pea & Kale risotto

Reasons to be cheerful: spring is in the air, I’m wearing my green hoodie, the kids have gone back to school after the longest Christmas holiday in history and it’s International Women’s Day! Sending love and a fresh green risotto recipe to all the amazing women in my life!

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 250g Frozen peas

• 1 vegetable stock cube

• 100g cavolo nero, stalked removed, leaves chopped roughly

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 celery stick, finely chopped

• 1 clove garlic, grated

• 150ml white wine or 100ml sherry / vermouth

• 320g risotto rice

• 50g parmesan, finely grated

• 3/4 tsp sea salt

• Juice of ¼ lemon

Method

• Melt the stock cube in 1L boiling water (I always dilute stock cubes way more than the packet instructions as I find their flavour is too strong otherwise)

• Put 150g peas in a small saucepan, pour over 100ml stock and bring to the boil. Turn off and leave to cool.

• Steam the kale for 4-5 minutes and then blitz in a food processor with a knob of butter.

• Once the peas have cooled, then add to the kale and blitz until smooth.

• Heat 20g of butter and a drizzle of olive oil in a large shallow pan and fry the onions and celery on low for 10-12 minutes.

• Add the garlic to the onion and cook for 1 minute.

• Warm the stock in a pan on the hob or microwave.

• Next stir the rice into the onions, after about a minute it should look slightly translucent at the edges.

• Then turn up the heat and pour in the wine or Sherry. Allow the harsh alcohol taste to bubble off and once the rice has absorbed the rest of the wine start adding the warm stock. I usually pour in about a ladle or 100ml at a time.

• After 10 minutes add the pea and kale purée and continue pouring in the stock for another 5 minutes and then add the rest of the peas. Cook for a further 3-5 minutes.

• Check the rice is cooked (it should still have a little bite to it), add a little more water if needed (a risotto shouldn’t stand up in your bowl, it should melt to the sides) and then stir in 10g of butter, 30g parmesan, salt and a squeeze of lemon.

• Serve with the rest of the parmesan, warm ciabatta and a green salad.

Tip

• The way I got my fussy meat-eating son to eat a very green risotto was to: not tell him about the kale, only the peas, fry some crispy bacon bits and put them on top and serve with warm ciabatta bread. He will eat a significant amount more things if there is white bread or a wrap on the side!

• I used cavolo nero or black kale, but you could switch to curly if that’s what you’ve got in. Just make sure you take the tough stalks out and only use the leaves.

• Tip

• A note about stock - if I’m using a cube then I will double the amount of water recommended on the pack, so for this recipe I just used one cube for one litre of water. Otherwise you’ll end up tasting the stock cube rather than it being a savoury back note.

• I don’t always want to open a bottle of wine just for cooking, so I keep a bottle of sherry or Vermouth in the cupboard to use for risotto. It doesn’t go off like wine, so you can just use a glass as and when you need it.

• To make the risotto vegan, you could use non-dairy ‘butter’ and add a tablespoon of nutritional yeast and or a little oat cream instead of cheese. Top with pine nuts or pumpkin seeds.

• I use a Microplane or fine grater for the cheese and garlic.

5 ingredient tomato & mascarpone sauce

Here’s a quick mid-week recipe that always goes down well in our house. It’s made from 5 ingredients (excluding the salt and pasta!) and is a lovely creamy tomato sauce that works with any pasta. You can also easily adapt the recipe for meat-eaters by changing the sausage or switching for crispy bacon pieces.

Personally I think the sauce is really nice used on it’s own with just a little parmesan, if you want to leave out the sausages completely, or stir in a couple of handfuls of spinach to change things up.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 6 veggie sausages, 1 cm slices

• 1 large onion, chopped finely

• 1 large garlic clove, grated

• 2 x 400g tinned tomato

• 100g mascarpone cheese

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 400g rigatoni

Method

• Heat ½ tbsp rapeseed or olive oil in a large shallow pan and cook on a medium heat for around 8-10 minutes until browned.

• Remove from the pan and set aside in a covered bowl.

• Heat a little more oil in the pan and then add the onions. Cook on a low heat for about 10 minutes until softened.

• Next add the garlic and stir in well. Allow to cook for about 1 minute.

• Pour in the tinned tomatoes and ½ a tin of water (swill out the remaining tomato juice) then simmer for 20 minutes.

• Cook the pasta after the sauce has been bubbling for 10 minutes, so they’re ready at the same time.

