Ghosts by Dolly Alderton Recipe by Gabriella Margiotta
May book and chef all in one place
About the Book
Ghosts is a book about relationships, friendships, trust and ghosting.
The lead character, Nina, is a food writer, living in London, successful, independent and a few years out of a seven-year relationship with Joe.
Still close friends, Nina watches Joe move on with Lucy and decides to sign up to a Linx, a dating app.
Theme one:
Lucy hits off with Max and it’s not long until he tells her his feeling of love for her, and it wouldn’t be a good story if it wasn’t so, but Max doesn’t turn out to be all that he seems.
Theme two:
A plot around Nina’s Dad, Bill.
Bill has dementia and even though Nina’s Mum, Nancy, is looking after him, throughout the book, she finds it more and more difficult.
Nancy brings lots of laughs throughout the book, trying to change her name for example, but as Bill regresses, asking to see his own mother more and more, Nancy is forced to accept her own age and mortality.
Ghosts by Dolly Alderton
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
It’s fun to read, a bit of a beach book so a quick read too.
Not too much thinking has to go into reading this book, with an easy read plot and even if it was a little predictable, I didn’t mind that very much.
I give the book a 2 Egg Rating
I give this an easy 2 egg
I do have a question though; Not sure why if the main character is a food writer, there are so little context about food, so maybe not the best choice for Foodie Book Club, but then, I never promised the chosen reads would be filled with recipes and food phrases!
Time to explain the word Ghosting: If you’re going to give this book a go, it’s a term that needs explaining!
This is a term to describe when someone cuts off all communication without explanation. Most of us think about it in the context of digital departure: a friend not responding to a text, or a lover ignoring all correspondence, but it happens across all social circumstances.
It seems that the author, Dolly Alderton had first hand experience with ghosting, or should I say, being ghosted, which may be why the descriptions and feelings are so good
Click this link to read what she has to say, her account of tracking down a man who ghosted her, who then agreed to meet for (an awkward) brunch to explain himself.
About Dolly Alderton
Starting her life as a free-lance journalist writing columns, features and interviews for national media.
Never one to hold back with her honesty, she was brave enough to jump into writing a book of her memoirs ‘Everything About Love’.
Following this with a podcast with her best friend, Pandora Sykes, where they chat to each other about current affairs and pop culture. It’s got download audience of over 1.5 million, it’s not too shabby.
Dolly Alderton
Moving on to fiction, Dolly said to write about the unreal world of fiction, felt like an adventure:
“It feels like a great new adventure. A real privilege and a very different activity to all the writing that I have done in my life so far. More creative, less raw, safer. I’m only one novel in but I am really enjoying it. I’ve loved the experience.”
Ghosts is Dolly Aldertons first fiction novel, here’s what she says about it:
“In terms of Nina and her story, she is quite a different character to me. From her friendships, love life, to her parents, they are all very different to mine. But I am using her and her fictional world to explore anecdotes, experiences and questions that have been simmering in my head since I first wrote my memoir ‘Everything I Know About Love’ back in 2018. The difference between a 28-year-old and a 32-year-old is immense.”
In interviews about the book Ghosts, Dolly talked about looking for inspirations from other writers and this books parallels with the writer Nora Ephron, retro recipes and her men cheating.
“My brain is quite cannibalistic when it comes to inspiration. I’m always on the lookout for stuff to put in a project, so I will always have a sort of box in my mind of whatever project it is that I am planning or that I have on the go, basically everything during that time is just being eaten up to put straight into that project. Whether that be albums, conversations with my friends, whether that’s reading books from now or from the past. It’s something that I actively do, I’m aware of everything that I’m collecting and how I can use it. It’s quite exhausting! It’s just how I do it – I forget things otherwise. I have a rigorous noting system!”
There is so much more I could write about Dolly Alderton, but its time to move in to our chef and the recipe.
Have fun with the read!
Time for the food!
I’ve had this recipe tucked away in my cupboard for a few months now, just waiting for the right moment and this is the month I’ve decided to show it off.
Oh no, it’s not one of mine, it’s a recipe gifted to Foodie book Club by lovely and talented Chef Gabriella Margiotta.
