The Duchess of Sussex is back, dazzling us with her culinary skills, innovative entertainment tips, and all the sugary sweet loveliness it comes with.
While the first series of ‘With Love, Meghan’ may have divided viewers (the ones I spoke to anyway), it was obviously popular enough to get a second season.
And so here we are, with eight episodes of sometimes-cringey creativity, cameos by chef pals and celebs, and more recipes for us to try.
To be fair to her, some of the recipes from the first season weren’t half bad.
Fairly simple, sometimes crowd-pleasing, and based on a running theme of ‘playfulness over perfection’.
But would the next lot have the same appeal and prompt a similar surge in hunts for niche ingredients, like they did last time around?
Each episode has its own theme, and titles that someone somewhere is clearly feeling quite proud of themselves for – from, ‘It’s Way Past Our Bread Time’ with model Chrissy Teigen to ‘Just for the Halibut’ with Michelin Starred chef Clare Smyth.
As well as the recipes, there’s the same crafting and entertaining stuff that we had in season one, but I’d rather tackle cooking one of Meghan’s recipes than making olive oil soap or a custom painted apron, so I decide to stick to the food in my recreation of the delights she’s offering up to us eager viewers.
I go with a mix of sweet and savoury from various episodes.
Some look pretty straightforward, others less so, and as usual there’s a reminder that while Meghan may have British connections, this is very much a US series, whether that’s in ingredients, names or even measurements.
Yes, the recipes might seem easy, but don’t forget to add on 10 minutes to find out what the UK equivalent of ‘half-and-half’ is, or exactly how much a ‘cup’ is in either liquid or weight, or maybe to remind yourself whether ‘cilantro’ is parsley or coriander (it’s the latter, in case you wondered).
Ellen Manning poses with Mehgan’s caramelized onion tarts as she reviews the Duchess’ recipes
Ellen commended Meghan for her Apple Butter Tartine which she described as easy and tasty
Apple Butter Tartine
I start easy, with a recipe from the apple-focused episode four, where Meghan teams up with American chef Samrin Nosrat. Essentially it’s apple on toast, but ‘tartine’ sounds so much more delightful, doesn’t it?
What isn’t delightful is trying to find ‘apple butter’ in an average person’s supermarket. I’m sure it’s get-able in some places, but not in my local Sainsbury’s it seems.
But after a bit of Googling, I see that apple butter is basically caramelised apple sauce, so chuck a jar of the latter in my shopping basket, then proceed to cook it down with some extra sugar and a bit of cinnamon at home. Lo and behold, I reckon I’ve made my own apple butter.
After that, it’s more a case of assembly than cookery. Toasted sourdough with ricotta spread on top, a grating of lemon zest. Meghan calls for Meyer lemon, which it turns out is basically a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange, but predictably there isn’t one in my local supermarket, so I stick with a basic lemon.
On top goes the apple butter, then some thin slices of apple arranged in as pretty a way as I can. It’s topped with extra virgin olive oil, flaked almonds and a bit of salt. Et voilà!
Ellen says that salt brings the savoury, and the almonds, olive oil and slightly nutty sourdough complete the picture
As simple as it may be, it’s a tasty dish – mainly because it manages to hit a whole load of flavours and textures. There’s the sweetness of the apple butter, the sharpness of the lemon, then the refreshing apple.
Salt brings the savoury, and the almonds, olive oil and slightly nutty sourdough complete the picture.
Texture-wise, there’s the crispness of apple, the crunch of the sourdough toast, along with creamy cheese and the smooth apple. It works, and it’s easy. Well done Meghan.
Caramelised Onion Tart
Slightly more laborious is the caramelised onion tart that she whips up at the start of one episode because people are coming over – as you do. I say more laborious, but it’s not really.
Onions are cooked down with thyme, sugar and balsamic into a sweet, unctuous loveliness and as someone who tends to like cooking that takes as least time as possible, it’s surprisingly therapeutic and feels a bit like a labour of love.
Despite the dish involving pastry, I’m pleasantly surprised to find that Meghan is a fan of pre-made pastry (always keep some in the freezer, she advises, presumably for occasions when you might whip up some caramelised onion tarts at short notice. Or you could just offer them a cup of tea and a biscuit).
Ellen cooks with pre-made pastry, which Meghan says she loves using in her new Netflix show
Ellen says after a drizzle of balsamic glaze on top, some fresh thyme and sea salt ‘they are actually quite cute’
The onions get mixed with grated Gruyere then popped on top of squares of the pastry and bunged in the oven. I even go crazy and copy the bit from the episode where she turns a few into mini parcels.
However, I fail to follow Meghan’s advice to move them around for even cooking, so one ends up burnt, and some browner than others, but they’ve done the trick.
A drizzle of balsamic glaze on top, some fresh thyme and sea salt and they are actually quite cute.
Radhi’s Sweet Potato, Cauliflower, Green Bean, and Cashew Curry
Curry is next on the list, courtesy of the ‘Spice Up Your Life’ episode with author and podcaster Jay Shetty and wife Radhi Devlukia.
As curries go, it’s not too complicated but does require having a certain number of spices in your store cupboard – or it’s off to the shops for you.
That said, once you’ve got them if you like curries you’ll undoubtedly use them again and again, unlike some of the more niche ingredients that can crop up in these TV cooking show segments.
The spices are cooked with sweet potato, cauliflower and cashews and water
Ellen says that as curries go, it’s not too complicated but does require having a certain number of spices in your store cupboard
The spices are cooked with sweet potato, cauliflower and cashews and water, though the timings on the Tudum website really don’t seem long enough if I want to avoid hard sweet potato and raw cauliflower.