• At this point you can either break the tomatoes up with a wooden spoon or blitz the sauce with a hand blender. I prefer to do the latter, then add the mascarpone, salt and sausages. Stir well and make sure the cheese has completely melted and the sausages have warmed through.

• Serve with plenty of grated parmesan and a green salad.

Roasted red pepper pesto

I’ve been experimenting with different pesto combinations recently as there are so many variations you can make and I love how it works with so many things: pasta, gnocchi, roasted veggies, sandwiches and fish or meat too.

This time I decided to use roasted red peppers with cashews, but you could swap for hazelnut or pine nuts if you prefer. You can also add a tablespoon or two of crème fraîche to make it creamy, which is especially good with gnocchi, as I always find it needs a bit more sauce than pasta.

The other great thing about pesto is that it freezes really well; I usually divide some into small portions that defrost quickly to make a tasty pasta when the fridge is empty!

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

• 4 red peppers

• 50g parmesan

• 60g cashews

• 1 clove garlic

• 50g basil

• 1 tsp sea salt

• Juice of ½ lemon

• 2 tbsp olive oil, optional

Method

• Put the whole red peppers on a sheet of tin foil and place under a hot grill, blacken on all sides - this should take about 12-15 minutes, turning every 2-3. Wrap in the foil once cooked and leave to cool for 5 minutes, then peel and deseed. Allow to cool completely before making the pesto.

• Start by putting the parmesan into a food processor and pulse a few times so it is a very rough crumble, then add cashews and repeat.

• Next add the garlic, blitz and then put in the basil, lemon and salt. Pulse until you have a rough paste and there are no large bits of any of the ingredients.

• Add a little olive oil to loosen if needed, this will also help the pesto bind with pasta or gnocchi.

tip

• You can use jarred red peppers to save time.

• Roast the red peppers a day or two beforehand, so they don’t have to cool and you can use them straightaway.

• If you don’t have a food processor you could use a hand blender or a pestle and mortar - if using a pestle them you would need to finely chop the red pepper with a knife and add to the mix at the end.

Family favourite veggie lasagne

I’ve been working on this veggie lasagne on and off for a while now as I wanted to get exactly the right balance of tomato and cheese sauce to pasta. I think I went through five different versions, each with slight tweaks to the sauce and a streamlining of the ingredients to keep things as simple as possible, without compromising on taste obviously! Finally, I think I’ve cracked it, so here’s the recipe for you guys to try, let me know what you think.

As there are two main elements to making a lasagne, the way I do it is to cook the tomato sauce the day before (or even two), so all I need to make is the cheesy béchamel and then assemble. This cuts the work time to 20-30 minutes on the day as lasagne can sometimes seem too time-consuming. A bonus is that this recipe serves 6-8, so you should have dinner sorted for a couple of days too.

When we are finally allowed to socialise, lasagne is a great dish to make for friends (roll on June!!) as you can do all the prep ahead, pop it in the oven when your guests arrive and serve with a big green salad. I’d be pretty surprised if you got any complaints from meat-eaters as this lasagne is full of flavour, from the umami of the tomato sauce to the lovely rich cheesy béchamel. It’s certainly a favourite in our multi-diet house!

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

• 1 aubergine, ½ cm slices

• 2 large onions, finely chopped

• 2 celery sticks, finely chopped

• 2 large cloves of garlic, grated

• 2 red peppers, small dice

• 1 courgette, sliced

• 1 vegetable stock cube

• 800g tinned tomatoes

• 2 tbsp tomato purée

• ½ tbsp red wine vinegar

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 1 handful of basil, stalks chopped, leaves torn

• 500g fresh lasagne sheets

Cheese sauce

• 90g butter

• 90g flour

• 1L milk

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 150g Gruyère or Comte cheese

• 150g gouda, grated or sliced

• 50g parmesan, grated finely

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180ºc. Brush a large tray with oil and spread out the aubergine, turning to make sure both sides are coated in oil. Sprinkle with sea salt. Roast for 20 minutes turn and cook for 5-8 minutes more. Cut the slices in half and set aside.

• While the aubergine is roasting, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in large pan and cook the onion and celery for 10 minutes.

• Next add the peppers for 5 minutes and then repeat adding the garlic and courgettes.

• Pour in the tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, basil stalks and ½ a tin of water (swilling out to get the last bits of tomato juice). Simmer for 20 minutes.

• Then add the aubergine, red wine vinegar and sea salt for another 5 minutes. Finish by stirring in the basil leaves.

