Copyright

Fourth Estate

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published in Great Britain by Fourth Estate in 2014

Text copyright © Anna Jones 2014

Photographs by Brian Ferry, except image of The Really Hungry Burger

Designed by Sandra Zellmer

Anna Jones asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins

Source ISBN: 9780007516704

Ebook Edition © JUNE 2014 ISBN: 9780007516711

Version: 2017-09-11

For John

no words suffice, how lucky I am

Foreword by Jamie Oliver

It gives me great pleasure and pride to write this foreword for dear Anna, one of my first year students at Fifteen London. Here she is, eleven years later, publishing her very own, beautiful, well-thought-out cook book. This book deserves a home in any cookery collection because it shows you how to celebrate vegetables, something we should all be doing. It has a clear sensibility about eating well, balance and embracing the seasons, all of which gives you, the reader, a real sense of how Anna puts delicious, simple, doable meals together. You’re going to get lots of opportunities to see the family tree of how you can take something from the same humble beginning to all sorts of totally different endings, and that’s what cooking is all about – responding to what’s around you, what’s in season, how you feel and who you’ve got to feed. It’s all very well saying that, but you need someone to explain it and get you to visualise how you can tweak, evolve and perfect any recipe, just like Anna’s done so effortlessly in these pages. Well done, Anna – this is a great cook book and I’m super proud.

cover

title page

copyright

dedication

foreword by jamie oliver

a modern way to eat

what gets me up in the morning

food for filling a gap

a bowl of broth, soup or stew

satisfying salads

easy lunches and laid-back suppers

hearty dinners and food to feed a crowd

vegetables to go with things

sweet endings

cakes, bread and a few other things

things to drink

jam, chutney, stock and other useful stuff

list of recipes

list of searchable terms

acknowledgements

about the author

about the publisher

a modern way to eat

I’d like to make a few promises about the food in this book:

· It is indulgent and delicious

· It will make you feel good and look good

· It will leave you feeling light yet satisfied

· It will help you lighten your footprint on the planet

· It is quick and easy to make and won’t cost the earth

· And it’ll impress your family and friends

The way we eat is changing

We demand so much of our food nowadays that the idea of meat and two veg every night for dinner seems prehistoric. We want food to be delicious, healthy, local, fast, cheap and good for the planet. This book shows you how to make easy meals that will impress and, more importantly, nourish your friends and family, quickly and simply.

Today, almost everyone you meet, of any age, is becoming super-conscious of what they eat and the effect on their health. They also understand the importance of a home-cooked meal more than a couple of nights a week to stay healthy and on budget. Alongside that, our awareness of provenance, quality and sustainability has come so far that if we look back at what supermarkets sold ten years ago and what we can buy now, the change is astounding. Interesting varieties of vegetable are the norm, and more unusual herbs, interesting and different grains, spices and ingredients from afar now line the aisles. So with all this choice available to us, where do we go now?

All my friends, whether or not they are vegetarian, want to eat more simple, seasonal, vegetable-led food. As the number of vegetarians in the UK slowly creeps up, the number of people reducing the amount of meat in their diet is sky-rocketing. We all know that eating lots of meat may not be the best for our bodies or the planet. For me being vegetarian is easy and how I live; for you it might be different, a few nights a week without meat maybe. However it works for you, I think we all need some new ideas.

We are reaching a middle ground, bridging the gap between heavy cheese- and stodge-laden vegetarian restaurant offerings, and the nutrition-led green juice diets. We want the best of both worlds, mind-blowing flavour that does us good: a stacked-high burger that is super tasty but also healthy, a brownie that is devilishly chocolaty but boosts our energy too, a breakfast pancake that feels like pudding but is packed with nutrition.

But I also believe that eating should be joyful and as soon as rules, pressure and diets are linked in with eating we lose track of that joy. While I eat healthily almost always, I also feel strongly that eating is one part of our brilliantly fallible humanness. So there is a place for the odd too-good-to-pass-up chewy salted caramel brownie alongside a clean bowl of grains and greens.

I want to eat in a way that satisfies but leaves me feeling light and happy at the same time. Too much healthy food leaves me miserably hungry but equally I don’t like to rely on a lot of heavy carbs or dairy to fill the gaps. I use spice, texture, flavour and easy-eating grains to satisfy without heaviness.

So in this book I have tried to bring together a type of food where clean and healthy meets delicious, where sustainable meets affordable, where quick and easy meets hearty. These recipes will make you and the planet healthier; they will make you richer and won’t mean you need to spend hours in the kitchen. This is a new way of eating, the way I eat, the way my friends want to eat and, I believe, how we will all move towards eating in the future.

A change in how I cook

My cooking changed when I became vegetarian – all of a sudden I had to look at cooking in a completely different way. The building blocks that I had grown up with and the rules I had learnt as a chef didn’t quite fit any more. So the challenge to find new ways to add texture, interest and flavour to my food have meant using a new palate of ingredients and some new techniques in the kitchen.

I am led by the things that got me so excited about cooking in the first place. The haze of citrus oils spritzing off the skin of a freshly zested orange. The deep purple brilliance when you slice into an earthy beetroot. The warming scent of ginger and brown sugar baking into a crumble, the Willy Wonka magic of melting chocolate over a bain-marie, and so many more moments when my taste buds start dancing and my heart beats a little faster.

When I write a recipe or cobble something together for dinner I always have three things in the back of my mind that shape my cooking: how will this taste? How can I make it most interesting to eat by layering up the textures? And how can I make it look the most beautiful on the plate?

Taste for me is about making the most of the ingredient I am cooking. Sometimes that means a little scatter of Anglesey sea salt and nothing else. Other times it means balancing herbs, spices, sweet and sour, backing up the natural character of a deep dense caramelly piece of roasted squash with warming spices or spiking a tomato sauce with a hit of vinegar.

Textures are often forgotten in cooking but to me they are just as key to a good plate of food as flavour, particularly in vegetarian food. I think about how children respond to food – we are tuned into texture just as much as flavour. Toasted seeds tossed into a salad, charred, oil-drizzled bread next to a bowl of soup, the crunch of some peppery radishes inside a soft taco. It’s texture, just as much as flavour, that hits the taste buds and tells your brain that this is delicious and helps you to feel satisfied.

The beauty bit comes from my day job as a food stylist. For the last ten years I have been making food jump off the plate and getting you to want to eat what is on the page at that exact moment: the slick of chocolate drooling out of a chocolate fondant, the drops of water on a freshly washed leaf of the freshest, crispest salad, the melting cheese and crumble of perfect flaky pastry around the edge of a tart. I know that when I cook for friends the simplest salad put on a plate with a bit of thought, or an easy bowl of pasta topped with some bright herbs and a flash of red chilli, means we start eating before we’ve even got a fork in our hands. But even when I’m just making a quick breakfast or hurried lunch, I take a few extra seconds to make the food I have cooked the very best it can be.

My final consideration is a top note, a finishing touch. I almost always finish a plate with a final spoonful of something. A slick of yoghurt to top a chilli spiked dahl, a drizzle of quick herb oil on a bowl of chilli, some toasted hazelnuts strewn on a bowl of soup. To me, it’s these final considerations that set a good meal apart from a great plate of food. Usually the quickest thing to do, these finishing touches layer flavour, add colour and create a contrast of hot and cold. These top notes make food look more thought out, they give a final boost of taste and they make you look like a bloody good cook without really having done anything at all.

A new set of ingredients

As I started cooking in this lighter and healthier way I started to understand more and more the importance of variety. Using toasted nut butters in place of butter in cookies, coconut oil for buttering toast, and quinoa or millet in my morning porridge. Using an ingredient where it fits and tastes amazing, not solely for its nutrients, makes me push myself to step outside the reliable old recipes.

In my kitchen I look to more unusual, exciting and flavoursome ingredients to add depth and interest to my cooking. The spelt flour in my ginger and molasses cake adds structure and a deep toasted malty flavour and is naturally easier for us to digest. The almond milk in my morning coffee, which tastes incredible, boosts my protein intake for the day and provides the healthy fats my body needs. Or the coconut butter which I use to temper spices for curries, which can be taken to a higher heat than olive oil, making it perfect for releasing the flavour of the spices, with the added bonus of the subtle coconut flavour working beautifully in a south Indian dhal or a dosa potato cake.

That said, flavour, above anything else, informs my cooking, so if I think butter will do a better job I say so; if a cake needs a little sugar, I go for it. But on the whole I keep my recipes whole food focused.

I have, as much as possible, used different and interesting grains, as I believe that all these grains deserve a place in our diets and are often easier on our bodies. Just like fruit and veg, it’s important to vary the grains you eat too. Each grain has a different flavour and texture and provides your body with different sorts of vitamins and nutrients. Along with the rainbow of fresh produce in my fridge and fruit bowl, the bottom shelf in my kitchen, below the plates and platters, is a colourful spectrum of jars containing red quinoa, black rice, yellow millet, golden amaranth and dusky pearl barley. Alongside them are jars of good pasta and spelt bread flour too, but for those trying to eat less gluten, my recipes have suggestions and ideas for delicious ways to sidestep them, and the gluten they contain, if you prefer.

A couple of extra things

Though I cook for a living, I am also pretty impatient and want my dinner on the table in less than half an hour most nights. Especially after having spent a day behind the stove already. So I cook under the same constraints as most people I know. I want not too much bother or washing up at the end, a skill which harks back to my training with Jamie Oliver. So be assured, with only a couple of special exceptions in this book, my recipes are quick and won’t use every pan in the cupboard.

Another amazing kickback of these recipes is that they are easy on the pocket. Vegetables are affordable so I make sure that I buy the best stuff I can afford and buy local and organic produce where I can. I buy heritage carrots when they are in season as I love their russets, yellows and deep purples and with their rainbow of colours comes a spectrum of nutrients. I buy purple kale or cavolo nero when it’s around and use it where I might use a more run-of-the-mill spinach or cabbage. I also love to use the underdog vegetables that rarely get a starring role: a violet-crowned swede makes a mighty chip; a bag of frozen peas boiled and mashed with some mint is great to stir into pasta or pile on hot toast.

When I think about how to sum up how I look at food I am always drawn back to Michael Pollan’s super-simplified equation ‘eat food, not too much, mostly plants’. This is my notebook of a discovery of a new and modern way to eat and cook, one that considers our bodies and tastebuds alike. Insanely delicious, joyful food, new possibilities and flavours that make me excited to cook and eat it for all the right reasons.

Gluten free and vegan

Gluten-free diets have become increasingly popular as a way to overall wellness. Many of the recipes in this book are naturally gluten free, or can easily be adapted to make them so. While I personally eat bread and pasta from time to time, I too like eating this way as it leaves me feeling lighter and happier. I like to use gluten-free pastas, such as brown rice and quinoa pasta. I also have friends who are coeliac, for whom eating gluten is much more than a dietary choice.

I should point out that you don’t get exactly the same results by substituting a gluten-free flour for a wheat one. Using gluten-free flours in baking recipes does sometimes give a slightly crumblier texture but will have a deeper flavour than if you used regular flour. When I’m baking cakes I like to add ground nuts, which can help add richness and structure.

