The bench I’m sitting at is the hub of my house; in terms of creating an atmosphere of family joy it all happens here. It’s made from American cherry wood and started life as a table, but we’ve added drawers underneath to create more storage.
I usually have a computer on the bench, next to my knives, so I can write while I work. I’ve got a great collection of knives like my Swibo, which I got during my chef training; I’ve got a German Wüsthof, and my favourite, a Japanese Usuba. I never put my knives in the dishwasher and I sharpen them myself on a stone. I even took my knives and stone with me to France.
I have a scullery or pantry to store and hide things and two dishwashers, which are especially useful when you’re entertaining. My dishwasher is the last appliance I’d get rid of, it gets you away from the kitchen sink so you can spend more time with your family.
I have a really big sink that can fit oven trays, it has a ledge with a smaller sink inside that slides. I hate that you can’t get oven trays into the sink to clean them so I had it specially designed.
I bought my copper saucepans when I was travelling through France in my twenties and carted them all over the country. I don’t actually use them, they’ve been up in my kitchen for 13 years. My collection also includes old butter churners, cheese presses and ice cream makers – it’s like a dairy museum.
I enjoy the craftsmanship of items we use to make our food with. My latest cook book Recipes From My French Kitchen is based on 18 months spent in the village of Caixon in the Hautes-Pyrénées in 2013-14 with my husband and kids.
It was challenging for the first six months then I became immersed in their unique culinary culture where all the produce and meat is sourced from within a 20km radius. When it came time to leave, no-one wanted to, so we’re all heading back late next year. The children will have another year of French immersion and we can reconnect with all our friends and explore more of the region.
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