• Cheesy béchamel sauce: while the tomato sauce is bubbling away, melt the butter in a large non-stick saucepan and then tip in the flour, use a silicon whisk to mix thoroughly and allow to warm through for a minute.

• Start pouring the milk in slowly, 50ml at a time, so you don’t get lots of splashing as you whisk it in.

• Quickly add the next 50ml, whisk rapidly and repeat until you’ve used about 300ml, then you can start adding 100ml each time. Once you’ve poured in all the milk leave on a low heat for a further 10-12 minutes to thicken, but whisk or stir regularly so you don’t get lumps.

• Add 100g of Gruyère or Comté, 25g parmesan, sea salt and a good grind of pepper; stir well and allow to melt for a couple of minutes.

• Now assemble the lasagne in a large oven proof dish (I used 24 x 33cm) by first adding a big spoon or two of the tomato base, a ladle of cheese sauce (drizzle over the tomato generously), gouda and then 2 lasagne sheets. Repeat until the last layer of pasta and then cover with cheese sauce and the rest of the Gruyère/Comte and parmesan.

• Bake in the oven at 180ºc for 35-40 mins. If the top still needs a little browning then place under a hot grill for a minute or so, but watch like a hawk so it doesn’t burn!

tip

• There’s no need to pre-cook fresh lasagne sheets, although the packet will tell you to do so.

• Cut any leftover lasagne into thick strips and use like pappardelle.

• Stir a couple of handfuls of spinach into the tomato sauce to add some greenery.

Super quick cheese & red onion galettes

These are the easiest tarts to make and they’re so more ish. They take minutes to prep and taste so good. We had them for lunch with salad yesterday, but they would great for dinner too. When we all get back to socialising you could serve a bite size version of these to guests as appetisers or canapés. Just divide the pastry into smaller rectangles, repeat the steps below with less of the toppings and cook for a shorter amount of time.

I used the red onion chutney I made a few weeks ago, but you could use a good quality shop-bought instead to save time.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 320g packet pre-rolled puff pastry

• 6 tbsp sour cream

• 6 tbsp red onion chutney (recipe here)

• 200g block Comte cheese, rinds trimmed then grated

• 1 egg, lightly whisked

method

• Take the pastry out of the fridge about an hour before you plan to make the galettes, so it can warm to room temperature. Otherwise it will crack as you open it out.

• Preheat the oven to 200ºc.

• Open the pastry out keeping it on the parchment wrapping and place on a large baking tray. Use a sharp knife to divide the pastry into six rectangles (cut right through it).

• Then score each one with another rectangle 1 ½ cm inside the outer edges (see photo steps below).

• Place a tablespoon of sour cream into the middle of each tart and spread out evenly inside the inner rectangle.

• Repeat with a tablespoon of chutney, then top with a large pinch of cheese (approx 25-30g), making sure all the toppings are within the inner rectangle.

• Carefully brush the egg around the outside border making sure the toppings aren’t spilling on to it at all.

• Place in the oven and cook for 18-20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and has puffed up all around the outside.

• Serve with a crisp green salad or coleslaw.

tip

• You could use any cheese that isn’t too oily like cheddar and melts well, like Gruyère, goats, Gorgonzola, Camembert.

Sweet potato, lentil & chickpea curry with raita

Here’s my take on a traditional Indian dish called chana masala. I realise I’m being totally inauthentic adding sweet potato and lentils, as this should be made only with chickpeas, but I wanted a slightly different texture and taste this time.

The curry works really well with a side of raita as you have a nice fresh crunch from the cucumber and cooling creaminess from the yoghurt to counteract the spicy heat.

I served ours up with a combination of brown basmati, raita and chapatis (recipe here).

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

• 1 large onions, half moon slices

• 2 large garlic cloves, grated

• 1 tsp garam masala

• ½ tsp ground cumin

• ½ tsp dried red chilli flakes

• ¼ tsp turmeric

• 2 x 400g tins tomatoes

• 1 tbsp tomato purée

• 2 x 400g tins chickpeas

• 1 sweet potato, cubed

• 150g red lentils, rinsed well

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 20-30g fresh coriander, optional

  Raita

• 250ml Greek or plain yoghurt

• 2 spring onions, sliced finely

• 15cm cucumber, small cubes

• Juice of ½ - 1 lime

• ½ tsp sea salt

• ¼ tsp ground cumin

Method

• Heat 1 tbsp rapeseed oil in a large pan and then add the onions, frying on low for 10 minutes.

• Next add the garlic for 1 minute and then the spices, warming through for 30 seconds.