You can use gluten-free oats in place of normal oats (these won’t have come into contact with any wheat). Some people with gluten intolerances may prefer not to eat even gluten-free oats, in which case quinoa flakes can be used instead. Some of the staple ingredients I use may have hidden gluten and if you are sensitive to it then watch out for soy sauce or tamari (you can find gluten-free versions in healthfood stores), miso pastes (use naturally gluten-free white miso paste), tofu and tempeh (use plain rather than smoked or flavoured and check the label carefully), and baking powder (a gluten-free version can be bought in supermarkets). I don’t specify to use a gluten-free stock powder, but you can buy these easily in supermarkets. The Cool Chile Company make wholly corn, authentic tortillas, which I use in place of flatbreads.

Many of my recipes are naturally vegan, as I often cook for my vegan brother and sister. I’ve included a lot of egg and dairy alternatives in my recipes as it’s becoming more and more a way of life for people who want to lighten the load on their bodies and the planet.

Where I do use cheese, eggs or butter, I have given alternatives if I can. Coconut yoghurt is a favourite in place of normal or Greek yoghurt, almond milk is my milk of choice for baking and most of the dishes in this book can be made really easily without the cheese (you may want to add a little more salt though).

Here is a list of recipes that are either entirely gluten free and vegan, or need only simple tweaking.

HOW I PUT A RECIPE TOGETHER

This is what goes through my head when I’m writing a recipe. If you’re anything like me, then sometimes you like the confines of a recipe and sometimes you like to freestyle. This is a guide for those freer days, which will help you layer up flavours and textures into a killer plate of food. I’ve used kale as an example here, but use this process for any vegetable.

what gets me up in the morning

I’ve never been very good at early mornings, and for years breakfast wasn’t part of my routine. But a few years back, I told myself that I deserved a real breakfast every morning. Whether that’s sitting on my back doorstep, enjoying a cup of coffee and watching the early sun break through the mimosa tree, or hurriedly eating a delicious bowl of granola before rushing out of the door, somehow breakfast for me is setting out my intention of how I want the day to be. Because you need different breakfasts for these different types of days, I’ve split this chapter into two sections – quick and slow.

Toasted oats · just-right eggs · slow-roasted tomatoes · slices of perfectly ripe avocado · charred sourdough toast · a good pot of coffee · steaming bowls of creamy porridge · cloud-light pancakes · chequered waffles · flapjack granola · dessert for breakfast

Blueberry pie porridge

This is a whole-hearted, good-for-you start to the morning, as the quick maple blueberries lift this porridge from standard morning fare to shout-from-the-rooftops delicious.

I use a mixture of amaranth and oats here (and you could use gluten-free ones), as I love the deep nutty taste of amaranth. The way it holds its bite and then pops in your mouth makes a welcome change from the uniform texture of most porridge. You could leave out the amaranth and replace it with more oats, millet or some quinoa flakes – just remember, though, that these will cook much quicker, so keep an eye on them.

I vary the fruit here according to the season – apples work in winter, strawberries and cherries in spring and summer, and plums in autumn.

SERVES 2

2 handfuls of amaranth

2 handfuls of oats

500ml milk of your choice (I like to use coconut milk, see here)

200g blueberries

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

juice of ½ a lemon

First get the porridge going. Put the amaranth and oats into a pan with half the milk and bring to a gentle simmer. Leave to bubble away for 20 minutes, topping up with the rest of the milk when needed and some extra hot water if the porridge starts to look a bit too dry.

While your porridge is cooking, put the blueberries into another pan with the maple syrup, cinnamon and lemon juice and cook over a medium heat. Use a wooden spoon to mash up some of the blueberries and release their deep violet juices, leaving a few whole. They are ready when most of the liquid has reduced to a jammy texture, like a pie filling.

Your porridge is ready when the amaranth grains have softened and absorbed into the creamy oats but still have a little bite.

To serve, pile the porridge into bowls and top with the blueberries and more maple syrup, if you like. Dessert for breakfast.

Overnight Bircher with peaches

Weekday breakfasts for me are usually two bleary minutes before I run out of the door. If you take time over breakfast, good for you. I certainly do when time is on my side. When it’s not, I get clever and make this super-quick muesli the night before.

I add chia seeds because they give a rich creaminess – if you don’t want to add chia, just don’t add as much milk. As good peaches aren’t around all year I often swap them out for other fruits.

A note on chia seeds: these amazing little seeds boost the nutritional value of the breakfast tenfold. They look a bit like poppy seeds and come in a variety of colours: black, white and grey. I use the white ones here. You’ll find them in health food shops and in big supermarkets beside the nuts and seeds. Chia seeds were the food of choice of Aztec and Mayan warriors, and a single tablespoon would keep them going for 24 hours. They are high in protein, so they’re perfect for breakfast time. I use them in smoothies and in baking.

SERVES 2

100g oats

2 tablespoons white chia seeds

1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds

350ml milk of your choice (I use almond or coconut)

1 tablespoon maple syrup

a dash of all-natural vanilla extract

a little squeeze of lemon juice

2 ripe peaches

SERVE WITH

Winter • a couple of handfuls of chopped dried peaches or pears

Spring • chopped strawberries

Summer • peaches, as recipe

Autumn • chopped sweet, ripe pear

The night before, put the oats, chia seeds and pumpkin seeds into a bowl or container, pour over the milk, and add the maple syrup, vanilla and lemon juice. Mix well, then cover and pop into the fridge overnight.

In the morning, chop the peaches into little chunks, squeeze over a little more lemon and either layer them up with the oats and seeds in a glass or bowl, or just run out of the door with everything in a little container.

Turkish fried eggs

This is a really good weekend breakfast, easily quick enough to squeeze in on weekdays too. It’s filling, fresh and perky from the chilli and will start your day off properly. I use pul biber – Turkish chilli pepper flakes – here. They are easy to find in Turkish corner shops – if you can’t get them, use a chopped fresh red chilli or a tiny pinch of dried, crushed chilli flakes instead.

Pul biber or Aleppo chilli makes its way into a lot of my cooking these days. I love the gentle heat and sweetness. I guess it’s closest to an ancho chilli. It’s got a sweet fruity character, smells of really good sun-dried tomatoes, and still packs a chilli punch. I use it in place of the searingly hot crushed chillies we find in the UK.

SERVES 2

4 tablespoons Greek yoghurt

a good pinch of sea salt

a good knob of butter

4 organic or free-range eggs

2 wholemeal pittas or flatbreads

1 teaspoon Turkish chilli flakes

a good pinch of sumac

a few sprigs of fresh mint, parsley and dill, leaves picked and chopped

Mix the yoghurt and salt in a bowl and leave to one side.

Heat the butter in a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat. Allow it to begin to brown, then crack in the eggs and turn the heat down, spooning the butter over the eggs until they are cooked exactly how you like them. I like my fried eggs to be just set, with a super-runny middle and just starting to crisp up around the edges. If you are having problems getting your eggs perfect, a lid over the pan can help keep in the heat so that the top and the bottom cook evenly.

Once your eggs are ready, quickly toast your pittas or flatbreads then top with a good spoonful of yoghurt and the fried eggs. Sprinkle over the chilli, sumac and herbs and season with a little salt if needed.

Try these with the Turkish coffee here.

MORNING SMOOTHIES – A FEW WAYS

These smoothies are a glassful of everything you need to start the day off right. I am always in a rush in the morning and find it hard to make time to eat: a 2-minute smoothie helps me walk out the door with a healthy glow before 9am and boosts my protein and nutrient levels sky high. These smoothies are also great to have straight after exercising.

Smoothies are great, as they are so flexible – you can make them with whatever fruits and milk or juice you have to hand, and in the winter you can delve into the freezer for handfuls of frozen berries. But for smoothies to be a generous alternative to couple of pieces of hot honeyed toast or some perfectly scrambled eggs, they need a little bit of consideration. The flavours need to be balanced, there needs to be some protein to keep you satisfied and there needs to be a boost of morning nutrients to start your day properly.

I have included a couple of smoothies with greens here. Green smoothies can be like Marmite, but I hope these blends will win even the more sceptical over. Gram for gram, dark leafy greens are some of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, and blitzing greens this way breaks them down and makes it much easier for your body to take in all the goodness.

I have included some notes here on some of the things I like to add to my smoothies for an extra nutrient kick, but they will be delicious without too.

LUCUMA This super fruit comes from Peru, where it’s known as ‘the Gold of the Incas’. It’s a golden-hued pulpy fruit that is utterly delicious, and here you buy it as a powder. Lucuma has a sweet, fresh kind of caramel flavour, so it’s a great option for people with a sweet tooth who are trying to cut down on sugar. Perfect for sprinkling on your porridge or spooning into a smoothie, it’s high in antioxidants and minerals and beta-carotene. You’ll find it in any health food shop. Add between a teaspoon and a tablespoon to your morning smoothie, depending on how sweet you like things.

MACA Another amazing Peruvian root, which comes from the same family as cabbage and broccoli. It comes in powdered form and has an almost malty sweet flavour. It is thought to calm the nervous system, balance our hormones and help our bodies cope with stress. Look for 100% maca root when you are buying it – start with a teaspoon of maca a day in your smoothie and work up to a tablespoon if you like.

HEMP Hemp comes in seed and powder form and both are perfect for adding to smoothies. Hemp is one of the only complete plant sources of protein, making it great for vegetarians or vegans. It is also high in omega 3 and 6 and in fibre, and delivers a solid dose of vitamins, minerals and the super-green chlorophyll. A tablespoon a day in your smoothie or on your yoghurt and granola every day is just right.

BEE POLLEN Not the stuff that floats around in summer and causes sneezing. Bee pollen is the pollen that bees collect from flowers and take back to store in their hives. They go from flower to flower collecting the stuff and packaging it into little golden granules. It may seem a bit out there to be eating this stuff, but it’s an incredible whole food in the truest sense, as it provides our body with almost every nutrient, vitamin and mineral we need, as well as being super-high in protein and digestion-boosting enzymes. You can buy raw bee pollen in granules (not blocks) from your local health food store. If you are able to buy local bee pollen it can help protect against allergies and hayfever. Bee pollen is powerful stuff, so start off with a teaspoon a day for adults, working your way up to a tablespoon, and for kids just a few grains, working up to half a teaspoon.

SPIRULINA AND CHLORELLA Spirulina and chlorella are two types of algae, which are insanely rich in nutrients and protein. When I put either in my morning smoothie I feel so full of energy. The stuff is like natural green caffeine. The taste of both spirulina and chlorella is quite strong, so start with a half a teaspoon and work your way up to couple of teaspoons.

Each of these four recipes makes one giant smoothie that keeps me going until lunchtime. If you can’t skip your cereal or toast, then split this between two for a little morning kick-start.

Put all the ingredients for your choice of smoothie, apart from the ice cubes but including any extra powders you want to use, into the blender. Whiz on low to start with, then turn it up to high for a minute or so. You may need to turn off the blender, take the top off and use a spoon to get everything moving. Whiz until smooth and a vivid green.

Add a few ice cubes and blitz again until completely smooth. If you have added a lot of powders you may need to water the smoothie down with a little cold water.

EASY WAYS TO ADD PROTEIN

A super easy and delicious way to boost the protein in your smoothies is to add a tablespoon of a nut or seed butter. Almond butter and tahini are my favourites, and they add a depth, richness and creaminess to smoothies too.

