Selfish

Sophie Dahl revels in the joy of cooking for one on a purely selfish day. Shutting the world away and answering to no-one on a day that is indulgently independent means cruising the food boutiques and cooking simple dishes with the finest of ingredients.

Her selfish day begins at breakfast with her take on an omelette Arnold Bennett and the preparation of peanut butter fudge.

After a sweep of the local cheese shop, she's assembling a buffalo mozzarella bruschetta with shaved fennel and courgette salad for lunch.

Finally, inspired by a picture of an old Hollywood screen siren and an Art-Deco cocktail shaker picked up in a second-hand shop, it's time for dirty martinis and a dinner of roasted halibut with spinach and watercress sauce, healthy sweet potato chips and wild mushrooms, followed by rich chocolate pots with brandy-soaked cherries.

By the end of the day, Sophie feels ready to share again... maybe.