• Pour in the tomatoes, plus 1 ½ tins of water, tomato purée, chickpeas, sweet potato and lentils.

• Simmer for 25 minutes.

• Mix all the raita ingredients together.

• Add the salt and a handful of coriander and stir well.

• Serve with basmati rice and or chapatis and extra coriander leaves.

Tip

• If you’re making chapatis then get the dough ready before you start on the curry. That way the dough can rest and then you’ll be ready to roll them out and cook while the curry bubbles away.

• I’ve listed the coriander as optional as I know a lot of people don’t like it. Personally I think the curry tastes more interesting with it in, but it will still be tasty if left out.

Chapati

This recipe makes simple chapatis to go with almost every curry. I can’t think of anything they wouldn’t work with, apart from may be potato-heavy dishes = carb overload! I’d always say make the dough before you start cooking the curry, so it can rest which you chop and prep, then you can roll out while the pan simmers away for half an hour.

Ingredients

Makes 8 x 15cm chapatis

• 120g wholemeal flour

• 120g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing

• 120ml hot water

• 1 tsp sea salt

Method

• Weigh the flours into a large bowl, add the salt and then gradually add the water and oil, stirring well to combine.

• Once most of the water is mixed in, use your hands to kneed the dough for 5-10 minutes until smooth. I make mine in a mixer with the dough attachment, reducing the kneading to 5 minutes.

• Next divide the dough into 8 and roll into balls on a floured surface and leave them to rest for 5 minutes. Make sure they’re well floured or the outside will dry out.

• Use a rolling pin to flatten the balls into thin discs.

• Put a frying pan on a medium to high heat and then start cooking the first chapati.

• Cook for about 30 seconds and when it until it starts to brown and bubble up, turn and repeat. Just make sure there are no uncooked darker patches before you wrap in tin foil wrap or a clean tea towel.

tip

• If you don’t eat all the chapatis, you can turn them into tortilla crisps the next day - follow the same instructions as for my homemade tortillas here.

Energising strawberry smoothie

I know I always say it, but this is my new favourite breakfast smoothie!! I probably should say, this is my latest smoothie obsession…. loving the strawberry for a change as I haven’t had any in the freezer for a while.

By the way, I always use frozen fruit in smoothies as it naturally chills the drink and is way cheaper than buying fresh. I also freeze all my brown bananas that no one will touch, so they don’t ever get wasted anymore. I added a medjool date for a little sweetness, but this is optional if you want a lower sugar drink. Personally I think it brings out the flavour of the strawberries though, so my advice is - chuck it in! Also, I always use plant milk in my smoothies, but you switch for cow’s if that’s what you have in or you prefer the taste. The same goes for all my smoothie recipes.

Anyway, hope you enjoy, it made me feel all cheery and spring-like today, along with my new green hoodie!

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 160g frozen strawberries

• 60g frozen banana

• 1 tbsp chia seeds

• 420ml nut milk or organic whole

• 1 medjool date, optional

• 1 tbsp ground flaxseed, optional

Method

• Blitz really well, especially if you’re adding the date.

Spinach & cashew pesto

Spinach pesto is a bit lighter and less aromatic than straight-up basil and works really well with the delicate flavour and texture of homemade gnocchi.

Now I realise that making gnocchi from scratch is probably not exactly at the top of your job list in the middle of lockdown when we’re all juggling a million things, so you could easily just use shop-bought or any kind of pasta as a sub - it’ll still be really delicious. The cooking method I recommend for shop-bought gnocchi is frying with olive oil in a hot pan for about 5 minutes, no need to boil. I think you get a better taste and texture that way.

As I haven’t actually made much gnocchi until recently (thank you Lockdown 1 & 3), I haven’t developed my own recipe as yet, so I’ve been using a really reliable one by The Smitten Kitchen if you fancy giving it a go. I’m not quite sure how I could improve on it to be honest, but I’ll experiment with a few different methods over the next few weeks and then develop my own version.

You’ll be pleased to know that the pesto is super easy to make as long as you have a food processor (I know, Nonna would turn in her grave), if not, it’s the traditional Italian way with elbow grease and a pestle and mortar.. way more authentic, but a little more time-consuming!

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 60g cashews

• 1 clove garlic

• 30g parmesan

• 4 tbsp olive oil

• 80g spinach

• 20g basil

• 1/2 tsp sea salt

• Juice of ½ lemon

Method

• Preheat the oven to 160ºc and toast the cashews on a baking tray for 6-7 minutes until slightly browned.