Oats are a surprisingly good source of protein as well as fibre – a couple of tablespoons in your smoothie will add a lush creaminess. Porridge oats work best but rolled oats work well too; I just soak mine first for a few minutes in some of the milk I will use for my smoothie.

GO TO GREEN

•

1 small banana, peeled

2 apples, cored and chopped

2 large handfuls of greens (spinach or kale)

juice of ½ an lemon

1 tablespoon hemp seeds

a good pinch of ground cinnamon

250ml milk of your choice (I use almond)

AVOCADO AND TOASTED COCONUT

•

½ an avocado

1 banana, peeled

juice of ½ lemon or lime

1 tablespoon chia seeds

375ml coconut water or milk

1 tablespoon toasted coconut

2 dates

a few ice cubes

SESAME AND DATE

•

1 banana

2 persimmons or ½ a mango

1 tablespoon tahini

300ml milk of your choice (I use almond)

a small handful of oats

a drizzle of honey

the juice of ½ an orange

2 dates

BERRY AND BASIL

•

1 large handful of berries (blueberries, blackberries or strawberries)

1 large handful of greens

1 banana

5 fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon almond butter

2 tablespoons hemp seeds

200ml milk of your choice (I use almond)

a few ice cubes

Lemon maple granola

Shop-bought granola is the breakfast of choice for most of my friends who want to eat a little better. However, while cleverly branded as health foods, most granolas are full of sugar. This is why I make my own on Sunday night. Just 10 minutes’ work yields a deeply satisfying and beautiful jar of breakfast for the rest of the week. I use a mixture of quinoa flakes and oats for balance, as I find oats a bit heavy for first thing, but this works just as well if you use 300g of one or the other (and using just quinoa will make it gluten free). Use whatever dried fruit you like here. I have kept it simple, but sometimes I like to add dried peaches, pears or plums too when I find them. I find it really pleasing to measure in handfuls, but I have given some weights here too if you prefer to be precise.

Quinoa flakes can be used anywhere you would use oats. I use them for my morning porridge. Quinoa is said to be one of the most complete foods in nature, as it contains a brilliant balance of amino acids, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, fibre and antioxidants. Most importantly, it is a complete source of protein, so it’s perfect if you are cutting down or cutting out other proteins.

MAKES ABOUT 700G, A NICE BIG JAR

8 tablespoons runny honey or maple syrup

2 large handfuls (150g) of rolled oats

2 large handfuls (150g) of quinoa flakes

2 handfuls (80g) of seeds (I use sunflower and pumpkin)

2 handfuls (150g) of nuts (I use skin-on almonds and pecans), chopped

a handful (30g) of unsweetened desiccated coconut

grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons

a handful (100g) of raisins

2 handfuls (100g) of any other dried fruit, roughly chopped (I use dates and dried apricots)

SERVE WITH YOGHURT AND FRUIT

Spring • vanilla-poached rhubarb and soya yoghurt

Summer • roasted strawberries with coconut milk yoghurt

Autumn • poached pears with maple syrup

Winter • dates poached in blood orange juice

Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan 170°C/gas 5. If you are using honey, heat it in a saucepan until warm (no need to do this if you are using maple syrup). Mix the oats, quinoa flakes, seeds, chopped nuts, coconut and lemon zest in a large bowl, then scatter over two large, lightly oiled baking trays.

Pour over the maple syrup or honey and mix well with your hands to coat everything. Pop into the oven for 20 minutes. Remember to give it a good stir every 5 minutes or so.

After 20 minutes, add all the dried fruits and put back into the oven for another 10 minutes to get that slightly chewy, caramelised fruit texture. Then remove from the oven and allow to cool. Store in airtight jars or containers for up to 1 month.

Ten ways with avocado on toast

To me, avocado on toast is sunny food – it feels right on a summer’s day and brightens up a dreary one. It is a go-to when time is short and cupboards are bare. I often eat it as a hurried breakfast, very simply with some lime, salt and pepper. But these other ways have crept in too.

Since avocado is the star of the show, accept nothing less than soft, yielding, ripe and perfect. Avocados are loaded with good fats and omega 3, like the stuff you find in olive oil, and an artillery of vitamins and minerals. I would struggle to eat without them.

EACH MAKES 2 PIECES OF TOAST

· Mash an avocado with lemon, salt and pepper. Pile onto toasted sourdough, top with tomatoes, a little balsamic vinegar, a bit of basil and some olive oil.

· Mash an avocado with lemon juice and pile onto rye bread with a drizzle of honey.

· Mash an avocado with some lime juice, salt and pepper. Pile onto toasted bread and top with a good sprinkling of chopped, fresh red chilli.

· Mash an avocado with a little lemon juice. Pile onto hot buttered toast and top with a poached egg and some chilli sauce.

· Mash an avocado with a little lemon juice. Spread a toasted bagel with a fine slick of cream cheese and top with the mashed avo, generously grate over lemon zest and sprinkle with lots of black pepper.

· Mash an avocado with a little lime juice, salt and pepper and stir in a chopped spring onion, a teaspoon of toasted mustard seeds and some chopped coriander. Pile onto hot toast.

· Mash your avocado with a tiny bit of lemon juice. Top hot toast with a slick of coconut oil, the mashed avo and then some toasted almonds.

· Mash your avocado with a little lemon juice, pile onto toast, then top with a few thin slices of banana and a sprinkling of cinnamon.

· Mash a ripe avocado with a little lemon juice, pile onto toast, and top with chopped pistachios, some toasted sesame seeds and a little honey and cinnamon.

· Whiz some basil with a little olive oil. Mash an avocado with a little lemon juice and pile onto hot toast, crumble over some feta and pour over the basil oil.

Herbed Parisian scrambled eggs

Sometimes I need a reminder that something simple and classic is really, really good. In my imaginary life where I spend my days roaming around Paris flea markets this is what I would eat for breakfast. Classically, chervil is used in harmony of herbs too, but it’s not easy to find so I’ve left it out; however, if you come across some, buy it – it’s got such a piercingly delicate flavour and is great chucked into green salads. Basil and mint can be thrown into the mix here too.

A note on how to keep soft herbs: I use herbs a lot – their flavours are like nothing else, and each is so completely different from the others, I couldn’t cook without them. I appreciate that buying a lot of herbs for a little breakfast recipe feels extravagant. This is how I make herbs work harder for me. I buy a load once every week or so when they look good at the greengrocer, and I keep them like flowers, in glasses filled with a dash of cold water in the milk-bottle compartment of my fridge. This way they keep for a week or so. Every time I open the fridge I am met with a heady smell and a grassy green wall of herbs, which means they are appreciated and make their way into much more of my cooking.

SERVES 2

a little olive oil or butter

4 really good organic or free-range eggs

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

a few sprigs each of fresh parsley, tarragon and dill, leaves picked and roughly chopped

2 slices of good buttered toast (I like sourdough)

Everyone has their own way with eggs. This is how I scramble mine.

Heat a little oil or butter in a frying pan on a medium-low heat. Crack the eggs into a bowl, mix with a fork, season well, then pour into the hot pan and use a wooden spoon or a spatula to pull the eggs away from the sides of the pan, creating golden folds. Continue to do this until the eggs are how you like them. I like mine to just come together but keep a faint little bit of wobble.

Take the pan off the heat, taste, add more salt and pepper if necessary, and stir in the herbs. Pile on top of buttered toast.

MY MORNING FRUIT

To my mind there is no better way to start the day than with a bowl of in-season fruit. Here are the bowls I make as the seasons change. Some can be made in a batch for quick weekday breakfasts, others can be put together in a few minutes – try with the granola here.

SPRING

APPLES · PEARS · RHUBARB ·

RASPBERRIES · EARLY STRAWBERRIES

•

•

•

QUICK RHUBARB COMPOTE

for 1 person

Take 4 stalks of rhubarb, chop small and

put in a pan with 4 tablespoons of good honey, a bit of vanilla, if you have it, and the juice of ½ an orange. Simmer for 15 minutes until soft through.

•

•

•

SPRING FRUIT BOWL

for 1 person

Cut up 1 apple and 1 pear, squeeze over the juice of ½ a lime, mash a handful of raspberries with 1 teaspoon of honey and mix the two together.

SUMMER

STRAWBERRIES · CHERRIES · RASPBERRIES ·

PEACHES · APRICOTS ·

BLUEBERRIES · BLACKCURRANTS

•

•

•

RED FRUIT SALAD

for 2 people

Cut up 10 strawberries and 10 cherries. Add a handful of raspberries and a handful of halved red grapes. Squeeze over the juice of ½ a lemon and if you like add a little honey. Optional: sprinkle with bashed coriander seeds.

•

•

•

QUICK APRICOT COMPOTE

makes a small jar

Put 250g of apricots (stoned) into a pan with 2 tablespoons of runny honey and the juice of ½ an orange. Bring to a slow simmer on a medium heat and cook for 10 minutes until softened.

AUTUMN

APPLES · PEARS · PEACHES · NECTARINES ·

PLUMS · BLACKBERRIES

•

•

•

HEDGEROW FRUIT BOWL

for 2 people

Put 1 chopped apple, 1 chopped pear and 2 chopped plums into a bowl with a handful of blackberries, tear in some mint and mix well.

•

•

•

ROSEWATER PEACHES

for 1 person

Place 4 peach halves on a baking tray, drizzle with honey, scatter over vanilla and some pistachios and sprinkle over a tablespoon of rosewater. Bake for 30 minutes until soft through. Serve with yoghurt or goat’s cheese and some toast.

WINTER

APPLES · PEARS · WINTER CITRUS ·

CLEMENTINES · CRANBERRIES

•

•

•

ORCHARD FRUIT BOWL

for 2 people

Chop up 3 ripe pears and add the seeds of ½ a pomegranate and 4 chopped-up dates. Squeeze over the juice of 1 lime and serve.

•

•

•

QUICK SPICED CLEMENTINES

for 2 people

Slice up 4 clementines and lay on a plate, sprinkle with ½ a teaspoon of ground cinnamon and drizzle with honey.

A new eggs Benedict

I’m not sure I know anyone who doesn’t like eggs Benedict, in all its rich hollandaise glory. This is how I make mine. Roasted slices of sweet potato step in for muffins, and avocado and cashews whiz up creamily in seconds with a bit of tarragon to make a killer super-light hollandaise, creamy but not too rich. The sticky onions and spinach sandwich it all together.

I like to make my hollandaise this way, as I find a butter-laden sauce too much of a treat to start the day with (delicious though it is).

In order to get a creamy sauce I soak my cashew nuts in water overnight, but, if you forget, half an hour’s soaking will do. See here for more on soaking nuts.

For this recipe, you need to get your hands on large sweet potatoes so that they are wide enough to sit the poached egg on top.

SERVES 4

2 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed and sliced into 1cm rounds

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive or rapeseed oil

2 medium red onions, peeled and finely sliced

6 handfuls of spinach, washed and any big stalks removed

4 organic or free-range eggs

FOR THE QUICK HOLLANDAISE

a small handful of cashew nuts, soaked in water (see above)

½ an avocado

a small bunch of fresh tarragon or dill, leaves picked

juice of ½ a lime

Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Lay the sweet potato slices on a couple of baking trays, season with salt and pepper, drizzle lightly with oil and roast for 20 minutes, until soft through and crisping at the edges.