I leave them for longer, sort of steaming them into submission, before adding green beans and coconut milk.
It feels like a Thai style curry in terms of consistency, and I quite like it so decide to swerve the optional extra instruction of adding cornstarch (cornflour to you and me) and water to thicken it.
It’s mild and has the kind of wholesome, meat-free vibe that we’d expect from Meghan in her LA mansion, but it’s also tasty. Another thumbs-up, though I’m not sure it would ever win against a proper British balti in my book.
Radhi’s Masala Chai
The same episode offers up Radhi’s Masala Chai, and has someone who has not got on the chai bandwagon in any way, shape or form, I’m curious.
First I have to make my own Chai Masala, combining a range of spices in a blender. It’s fairly simple, but given this is going to pop my Chai cherry, I swap Meghan’s amounts from tablespoons to teaspoons so I don’t have to have a jar of unused masala mix lying around.
The mix goes into a pan with black tea – at which point I have to ask Google if Yorkshire teabags count as black tea, and apparently they do, plus some fresh mint and fresh ginger.
Ellen says she was not a big fan of Radhi’s Masala Chai but says she is unsure whether it is the recipe as this is her first time trying the beverage
It’s boiled then simmered, boiled again then simmered again and in goes the ‘unsweetened vegan milk’ – oat in my case – and coconut sugar which I bought specially and will no doubt remain in my kitchen cupboards until the once-a-decade clear out when I find it again.
I strain it into a mug and try it but I’m not convinced. I don’t know whether it’s because I don’t like Masala Chai, or perhaps I just made it badly, but I definitely need more sweetness and the spices don’t seem quite right.
I’d love to blame the recipe, but I feel I might need to do more tasting of other, more professional made, Masala Chai, before I start blaming Meghan.
Coconut French Toast
Doubting my abilities, I go for something from the ‘Easy as Pie’ episode, because surely I can’t get these wrong. Coconut French Toast provided by Meghan’s guest, fashion designer Tan France, seems doable, and makes a nice indulgent breakfast treat.
I stumble at the ingredients, unable to find milk bread in the supermarket, and unwilling to shop around for a specialist loaf for one breakfast, so I opt for the softest white rolls I can find. After all, they are going to be soaked in egg, coated in coconut, and fried.
Ellen says that Meghan’s Coconut French Toast may be her favourite out of all the things she cooked
Ellen says she ‘channeled her inner Meghan’ and attempted to arrange the pieces ‘as artfully as I can’
The whole process is easy, as French toast is, and the coconut I’ve rolled the bread in lends a nice crispy crunch that gives way to the soft, gooey bread. I can see why the recipe calls for a soft milk bread, and my roll does the trick, but it wouldn’t have the same squishy loveliness with a slice of sourdough, I’m sure.
I channel my inner Meghan and arrange the pieces as artfully as I can, topped with fresh fruit, dusted with icing sugar, and drenched in maple syrup. It’s a winner, and I think possibly my favourite.
Plus, it’s easy and could be whipped up for anything from breakfast to brunch to pudding to a late-night, cheer-yourself-up snack.
Marshmallows
Less easy is the adventure of making my own marshmallows, as per American chef Christina Tosi’s recipe. In the episode, she, Meghan, David Chang and Daniel Martin are making them for s’mores, which I get. But I also figure that if I’m going to melt my marshmallows and smash them together with other stuff, perhaps I could just buy them.
I’m bemused by Meghan’s comments that she wants baking to be a bit more spontaneous, because making your own marshmallows is pretty much the antithesis of spontaneous.
Ellen says that despite the yellow swirls, Meghan’s homemade marshmallows are not the most aesthetically pleasing thing she’s ever created
The home cook says that you also need specialist equipment and ingredients, such as a stand mixer
First, you need specific ingredients – like gelatin, because we all keep that in our kitchen. You also need the right kit. I know this because my first effort, using a hand whisk rather than a stand mixer, is an epic fail.
Thus ensures a few messages to neighbours to borrow said stand mixer, so I can try to replicate what Meghan and her pals seem to make look quite easy, though that’s not surprising given most of them are actually chefs.
The second attempt sees me add homemade hot sugar syrup to gelatin and water and then leave the stand mixer doing its thing. I’m convinced it will fail again, but when I check, my watery, sugary mess has transformed into a silky looking marshmallow paste.
So enthused am I by the fact this just might work, I get brave and try to replicate the addition of turmeric to half of it to create sunny swirls in my marshmallow. I leave it to sit for a few hours, and then turn them out and am gobsmacked that yes, I’ve actually made marshmallows.
It’s sticky business, and despite the yellow swirls they’re not the most aesthetically pleasing thing I’ve ever created, but they taste okay. I’m not sure turmeric and marshmallow are a winning combination, but the vanilla version alone is pretty good.
I guess there’s something quite nice about making s’mores from scratch, if you’re that way inclined, but given they’re not necessarily a go-to for a British barbecue, and something I’d do once in a blue moon, I think I might keep things simple and buy my marshmallows in future.
Six recipes on and I’m still on the fence about this whole series. Are the recipes easy and accessible? Sure, for the most part. And they also taste alright.
But the more I watch With Love, Meghan, the more I think it’s not really about learning much, but sitting on the sidelines while she and her celebrity pals have a rather lovely time mucking about with food, flowers and whatever else they have time to do.