• Allow the nuts to cool while you get all the other ingredients weighed out.

• Put the parmesan in a food processor and blitz to a crumble, then add the nuts and pulse a few times.

• Add all the rest of the ingredients and continue to pulse until you have a paste-like texture. You will need to scrape down the sides at least a couple of times to ensure that all the ingredients are mixed evenly.

tip

• You can substitute the cashews for pine or hazelnuts if you prefer.

No-bake Oreo cheesecake

One for the kids today! But not necessarily exclusively - I had a good few spoons of the mix while we made it.

It’s a great recipe for slightly older kids to make themselves without any help, my daughter is 10 and she could easily follow the instructions. She also loved telling me to stop interfering and let her get on with it. I pretty much need my hands tied behind my back to stop me getting involved where cooking is concerned! I can’t bloody help myself, but I had to learn to step back while she was doing her thing!

After our practise session in the afternoon, my daughter and a couple of her friends made the cheesecake as part of a Zoom cookalong in the evening; they loved cooking together and pudding was a massive hit. And yes Ella-Rose ate two cheesecakes that day!

The ingredients should be available locally, so this is an easy one to throw together without much planning, but if you can’t get crème fraîche you could use whipped double cream instead.

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 5 Oreos

• 100g cream cheese

• 40g / 2 tbsp crème fraîche or whipped double cream

• 1 tbsp icing sugar 

Method

• Put 4 Oreos in a small plastic bag and bash gently with a rolling pin leaving some larger pieces. 

• Mix the cream cheese, crème fraîche and icing sugar in a bowl with a fork.

• Put 1 tbsp of Oreo crumble in to the cream mix and stir well. 

• Put ½ tbsp of Oreo crumble into two small glasses and spoon on the cream mix. 

• Sprinkle a little crumble and half an Oreo on top to finish. 

tip

• Assemble the cheesecakes at the last minute or the base and topping will lose it’s crunch.

Banana & peanut butter smoothie

I love this kind of combination for breakfast - creamy bananas and nuts are where I’m at in the morning! This smoothie tastes really good and is full of protein so it keeps you going all morning.

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 100g banana (about 1 whole / frozen if possible)

• 1 tbsp peanut butter

• 1 tbsp chia seeds

• 250ml nut milk or organic whole

• 1 medjool date, optional

method

• Blitz!

tip

• Switch the Oatly for any plant milk or cow’s if you prefer.

Moroccan lentil & chickpea stew with tahini yoghurt

Is it a soup, or is it a stew?! I’m going with stew today as it ended up so nice and chunky, but you can call it a soup if you prefer! I like to have a big tub of something tasty in the fridge, so there’s an instant lunch or dinner ready for me when either I can’t be bothered to cook, or I’m starving and need to eat immediately! In the winter it’s a stew or soup and in the summer a salad with roasted veggies and grains. So this is what’s in my fridge at the moment and I’ve been loving it. It’s really warming and quick to make, apart from chopping a few veggies, you just basically chuck everything in the pan and leave it for half an hour.

To make this recipe vegan, all you need to do is switch the plain yoghurt for a plant based variety or just whip up the tahini with water, it’ll still make a nice creamy dressing.

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

• 2 red onions, chopped

• 2 sticks celery

• 2 large garlic cloves, grated

• 2 tsp ground cumin

• 2 tsp ground coriander

• 4 carrots, cubed

• 1 tbsp rose harissa

• 300g small green or puy lentils

• 2 x 400g chopped tinned tomatoes

• 1 x 400g tin chickpeas, or 125g dried

• 150g cavolo nero, stalks removed, chopped roughly

• 1 ½ tsp sea salt

• A handful of fresh coriander leaves

  Tahini yoghurt

• 240ml (12 tbsp) plain yoghurt

• 6 tbsp tahini

• 6 tbsp water

• 1 ½ tsp sea salt

Method

• If you’re using dried chickpeas, soak them overnight and then cook in boiling water for about

  45-60 minutes.

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large pan and fry the onions and celery for 10 minutes.

• Next add the garlic and ground spices, let them warm through for about a minute.

• Add the carrots, rose harissa, lentils and tinned tomatoes, plus 3 tins of water.

• Simmer with the lid half on for 30 minutes.

• Mix the tahini, yoghurt, water and 1 ½ tsp sea salt in a medium sized tub or bowl.

• Serve with a drizzle of tahini yoghurt, coriander and a chunk of sourdough or brown rice.

Tip

• You could use red lentils instead of green, but they absorb more water so you would need to keep an eye on the stew getting too thick.