Now on to the onions. Put a pan on a medium heat, add a little oil, then add the onions and a pinch of salt. Fry for 10 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the onions are soft and sweet and starting to brown. Scoop them into a bowl and set to one side, keeping the pan to use later.

To make your hollandaise, blitz the drained cashews in a food processor until you have a crumbly paste. Add the avocado and most of the tarragon or dill with the lime juice and a good pinch of salt and pepper and blitz again. If you need to, loosen the sauce with a little water until it is thick but drizzleable.

Heat the pan you cooked the onions in on a medium heat. Add the spinach and a drop of olive oil and cook for a couple of minutes, until it starts to wilt but is still vivid green.

Next, poach the eggs. Heat a pan of water until boiling – I use a frying pan, but use whatever pan is most comfortable for you to poach eggs in. Turn the heat down until the water is barely blipping, then crack in the eggs and leave them to cook for 3–4 minutes. Scoop out with a slotted spoon and drain on some kitchen paper.

To serve, lay some of the sweet potatoes in the middle of each plate. Top with the onions and wilted spinach, then add the egg and a spoonful of hollandaise. Scatter over the rest of the tarragon or dill, season with salt and pepper and dig in.

Other ways to use your quick avocado hollandaise:

· Spooned over griddled asparagus.

· On top of a green spring risotto.

· On top of little smashed-pea toasts.

· Next to a simple poached egg on toast.

· In sandwiches in place of mayonnaise.

Huevos rancheros

I make this dish a lot. It’s the one thing I order without fail at breakfast tables in America. The holy trio of eggs, tomatoes and avocado never fails me. It mostly crops up at my house mid-morning on a Saturday, after a walk to the shop for the paper.

I have kept this version super-simple, as it’s a great thing to be able to throw together in a few minutes without having to dash to the shop. I use spring onions, as they are quick to cook and have a milder note, more suited to the morning I think, but they can just as easily be swapped for thinly sliced red onion. I use fresh tomatoes in the summer, but good-quality tinned ones work for the rest of the year.

The key here is cooking the eggs perfectly. I have tried a few different ways of getting just-set white and runny yolk perfection. The trick that works for me is using a frying pan with a lid and keeping the heat low so that the eggs poach and steam at the same time. I also make a version of this with roasted peppers or slices of smoked tofu instead of the eggs.

It’s really worth investing as much as you can in the eggs you buy. I always buy organic free-range. Eggs are nutrient-loaded, perfectly packaged bundles of goodness. The yolks contain all the vitamins and minerals, and by keeping them runny you actually preserve the nutrients that would be killed off by the heat if you were to cook them all the way through.

SERVES 2 AS A HEARTY BRUNCH

olive oil

4 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika

1 × 400g tin of tomatoes, or 400g cherry tomatoes, halved

1 ripe avocado

juice of 1 lime

a small bunch of fresh coriander, leaves picked and finely chopped

4 organic or free-range eggs

2 wholemeal or corn tortillas

Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium frying pan (one with a lid that fits) over a moderate heat. Add the spring onions and garlic and fry for 5 minutes, until soft and sweet. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper and the smoked paprika and cook for another couple of minutes.

Next, add the tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes, until they have broken down and the sauce has thickened.

In the meantime, mash the avocado with the lime juice (I use a potato masher) and the chopped coriander, season with salt and pepper and put to one side.

Once the tomatoes have broken down and thickened, turn the heat down to medium-low. Make 4 small holes in the sauce with the back of a wooden spoon by pushing the sauce out of the way. Crack an egg into each of the holes, season each egg with a little salt and pepper, then pop the lid on and leave to cook for exactly 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes the egg whites should be just set with a hint of a wobble, with the yolks runny in the middle. Remember, they will keep cooking as you take them to the table.

While the eggs are cooking, warm the tortillas – I do this by holding each one over a gas flame with a pair of tongs for a few seconds on each side to char, but 20–30 seconds on each side in a warm non-stick pan will work just as well.

Once the eggs are ready, pile them on to a plate with a decent helping of the spicy tomatoes and some mashed avocado, and scoop up with the charred tortillas.

Lemon ricotta cloud pancakes

Whenever I go out for breakfast I order pancakes. This is my version of the pancakes I had at Gjelina in LA, which were quite simply the best pancakes I have ever eaten.

Chestnut flour makes an appearance here – you can get it in most wholefood shops. It adds a depth and warmth to the flavour and is naturally gluten-free; however, the pancakes would work with just plain flour. Any leftover chestnut flour can be used in cakes and baking (I use a 50/50 mix of chestnut and plain flour) and works wonderfully in place of ground almonds for a deeper, almost caramelly taste. Try it in the chocolate cake here and see here for more information on it.

SERVES 4 (MAKES 8–10 PANCAKES)

250g ricotta cheese

75g plain white or light spelt flour

50g chestnut flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

a good pinch of salt

2 organic or free-range eggs, separated

2 tablespoons golden caster sugar

200ml milk (I use almond milk but normal milk works fine too)

grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons

grated zest of ½ an unwaxed orange

butter or coconut oil, for frying

optional: lemon juice

SERVE WITH SEASONAL FRUIT

Spring • quick stewed rhubarb

Summer • raspberries mashed with lemon juice

Autumn • blueberries smashed up with a little maple syrup

Winter • quick sautéed apples and honey

First put the ricotta into a sieve and leave it over a bowl for 10 minutes or so to allow the liquid to drain off.

Meanwhile, mix the flours, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until frothy, then add the sugar and whisk until you have stiff meringue-like peaks. In a jug, whisk the egg yolks with the milk. Add to the flour mixture bit by bit and beat until smooth, then add the lemon and orange zest.

Using a spatula or metal spoon, gently fold half the egg whites into the flour and egg mixture. Now fold in the ricotta, then the rest of the egg whites – you should have a light and fluffy batter.

Heat a large non-stick frying pan on a low heat and add a tiny bit of butter or oil. Working in batches, and using about half a ladleful for each pancake, cook until the bottom is golden and the edges are cooked. Once bubbles have risen to the top, flip and cook on the other side for a minute – then keep warm while you cook the rest. Stack the pancakes high on your plate, with seasonal fruit spooned over and a squeeze of lemon juice, if you like.

Banana, blueberry and pecan pancakes

The reason I became an expert on banana pancakes is a bleak but ultimately happy story. During an enthusiastic surfing lesson on the first day of a holiday in Bali I got burnt to a crisp, and in order to stay out of the sun I spent the rest of the holiday swathed in sarongs perfecting banana pancakes.

This is the result, though they are some way from the honey-drenched Indonesian ones that we ate on holiday. These have something of a banana bread feel to them, and are vegan and gluten free, thanks to using pecans and oats instead of flour and mashed bananas in place of butter.

A note on coconut milk: most supermarkets sell a ready-to-drink coconut milk, which comes in a carton and lives next to the soya and rice milk. Look out for the KoKo brand. It works in most recipes instead of milk and lies somewhere between thick tinned coconut milk and cloudy coconut water. I have it on my morning cereal and in tea. This is the coconut milk I use in most of my cooking, as it is lighter in fat and calories than the heavier tinned version. If you can’t get your hands on it, dilute tinned coconut milk 50/50 with water or just use your normal milk.

MAKES 8 LITTLE PANCAKES

FOR THE BATTER

100g oats

a good handful of pecan nuts (about 50g), roughly chopped

1 teaspoon baking powder

a pinch of sea salt

1 ripe banana, peeled and mashed

150ml coconut milk or almond milk (see note above)

a 200g punnet of blueberries

TO SERVE

2 bananas, peeled and cut into thin slices

a little coconut oil or butter

a few pecan nuts, crumbled

lime wedges

honey or agave syrup

First turn the oven to 120°C/fan 100°C/gas ½ to keep everything warm.

Blitz the oats until you have a scruffy oat flour. Add to a bowl with the pecans and throw in the baking powder and salt.

Mix the mashed banana with the milk (you can do this by blitzing them together in the food processor, if you like). Beat the banana mixture into the flour and leave the batter to sit for a few minutes.

Heat a non-stick pan on a medium heat, then add the banana slices and fry on both sides in the dry pan until brown and caramelised. Keep warm in the oven.

Put the pan back on a medium heat and add a little coconut oil or butter. Drop in a healthy tablespoonful of batter for each pancake. Once the sides are cooked and bubbles have risen to the top, scatter over a handful of blueberries and flip the pancake over. Cook for another couple of minutes on the other side. The pancakes will stay a little moist in the middle because of the banana, so don’t worry. Keep them warm in the oven while you cook the rest.

Serve the pancakes piled with the banana slices. Add some crumbled pecans and a squeeze of lime, and, if you like, a little touch of honey, agave or maple syrup.

A scoop of coconut and banana ice cream turns these into a feel-good pudding too (see here).

Cherry poppy seed waffles

Like bottomless coffee and inch-deep maple syrup and waitresses with name badges, waffles are very American territory to me. I started making them at home last year – I bought a £20 waffle iron and I haven’t looked back, as there is something so good about their crispy chequered exterior. They are quick and easy to make and more consistent than pancakes, and the waffle iron stays squeaky clean, so no washing up. This is my poppy seed-flecked version. I make these waffles with a mixture of oats or quinoa, whizzed to a floury dust in the food processor, but straight up wholemeal flour works well too.

Cherries are hands down my favourite fruit. When British cherries start filling my basket they are all I eat for breakfast until they are gone again. They’re high in iron, so they are useful for people cutting back on iron-rich meats. I keep pitted cherries in the freezer to use all year round, and you can buy good frozen ones from most supermarkets too. These are equally good with raspberries mashed with a little rosewater in place of the cherries.

Instead of using eggs here you can make these pancakes using the incredibly clever natural binding qualities of chia seeds. What I like best about chia seeds is how they work in baking and sweet things. You can use them in place of eggs in almost all baking, just mix 1 tablespoon of chia seeds with 3 tablespoons of water for each egg and leave to soak for a few minutes until you have a gloopy mix. I like the crunch of the chia seeds in my cake but if you want to you could grind them to a powder in your food processor before mixing with the water. This mixture works in all the baking in this book, just don’t try scrambling them!

MAKES 8 WAFFLES

FOR THE CHERRIES

500g pitted cherries, fresh or frozen

2 tablespoons honey

FOR THE BATTER

200g oats

4 tablespoons light brown sugar or coconut sugar (see here)

1 tablespoon baking powder

a pinch of sea salt

2 tablespoons poppy seeds, plus extra to serve

200ml natural yoghurt or coconut milk yoghurt

150ml milk of your choice

3 organic or free-range eggs (or see note on chia)

grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon

butter or coconut oil, for cooking

TO SERVE

honey

Put the cherries and honey into a saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer, then cook for 10 minutes, until just softened, slightly sticky and deep crimson.

Put your waffle iron on a very low heat to warm up. I cook using a gas hob, which heats the waffle iron quite quickly, but you may need to wait a little longer if you have an electric or induction hob. You could use an electric waffle maker set to medium too.

