Hi, Welcome! My name is Michelle, I create recipes, I write about food, and I photograph it. Originally from Ireland, I now live in Ely, Cambridgeshire, England with my husband and daughter. Ely is one of the smallest cities in England and is famous for its beautiful Cathedral, quaint tea shops, and the annual eel festival. We moved to Ely from Ireland at the end of 2013, before that we lived on the lovely island of Jersey where we met, married and had our amazing daughter Abigail. We love living in Ely and being so near to Cambridge so I think we’ll be staying here for some time yet!
Who is the Last Food Blog for?
I started this blog with the good intention of sharing my recipes, which are mostly seasonal, sometimes local and are usually easy to make. I am a trained and certified health and wellness coach and have a diploma in diet, health, and coaching from The Institute of Health Sciences Ireland, but I don't practice that, making good food is where my heart lies. Creating vegetarian meals for my family is my passion. Since starting this food blog we have now adopted a vegetarian diet. So on this blog, you will find vegetarian and vegan recipes but you will also find some historic meat recipes on this blog, I've left them here for my readers who have followed the blog since the beginning when we used to eat meat. I believe in living a happy, healthy, well-balanced life where I can eat cake if I want to so there will be treats too.
A Simply, Healthy food blog...
The aim of this blog is to help you make good healthy food for you and your family. There will be no crazy long lists of ingredients, no hard to find ingredients, just simple, good food that everyone will enjoy. Everything I have learned about cooking has come from cooking for my family and friends, from reading lots and lots of cookery books, cookery magazines and doing my course. I am not a trained chef, dietician, or trained photographer. All recipes are my own unless stated, any recipes that have been inspired by other recipes will be credited. I hope you find my food blog a good resource to help you on your way to cooking good food for you and your family.
Follow Me
You can like The Last Food Blog on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter. You can also find me on Instagram and Pinterest. I can also be seen on Foodgawker, Tastespotting and on Healthy Aperture.
If you have any questions or would like to work with me please send your emails to michelle[@]thelastfoodblog.com
Michelle x
P.S. Just in case you were wondering about the name The Last Food Blog, well there are a gazillion food blogs out there that, well, we may just be at peak food blog status so I guess this has to be the last food blog! 🙂
© Michelle Alston and The Last Food Blog, 2017. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Michelle Alston and The Last Food Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Sarah
Hi Michelle! I happened upon your blog because Cooking & Cocktails featured your Irish potato soup, which I'm very excited to make (my wife is a huge potato soup fan and I'm always looking for new variations). Is there a way to follow your blog itself and/or to receive email updates when you post a new recipe? I'm not on any of the social media where you're active, unfortunately.
Michelle Alston
Hi Sarah, lovely to have you here! You could subscribe to my email if you like. I send out emails when I publish new recipes. If you're on a desktop you should see a box on the right-hand side of any recipe with a black subscribe button, or if you're on a mobile device this will be at the very bottom of any recipe above the leave a reply section. I hope you both enjoy the soup 🙂
Nuala Galbari
Michelle,
As is often the case, I just stumbled on your blog, while checking on Barmbrack.
I just baked Barmbrack and I seem to never have the same results twice; this
one turned out quite moist and sticky (of course, I added honey on top).
As the last Barmbrack was on the dry side, I added more tea to this one.
Perhaps a little too much (the recipe called for one pint). It tastes wonderful,
but it very moist.
Now, I plan to look at your excellent recipes, some of which I have never made, such
as Colcannon or Lentil Pie. I have been vegetarian since 1989, though I eat eggs
and cheese, and have just added some fish, twice a week, as I am now close to 70.
I was born in Belfast, with parents from Leitrim and Roscommon.
My Aunt Ada McCann was an excellent cook and baker, and your recipes recall many
of her dishes. Thank you for the fabulous vegetarian dishes, which will add highlights
and good nutrition to our regular menus.
Michelle Alston
Hi Nuala, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I hope you enjoy the recipes. M
o'connell
Can you please give the quantities of each ingredient for the white soda bread ?
Michelle Alston
Hi John, you can find the recipe for the white soda bread here https://www.thelastfoodblog.com/white-soda-bread/
Gerard
Hi Michelle
Just stumbled across your blog and have made the butternut squash and chickpea curry. Superb! I gave up meat two years ago aged 68 and feel all the better for it. Good luck with your projects. I shall test out your other recipes. I like your philosophy which is practical and unfussy. In the past I have felt intimidated by hectoring vegans (family member) for falling off the meat free wagon from time to time but these recipes will definitely encourage me.
Thanks again
Gerard☘️☘️☘️
Michelle Alston
Hi Gerard, lovely to hear from you. I'm so glad you enjoyed the curry. Thank you so much for your lovely comment, I'm really happy that you like my philosophy regarding recipes and food. I think you're doing great, so don't worry about falling off the wagon every now and again, we're all just doing the best we can at the moment! If you have any questions regarding any other recipes please don't hesitate to get in touch. Best wishes, Michelle.