• If you’re looking for another recipe to use up some rose harissa, then try this Butternut squash & spelt salad, it’s really good and another one you can store in the fridge for tasty lunches, dinners or as a side.

• If you don’t have tahini, you can just use plain or coconut yoghurt instead.

American-style pancakes with peanut butter & banana

I always make pancakes using a one-cup recipe, as it’s easy to remember and pretty much failsafe. It’s best to use US measuring cups, but if not you could use a teacup, a small mug or weighing scales.

As well as these small, fluffy American-style pancakes, you can also make larger, thin French-style crêpes using this recipe (see below). The American-style just have an extra stage and use one more bowl, but once you’re used to doing it, it’s no big deal.

We loved this combo of peanut butter and banana with a few crunchy pumpkin seeds, but feel free to swap for any of the following: fresh berries, fruit compote, maple, honey, sugar & lemon, jam, Nutella (kid fave), chocolate chips or yoghurt.

Ingredients

Makes 8-10 small pancakes

• 1 cup (140g) plain flour

• 1 cup (240ml) milk (cow’s or plant)

• 1 large egg

• 1 tsp baking powder

• Small handful of pumpkin seeds

• 3-4 tbsp peanut butter

• 2 tbsp runny honey or maple syrup

• 1 banana, sliced

method

• Weigh out the flour into a large mixing bowl.

• Pour the milk into the flour.

• Then separate the egg: yolk goes in with the flour and white in a separate medium sized bowl.

• This is the extra stage: whisk the egg white into soft peaks (see photo), which takes about 1 minute on high - I use the whisk attachment on my hand blender.

• Add the baking powder to the flour mix and whisk briefly to combine.

• Then gently fold the egg whites into the flour, so you don’t knock all the air out.

• Melt the peanut butter and honey or maple in the microwave for approx 20 seconds, stir well.

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan and then start cooking the first 2-3 pancakes.

• I use a ladle to measure out the mix, the pancakes should be approx 12cm across.

• Cook the first side until you see air bubbles form on the uncooked surface, this should take about 1 minute on a medium heat. Then turn for another minute.

• Add a little more oil for each batch and toast the pumpkin seeds in a corner of the pan while the pancakes cook.

• Serve with slices of banana, a spoon of peanut butter and a few pumpkin seeds.

tip

• If you want to serve all the pancakes together, preheat the oven to 50ºc and store them on a baking tray or plate until you’ve finished cooking.

• To make crêpes: whisk the flour, milk and eggs together and you’re ready to go.
  

Everyday chilli

Chilli is pretty much a vegetarian staple, so it’s good to have a few versions up your sleeve. Here I’ve gone classic style, with soya mince as it’s one way to get my veggie daughter and meat-eating son to eat the same dish. Neither would go for my bean chilli and they definitely wouldn’t tolerate a full mixed veg chilli, so soya mince is a good compromise, plus I can sneak in some sweet potato without anyone complaining too much. Although there’ll probably be a pile of it left on their plates at the end! I just keep presenting them with food they ’think’ they don’t like in the vain hope that eventually they’ll change their minds.

Ingredients

Serves 8

• I large onion, chopped finely

• 1 red pepper, small dice

• 300g chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, grated

• 1kg veggie mince (see Tips below for brands I use)

• 1 ½ tsp cumin

• 2 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 tsp cayenne pepper

• 1 vegetable stock cube (I like Kallo low salt)

• 3 tbsp tomato purée

• 2 x 400g tins tomato

• 1 sweet potato, 1 ½c m cubes

• 1 x 400g tin kidney beans

• 2 tsp sea salt

• Juice of 1 lime

Method

• Heat 1 tbsp olive or rapeseed oil in a large wide bottomed pan.

• Add the onions and cook on a low heat for 5 minutes then add the red pepper and garlic. Fry gently for a further 10 minutes.

• Next turn up the heat a little and add the mushrooms for 5 minutes and then the soya mince, warm through and then stir in the cumin, smoked paprika and cayenne. Allow the spices to warm for about 30 seconds.

• Pour in the tinned tomatoes plus 2 tins of water, the stock cube, tomato purée and sweet potato. Simmer for 20 minutes with the lid on.

• Add the kidney beans and simmer with the lid off for a further 15 minutes.

• Add the salt and lime juice to finish.

• Serve with rice, sour cream, cheese and guacamole. Roasted squash also works really well with chilli as it’s sweetness counterbalances the spicy heat.

