Soft Light, Cold Days, Good Food

Well, well. I feel as though I have just returned from a long journey, a place where I left behind the noise of social media and allowed myself a true mental detox. 2025 was extraordinary in many ways, rich and full, but it was also marked by grief, having lost my mother in March. Suddenly, your life becomes a kind of retrospective, every memory sharpening, every moment asking to be felt more fully. I want to turn this grief into a silver lining and make sure to fully appreciate everything in my life.

Over the years, living on this planet has taught me something important. It is imperative, from time to time, to detach slightly from the social world and enter a phase of semi-hibernation. It is healing. It is comforting. It brings you back to yourself.

I am welcoming this new year with strength, grace and confidence.

The publication of My Kitchen in Italy has been such an exciting moment, and I am deeply grateful for the wonderful feedback and support you have all shown. Thank you, truly. And for those of you who have the book, I hope you have already tried a recipe or two.

It has been a while since a Chinese cookbook appeared on my horizon. I have wanted to write one forever, but I knew I needed the right moment and the right state of mind. Well, guess what. It is finally in the making. I have been flooded with flashbacks of the meals I loved growing up in Hong Kong. I keep a special Hong Kong memory box where I store photographs, menus, documents, and anything that brings back something good. That box is everything to me. It helps me build and shape my story.

The amazing chicken velouté pie at Quo Vadis! And my fave scallops at Arlington.

Writing has become a kind of ritual for me. I love sitting at my desk in soft, warm light, letting the words unfold slowly and deliberately. Recently, I found the perfect wall lights near my desk. They create a nostalgic atmosphere, as though I am working inside another era.

In love with my new wall lights by my desk.

After a wonderful festive season spent at home in Turin with our children, Oddur and I felt the need for a romantic escape, just the two of us. I found myself reflecting on what makes a marriage work. Let’s be honest. Eight children, working together, heavy schedules. All of it can be quite threatening to a marriage if you let it. That is why those small escapes matter so much. We are good together. Maybe it is chemistry. Maybe it is because we are equally obsessed with food. Or perhaps it is both.

We went to London, and I wanted to share a few highlights from the trip:

• My favourite date night restaurant was Arlington. I always order the scallops and the lemon sole. It’s got that 80’s touch and that’s why I love it!

• We went to see The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. I was completely absorbed and hardly breathed until the end. The acting was remarkable.

• If I had to choose one London restaurant above all others to meet up with old friends, it would be Quo Vadis. Chef Jeremy Lee does English cuisine at its best. There is always a pie on the menu, served with beautiful greens on the side. It feels just right every time. I had the most delicious chicken velouté pie and can’t wait to make one at home.

• As for shopping, a few small pleasures. My Irish Breakfast tea refills from Fortnum & Mason, and I found the prettiest (yes it’s a bit sheer but why not, it’s date night after all!) skirt from at Paloma Wool (I actually just discovered this brand – was I born yesterday?).

Back home, winter has settled in. Cold days, grey skies. There is nothing more comforting to me than my couscous. We had it last night, and again for lunch today. I first shared this recipe in ‘A Kitchen in France’, and it feels like the perfect moment to bring it back. And here’s a little extra tip – I like to add 2 sliced preserved lemons to it. Adds extra comfort and extra ‘ooohhhh’!

Photo: Oddur Thorisson

Couscous (from my cookbook ‘A Kitchen in France’)

Ingredients: (serves 6)

For the couscous stew:

• 1 kg neck of lamb (collier d’agneau) or stewing beef (preferably with bone)

• 4 carrots

• 3 turnips

• 3 courgettes/ zucchini

• 1 large onion (sliced)

• 2 cloves garlic

• 2 large tomatoes

• 2 tbsp ‘ras el hanout’ ground spice

• 2 tbsp tomato concentrate paste

• 1 tsp chili powder

• 450 grs chickpeas (I use canned)

• Salt and pepper

• Harissa (to serve for those who like it extra-spicy)

For the meatballs:

• 600 grs minced beef

• 2 cloves minced garlic

• A large handful of parsley or coriander, chooped finely

• 2 tablespoons panko crumbs

• 1 egg

• A teaspoon salt

• Various meat (opptional):

• 5 chicken thighs

• 1 lemon (sliced)

• 12 merguez sausages

• 100 ml olive oil

• 750 grs semolina (I use instant)

• Boiling water

• Large handful of dried golden sultana raisins (optional)

Slice onion and garlic. Cut/chop all the tomatoes, carrots, turnips and zucchini to mouthsized cubes. In a large deep skillet, pour 2 tbsp of olive oil and brown the lamb. Add onion and tomatoes and fry for 5 minutes. Add the ras-el hanout, salt, pepper and chilli powder, add enough water to cover the meat, and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes. Add the carrots and turnips and continue boiling for 30 minutes. Add zuchinni and chick peas and continue to boil on a low heat for 1 hour.

Prepare meatballs – mix one egg, minced garlic, panko and chopped parsley (or coriander), salt with the minced meat. Mix well (I use latex gloves and mix with my hands) and shape little golf sized balls. Fry in batches in a large frying pan until browned and cooked, approx 8 minutes. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan, fry the chicken thighs with the sliced lemon until browned and cooked. Set aside. Fry the merguez until cooked and set aside. Cover chicken, meatballs and merguez sausages with aluminium foil and reserve for later.

When you are getting ready to serve, warm chicken and meatballs for 10 minutes in the ‘couscous’ stew.

Place semolina in a large bowl and stir in the olive oil. Pour enough boiling water until all absorbed. With a fork, scrape and fluff up the semolina gently. Place heat-proof bowl/pot in a 120°C oven until you are ready to serve. You can also place the merguez in the oven to keep them warm.

Place merguez, chicken thighs and meatballs on a large serving plate. Pour couscous stew in a large serving bowl. Serve semolina on a deep-set plate (with raisins on top), with a large ladle of couscous stew, topped with the meat of your choice. For those who enjoy an extra spicy flavour, add half a tsp of Harissa in a ladle of soup/stew and mix well.

A presto! Mimi x