Dunford Wood - Modern British Food Recipes from Parlour

Grandpa Tom in 1956 at the Dorchester. Some might think cooking has been in our genes, but he is still to master the very basics, even now at the age of 87. This photo is from the Daily Express, when he was a budding reporter 'posing' as a masterchef.

I then learnt to cook.

I cooked food that my then-landlord (and Grandfather) didnt complain about. I cooked biscuits that I took into art school, that disappeared much too quickly; I cooked a nearly romantic meal of Bolognese (not really recommending as a courting dish) for my new girlfriend using too much of dear Grandpas dry sherry; I ended up cooking (epic) dinners in the under-used dining room for the hungry hoards of student friends of mine, and loved the idea that I could set the scene with music, table decorations and lighting ask people to dress up even and then feed them food, drinks and have a brilliant time entertaining and hosting.

The seeds were then sown for the fantastically romantic idea of having an outrageously on-going-money-making-dinner-party, which some people might call a restaurant. I live that dream these days. And usually it is fun. Sometimes though, it is hard and tricky. Often it is heartwarmingly rewarding. Sometimes it is awkward and challenging, and occasionally we even make a little money. But I am living the reality of an independent host, and love all that comes with it.

When it comes to others though, I have found that people often fall into three camps when talking about cooking skills:

1 . Those with none;

2 . Those who are military conformists;

3 . And then those free-spirited adventurer types that take an idea and run with it.

I am rather hoping that this book can offer advice, guidance and even inspiration to almost all of those people.

It is rare, but not uncommon, to find people who have got all the way to middle age, occasionally even surviving to old age, who have NO skills in the kitchen. Those who rely on the food of others; be them spouses, relatives, supermarkets and their pre-packed offerings, and also more often than not, restaurants. People who pride themselves on their boiled egg and toast reportoire. This is my Grandfather.

The other camp, the military conformists, are those who religiously stick to recipes that have been followed, down to the last teaspoon of the spice they have never heard of and bought especially. Those who never stray from the holy grail of the words that someone somewhere has put down for them. I find there is a brilliant lack of responsibility these cooks have towards their cooking, as someone else has done all the thinking for them, but then again an endearing trust. Blaming the author or the instruction for any failures, but on the other hand always taking the applause when it goes well. This is my Father.

I have found that people often fall into three camps

The adventurers might look at a picture, could even stretch to reading the recipes, but will rarely follow what is written. They will get the gist and do an interpretation of it, put a bit of themselves into the dish, by using pistachios instead because they are in the cupboard or I used twice as much, as I didnt like the sound of what they suggested. Those people! Those people will understand what they are doing sometimes because they have really thought about it and considered the consequences. It is cooking from the heart. This is my Mother.

This book is all about giving you direction and inspiration of course, but also to feed you ideas of what you could do with these dishes as a base, even offering you alternatives, little nudges of versions and off-piste adventures you could go on to make them your own.

There is nothing more satisfying, and I still feel it every day, than making something lovely and sharing it with others. We do it on an industrial scale professionally, which has its challenges but also benefits, but I still love cooking for my wife and kids when there was apparently nothing in the fridge worth salvaging.