Happy New Year!

Or is it?

Well, Cadbury is losing its royal warrant this year. That feels wrong somehow, though I can’t say it makes me particularly sad. I’ve never been a huge Cadbury fan (excluding Flake–my absolute favourite). I’m a bit of a snob when it comes to chocolate bars, preferring the poncy artisanal stuff and the continental varieties. Still, some things should be a particular way and Cadbury, even if owned by multinational Mondelēz, is as British as the royal family. The two just seem to go hand in hand.

Where I do have stronger feelings is AI–and the prospect of us, all of us, being replaced by technology. It’s not a problem per se; I just think that humans without work is a non-starter. We need to work, or at least have something to give our days meaning. I couldn’t bear a world full of thumb twiddlers. Robots can do that for us.

Apparently, though, we don’t need to panic just yet. I get comfort from the news that machines aren’t completely replacing chefs, at least for the time being. There are technical issues that earn us at least another 10 years, my estimate, of having our restaurant food prepared for us by actual humans. Luckily, a "robot cannot yet dice, chop, or sauté"...and it certainly can’t taste for seasoning.

That's in restaurants. I bet it’ll take even longer before robot cooks become affordable household gadgets.

And so, in the foreseeable future, we still get to go to human-manned restaurants and we get to cook! A reason to be happy, at least in my book; a reason to try some of my favourite dishes of 2024…

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Roast chicken with curry leaf dukkah

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Fricassee tuna melt

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Golden pan-seared fish with ginger and spring onions
By Amy Poon

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Herby tahdig with trout and preserved-lemon-yoghurt

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Lentils with pomegranate molasses and lemon tahini
By Meera Sodha

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Egg sambal ‘shakshuka’

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Warm tomato salad

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Roasted aubergine, burnt rosemary and carob syrup dip

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Ezme dip with yoghurt

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Piña panna cotta with caramelised pineapple
By Marie Mitchell, from KIN: Caribbean Recipes for the Modern Kitchen

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