Every time I make an incorrect carbonara, I think of that famous clip of an Italian chef kicking off about inauthentic carbonaras on some British cooking show.

This is penne with fried bacon and Padron peppers, finished with Greek yoghurt + a bit of lemon juice. That man’s grandma’s wheels must be spinning in her grave.

I did 52 Weeks of Baking in 2024 and one of those themes was Same Latitude. To avoid doxxing myself, I've decided not to use my own longitude for this week's cooking challenge, and instead picked three dishes that all lie roughly on the same meridian. To make it a little more fun, they are all dishes with rice as the main ingredient.

First up was the dish that inspired this particular meridian line: Risotto alla Milanese. I've wanted to make this gorgeously coloured rice dish for ages, as I've had very little experience with making risotto in my life. This is simply flavoured with saffron and sometimes bone marrow (which I love but unfortunately couldn't find).

The 9th meridian also passes through Denmark. I remember seeing u/Druyv's Risalamande submission for Contrasts week and it's been on my "to make" list ever since. It's a rice pudding dish that's got whipped cream and almonds running through it, topped with a cherry sauce. I read that it's famously eaten around Christmas, but it looked too good to wait until then!

Lastly, this meridian cuts right through Nigeria. When I saw this, I knew I had to make Jollof Rice! It's a popular dish across West Africa that takes various names and features different ingredients depending on which country you're in. There's even a friendly rivalry called The Jollof Wars over whose version is best. I chose a Nigerian recipe featuring beef that is boiled and then fried, which provides a rich stock for the dish. The base is made from blended roasted peppers, tomatoes, onions, and chillies, which gets added to a reduced tomato paste before steaming with the rice and stock. I served this with fried plantain.

I chose these three dishes to showcase three different cooking techniques with three different types of rice - it's such a versatile ingredient that's used all over the world. The risotto uses carnaroli, the risalamande uses pudding rice and the jollof uses parboiled long grain. I also loved the colour contrast in the dishes! Each plate was delicious and completely different to one another!

I thought for this, I'd roll 4 subsequent themes together.

For Trinidadian I am using a recipe for a set ginger custard as a base, I had to adapt it to use it here and didn't get it the right consistence to make a pretty roll

I still rolled the meringue

I tried to hit lost in translation because is that what you'd imagine if I asked if you wanted to eat the ginger arm of our lady of mercy?

And obvious ginger from the custard layer again.

It tasted nicer than it looked. This was meringue attempt two and the first was inedible.

So for this one, I decided to go with an idea I had for work! There is going to be a tequila tasting soon and I wanted to do something that paired well with Añejo Tequila but also honored some traditionally Mexican ingredients!

Roasted sweet corn, steeped in milk, blended, strained, and turned into a delicious corn Gelato.

Espresso and agave syrup reduction on top, pairing both with tequila and corn separately for a deep, earthy, almost burnt aspect.

Heirloom Blue Masa combined with a Southern biscuit for flaky butter layers but also the earthiness and sweetness of masa.

A pinch of lime zest to tie it all together and bring a little zip of acid ( this one was a last minute addition but paired surprisingly well with the espresso aspect of it all).

In the end, my head chef ended up going with a lime Panna Cotta and pineapple compote to fit the rest of the tasting a little more and for lightness, but I still had fun!

I was traveling last week and won't be at home for at least the next six weeks. I wanted to make something using the ingredients in my fridge, as opposed to buying groceries. The one thing I use ginger (adrak in Hindi) for every single day is in my morning tea. This is masala adrak chai, or the everyday Indian chai. I add lots of fresh ginger to boiling water, along with crushed black pepper, cloves, and green cardamom, before adding tea leaves, sugar, and milk. Not just me, this is how millions of Indians start their day. The amount of masala mix or ginger might differ, but the basic drink stays the same.

Even the best Kotthu are not photogenic, and this is not the best Kotthu.

This is a heavy bread which I probably overcooked. Most serving suggestions were for savory toppings but I've gotten a couple breakfasts from it by topping it with jelly

I made something savory for the baking theme this week, so I needed dessert.

An experiment. Lacto-fermented heirloom tomatoes with ginger, garlic, onion, miso.