Tip

• I’ve tried using a few different brands of veggie mince for this dish and I reckon Sainsbury’s Plant Pioneers is the best. Although I think a 50:50 mix of Plant Pioneers plus Vivera also works really well as you get more variation in texture. The Vivera is a bit too strong for me on it’s own as it has quite a smokey taste, but I like it in combination. For this particular chilli I used Plant Pioneers only.

white beans & roasted red pepper

Another day, another lockdown lunch: posh beans on toast. My son had the classic Heinz with a ton of cheese and I had these with red pepper!

I’ve kept the ingredients to a minimum, so it’s quick to prep and really good value. Two servings should only cost you about £1.50 plus toast or a baked potato. Masses of protein in the beans and a good dose of Vitamin C in the red pepper for very little cost!

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 1 red pepper, whole

• ½ onion, chopped finely

• 1 small garlic clove, minced

• 1 sprig rosemary

• 1 x 400g tin cannellini beans

• ½ tsp sea salt

• Small squeeze of lemon juice

Method

• Put the whole red peppers on a sheet of tin foil and place under a hot grill, blacken on all sides - this should take about 12-15 minutes, turning every 2-3. Wrap in the foil once cooked and leave to cool for 5 minutes, then peel, deseed and chop or tear into ½ cm wide strips.

• Heat about 1 tsp of olive oil in a medium sized saucepan and fry the onions gently for 10 minutes until softened. It’s fine if they brown a little.

• Then stir in the garlic and cook for about 1 minute.

• Next pour in the cannellini beans and add the rosemary strig, simmer for 20 minutes with the lid on but leaving a small gap for a little steam to escape.

• Serve on toasted sourdough or a baked potato topped with the red pepper. Feta or grilled halloumi would also work really well.

tip

• You might need to add a little extra water at the end to loosen the beans.

• You could also have them with a baked potato, grilled halloumi, veggie sausage or top with feta. Meat-eaters could top with crispy bacon or have with white fish, roast chicken or pork sausages.

no-bake blueberry cheesecake

I first made a version of these for one of my supper clubs back in the good old days when we’re were allowed to do crazy things like have dinner with friends.

This time I’m hosting an online Cookalong with a group of friends on Friday night so I thought I’d tweak the recipe to make it Zoom-friendly and get a quick practise in.

I streamlined the recipe a bit so it’s easier to make, but still really tasty, plus it can also be adapted to different tastes: you can switch the fruit, use fresh when it’s in season and choose the nuts and biscuits that you prefer for the base.

Cheesecake is one of my favourite ever desserts as I love the combination of crunch, cream and fruit; this is a quick no-bake version that’s ready in minutes, but tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen!

Ingredients

Serves 2

• 120g frozen blueberries

• 2 tsp soft brown sugar

• 15g / 1 tbsp almonds or any other nut

• 100g cream cheese, room temp

• 40g/ 2 tbsp crème fraiche, room temp

• 1 tbsp icing sugar, sifted

• 2 Digestive or Hobnob biscuits

Method

• Preheat the oven to 160ºc.

• Add the blueberries and sugar into a medium sized pan and warm gently with the lid on for 5 minutes and then take it off for a further 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

• Put the nuts on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 7 minutes. Leave to cool.

• Whisk the cream cheese and crème fraîche in a small bowl with a fork.

• Add the icing sugar and whip with a fork.

• Put the cooled nuts in a bag or teacloth and gently bash with a rolling pin.

• Then add the biscuits to the bag and repeat.

• Put half the digestive and nut mix into the glass, spoon over half the cream mix, top with blueberry compote and then repeat all 3 layers.

tip

• Feel free to switch the fruit if there’s a berry you prefer, but remember to adjust the amount of sugar depending on sharpness. You need minimal extra sugar for blueberries as they’re naturally quite sweet, but lots more for raspberries or blackberries.

• I suggest using frozen berries to keep the cost down and you can either turn the whole bag into compote or save the rest for smoothies. Compote will keep in the fridge for 3-4 weeks and is great on all kinds of breakfast cereals - porridge, museli, granola. Read my post on compote here.

Gnocchi with fresh tomato & spinach sauce

Yesterday’s alternative Sunday dinner. Now there are more vegetarians in the house than meat-eaters I tend to plan a home-comfort type of dish to end the week rather than a roast. This recipe is not only comfort food, but it barely takes any time to make - which is a double win in my book. I’ll definitely make this one again as it got an all round thumbs up from the fam, even from my daughter, who has been unconvinced about gnocchi until now.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 1 large garlic clove

• 4 large vine tomatoes, small dice

• 4 stalks of basil, stems chopped finely/leaves ripped

• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar

• 100ml crème fraîche

• 40g parmesan

• ½ tsp sea salt

• 120g spinach

• 1kg gnocchi

Method

• Preheat the oven to 50ºc.

