I have been obsessed with food since I was a young child, nicknamed the Labrador by my parents and I was often found on a stool with my head in the fridge snacking on something, so it wasn’t unusual when I started to cook alongside my late Dad who had keen interest in cooking.

The actual MPK Instagram was born in lockdown 2020. My day job as a commercial agent went very very VERY quiet so I decided to pour my energy into cooking. I had thought about starting an Instagram page for a long time, but never seemed to find the time to do it. It grew pretty quickly over that time and now three years on I have published a book and have some other exciting things in the pipeline.

We admire your work ethic, there's no question that the juggle of working full time and running ‘Miss Polly's Kitchen’ keeps you very busy! What do you do to keep you sane? Do you have any self care rituals that keep you in check?

I find that being busy has always been part of my DNA, I am an extrovert but also crave my own time. I exercise religiously which keeps my head clear and I absolutely love my big morning walks or runs. I treasure the early mornings that I have to myself. I often walk for an hour with my headphones in but won’t actually be listening to anything at all (odd I know) but I feel like the early mornings are the only times I have to myself where there isn’t any “noise” it’s my form of meditation, I guess.  

I also try not to make social plans at the start of the week so that I can get lots of admin done without feeling swamped.

In 2022 your cookbook hit the shelves… it’s a firm fav in our household… Can you tell us a little bit about the process? Was it hard to narrow down recipes?

Writing a cookbook is not easy, I had to create 70 recipes, and test them again and again to make sure they were perfect. I found it really hard to narrow that down and make sure it was a good mix of fresh and not too difficult but had lots of flavour.

 I started with so many different ideas, but then once I started recipe testing, I quickly culled ones that didn’t seem to fit. It’s a big process coming up with ideas, I had so much inspiration from countries I’d visited, restaurants I had eaten at, family recipes and so many dishes that I used to cook on the boats.  

There were recipes I thought would be incredible but once I started cooking them, they seemed too fiddly for the book. I wanted to make the book accessible by all levels, so I removed a few that seemed too complicated.

You mention meals cooked on ‘the boats’ as an influence for your recipes, with Euro summer fast approaching, what are your must visit spots after your time spent in the Med working on super yachts?

 Spain – Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza and Barcelona, all three of those spots have a special place in my heart. The food, culture, people, nightlife, beaches, shopping I mean I could go on forever.

 The I also more recently fell in love with Praiano in Italy, it is the cutest town next to Positano, the locals are divine as are the small beach clubs and the food was out of this world. It wasn’t as chaotic as Positano, which I loved.

 Puglia is also a must visit. I recommend doing lots of research before you go. There are gorgeous coastal towns and incredible wineries. You can stay in beautiful old boutique Masseria’s and they have some incredible cooking courses you can do. I would recommend Masserea Potenti as somewhere special to stay, also Moroseta. Polignamo a Mare is a gorgeous coastal town that’s also part of the Puglia region. The whole area is just beautiful and there are lots of farm to table restaurants, which are a must try.

I always do a heap of research before I head away, and will book places a long time in advance if I can before I go (good restaurants and accommodation can book out so quickly!) I also think it’s important to not try and cram too many things into one day, you want to feel rejuvenated post-holiday, moving round every few days gets exhausting.

Palma sounds amazing, and will definitely be added to the list… are there any specific restaurants/foodie spots our readers simply can’t miss if they are visiting? 

Palma De Mallorca was my on and off home for 3 years whilst I was on the yachts. The food scene there is out of this world… there are so many to list but below is a good start.

- El Camino is my favourite restaurant ever.
- Patiki Beach in Soller is also a must visit.
- For something more fine dining - Fera
- Ca's Patro March Restaurant
- Koh is one of my all-time favourites in Santa Catalina and whilst you’re there you must go to the food markets. There is also the most incredible Middle Eastern takeout spot called Simply Delicious – not to be missed!

Cooking the kind of food you do, it's no question you are a bit of an entertainer. Your cooking style elevates the everyday in what appears to be the simplest of ways. Can you let us in on what your ultimate meal to make for entertaining would be?

As lame as it sounds, I probably can't pick just one meal for entertaining. I love pasta and think it’s a great and fuss-free meal to share and I will always make a big salad or two to go alongside it.

 Heading into winter anything slow cooked is ideal, served with something warm and starchy on the side and some greens.

 In the warmer months I will mostly cook seafood. I love salmon and prawns, a lot, in fact I pretty much love all seafood. 

A little tip - I always ensure there are a few dishes that I can make ahead of time, it's so important to not complicate things too much when entertaining.

Kitchen utensils can be a real investment… What are a few that are worth every penny that you just can’t live without?

A good cast iron pan is worth its weight in gold, as is a food processor and a good set of high-quality knives - I don’t think I could live without those in my kitchen. Something I also love but won’t break the bank is a julienne peeler. 

Lastly, we know you are always on the go - what are your handbag essentials for when you are out and about?

 My phone, lip balm, chewing gum (shocking I know), keys and a stick of concealer.