Whiz the oats in a food processor until you have a fine powder, then put into a bowl with the sugar, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds. In a jug, whisk the yoghurt, milk, eggs and lemon zest. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and beat until you have a smooth, thick batter, then pour into a jug to make it easier to fill your waffle iron.

Turn the heat up a little on your waffle iron. Drop a knob of butter or coconut oil on to the base of it and use a brush to persuade it around the iron squares. Flip the iron and do the same for the other side.

Spoon one ladleful of mixture into one side of your hot iron and close the lid. Leave for 2 minutes to crisp up, then flip for another 3 minutes. The waffles are ready once they’re an even golden brown and come away from the sides easily.

Serve with the warm cherries, a sprinkling of poppy seeds and a spoonful of yoghurt and a drizzle of honey.

Dosa-spiced potato cakes with quick cucumber pickle

The best breakfast I have ever eaten was a masala dosa in Fort Cochin, Kerala. This is how I like to work the deep, fragrant, southern Indian flavours into my day. It’s an anytime dish with big flavour hitters in the shape of curry leaves and black mustard seeds, which give the potato the warm subtle punch that is the deeply clever balance of southern Indian food. This is how I almost always use up my leftover mashed potato. Any root veg mash works well here but I find potato takes on the flavours best.

Mashing avocado with these spices is a revelation – I eat this on toast at least once a week.

If curry leaves aren’t easy to get, you can just leave them out. However, curry leaves are wonderful, and if you haven’t come across them before, try to get your hands on some. They have a curious but delicious flavour, and add depth in a way that is difficult to explain, much like a truffle does. I buy a few packets whenever I see them – a lot of supermarkets stock them these days. Store them in a sandwich bag in the freezer and tumble a few out as you need them. They are addictive and also very good for you. They can be mixed with lime and a pinch of sugar in hot water to aid digestion.

SERVES 4

FOR THE POTATO CAKES

olive or coconut oil

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

1 tablespoon black mustard seeds

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

10 curry leaves

4 large potatoes, boiled, drained and coarsely mashed, or 4 big spoons of leftover mash

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE AVOCADO

2 ripe avocados, halved and destoned

juice of ½ a lemon

FOR THE QUICK CUCUMBER PICKLE

½ a cucumber, halved and thinly sliced

1 teaspoon coriander seeds, bashed in a pestle and mortar

a pinch of sugar or a squeeze of agave syrup

grated zest and juice of ½ an unwaxed lemon

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Heat a splash of oil in a frying pan on a medium heat and fry the onion for about 5 minutes, until soft and sweet. Add the mustard seeds and stand back while they pop. Scoop out a heaped tablespoon of the onion mixture and put to one side to cool.

With the pan still on the heat, add the turmeric and curry leaves and fry for another minute or so, then put the whole lot into a bowl to cool slightly.

Add the mashed potato to the onions, then season and mix well. Divide the mixture into 4 portions and shape them into 4 potato cakes. Put them into the fridge to chill while you do a couple of other little jobs.

In another bowl, mash the avocados with the lemon juice (you can use a potato masher here), then stir in the tablespoon of the onion you set aside. Mix, then season well.

To make your pickle, put the sliced cucumber into a bowl and add all the other pickle ingredients. Using your hands, scrunch the cucumber slices to get the flavours going.

Now put your frying pan back on the heat. Take the potato cakes out of the fridge and fry them gently and carefully in a little oil for about 2–3 minutes on each side, until warmed through and crispy brown.

Serve each dosa cake piled with the mustard seed, onion and mashed avocado and with a sprightly spoonful of pickle on the side.

Other ways to use your cucumber pickle:

· Sandwiched inside a veggie burger.

· Next to a bowl of dhal and rice.

· In a bagel with some cream cheese and grated lemon zest.

· In a cheese sandwich.

· Next to any curry.

· To make the best ever cucumber sandwiches.

Wholegrain Sunday brunch

Sometimes a fortifying breakfast or brunch is needed but I have never been on board with heavy, greasy food to start off the day. For me breakfast is the mark of how I want my day to be. I eat this breakfast after a night out or before a day of the same – I guess you could say this is my full English. In autumn and winter, when tomatoes are not at their best, use a few sun-dried tomatoes added at the end instead.

You can make this in the time it takes someone else to go and buy the paper and to brew a decent cup of coffee. I encourage you to try grains rather than toast for breakfast. I find them so much more sustaining than bread and they work perfectly here. If you like, though, a good slice of bread works wonderfully in place of the farro. Sometimes for a really filling brunch I sizzle up a couple of the chestnut bangers here too, or pan-fry a couple of slices of tofu, in place of the egg.

Sage is not perhaps the most obvious choice for a breakfast herb but it works brilliantly here. I love sage – the word, the taste, the bolstering flavour it brings – there is something ancient about it that I adore. In fact it’s a member of the mint family and you can taste the relationship. I love to fry sage leaves in hot oil till perfectly crisp and sprinkle them on fried eggs or roasted squash.

SERVES 2, THOUGH THIS CAN BE EASILY SCALED UP FOR A BIG FRIENDLY BRUNCH

¼ of a butternut squash or similar, deseeded and cut into 1cm slices

2 big field mushrooms

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive or rapeseed oil

100g farro or quinoa

2 healthy vines of cherry tomatoes

a small handful (50g) of almonds

a few sprigs of fresh sage (about 20 leaves)

1 lemon

2 organic or free-range eggs, for poaching (more if you are hungry)

Preheat your oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Place the squash and mushrooms on a tray, season, and drizzle with a little oil. Pop it into the oven for 15 minutes.

Next, get your grain on the go. Rinse it under cold water, then put it into a pan of boiling, salted water and cook the farro for 20–25 minutes, until tender, or the quinoa for 10 minutes, making sure to top up with more water as needed.

Once the squash has had 20 minutes, take the tray out of the oven and add the tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle with oil and put back into the oven for another 20 minutes.

To make the sage and almond pesto, toast the almonds in a pan until fragrant and just browning, then remove from the heat. In a pestle and mortar, bash the sage leaves with a pinch of salt. Add the almonds and bash until you have a chunky paste, then pour in 4 tablespoons of oil, squeeze in the juice of a quarter of the lemon and bash again until it’s smoothish. Season with salt and pepper, tasting and balancing to your liking. This can be done in a food processor too.

Finally, get a pan of boiling water on to poach your eggs (I use a frying pan). Turn the heat down until the water is barely blipping, then crack in the eggs and leave to cook for 3–4 minutes. Scoop out with a slotted spoon on to some kitchen paper.

Spoon the grain on to plates, pile on the sticky roasted veg, top with an egg, then drizzle generously with the pesto and enjoy at a slow pace.

food for filling a gap

If you’re going to snack, you might as well do it properly in every sense. Topping up between meals with something that is delicious, thought out and healthy stops me reaching for a chocolate biscuit. Whether it’s a simple slick of almond butter on a rice cake, or a handful of kale chips, or some homemade spicy caramel popcorn, a considered snack keeps me happy, fulfilled and full of energy. All these recipes are perfect for a crowd too – just double them up as needed to fuel a party.

Charred sweet potato quesadillas · sweet and salty crispy kale chips · the best egg sandwich you’ll ever eat · deep smoky salsa · miso-spiked hummus · jewel-coloured Middle Eastern dip · doorstep sandwiches · spiced salted caramel popcorn · maple peanut California wraps

Speedy sweet potato quesadillas

Quesadillas are an anytime meal. They take just 5 minutes to make, and everyone adores them. You can snack on them at a party, they make a late-home-from-work dinner, and they even work at breakfast with an egg inside.

These quesadillas are a bit different – the regular, white flour, cheese-loaded version doesn’t do it for me. So instead these are filled with a super-quick sweet potato and white bean mash. You will never look back.

Two types of chilli feature here, though don’t fret – they are not super-hot. I don’t like that intense chilli burn feeling. To me any food that sends your body into panic or out of balance can’t be good. But I do crave chilli, and this blend of the deep smokiness of the chipotle and the sweet raw heat of the fresh chilli packs a well-rounded punch.

Most places have started to stock chipotle paste these days, which has made its sweet smokiness more easy to come by. If you can’t get your hands on chipotle, ½ a teaspoon of hot smoked paprika will do. The Cool Chile Co (www.coolchile.co.uk) sell a range of great chillies, including chipotle paste.

It’s worth making a mention of what chillies have hidden in their colourful little packages. They are super-high in antioxidants and vitamins, and they boost the immune system and help spike up your metabolism. Chilli magic.

SERVES 2 AS A DINNER, OR 4 AS A SNACK

olive oil

1 sweet potato, peeled and grated

1 tablespoon maple syrup

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chipotle paste

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 × 400g tin of white beans, drained (I use haricots)

1 avocado

½ a lime

a few sprigs of fresh mint or coriander, leaves picked and chopped

4 corn tortillas (see note here)

Heat a touch of olive oil in a pan, add the sweet potato and the maple syrup and season with salt and pepper. Add the chipotle paste and the chopped chilli and cook for a few minutes, until the potato has softened and lost its rawness.

Transfer to a bowl and add the beans, then use a potato masher to mash the whole lot up a little – you will still have some flecks of unmashed sweet potato. Season if needed.

Mash the avocado with a little lime juice and stir in the herbs. I use the potato masher again here.

Now heat a frying pan big enough for your tortillas. Lay a tortilla flat in the pan, spoon a quarter of the mixture on to one half of it, then fold over the other half. Dry fry on one side until it’s blistered and golden brown, then flip over and do the same on the other side. Keep the quesadilla warm while you do this with the rest of the tortillas.

Serve straight from the pan with the mashed avocado.

As part of a bigger meal:

· Serve with a couple of handfuls of lemon-dressed salad leaves.

· Serve with a crunchy salad of radishes, leaves, shaved fennel and coriander, and a quick tomato salsa.

Oven-baked kale chips

Kale chips have found their way over the sea from our health-conscious friends in America. They are delicious. Moreish, salty, sweet, crisp and all-round good – a super-healthy alternative to a packet of crisps. The only downside is the price tag. My top count is £8.50 for a little pot, which would last half an hour in my house.

I’ve got some raw-cook friends who make them using their dehydrator, which slowly dries out and preserves food, but don’t worry, I’m not about to tell you to go out and buy a £300 piece of kit either.

The answer is a £1 bunch of kale and the trusty oven. By cooking the chips in the oven they don’t have quite the same ‘raw’ credentials as their dehydrated brothers, but I like compromise and this is a good one – oven-baked kale for deep-fried potato.

I couldn’t decide which flavour was best, so here’s both. The miso and sesame seed version has all the sweet savouriness of a killer sushi roll. The tarragon mustard chips are sweet and fragrant. Give both a go and then try your own – stick to the formula of salt/acid/sweet and you can’t go wrong.

These are a great way to get greens haters on to the good stuff. Disguised as little flavour pop crisps, these could persuade anyone to like kale.

MAKES ENOUGH FOR A FEW FRIENDS TO NIBBLE, OR A FEW DAYS’ SNACKING FOR 1

200g curly kale, washed and spun dry (I use a mix of white, green and purple)

FOR THE TARRAGON AND MUSTARD DRESSING

1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup

½ a bunch of fresh tarragon, leaves picked and chopped

juice of 1 lemon

a good pinch of sea salt

FOR THE SESAME MISO DRESSING

1 teaspoon miso paste

1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon maple syrup

juice of 1 lime

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

Preheat your oven to 120°C/fan 100°C/gas ½ and line two baking trays with baking paper.