Before the recipe, a little bit about Gabriella and what’s she’s up to!
Ready for action
I’ve trawled the internet and found interviews from The Staff Canteen, The Guide Liverpool, Liverpool Echo, Educate Magazine and any other publications I’ve forgotten that I’ve read so, apologies to those people who did the real hard work with interviews and who I can’t remember the names of who they are or where I got them.
Chef Gabriella Margiotta works in her family award winning restaurant, Cucina di Vincenzo, an Italian restaurant in the heart of Liverpool.
Gabriella gained even more followers when she started a YouTube series of cooking tutorials on her channel, Gabriella’s Kitchen.
Born and growing up on Southport, Gabriella has lived in Liverpool for the last 10 years, as a Sous Chef in her families restaurant, she says:
“My style of cooking is all about flavour. I don't like to over complicate things. I love to bring memories into my recipes to create something delicious, but something that will also stay with you. My biggest influences are my family and travelling, which really inspires me when I'm cooking”
Gabriella says that food has always been part of her life calling on a memory from an early age of eating homemade sugo with pasta, making the sugo with her Mum from the age of eight, recalling the smell of garlic and onions frying in olive oil and loving what the transformation of a single ingredient can do.
Going straight to catering college after leaving school at 16, she went to work in London in her first professional kitchen, London Carriage, before running a chalet in Meribel France for six months.
Trying her hand making some great street food with a friend in and around Manchester, she made the move to her family business where she’s been for the past 6 years.
Working hard on the show!
For as long as she can remember, food and cooking have been integral parts of her life.
She says: “Growing up in an Italian family meant that the kitchen was not just the place you cooked or washed dishes,” says Gabriella, “but rather the beating heart of the home, where family comes together to laugh, cry, compete, love – and everything in between.”
“Food was at the forefront of my upbringing as a child, and I think one of the greatest pleasures in life is to be able to enjoy cooking and eating with the people you love.”
Gabriella goes on: “Whether it’s trying out 100-year-old Italian classics, modern fine dining recipes with unique ingredients, or just making an amazing sandwich, I have always loved learning about the different cultural diversities, cooking techniques and flavours from around the world, and using them in my own recipes.”
And she says: “I honestly believe that taking the time to cook with fresh ingredients, and trying out new cooking skills and new dishes is great for us, not just physically, but mentally too, and can be a great way to relieve stress after a hard day.”
“Cooking can be as easy – or as hard – as you want it to be, and I love the fact that you can use as few as three ingredients or as many as 30, and have amazing, great tasting results.”
Wise words from Gabriella!
After her sister thrust an application form in her face, Gabriella was brave enough to go on MasterChef the Professionals and making it through to the semi-finals too, not too shabby at all!
Blaming everything on her sister, I can relate!
“I've always been absolutely terrified at the thought of entering MasterChef The Professionals.
It was my little sister who made me do it! I've never felt ready to do something as big or challenging as this. I'm so glad she made me apply!” Says Gabriella
Speaking about MasterChef the Professionals, Gabriella says:
"It's been absolutely incredible. It's nothing like I could've prepared for, it's more than I ever thought it would be. It's amazing having incredible people taste my food, whatever happens that will be the best.”
"But also getting to work alongside incredible chefs and we are guiding each other and going through the emotions together. At the start, I struggled with my confidence but you get into that rhythm and you want to go all the way."
“Even though I’ve been a chef for many years, I’ve never considered myself of the calibre required to be up there with the UK’s best. It was my friends Nina and Rebecca who were like ‘You should do it!’ and I was just like ‘No, this is something that’s way out of my reach’. It took a lot of pushing and shoving until Nina sat on the edge of my bed, passed me the iPad and said ‘We’re not leaving here until you apply’. The rest is history, I guess!”
It also sounds as if MasterChef brought out a little bit of Gabriella’s competitive side too!
“I’ve never been that competitive – even in sports when I was younger. I was always like ‘If you come first or second, you know, it’s fine.