Karen
I made the mushroom wellington this evening & it was delicious , we both loved it & my partner isn’t a vegetarian! Thank you for sharing, this may be my Christmas lunch dish
Michelle Alston
Hi Karen, thank you so much! I'm so glad you hear that you both loved it. M x
Shannon Michaels
Hello Michelle!
I live in the U.S. and recently tried a cold, what I would call "curried chickpea salad". It looked like it might have been prepared as a hot dish, but without the customarily accompanying rice. Is it ever served cold in Indian culture? I had forgotten how much I enjoyed curry, though... so now I will be making some hot chickpea curry with naan.
By the way, we lived nearby in Thetford and attended a Christmas service at the beautiful Ely Cathedral in 1998, while there with the military. Two of our daughters were also born at RAF Lakenheath. I do hope that we will get a chance to return! Best wishes.
- Shannon
Michelle Alston
Hello Shannon, lovely to hear from you.
I'm not sure if that curried chickpea salad is served cold in Indian cuisine. I know there is a cold chickpea salad called Chana chaat but that sounds different to what you have described. Hot chickpea curry is amazing though, one of my favourite curries.
Oh, how lovely! Thetford is really nice, we go to the forest there when we can / are allowed to travel 😉 Ely Catherdral is so lovely at Christmas, we were lucky to go there every Christmas for a carol service when my daughter was in primary school, it is a very special place. I do hope you get a chance to come back at some stage.
Best wishes,
Michelle
Tim Sully
Hi Michelle,
I have only recently found your blog and tried your vegan sausage casserole, delicious! I fully intend to try many of your other recipes as well. Thank you for sharing them.
Tim
Michelle Alston
Hi Tim, thank you so much, I'm so glad you enjoyed the casserole. I hope you enjoy some of my other recipes too. Best wishes, Michelle 🙂
Bob Langston
I just made these and they are quite tasty. I may have missed it but can you freeze these? Very simple and yummy. Thanks
Michelle Alston
Hi Bob, this has come through on my About Me page, which recipe did you make?
Tina Miller
Hi Michelle. So pleased to come across your blog and now following you on Instagram. Looking forward to trying out many recipes. I grew up in Little Downham just outside of Ely and even came back for a while in the mid 90s. It's a lovely city.
Michelle Alston
Hi Tina, thanks so much for following. We love Ely, I can't see us leaving for a long time. Little Downham is a lovely village too. I hope you enjoy the recipes x
Robin Jameson
Nice blog, thank you Michelle!
Aleta
Hey! I am a fellow food blogger and was just reading your bio. My family is originally from the little island of Jersey! Most are still there, but my grandpa moved to Canada when he was in his 20's. He brought over some Jersey potatoes which he grew each year, keeping the seed for the following year. My dad still grows the potatoes and I currently have the Jersey potatoes growing in my own garden! Just thought I'd say Hey!
Michelle Alston
Hey Aleta, so nice to meet you! Oh, how lovely is that! What a great thing you're Grandpa did and I love that you're continuing on with the tradition.Xx
Lauren
Hey Michelle,
I stumbled across one of your recipes on FoodGawker, and I am glad I did! Sometimes it is hard to sift through all the recipes on there and Pinterest, and your blog is clean and easy to navigate. Not to mention, the recipes are right up my alley, as I have been looking for things that are tasty yet healthy. I'm excited to start trying my hand at a lot of these! Thank you for the time and effort you put into all of this. I know it is a lot!
Michelle Alston
Hi Lauren, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I hope you enjoy the recipes, let me know how you get on with them. Best wishes, Michelle x
Faiza
Hi! U cud name ur blog as the " The Ultimate food blog" Lol!
Michelle Alston
Thanks Faiza 🙂
Anne-Marie
Hi Michelle,
I really like your blog and your food philosophy. It's one of the things I truly love about the UK - being able to get locally sourced food and the pride people take in providing it.
Also love the design of your blog 🙂 Can't wait to read more of your recipes! The White Pizza with Spinach & Ricotta one is right up my alley 🙂
Best,
Anne-Marie
Michelle Alston
Hi Anne-Marie, thank you so much, that's so very kind of you! I totally agree with you, we're really very lucky here x I hope you enjoy the recipes, all the best, M xxx
Esther
Hi Michelle. Funnily enough, I was born and brought up on the island of Jersey, but now I live in Los Angeles. Your blog is beautiful. I'm so glad I found it. You have some great recipes. I'll definitely be trying some of them on my family.
Michelle Alston
Hi Esther, thank you so much for your kind words. Wow you are a long way from Jersey, we really loved it there 🙂 I bet L.A. is a beautiful too though. I'm really glad you like the recipes, Michelle x
joy thomas
hi michelle, i read your page, i really like it, awessome blog, thanks
Michelle Alston
Hi Joy, thanks so much! I'm really glad you like it 🙂
Cathy Walston
Can't wait to see what you have next. I don't think anything could top this spinach and feta quiche!
It's great