Tear the kale off its stalks into crisp-sized pieces (remember they will shrink a bit). Little stalks are fine, you just don’t want any of the big ones. Lay them well spaced out on the baking trays.

Make whichever dressing you choose, mixing the ingredients in a jug. Drizzle the dressings evenly over the trays of kale. Now get your hands in and toss and turn the kale in the dressing until everything feels coated.

Put your kale into the oven for 30 minutes. Then take both trays out and loosen the kale from the baking paper with a spatula. Pop the trays back in, turn the oven off, and leave them until they have crisped right up, which will take about another 30 minutes.

Lift the kale chips from the tray and store them in a jar or airtight container. They will keep for up to a week, but they will be gone long before that.

Smoky walnut and cumin muhammara

If there is someone in your life who thinks vegetarian food is bland, hand them a bowl of this and some charred flatbreads and give them 5 minutes. It’s a riot of flavours: musky sweetness from the peppers, earthy spice from the cumin and buttery depth from the walnuts. And it’s so versatile. I keep a jar of it in the fridge for spicing up pretty much any meal.

Pomegranate molasses is traditionally used here to add a sweet piquant roundness. Most larger supermarkets and Middle Eastern shops stock it, but if you can’t get your hands on it you can substitute a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and a tablespoon of date syrup, dark honey or agave syrup.

MAKES A GOOD JARFUL, ENOUGH FOR A CROWD TO DIP INTO

75g shelled walnuts

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 × 200g jar of roasted red peppers, or 3 freshly roasted red peppers, peeled, deseeded and chopped

2 slices of good brown bread, whizzed to breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons good-quality tomato purée

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

1 teaspoon Turkish chilli flakes (see here) or a pinch of normal chilli flakes

juice of ½ a lemon

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Preheat your oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Put the nuts and cumin seeds on to a baking tray and roast for 6 minutes, until the nuts are just starting to turn golden and the cumin smells wonderful and has released its oils. Tip into a food processor and add the red peppers. Blitz to a paste, then add the breadcrumbs, tomato purée, pomegranate molasses, chilli flakes, lemon juice and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Blitz again until smooth.

With the mixer on, slowly pour in the oil and blitz until really smooth. Taste, season if needed, and blitz again. Keep tasting and balancing the flavours – you may need a bit more lemon juice, or more molasses and seasoning. Get it how you like it. This will keep well in the fridge for at least a week.

Ways to use your muhammara:

· For breakfast, spread on toast and topped with a poached egg.

· As a marinade for tofu or vegetables for barbecuing.

· Let down with a little oil as a dressing for roasted root veg, beetroots and squash.

· Piled on the side of a plate of lentils or beans, with a little yoghurt and some herbs.

Maple peanut California wraps

This wrap sustained me through a week in the desert, listening to music, a few years ago. Just the right combination of refreshing greens and vitamin-loaded carrot and good protein energy from tempeh and seeds.

But the crowning glory here is the sauce – it’s one of those sauces that hits every flavour level and leaves you wanting more. It’s good on a salad too. I have to say it has been known for me to eat two of these on the trot. They are that good. Super-quick to put together, these are a weekday lunch for me at least once a week and often make an appearance in summer for supper, with some roasted sweet potato wedges.

Tempeh is a cake of pressed soya beans. It is a great source of protein and works well in most recipes where you might use tofu. I buy my tempeh from my local health food shop. Tempeh is a fermented food, which actually makes it much easier to digest than other types of soya. Tempeh does need a bit of special treatment, such as this marinade, as its flavour is quite neutral. Firm tofu would work here too.

MAKES 4 WRAPS

4 wholemeal tortillas

2 carrots, grated

4 tablespoons mixed toasted seeds

4 handfuls of salad greens

FOR THE TEMPEH

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

200g tempeh, cut into 1cm slices

FOR THE PEANUT DRESSING

2 tablespoons all-natural peanut butter

2 teaspoons miso paste

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons tahini

juice of 1 lemon

Mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, olive oil and vinegar in a bowl. Add the tempeh and turn to coat in the marinade. Leave to one side.

Next, make the dressing. Whisk all the ingredients together, with a tablespoon of water if it’s too thick, taste and check for balance, then set aside.

Heat a dry pan and fry the tempeh for a couple of minutes on each side until browned and starting to caramelise.

Warm the tortillas – I do this by holding them with tongs over a gas flame for a few seconds, but the oven or a dry non-stick pan will do too. To assemble each wrap, place some tempeh on each tortilla, top with a quarter of the grated carrot, seeds and greens, then add a quarter of the dressing. Repeat with the rest of the wraps.

HUMMUS

If your house is anything like mine, or those of most of my friends for that matter, then a lot of pots of hummus find their way into fridges and on to tables. I usually make my own, as I like being able to adapt the flavours to what’s going on at the time, seasons, moods and what else is in the fridge. The chickpea/tahini format can get a bit samey, so here are some offbeat versions you won’t find in the shops. The principle can be followed with pretty much anything, as long as you keep to roughly the same quantities of beans/citrus/seasonings below.

These recipes are a great way to use up leftover beans.

All these keep in the fridge for 5 days. Each recipe makes a good jarful.

DATE AND BLACK SESAME

•

1 × 400g tin of cannellini beans, drained

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 medjool dates, roughly chopped

juice of ½ a lemon

½ tablespoon miso paste

sea salt

2 tablespoons date syrup

2 tablespoons toasted black sesame seeds

If you don’t have date syrup handy, a drizzle of dark honey or dark agave syrup would work really well. Well-toasted white sesame seeds will work here if you can’t get black ones.

Put your beans into a food processor with the olive oil, dates, lemon juice, miso and a pinch of salt and whiz to your preferred consistency. Taste, add more salt if necessary, and loosen with a bit of water or more olive oil if it looks too thick. I go for a good bit of whizzing, as I like a light and fluffy result, but some like more texture – you decide.

Once the texture is how you like it, scoop it into a bowl, drizzle over the date syrup and sprinkle with the black sesame seeds.

BLACK BEAN AND PUMPKIN SEED

•

1 × 400g tin of black beans

1 green chilli, destalked and roughly chopped, plus more chopped chilli to finish

a small bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped, plus more chopped coriander to finish

grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lime

1 tablespoon maple syrup

a good handful of pumpkin seeds

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

a good drizzle of olive oil

A classic Mexican combination for a reason – this is very moreish and great with the homemade tortilla chips.

Put everything apart from the extra chilli and coriander into a food processor and whiz together until it’s the texture you like. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed, and loosen with more oil or water if it’s too thick.

Scoop into a bowl. Mix the extra chilli and coriander with a little olive oil and drizzle on top.

BUTTERBEAN, ALMOND AND ROSEMARY

•

1 × 400g tin of butter beans, drained

grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon

a handful of whole almonds

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked

2–3 teaspoons almond milk or water

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

a good drizzle of olive oil

a few whole almonds, toasted and chopped, to finish

Here the rosemary and almonds come together in an Italian way. This is a good start to a meal, with some griddled olive-oil-drizzled toast. I make mine with untoasted nuts, but toasted nuts add smokiness, so try both.

Put all the ingredients apart from the toasted almonds into a food processor and whiz until it’s as smooth as you like. Add a little extra water if needed until it’s a good consistency.

Top with the chopped almonds and another drizzle of olive oil.

PEA AND GREEN HERB

•

300g frozen peas

a small bunch of fresh mint

a small bunch of fresh basil

2 tablespoons good extra virgin olive oil

grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Who says you can’t make hummus with peas? Not me. Slather this on bruschetta or spoon it on top of a simple risotto; leftovers can even be stirred through pasta. Kids love this one. Sometimes I add an avocado for a bit of extra creaminess. Broad beans work just as well here. I use fresh peas in springtime – the rest of the year, frozen peas are your friend.

Pop the peas into a bowl and cover them with hot water from the kettle. Leave them to sit for a minute, then drain. Put them into a food processor with everything else and whiz until you have a bright green paste (a hand blender works well too), then taste and season with more salt and pepper or lemon if needed.

Homemade tortilla chips with charred chilli salsa

These tortilla chips are a massive hit every time I make them. So much so that I have taken to making them every time anyone comes round – even the sniff of a visitor and these are in the oven and I’m whizzing up some salsa. I love the compliments. I sort of feel a bit guilty about how much people like them, as they are so easy a five-year-old could make them. Which makes people love them even more.

These can be made easily with tortillas, wraps, round pittas, leftover chapattis, whatever you have to hand. Corn tortillas are my choice. Below is my favourite way to flavour them, but most spices work really well: cumin and coriander are favourites, and a bit of lemon zest and some chopped thyme or rosemary also goes down well.

Eat these with anything you can dip them into. In my house most often it’s this smoky salsa but mashed avocado, hummus and spice-spiked yoghurt are also really good. Try the Indian mashed avo here with chips made from chapattis and spiced with coriander and some lemon zest, for another brilliant combination.

MAKES A BIG BOWLFUL

8 tortillas, wraps, flatbreads or chapattis

olive oil

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

sea salt

FOR THE SALSA

4 spring onions

1 red chilli, pricked with a knife

20 cherry tomatoes or 8 big tomatoes

a small bunch of fresh coriander

olive oil

juice of 1 lime

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6.

Get a griddle pan on a very hot heat. Once it’s smoking hot, put the spring onions, chilli and tomatoes on the griddle and leave to char on each side. Remove the onions once they are black, then the chilli and finally the tomatoes. This will take 5 minutes or so. Transfer to a bowl to cool.

Once cool enough to handle, tip the whole lot on to a board. Use a big knife to chop everything together until you have a chunky salsa consistency, discarding the green top of the chilli as you go. When the salsa is nearly there, add the coriander and chop it into the mixture.

Put the mixture into a bowl with a good glug of olive oil, the lime juice and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Taste, balancing the flavours with more lime, salt or oil if needed.

Cut each tortilla, wrap, flatbread or chapatti into 8 triangles and scatter them over a couple of baking trays. You don’t want them to be too crowded or they won’t crisp up.

Drizzle them with oil and sprinkle over the smoked paprika and a good pinch of sea salt.

Bake for 10 minutes, until crisped and delicious. Serve piled high in bowls with the salsa.

Other ways to use your salsa:

· To top quesadillas (see here).

· To sandwich in a cheese toastie.

· To top a baked sweet potato.

· To dip potato wedges into.

· Next to a poached or fried egg for breakfast.

· To top some avocado on toast.

Spiced salt caramel popcorn

Salt-sweet caramel-coated popcorn – serve it in big bowls or in cinema-style paper containers for a proper movie night. And make lots – it goes quickly.

I love cinnamon – it’s such a comforting spice. Half a teaspoon of powdered cinnamon a day mixed into tea or hot water can help with digestion problems. Be careful to buy real or Ceylon cinnamon and not cassia. Cassia is the outer bark of the cinnamon tree – it’s darker and comes in a stick-like curl of bark. It has a punchy medicinal aroma and is used widely in America. Real cinnamon is sweeter and more calming – the sticks are lighter in colour and crumble very easily. If you buy from a good wholefood store or spice shop you should know what you are getting.

