Lily Allen, Keira Knightley, Stephen Fry, Lindsay Lohan, Simon Cowell, David Beckham and Bill Clinton.

Those are just a few of the people who have been eating at Chiltern Firehouse in London this week – well according to the newspapers anyway.

A few months ago I tried to get a table there. I must have been bonkers to try because since it’s opened there has been a steady stream of celebrities through those old fire station doors and that, seemingly is it.

I always find it amusing how every few months a new, ‘hip’ restaurant opens and everyone who’s anyone has to be there and then a new place pops up and they all move on. Did Bill Clinton have a chat with Lindsay Lohan about how good the crab was? Did Princess Beatrice clink glasses with Lily Allen while sampling the Iberico pork?

I hope I’m not sounding bitter, I don’t mean to, I know I will get there one day once the furore has died down. It just seems to be the name on everyone’s lips this week.

Instead in what has been a quiet week of weird weather I’ve been getting back in the kitchen and cooking some of my favourite comfort foods for rainy evenings.

British asparagus is incredible at this time of year so I made a prawn, pea and asparagus risotto with plenty of garlic, white wine and parmesan.

I also made one of my favourite vegetarian dishes; an aubergine, chickpea stew with couscous and Greek yoghurt. Aubergine is in season (is that how you say it? sounds a bit like a female dog…) at the moment and I really can’t get enough of cooking with them.

Although a few months ago I made an aubergine and harissa dip for a dinner party and it was disgusting. I’m not blaming anyone but myself for it but if anyone has any good aubergine dip recipes I’d be really grateful. I felt so sorry for our guests that night!

And as I’m new to this blogging thing I was wondering if anyone might be able to suggest any apps or techniques I could use to make my photos look more appealing? I want to include as many photos as possible but at the moment I’m not sure they’re adding anything aesthetically pleasing to Mere Morsels…