But then, to see that I had this momentum and this rhythm and I was doing well, I was like ‘Oh hang on a second Gabriella, you can go all the way! You’ve got the stamina, you’ve got the drive and you’ve got the skill’. That’s where the spark of healthy competitiveness came and I just wanted it so bad.
Watching the show back, I can see that I was changing and growing as a chef throughout. With the first dishes, I stayed really true to my Italian heritage but as the competition went on, I did start to take a few more risks.
When it came to the dessert I made in the semi-final, I wanted to stick to my roots as my family is the main drive behind my cooking.
That dish was about taking a childhood memory of having banana splits with my dad, sister and brother at Rossi’s ice cream parlour on the front in Southport. It was always a Sunday treat after we’d had dinner and done our homework. I took that memory and wanted to elevate it. It was quite bold and there were a lot of elements to it. At one point, I was like ‘Have I gone too far with this one?’. But you know, I took a risk and thankfully, it paid off.”
She was so good on the show it would be natural to see her on the TV more often in the future.
“It’s funny, a lot of people have asked me that but I don’t know, to be honest. I’m just ready to ride the wave of whatever comes from this. The most important thing for me is to keep on working hard in the restaurant and keep making time for my family. Anything else that comes my way will be a blessing and a great opportunity. I’m ready to see where it goes and let everything happen organically.”
Before I get to the recipe, I just wanted to include these tips I found somewhere out there!
Gabriella - Ready for action
Gabriella’s Top Tips
1. Read the recipe twice before you start! Even after 10 years in the kitchen I will still read the recipe twice! It’s so important to know what you’re about to do and be prepared!
2. Buy fresh herbs. Using fresh herbs can lift a dish from average to epic! They can add freshness to a dish as well as depth! I try to avoid dried herbs as they can often be overpowering and if you’ve added to much by mistake it’s not easily corrected!
3. Enjoy it and have fun! Cooking should never be a chore, it’s something to be enjoyed – put the music on, get the kids involved, do a Zoom cookalong with families and friends. There are so many ways to make it fun. I live to eat, not eat to live!
4. TASTE,TASTE AND TASTE! Cooking is a journey and has so many different stages, so don’t be afraid to keep a spoon on hand and taste throughout. Check for seasoning. Does it need salt? Is it sour? Does it need a pinch of sugar? Does it need longer in the oven? You can correct during the cooking process rather than being let down or underwhelmed after spending a lot of time in the kitchen
5. Master and experiment. You may have a recipe you have been making for years, or perhaps you’ve made a recipe a few times and are confident with it. Start to experiment! Get creative. For example bolognese… you know it we all love it, how about adding some cumin, chilli and paprika when you’re browning your meat and make a chilli! Or take that bolognese and make some Parmesan mash and make an Italian cottage pie!
Recipe
Ingredients
Upside Down Fig Cake
50g Potato Flour or Corn Flour
4 Eggs Separated into yolks and whites
150g Castor Sugar
160g Ground Almonds
Zest of 1 orange
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
3 Tbsp Good Olive Oil
4-5 Figs or any fruit you like
6 Tbsp Runny Honey
Needed - 24cm Cake Tin
Dust with lots of icing sugar to finish it off
Method
Heat the oven to 180c
Separate the eggs into two bowls, one for the yolks and one for the whites
Add ¾ of the sugar to the egg yolks, whisk until pale and fluffy
Add the orange zest, vanilla extract and the olive oil and mix
Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and gently fold in
Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until the whites are fluffy
Gradually add the sugar to the egg whites while continuing to whisk
Add one spoon of the egg whites to the cake batter and mix vigorously to lighten the batter
Gently add the remaining egg whites, a spoonful at a time, folding them in softly
Slice the figs
Grease the 24cm cake tin and line the base with non-stick baking parchment
Add the 6Tbsp of the runny honey to the bottom of the cake tin
Move the tin to allow the honey to run round to the edges of the tin
Layer the sliced figs across the bottom of the cake tin
Pour the cake batter over the figs and smooth the top gently
Place the tin into the hot oven and bake for 30-40 minutes
Once baked, remove the tin from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before turning the cake out onto a cooling rack to cool completely
Serve with cold cream and enjoy