SERVES 10

a splash of vegetable oil

400g popping corn

200g unrefined light brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

a pinch of sea salt

½ a nutmeg, freshly grated

grated zest of 1 unwaxed orange

First get your popcorn popping. Heat a very large pan (make sure it’s one with a lid) on a medium heat and add a splash of oil. If you don’t have a very large pan, two smaller ones will do. Once it’s hot, add the popcorn kernels, put on the lid and turn the heat down to low. Give it a good shake every 30 seconds or so to move the kernels around and stop them burning. It will be a while before the popping starts. But when it does, it will come thick and fast, so don’t be tempted to lift the lid.

While your corn is popping you can get on with your caramel. Put the sugar into a pan with 100ml of water, place on a medium heat and bring to a simmer, being careful not to touch it. Keep it bubbling until the water has reduced and you have a deep caramel. Don’t be tempted to stir or you will end up with a crystallised caramel.

Once your popcorn has finished popping, remove it from the heat and pour it into a deep baking tray. Very carefully pour over your caramel, using a metal spoon to mix it through the popcorn – do not touch the popcorn with your hands, as the caramel will be very hot. Sprinkle over the cinnamon and salt, grate over the nutmeg and orange zest, and mix again with a spoon. Allow the caramel to cool completely before eating.

Caper, herb and soft-boiled egg sandwich

I never used to like egg sandwiches – I always veered away from them. My boyfriend John loves them, so one day I set out to make the best one he’d ever eaten. The kickback was I liked it too. Soft, just-set yolks, plenty of character from an almost tartare-style dressing and a bit of zip from some snipped green herbs. This is quick fresh food at its best. Freshly made straight on to the plate, the only way to eat egg sandwiches to my mind.

I find yoghurt really useful in the kitchen – it makes its way into baking cakes, batters, breads. I use good organic Greek yoghurt in place of mayonnaise and in more indulgent desserts, and a natural one for breakfasts and toppings. For me it’s important to vary my diet so as not to become reliant on one thing too much, so I also keep coconut milk yoghurt on hand for days when I’m feeling like changing things up a little.

MAKES 4 SANDWICHES

6 organic or free-range eggs

6 cornichons or 2 large gherkins, chopped up small

2 tablespoons little capers in brine, or big ones chopped up

2 tablespoons Greek yoghurt

1 teaspoon good Dijon mustard

grated zest and juice of ½ an unwaxed lemon

a few sprigs of fresh dill, chopped

a few sprigs of fresh parsley, chopped

optional: 1 stick of celery, chopped up small

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 slices of good bread (I like seeded stuff)

First put the eggs into a pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Once the water is boiling, set the timer for 6 minutes (you may need a touch longer for large eggs).

Once the eggs have had 6 minutes, drain them and put them under running cold water until they have cooled a little. Then leave them in a bowl of cold water until they are cool enough to peel.

Put the rest of the ingredients apart from the bread into a bowl and mix together. Once the eggs are cool, peel and roughly chop them and add them to the bowl. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, pepper or lemon as needed. If your bread is super-fresh there’s no need to toast it, but if it’s a little firm, pop it into the toaster. Pile the eggs on to 4 of the pieces of toast and top with the other 4 pieces.

I sometimes add a handful of seasonal salad leaves too – pea shoots, watercress and rocket all work well.

Killer smoked tofu club sandwich

John thinks this might be the best thing I have ever made. It’s basically an assembly job, putting a few good things between two slices of bread, as a sandwich should be.

MAKES 2 HEALTHY SANDWICHES

100g smoked tofu, cut into 6 slices

1 tablespoon chipotle paste

1 tablespoon mayonnaise or vegan mayonnaise

juice of ½ a lime

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 slices of good bread (I use sourdough or a seeded bread)

½ an avocado, roughly mashed

1 little gem lettuce, shredded

8 sun-blushed tomatoes

Heat a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat, then add the tofu slices and warm them on both sides.

Put the chipotle paste, mayonnaise and lime juice into a bowl, season with a little salt and pepper if needed, and mix well.

Toast your bread, and get everything on your board ready to assemble your sandwich.

Spread 2 slices of the toast with the chipotle sauce and the other 2 slices with the mashed avocado. Top the avocado with the tofu, lettuce and tomatoes. Pop the chipotle-laden slices on top, cut in half and eat immediately.

QUICK SANDWICH IDEAS

Sandwiches are one of my favourite things. Something great happens when the right combination of fillings is sandwiched between 2 slices of bread. These are modern, veg-packed sandwiches. I use good bread – sourdough, rye, seeded or even millet.

HUMMUS

SLICED TOMATO

SUN-DRIED TOMATOES

HUMMUS

BLACK OLIVES

HARISSA

TOASTED SEEDS

VEG FULL

SPROUTS

GRATED CARROT

SPINACH

MASHED AVOCADO

CHERRY TOMATOES

PESTO

FALAFEL

FALAFEL

CAPERBERRIES

TOMATOES

HUMMUS

PICKLED BEETS

SPINACH

LEMON JUICE

ASPARAGUS

BLANCHED ASPARAGUS

PARMESAN

AVOCADO

PUMPKIN SEEDS

ROCKET

LEMON JUICE

VEG CLUB

SMOKED TOFU

SLICED CHEDDAR

GHERKINS

LETTUCE

CHERRY TOMATOES

MUSTARD

MAYONNAISE

AVOCADO

MASHED AVOCADO

FETA

CORIANDER

LIME

CHERRY TOMATOES

LETTUCE

CHILLI/CHIPOTLE

BEETROOT

COOKED BEETS

GOAT’S CHEESE

PUMPKIN SEEDS

ROCKET

LEMON ZEST

SAN FRAN

PESTO

ALMONDS

PECORINO

ROCKET

HONEY

LEMON JUICE

a bowl of broth, soup or stew

There is something about one-pot cooking that feels properly nourishing. All the goodness of every ingredient is released into the soupy liquor. Most of these soups and stews come together in under 30 minutes and require only a little bit of upfront chopping. In the colder months, I tend to make a pot of soup on a Monday night, usually a double recipe in my biggest cast-iron pot. We then dip into it for lunches and dinners for the rest of the week, varying the toppings so that boredom doesn’t creep in. We start with a chunky soup and after a couple of bowls, I whiz it up and it feels brand new.

Warming winter roots · spicy tomato broth · cleansing miso · Tuscan heartiness · just-chewy udon noodles · cleansing coconut · fragrant lemongrass · smoky chilli spice · toasted nuts · crispy fried sage · crunchy tortilla crisps

Chickpea and preserved lemon stew

This was a quick evening creation. One of those moments when the stars align, even though you haven’t been to the shops, a few ingredients jump out of the fridge and effortlessly come together in the pan to make something special.

I make this when I want the warmth of a soup but need something a little heartier. The depth of flavour from the cinnamon, preserved lemon and tomato tastes like something cooked slowly for hours, but in fact this is a really quick recipe to make, and the warming flavours of Arabic spices are all the more heartening on a cold evening.

I use Israeli (sometimes called giant) couscous here, as it’s bigger, heartier and more substantial than the finer couscous and I think stands up very well to being cooked in a stew. It is available in most delis and supermarkets, though you could swap it for bulgur wheat if you like, or quinoa if you are avoiding gluten.

A note on preserving lemons: the unique salty-but-scented zippiness of preserved lemons introduces a punchy note to this stew. Use them too in salads, to add to a rice pilaf, in spiced soups and to liven up grains and beans. They are best added towards the end of cooking. I use a super-simple variation of the classic Claudia Roden recipe to make them. Cut 4 lemons into quarters, without going all the way through to the bottom, then pack the cuts generously with sea salt. Squash them into a preserving jar, seal and leave for a couple of days so that the salt draws out the juice. Top the jar up with the juice from 4 more lemons, to cover everything completely. Leave in a cool place for a month, then they are ready to use.

SERVES 4

olive oil

1 red onion, peeled and finely sliced

2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped

1 clove of garlic, peeled and sliced

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 × 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

1 × 400g tin of chickpeas, drained

½ a veg stock cube, or 1 teaspoon veg stock powder

1 stick of cinnamon

1 preserved lemon, halved, seeds removed

a handful of raisins

100g Israeli couscous

a small bunch of fresh parsley, leaves picked and chopped

TO SERVE

a good pinch of saffron strands

4 tablespoons natural yoghurt of your choice

½ a clove of garlic, peeled and chopped super-fine

4 handfuls of rocket

a small handful of toasted pine nuts

Heat a little olive oil in a pan over a medium heat, then add the onion, carrot, garlic and a good pinch of sea salt and cook for 10 minutes, until the onion is soft and sweet.

Next, add the tomatoes and chickpeas. Fill both cans with water and add to the pan too. Add the stock cube, cinnamon stick, preserved lemon halves and raisins. Season with salt and pepper and simmer on a medium heat for 15–20 minutes, until the tomato broth has thickened slightly and tastes wonderfully full and fragrant.

Add the couscous and cook for another 10 minutes, making sure you top up with a little extra water here if necessary. I like more of a soup than a stew, so I usually add another can of water.

Meanwhile, put the saffron into a bowl with a small splash of boiling water and allow it to sit for 5 minutes. Then add the yoghurt, garlic and a pinch of salt and mix well.

After 10 minutes the couscous should be cooked, while still keeping a little chewy bite. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed, stir through the parsley then scoop out the preserved lemon halves and ladle your stew into bowls. Top with a crown of rocket, a good spoonful of saffron yoghurt and a pile of toasted pine nuts.

Seeded bread and roast tomato soup

A few years ago I spent a glorious six months living and working among the Chianti vines in the deep green heart of Tuscany. I was an hour’s walk from the nearest bus and cooking was all there was to do. We worked hand in hand with what was going on around us and it was glorious. We made this traditional Tuscan favourite, pappa pomodoro, for our staff lunch at least twice a week – comfort eating at its best.

The flame-red tomatoes turn scarlet pink when slowly roasted, and the bread softens and soaks up the tomato juices to become almost soft and milky. The seeded bread is my way of doing things – I love the pops of texture it adds. I still make this in deepest winter with four tins of really good cherry tomatoes and rosemary or thyme – it’s a different soup but still killer.

SERVES 4

500g ripe vine tomatoes, halved

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

a large bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive oil

2 × 400g tins of good-quality plum tomatoes

4 slices of good-quality seeded bread

Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Pop the vine tomatoes into a large deep ovenproof casserole dish with the garlic, half the basil and a good pinch of salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Place in the oven for 20 minutes to roast and intensify. Once your tomatoes are roasted, take the pan out of the oven and pop it on the heat, remembering to be careful, as your pan will be very hot.

Add the tinned tomatoes and a tin of water and break up the tomatoes a little with the back of a wooden spoon. Bring to a simmer, then cook for 20 minutes.

Once the soup is thick and sweet, tear the slices of bread and most of the rest of the basil over the top, cover with a lid and leave to sit for 10 minutes. Then give it a stir so it all comes together. Ladle into bowls, drizzle generously with very good olive oil, scatter with the remaining basil and eat with enthusiasm and a fine Chianti.

