Add to List - #73
Contrasting music, complementary flavours
Hello, thank you, and welcome. I love you for being here!
Add to List is my Sunday round-up. It’s the small things that brought me joy, evoked an emotional reaction, or became some short-lived stability in the past seven days.
Add to List is slightly later this week since last week’s was a day late for the bank holiday, and this morning you’ve already had something from me in your inbox — my special guest post from
dropped! Wishing you a wonderful end to your weekends!Obsession
Dancing With You (Baby), James Smith
Another absolute banger from James. And such a beautiful use of negative sentence structure:
Feel like I'm just wasting all my time
Not dancing with you, baby
His new sound has the youth and heart of his previous album and an added golden-era feel. Think: swampy drums, smooth sounds, a tinkling of Fleetwood-style, 70s riffs. That electric guitar is like yearning if it was melody. I really, really love this track.
Confession
I’ve also got a bit of an embarrassing Pitbull problem at the moment.
Square Mile sent a travel email newsletter this week with the title ‘Mr Worldwide.’ And since reading it I’ve had a deep urge to do nothing but gimme the time of my life by playing señor todo el mundo on full volume in my headphones on the tube. Seriously some of his songs have quite truthfully preposterous lyrics.
I saw, I came, I conquered
Or should I say, I saw, I conquered, I came
But, when I listen, I am no longer dusting the sleep from my eyes on an overheated carriage of the Victoria Line to get to a gym class. Oh no, I am care-free, wasted, singing my heart out, and looking for someone to snog in a sticky-floored nightclub drinking while I sip a vodbull.
Shook
Pitbull’s wisdom.
In defence of Pitbull (please take this with a pinch of salt) This line towards the end of Time of Our Lives, weirdly hit through a non-nostalgic, somewhat philosophical nerve with me:
This for everybody going through tough times
Believe me, been there, done that
But every day above ground is a great day, remember that
Deep.
Cook
At home:
Home-made poke bowls — I’ve been bulk-making these in advance this week. I alternate between sushi rice and brown rice, just to mix it up at bit. The trick with sushi rice is to wash throughly beforehand; don’t add any salt. Always add some rice wine vinegar before serving, and remember to let it stand. I accessorise with whatever veg is in the fridge but ALWAYS add sushi ginger, pickles, and sesame seeds. Would you be interested in getting my recipe for this? If so, let me know.
Nasi goreng for breakfast - And because I almost always get the proportion of rice wrong and I cannot bear to throw away food, I pop the leftover rice into a container and then throw it in a pan the next with with left over veg, sesame oil, spring onions and top with a fried egg (plus Itsu’s crispy chilli oil). It’s a great start to the day.
And, while out and about with …
The Fregola di Mare & a fantastic negroni at Nipotina, Mayfair — On Wednesday, team Pasta Grannies headed into Nipotina and chatted to head chef Somaia about her menu, inspired by her Nonna Lina. Somaia’s family originate from Puglia but she grew up in Turin so the place showcases Northern meets Southern regional dishes with her own spin from working in high-end professional kitchens. The decor in the place was beautiful: cosy, comforting, but still in incredibly chic. It made me want to re-decorate my entire house.
She made us a sublime fig and pistachio salad with a red wine vinegar dressing and aged parmigiano reggiano. But the real show stealer? Her fregola, a small round pasta cooked in a rich, buttery seafood bisque, topped with mussels, clams, and flash-fried-squid. We watched her plate all the seafood with small tweezers, in an intricate pattern, before drizzling with vibrant parsley oil. It was an artistic masterpiece. It tasted as good as it looked.
And their negroni? In keeping with the decor, it’s a sophisticated shade of orange. With its sprig of smoked thyme it’s smoky yet delicate, and gets poured at your table from an over-sized claypot. Truly, a must.
And, one of London’s best fennel salamis — BUT! I’m not spilling on this one just yet. We’ll have more to reveal on that soon…
Book
Bad Taste by
.In case you missed it! Two book reviews for you to read this week (of the same book) as a special guest cross-over with the wonderful, Michael Kibedi.
Michael’s review is here on For Starters.
And mine is here on his publication. First & Fifteenth
Look
Soulcycle sweatshirt.
Some of you may have heard about my spin addiction. And I recently I got the jumper to go along with my favourite cult (Soul Cycle).
Can’t Stop Scanning
Sirens.
The new addictive Netflix drama about the strength of a sibling bond tested through a creepy high-society on the American coast has occupied all my down moments this weekend.
Julianne Moore is perfectly, brilliantly haunting. And, Meghan Fahy continues to hold her title for the best psychological-bombshell going. She conveys so much with those pretty doe-eyes.
Forward Planning
Events, Events, Paris.
Next week I’ve got quite a few work events including Square Mile’s 200th Edition Party, and another stint as professional wing-woman with Bored of Dating Apps. And, I’m trying to get everything writing-related off my desk before I head to Paris for a couple of days on Sunday — Pitbull’s got competition. Call me Mrs Worldwide.
So, next week’s newsletter will likely be sent from the Eurostar. À la prochaine!
Here for the sticky floor Pitbull throwback 😂💃🏻
Bon voyage! 🚆
Negroni’s… hooligan juice