Who doesn’t like a slab of pie, with chunks of beef in a rich, dark gravy? This steak and onion slice is designed to give you maximum flaky pastry pleasure while not compromising on the flavourful filling. Eat it hot or cold, cut into succulent squares. You won’t even need a pie dish. Continue reading
This is a chunky, nourishing, main course soup, a sort of East Anglian borscht with oxtail and pearl barley. Beef, beets and barley – it’s a real winter rib-sticker and packed with fabulous flavour. Continue reading
While we’re still in autumn, and hopefully while the weather is still good enough to light a barbecue, give this a go. The juicy lamb kebabs with herby, spicy chimichurri salsa are fabulous with the smoky hummus. All you need on the side is a leafy salad and some warmed flatbreads. Continue reading
We’re officially in autumn now the equinox has passed (did you see that amazing full moon?) so comfort food is back on the menu. This venison cacciatore is robust in flavour but still light enough to please those who are clinging to summer by their fingertips, i.e. me. Continue reading
Think of these pork and greengage skewers as a sort of Suffolk souvlaki … the tenderest meat, seasoned with citrus and oregano, combined with the sweet/tart juiciness of the plums. They’re almost self-saucing. Continue reading
My roasted tomato sauce is very straightforward but it gets maximum flavour out of British tomatoes, especially when the summer’s been as sunless as this one. And it’s very versatile – turn it into a soup, toss it into pasta, use it as a base for other sauces, add it to stews and risottos and chillis. Continue reading
Smaller flatfish such as lemon sole, dabs and flounder are vastly underrated compared to their posher cousins and usually very good value for money. Their flesh is delicately flavoured and best suits a simple treatment. I like them lightly seasoned and floured, then fried in brown butter, with a good squeeze of lemon juice and a scattering of parsley. Real fast food. But they adapt well to being stuffed and rolled. Continue reading
This beetroot hummus is (honestly) subtler than its day-glo colour suggests. It’s a great way of using up beets if you’ve got a glut in the garden or had an itchy trigger finger doing your online shop. Continue reading
I really felt for Kathy Slack when I read about her tomato disaster, her lovingly nurtured seedlings run over and crushed by a Range Rover in a Cotswold lane. It wasn’t entirely the driver’s fault but anyone who grows their own will feel Kathy’s pain.
It’s one of the anecdotes in her new book, From The Veg Patch, published by Ebury Press. Full disclosure: Kathy is a friend and Guild of Food Writers colleague, but I wouldn’t be writing about the book if I didn’t rate it highly. She takes ten vegetables or fruits and gives ten recipes for each, along with bonus cooking ideas and growing tips. (Getting your seedlings run over is more of a cautionary tale.) Continue reading
This is a recipe for those days when you want comfort food without the stodge of winter. It’s a lasagne, but it’s meat-free and made light with ricotta. It’s the sort of dish where you can have a second helping without collapsing in a food coma. Continue reading