming (“Guys, guys, guys!”).’ Ramsay, 32, the ‘wunderkind of the cooking world’, is running what is ‘not a democracy but a dictatorship’. Channel 4 was filming the kitchen for Ramsay’s Boiling Point, a five-part documentary.It was a bad week: his father had just died, aged 54

The Great Indian, London: ‘A thoroughly delightful food pub’ – restaurant review

An old north London boozer has found new life as an Indian restaurant, and redefined ‘gastropub’ along the wayThe Great Indian, 139 Marlborough Road, London N19 4NU. Small plates £7.50-£11.50, large dishes £9.50-£23

Save our cider: apple growers and producers call on government to protect traditional ‘native wine of England’

They are a symbol of the bucolic English countryside and a staple of the West Country landscape, but since the second world war, 90% of traditional orchards have disappeared.Defined as a collection of five or more fruit trees planted in permanent grassland and managed in a non-intensive way, traditional orchards have suffered from neglect, been razed for development and converted to intensive bush orchards or alternative crops.Now cider makers are calling on the government to protect what they say is one of the country’s most environmentally friendly farming systems. Traditional orchards are often wildlife havens with rare birds and insects, and allow silvopasture – where livestock grazes on a variety of plants in forests and tree-filled pastureland, eliciting multiple uses from one field. Older orchards, proponents say, are excellent carbon storers

How to turn eggs into a traditional British pub snack – recipe

Pickling is a good way to lengthen the life of your eggs, and a chance to use up herbs and spices, tooThe Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.At Yeo Valley’s Good Food and Eating Well conference last year, Christine Storry of the Dynamic Food Board, a UK body that promotes sustainable, local food procurement, estimated that “more than 700 million eggs are wasted in the UK each year”; that’s roughly 45,000 tonnes, or almost equivalent to the weight of the Titanic. She also noted that only 22% of us know how to test if an egg is fresh and safe to eat

Benjamina Ebuehi’s recipe for orange and cardamom muffins | The sweet spot

Give me a muffin over a cupcake any day. They’re less faffy to make, don’t need much when it comes to decorations, and I’m a big fan of the way the domed tops spill over the cases, giving a crisp shell that contrasts with the fluffy insides. Orange and cardamom feel bright and fresh, so are ideal for cold, grey afternoons.Prep 10 minRest 15 min Cook 40 min Makes 6Zest of 1 orange Seeds from 6 green cardamom pods, crushed100g caster sugar190g plain flour 1½ tsp baking powder ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 large egg 80g plain yoghurt 40ml milk 80g unsalted butter, melted20g oil 2-3 tbsp pearl sugar (optional)Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7 and line a six-hole muffin tray with paper cases.In a bowl, use your fingertips to rub the orange zest and cardamom into the sugar until well combined and smelling nice and fragrant

Seven kitchen gadgets I can’t live without: ‘How does anyone make a salad without one?’

Keen cook Elizabeth Quinn opens her drawer to share the culinary tools that save her time, sanity and fingertipsThe Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.What makes a kitchen gadget a culinary gamechanger? An indispensable item of the kitchen toolkit doesn’t have to be hi-tech or fancy – my most prized tool is a 50 cent plastic spatula – but it does have to earn its place in the cutlery drawer.The Guardian’s journalism is independent