Ottolenghi, 297 Upper St, N1

I have a massive sweet-tooth and am not satisfied unless I've devoured a pudding or at the very least a few squares of chocolate at the end of a meal. Apparently my brother Matthew is exactly the same so I'm certain it's in my genetic blueprint and not down to hormones.

Every time I hit Islington I always take a stroll down Upper Street to gaze at the cakes and meringues on display at Ottolenghi- they really are the best food porn in town.

Since this restaurant-cum deli was voted 'best breakfast' by the Observer in 08, the crowds haven't left it alone at the weekends so on Thursday night Robert and I were killing time before the cinema so thought we'd try our luck for a spot of dinner. We bagged a seat relatively easily - mounting it was more of a challenge - we hauled ourselves onto some high chairs at the bar near the front and checked out the jams and spreads above our head. One of the staff brought over an assortment of breads and oil for us to snack on while we waited which was a nice touch, I thought. In fact, the curried bread was so good I'll be returning to buy a whole loaf.

I'd had a late lunch meeting and had been deprived of a dessert so eyed up my dinner at the window. It was a hard choice, there were various berry topped sponges, muffins and a tempting chocolate torte but I fancied something really sinful, so plumped for a large piece of cheesecake with butterscotch sauce and macadamia nut brittle. It was good, not the best I've had but the brittle made it and with my cravings I would have probably been happy enough with a bowl of that by itself.

As is often the case with cake-eating at supper time (I'm a bit of a veteran at this, you see), once over you're soon lusting for something savoury. Fortunately Robert was on hand so I dined in reverse and picked at his roasted pumpkin and feta salad with pine nuts and pesto and soup of buttered prawns.

Altogether with a beer and latte the meal came to a little over £30. I'd been warned it could be pricey but the ingredients were fresh and tasty, the room slick and after a week of battling the rainy streets of London I felt I deserved a sweet treat. My purse couldn't handle a weekly visit but I won't need to as when the bill came I spied a rather interesting jar of passion fruit and apricot jam which will be perfect with some natural yoghurt and a generous sprinkle of granola for my next postprandial dip!

The recession-proof cupcake?

One area of the food industry that seems to be thriving despite the recession is the cupcake business.

I suppose these miniature treats have something of the 'Cath Kidston effect', that comforting kitchenalia brand whose profits bucked the economic downturn last year. They are wholesome, their size means you needn't share and they create nostalgia when you bake them (or at least they do for me!)

At the end of last year Lola's cupcakes of Primrose Hill bakery fame set up shop with a counter in Selfridges, bringing that white picket fence American dream to the masses. In need of a repose during a particularly stressful Christmas shop my boyfriend and I sampled one of their strawberry treats. They were good. But they were pricey, so i think it's all about doing it yourself.

Enter my own baking efforts (left, above). Ok, so visually they're not as pretty as Lola's but they taste just as good. I followed Tarek Malouf's famous vanilla cupcake recipe from the Hummingbird Bakery book. I've long been a fan of his red velvet cupcakes and he has just opened a branch in Soho so these gorgeous cakes are now closer than ever to my office.

Hundreds and thousands or some other garnish are obligatory, as is a really creamy frosting, after all that's the best bit! I opted for the vanilla frosting- the cream cheese topping is dreamy but very rich and hinders the gourmandiser's ability to eat more than just one. Be liberal with the vanilla extract as I found the amount recommended was hard to detect. Although Malouf's recipes always give consistent results you have to cook his cake mix for longer than the book says to really get them to brown up and I always struggle to get the recipe to stretch to a dozen, it's more like 10 at a squeeze! Maybe I'm being over-generous with the helping size?!