Brit Barbie
Guest poster -Nat!

Here is a plate full of the delicious offerings that my parents served up at my farewell barbecue on Sunday. It includes the now somewhat elusive "special" salad, key ingredients sweetcorn, avocado, prawns and red onion... It's a bit special because mum is never really sure what was in the salad last time she made it! We had an earnest debate about ingredients that have made special guest star appearances in the past: mushrooms, pine nuts, crab meat...

My mum is an excellent cook and dinner parties at our house are always eagerly anticipated, with the speciality being summer barbeque's. Maybe it's the African in her... My dad's in charge of the coals and what goes on them - on Sunday he got to use one of his 60th birthday presents for the first time: a lovely set of wooden-handled bbq tools. He was chuffed to bits but maybe now the most important piece of equipment, the braii itself, needs to be enhanced to fit in with the swanky tools - it's made out an oil drum cut in half. We don't do airs and graces in Croydon!