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and let it fry for 30 seconds until it has started to turn slightly brown.

• Next add the tomatoes and basil stalks, simmer for 10 minutes.

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan and start cooking the gnocchi in batches on a medium heat for about 5 minutes, so they’re browned on both sides. I cooked about a portion at a time and kept in a warm bowl in the oven while I fried the rest.

• Add the balsamic to the tomatoes and cook for 1 minute before adding the crème fraîche. Turn the heat to the lowest setting so the sauce doesn’t split. Allow to warm through and then add 20g parmesan, basil leaves and spinach.

• Just before serving, stir the gnocchi into the sauce and serve with the rest of the parmesan and a green salad or roasted broccoli.

Tomato, red pepper & pasta soup

The inspiration for this recipe was my kids, as neither are particularly keen on soup, so I thought I would try and come up with one that they might eat. Using pasta and tomatoes seemed like a good starting point - as show me a kid that doesn’t eat that combination?? I’ve added some veggies, kept it pretty simple, but with a sneaky tin of chickpeas to make it more interesting for me. Obvs the kids will probably pick them out, but you never know, the odd one might get past their strict filtering systems! You can always leave them out if you prefer, but they’re a decent source of protein.

It took me just over 30 minutes to make, so it’s quick to get on the table, or a good one to make in a batch for lunches over a few days. I also think this soup is a nice one to have for dinner as the pasta makes it quite hearty and you could serve it with big wedges of fresh bread or cheese on toast. Who’s going to complain about that?!

And one last thing - the soup is vegan if you leave off the cheese or sub for a vegan variety.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 1 red onion, chipped finely

• 1 stick of celery, chopped finely

• 1 clove garlic, grated

• 1 red pepper, sliced

• 2 x 400g tinned tomatoes, 1.5 tins of water

• ½ vegetable stock cube

• Handful of parsley, stalks chopped finely, leaves reserved

• 100g small pasta

• 1 x 400g tinned chickpeas

• ¾ tsp sea salt

• ½ tbsp red wine vinegar

• Handful grated parmesan, cheddar, gruyere or parmesan, optional

Method

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan and add the onions and celery for 10 minutes.

• Next add the garlic and red pepper, cooking for a further 5 minutes.

• Pour in the tomatoes, plus 1 ½ tins of water, the stock cube, parsley stalks and pasta.

• Simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes and then add the drained chickpeas.

• Cook for a further 10 minutes and then add the salt and red wine vinegar. Simmer for another couple of minutes.

• Stir in half the parsley leaves and sprinkle the rest on top along with the parmesan to serve.

• Serve with cheese on toast, toasted sourdough or fresh bread and butter.

Banana, sultana & sunflower bites

I always struggle to find a nut-free snack to give my daughter to take to school for break as most cereal contain nuts and they’re banned! There’s only one brand that she can take in, so obviously she’s pretty sick of them now! So I thought I’d try make a bar that is vaguely healthy, but not too healthy…I’ll let you know the verdict!

Ingredients

• 100g coconut oil

• 3 ripe bananas

• 2 tbsp honey

• 250g porridge oats

• 100g sultanas

• 100g toasted sunflower seeds

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180ºc.

• Toast the sunflower seeds for 6-7 minutes, until starting to lightly brown.

• Line a 20 x 20cm baking tin with baking parchment.

• Melt the coconut oil in a small pan, or in the microwave

• Mash the bananas in a large bowl, or use a mixer and blitz for a minute or so.

• Add the honey and mix well.

• Now add the rest of the ingredients and mx until combined.

• Slide the tin into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown around the edges.

• Cool and then cut into squares. I used a bread knife to get clean starting lines.

Cherry & coconut smoothie

Changing things up this morning with a cherry smoothie. Loved this kinda tropical combination! Dreaming of sunny skies….

Ingredients

Serves 1

• 150g frozen dark cherries

• 3 tbsp coconut yoghurt

• 200ml coconut milk drink

• ½ tbsp maple or honey, optional

Method

• Blitz

Tip

• Use frozen fruit if you can as it’s cheaper and means your drink will be chilled without adding ice.

• Switch coconut yoghurt for plain or cherry.