Pastry perfection: Anna Higham’s recipes for chicken and herb pie and foldover pissaladière

Warmer weather always has me dreaming of elaborate picnics, just like the ones my mum used to take us on as kids. She made superlative chicken pies, and I always think of them at this time of year. Mum would use shop-bought pastry, but here I’ve made a herby rough puff to up the summery feeling. The onion and anchovy turnovers, meanwhile, are the perfect pocket savouries to keep you going on a long walk or day out. You could always make one batch of pastry and halve the amount of both fillings, so you can have some of each

How to make chocolate chip cookies – recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass

Once upon a time, not so long ago, the only so-called chocolate chip cookies on offer in the UK were, in fact, biscuits – small, brittle ones peppered with tiny, waxy, cocoa-coloured pellets. When I finally discovered the soft, chewy American originals in a subterranean outlet at Birmingham New Street station, my teenage mind was officially blown. These are even better.Prep 25 min, plus chilling Cook 15 min Makes 15120g room-temperature butter 170g dark chocolate 75g light brown sugar 75g granulated sugar ½ tsp vanilla extract A pinch of salt 1 egg, beaten240g plain flour ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda Sea salt flakes (optional)Make sure your butter is soft enough to beat – if your kitchen is very cold, or you’ve forgotten to get it out of the fridge in time, dice it and leave it out on the counter while you gather together the rest of the ingredients. I tend to use salted butter for baking, as for everything else, but it’s up to you

Ragù, Bristol BS1: ‘I recommend it wholly, effusively and slightly enviously’ – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants

Ragù is a cool, minimal, romantic ode to Italian cooking that’s housed in a repurposed shipping container on Wapping Wharf in waterside Bristol. No, come back, please – don’t be scared. There are tables, chairs, napkins, reservations and all the other accoutrements of a bricks-and-mortar restaurant, even if this metal box may at some point in its existence once have been used to ship things to China and back. To my mind, Wapping Wharf has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and no longer feels at all like one of those novelty “box parks” that have about them a heavy whiff of the edgy temporary fixture. Today’s Wapping Wharf is a true independent food destination in its own right, and with a bird’s-eye view from one of Ragù’s window seats, while eating venison rump with gorgonzola dolce and sipping a booze-free vermouth, you can watch the crowds head for the likes of the modern French Lapin, Tokyo diner Seven Lucky Gods, modern British Box-E, Gurt Wings and many more; by day, there’s also a bakery, a butcher, a fromagerie and so on

Raise a glass to National Beer Day: tips on the perfect pint

I didn’t write a Valentine’s Day column, I also didn’t do one for Mother’s Day, and I won’t be doing one for Father’s Day, either. Who am I to tell you how to enjoy your time with your most beloved – and who am I to tell you what they ought to be drinking, seeing as these days that’s invariably informed by gendered marketing and targeted campaigns?The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.I am, however, writing a column for National Beer Day on 15 June (the same as Father’s Day – yawn)

Benjamina Ebuehi’s recipe for cherry and honeycomb cheesecake pots | The sweet spot

Honeycomb gets lots of attention in the autumn months, but this crunchy brittle is such fun to make all year round, and adds a playful texture to all sorts of desserts such as today’s cheesecake pots. The quantities make more honeycomb than you need here, but extra snacking is inevitable. The cheesecake itself, which I’ve lightened with greek yoghurt, is super-simple to put together – just mix and chill.Prep 5 minCool 1 hr Cook 30 min Makes 6For the honeycomb200g caster sugar 200g golden syrup 2½ tsp bicarbonate of sodaFor the cherries255g pitted cherries, fresh or frozen and defrosted30g caster sugar Squeeze of lemon juiceFor the cheesecake150g digestive biscuits 50g salted butter, melted330g greek yoghurt 250g cream cheese 1 tsp vanilla bean paste 50g icing sugar 100ml double creamLine a 20cm square cake tin with greaseproof paper. Put the sugar and golden syrup in a deep saucepan and heat gently until the sugar melts

Ken Don obituary

My colleague Ken Don, who has died aged 80, was a passionate real ale brewer who played a key role in saving Maris Otter, considered the finest variety of malting barley. He spent most of his career at the Young’s Ram Brewery in Wandsworth, south London, where the ruling Young family was committed to cask-conditioned beer.Ken was born in Alloa, in Clackmannanshire, the son of Ian Don, who worked in a local glass factory, and his wife, Margaret (nee Cook). He was educated at Alloa academy and trained as a brewer at Alloa Brewery, where the main product was Skol lager. Keen to broaden his skills, he went on the brewing and distilling course at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh