Nigella Lawson, renowned gourmet and food writer, has also been a journalist and broadcaster. She hosted her first cooking show, Nigella Bites, in 1999, and published a cookbook by the same name. Later, she hosted a number of shows like Nigella Feasts in 2006, Nigella’s Christmas Kitchen, and Nigella Express.
Nigella Lawson On “MasterChef Australia”
Nigella Lawson appeared in season 8 of MasterChef Australia as a guest judge. She said that although she enjoyed being on MasterChef Australia, she was sometimes stressed to see the contestants taking up different challenges. She also said that the contestants vast food knowledge impressed her, and even though the contestants made mistakes, they kept learning from them. On the show, she asked the contestants to dish on something that could make her feel happy—Mimi Baines’ salted chocolate tart with beetroot sorbet.
Interesting Facts about Nigella Lawson
- According to UKTV Food, Nigella Lawson is worth in excess of £1.7 million.
- Lawson’s father, Nigel Lawson, was a former British Chancellor of the Exchequer.
- Her mother, Vanessa Salmon, was the heiress to the J. Lyons and Co. fortune; she died in 1985 of liver cancer.
- Her first husband, John Diamond, died of throat cancer in 2001; she remarried in 2003 to Charles Saatchi who is 17 years her senior.
- Nigella Lawson has sold more than 3 million cookbooks worldwide to date.
- After graduating from Lady Margaret Hall at Oxford University, she started her career as book reviewer and restaurant critic.
- In 1986, she was the Deputy Literary Editor of The Sunday Times.
- Later on, Lawson also worked as a journalist where she wrote for a number of newspapers and magazines.
- She wrote her first cookbook, How to Eat, in 1998, which became a best-seller, selling 300,000 copies.
- Lawson won the British Book Award for Author of the Year for her second book, How to Be a Domestic Goddess, published in 2000.
- She won the Guild of Food Writers Award for Television Broadcast of the Year for Nigella Bites.
- Nigella Lawson’s cookware range, Living Kitchen, has a value of around £7.0 million.
- For her services in journalism and cooking, she was honored with Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), which she declined.
Nigella Lawson Recipes
Here are two of Nigella Lawson’s delectable recipes.
Chocolate Pistachio Fudge Recipe
Ingredients:
- 350 g (12 oz) chopped dark chocolate, with at least 70% cocoa solids
- Pinch of salt
- 150 g (5 ¼ oz) unsalted pistachios
- 1 x 397 g (14 oz) can condensed milk
- 30 g (1 oz) butter
Directions
In a heavy-based pan, add the chopped chocolate, condensed milk, salt, and butter. Cook over over low heat until melted.
Put the nuts in a freezer bag and beat them with a rolling pin to break them into pieces. Add the nuts to the chocolate mixture and mix well.
Pour the mixture into a square tray and smooth the top with a wet palette knife. Cool the fudge by refrigerating it to set. After it sets, you can cut it into small pieces and store it in the freezer.
Warm Spiced Cauliflower and Chickpea Salad Recipe
Ingredients:
- 3 tbsp regular olive oil
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 250 g (9 oz) home-cooked chickpeas, or a 400 g tin chickpeas
- 1–2 tbsp harissa, to taste
- 4 small ripe vine tomatoes, approximately 150 g (5 ½ oz), quartered
- large bunch (approximately 100 g) flat leaf parsley
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 small head cauliflower, trimmed and divided into small florets
- 3–4 tbsp pomegranate seeds
Directions
Preheat the oven to 220°C.
In a large bowl, pour the oil and add the cinnamon and cumin seeds. Add the cauliflower and toss it to coat. Pour it into an oven tray and and place it in the oven for 15 minutes.
In the same bowl, add chickpeas and one to two tablespoons of harissa and toss. Add tomatoes and stir well.
Remove the cauliflower form the oven and add the tomatoes and chickpeas to the cauliflower. Toss to combine and place it in the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven, and sprinkle some salt and add pomegranate seeds and toss. Add the parsley leaves and put some more pomegranate seeds on the top. Serve in small bowls.
Sources:
“Nigella Lawson,” Wikipedia web site; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigella_Lawson#Awards, last accessed February 7, 2017.
“Nigella Lawson,” Celebrity Wikia web site; http://celebrity.wikia.com/wiki/Nigella_Lawson, last accessed February 7, 2017.
Lawson, N., “Chocolate pistachio fudge,” BBC web site;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chocolatepistachiofu_87639, last accessed February 7, 2017.
Lawson, N., “Warm spiced cauliflower and chickpea salad with pomegranate seeds,” BBC web site;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/warm_spiced_cauliflower_36652, last accessed February 7, 2017.