Bloggerview with Josie d'Arby

Name and occupation

Josie d'Arby . Broadcaster

What would you like to plug?

currently working on a free fitness website for women who live in deprived areas ...  follow me @josiedarby for updates

Name your three desert island ingredients

Mango , Lentils , Chilli Sauce

What would you have for your last supper?

It would have to be my moms home cooking - she actually makes an amazing porridge from sweet corn , i have so many wonderful childhood memories tied up in those tastes 

What foodstuff would you banish to room 101?

liver, kidney , offal .yuck 

What's your favourite restaurant, and why?

Of course i love the Ivy , it has a special buzz about it and i love their fishcake with a passion . I would also put Zuma in Knightsbridge on this list, more funky than the Ivy and the food is insanely good , their blackened cod is so delicious it puzzled me .

What's your favourite tipple?

I am tea total , so my favourite tipple is a glass of Evian , I am  a mineral water connoisseur and yes I can taste the difference.

Which book gets you cooking ?

I don't use cookery books, my thing is , if I eat something i like then i figure out how to make it , a combination of being quite experienced with a wide range of tastes and ingredients and a bit of googling

What's your dream dinner party line-up? And what would you cook for them?

For dinner I would have round...

Jesus , Sarah Silverman , Jeff Buckley , Kat Williams, A young Woody Allen, Malcolm X , Denzel Washington, The Guy that wrote NETWORK and the woman that wrote Thelma and Louise and I would also squeeze another chair in for Dermot O’leary ... 

Assuming it’s winter - on the menu would be my home-made Lentil and Red pepper soup with crumbled black bomber cheese to start . My fish pie for the main and then some futuristic magical desert that did funny things when you put it on your tongue for afters ...  I think all would go away happy

What was your childhood teatime treat?

chicken drum sticks , skinny chips ... i just used to love that when i was a kid , we had it every Wednesday to coincide with my favourite kids TV show ..

What would you make to impress your partner?

my fish pie is good .. its very good ..

What was your most memorable meal?

A birthday at Zuma , the food was incredible and full of surprises and the ambiance just perfect, it does feel a little special in there 

What was your biggest culinary disaster?

cooking a disastrous meal for a french ex-boyfriend ( before i actually knew how to cook) only to find he had invited his whole family round ( a family of french aristocrats) it was the single most mortifying moment of my culinary life and the reason why i am such a good cook today . i even served raw aubergine !!!  "  It made the blue soup scene in Bridget jones look like an episode of the great British menu "  shocking 

What's the worst meal you've ever had?

see above

What's the most outlandish thing you've ever eaten?

cow skin soup - a Jamaican delicacy 

Who's your food hero/food villain?

food hero - my mom . food villain - fast food chains 

Gordon or Marco and why?

marco , it was his fish pie that inspired mine

Cocktail or Highball?

neither 

Muesli or fry-up?

toast and tea

Wine or beer?

water

KFC or Burger King?

those days have gone

What do you consider the best of the best of British?

i don't often eat meat but i do like a good sausage, the kind you find at good farmers markets ... that really push the boat out

Which countries do you look forward to going to the most because of the food?

Japan, China, Jamaica

What's the best/worst thing about the British restaurant scene?

when they limit the time you can spend at a table ... necessary i know, but still annoying

What do you think will be the next big thing?

my chain of Jamaican / Japanese cuisine restaurants called 'Ragamammas"

What would you do if you could choose any other career?

Lottery winner

Make a wish

Just did , and it' secret .