ONE SOUP: 1000 VARIATIONS

Walnut miso broth with udon noodles

One of my favourite meals to go out and eat is this one, sitting on my own at the noodle bar in Koya in Soho. Their udon noodles are from the gods, just the right side of chewy. But it’s the walnut miso paste that comes next to them in a little bowl, that really crowns it. I am sure they make it in a far more sophisticated way – I’ve never asked. This is my version.

This is a soup that has everything. Deep umami flavour, cleansing sharpness and a delicious bundle of veg. Both udon and soba noodles work here. The broth is a very simple and clean one and you’ll need to stir in the walnut and miso for the flavours to really work. At Koya they add one of those amazing Japanese eggs, poached in their shell. I sometimes add a poached egg too, but it divides opinion, so I have left it out here.

Walnuts and I have a curious relationship. After a year working at a posh restaurant in Knightsbridge where I had to individually peel each walnut without breaking it, weaving delicately in and out of those dainty, frilly edges, I fell out of love with them. But I have ditched the peeling and have since fallen back into their arms. They are a delicious vegetarian source of omega 3, which is key for brain health – a handful will provide you with almost all you need in a day, so get snacking on some walnuts.

Most veg would work well in this broth – chard, asparagus, sugar snaps, spinach. Don’t be tied to what I have suggested here.

SERVES 2

FOR THE WALNUT MISO PASTE

100g walnuts, lightly toasted

2 tablespoons dark miso paste (I use brown rice miso)

2 tablespoons honey or agave syrup

1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce or tamari

a splash of white wine vinegar

FOR THE BROTH

2 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced

a thumb-size piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped into matchsticks

1 veg stock cube, or 1 tablespoon veg stock powder

1 head of spring greens, destalked and shredded

a handful of shimeji mushrooms (about 150g)

a handful of enoki mushrooms (about 150g)

250g dried udon noodles

Preheat your oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Put the walnuts on a baking tray and toast them in the oven for 5–10 minutes, until just browned and smelling great. Take out and leave to one side to cool.

Now get the broth going. Put the spring onions, ginger and veg stock cube or powder into a pan with 2 litres of water, place on the heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, then add the greens and mushrooms and turn off the heat.

Meanwhile, bring another pan of water to the boil. Add the noodles and cook for 6–8 minutes (or follow the instructions on the packet).

Pulse the toasted walnuts in a food processor until they resemble very coarse breadcrumbs. Mix with the other walnut miso paste ingredients.

Once the noodles are cooked, drain and divide them between two bowls. Ladle over the hot broth (about 2 ladles for each bowl) and pop a generous spoonful of walnut miso in the middle of each and stir in.

Restorative coconut broth

There are some evenings when I feel like I’ve absorbed the day. When all the frenetic activity around me has somehow seeped in. Whenever I am feeling off centre and need some calming, this is what I have for dinner. The clean white of this broth is like a blanket on a cold night and whispers away the hustle and bustle. The coconut milk calms and soothes, the chilli boosts and wakens, the lime leaves and lemongrass cleanse, and veg add fuel and freshness.

I pick up bundles of lemongrass and lime leaves whenever I see them. If you haven’t used them before you will be amazed at the powerful citrus depth they impart in minutes. If you use them frequently you can keep them in the fridge, where they will last about a month. If you are less likely to use them up that fast, pop them into the freezer – they keep well and can be used from frozen.

SERVES 4

2 × 400g tins of coconut milk

1 veg stock cube, or 1 tablespoon veg stock powder

4 sticks of lemongrass

optional: 4 lime leaves

1 shallot, peeled and finely sliced

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and halved

1 red chilli, roughly chopped

2 tablespoons coconut sugar (see here) or golden caster sugar

a bunch of fresh coriander

4 generous handfuls (about 250g) of green leaves, shredded (spring greens, pak choi, cavolo nero)

2 handfuls (about 120g) of mushrooms (enoki, shitake, oyster or sliced chestnut would do well)

2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari

juice of 2 limes

Pour the coconut milk into a large pan and add a canful of water and the stock cube or powder. Bash the lemongrass with a rolling pin until it’s smashed, to help release the flavours more quickly. Add to the pan with the lime leaves (if using), shallot, garlic, chilli and sugar. Cut the roots off the coriander and add these too.

Push all the aromatics into the liquid so they are covered and turn the heat on under the pan. Bring to a gentle simmer, then allow to bubble for 15 minutes, until you have an intensely flavoured coconut broth.

Take the pan off the heat and sieve the broth into a bowl, discarding all the aromatics (they have done their work now). Then pour the broth back into the pan. Add the shredded greens and mushrooms, and warm through for 2–3 minutes. Then take off the heat and add the soy sauce and lime juice.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the roughly chopped coriander leaves. I like the neatness of this simple, soothing soup on its own, but if you are hungry, try adding some cooked soba noodles.

Sweet tomato and black bean tortilla bowls

I love Mexican food for its attention to different textures and its layers of flavour, crunch, softness, creaminess, citrus punch and chilli heat, and that’s what I like about this bowl.

The soupy-stew is great on its own, but when you top it with popping roasted tomatoes, buttery avocado and even a perfectly poached egg it becomes a serious team of flavours in a bowl. Don’t be fooled by the title – this is not one of those sketchy bowls made from a baked tortilla that you see in dodgy Mexican restaurants.

Smoked paprika is a good friend – if I can find any excuse to shake some of the sweet smoky stuff on to my food, I will. Last year I visited my holy grail: the chilli fields of La Vera in Spain. Over the years I have been lucky enough to tour a bunch of different artisans and producers, but this was my favourite one of all – fields and fields of brave red chillies, picked by hand and carted to huge kilns in a beautiful old smokery in the middle of the fields, where fires were lit below ceilings made of wire racks holding thousands of chillies, to smoke them and get that wonderful taste.

SERVES 4

1 medium sweet potato, washed and chopped into little pieces

20 cherry tomatoes, halved

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive or rapeseed oil

a bunch of spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 × 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

750ml hot vegetable stock

1 × 400g tin of black beans, drained

6 corn tortillas (see here)

optional: a few organic or free-range eggs, for poaching

optional: 1 avocado, peeled and cut into chunks

a small bunch of fresh coriander, leaves picked

Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6.

Place the sweet potatoes on one side of a baking tray and the halved cherry tomatoes on the other, then sprinkle the whole lot with a good amount of salt and pepper, drizzle with a little oil and roast for 20–25 minutes.

Heat a little oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the spring onions and garlic and sizzle for a few minutes, until the garlic has just started to brown, then add all the spices and stir round a couple of times. Add the tinned tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes, until all the flavours have come together.

Add the stock and bring to the boil, then simmer for another 5 minutes. I like to blitz the broth now, but feel free to skip this if you like it with more texture. After simmering, add the beans.

By now the tomatoes and sweet potatoes should be roasted. Take the tray out of the oven and add the sweet potatoes to the broth, then keep it ticking over on a low heat. Set the roasted tomatoes aside – they will go in later.

Cut the tortillas into 0.5cm wide strips and put them on another baking tray. Season with a little salt, drizzle over some oil, toss to coat and bake in the oven for 4–5 minutes until crisp and lightly golden.

I like to serve poached eggs on top of my soup, so if you like the idea poach 1 egg per person (see here for my method).

Once the tortilla strips are golden, take them out of the oven. Ladle the soup into bowls, top with the roasted tomatoes and crunchy tortilla strips, a poached egg, some chopped avocado, if you like, and a scattering of coriander.

Charred pepper and halloumi stew

There seems to be a blanket fascination with halloumi, especially among vegetarians. Every barbecue in the summer seems to include a couple of blocks. While I like the squeaky cheese, I think it needs a bit of help in the flavour department. Here it sits in a warm blanket of blackened peppers and a flash-cooked tomato stew that coats the just-crisped halloumi in its balmy juices. Somewhere between a warm salad and a fresh herby stew.

SERVES 4

3 red peppers

500g mixed cherry and vine tomatoes, halved

2 handfuls of Kalamata olives (about 20), pitted

2 tablespoons little capers

grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon

3 tablespoons good olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 × 250g pack of halloumi cheese, cut into 12 slices

½ a bunch of fresh mint, leaves picked and chopped

½ a bunch of fresh parsley, leaves picked and chopped

½ a bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked and chopped

If you have a gas stove, turn on the hob and use tongs to balance all 3 peppers around the naked flame, turning them every few minutes until they are charred all over. This will take 10 minutes or so. They are done when they are almost completely black and they have softened and lost their rawness. If you don’t have a gas hob, use a really hot griddle pan to char them in the same way instead, or put them under a very hot grill. Once black and charred all over, put the peppers into a bowl and cover with clingfilm. Leave to sit for 5 minutes.

Put the tomatoes into a bowl with the pitted olives, capers, lemon zest and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper and leave to mingle while you get on with peeling the peppers. Take the peppers out of the bowl and use your fingers to peel the blackened skin into the bowl, cleaning off as much of the skin as you can. Don’t be tempted to rinse them under the tap, as this will wash away all the flavour. Deseed the peppers, cut them into 1cm strips and add them to the bowl of tomatoes.

Now heat a frying pan on a medium heat. Add the rest of the olive oil and allow to heat up, then add the slices of halloumi and fry for 30 seconds or so on each side, until they have just turned golden. Place the halloumi on a plate, then tip the tomato mixture into the hot pan and pop back on the heat for a couple of minutes to warm through and release some juices.

Finally, add the chopped herbs and halloumi to the pan and serve straight away, warm, with some good bread and spritely greens.

Celeriac soup with hazelnuts and crispy sage

Celeriac is an under-used star. I love it and champion it in my kitchen. Sometimes it’s simply roasted with salt and pepper, other times it’s smashed with lemon and thyme or just eaten raw, finely sliced in a remoulade.

Here it’s the centrepiece of a comforting soup. Apples are the perfect foil for adding sweetness, while the butter beans bring creaminess, so no need for cream or crème fraîche here. The soup can be eaten simply as it is, but have a go at the brown butter – it amps it up and makes this soup a real winner. If you haven’t made brown butter before, it’s got a deep nutty flavour which melds with the crispy sage and toasted hazelnuts to send this soup to a different dimension.

Celeriac is a bit of a beast to look at. But looks are not everything – beneath the gnarly, knobbly exterior lies a creamy white flesh with a sweet, nutty, super-savoury flavour. It packs some serious health benefits. It’s high in fibre, potassium, magnesium and vitamin B6. Peel your celeriac thickly to get rid of any green tinges around the edge and any muddy leftovers.

SERVES 6

olive oil

1 leek, washed, trimmed and finely sliced

1 celeriac, washed, peeled and roughly chopped

4 apples (Cox’s are my choice), cored and roughly chopped

a few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked

1.5 litres vegetable stock

1 × 400g tin of butter beans, drained

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

TO SERVE

a handful of hazelnuts

100g butter

a few sprigs of fresh sage, leaves picked

Heat a splash of oil in a large pan, then add the leek and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes, until soft and sweet. Add the celeriac, apples and thyme and cook for 2–3 minutes, then add the stock and butter beans and season well. Simmer over a low heat for 20–30 minutes, until the celeriac is tender, then remove from the heat and blitz with a hand blender until smooth.

Toast the hazelnuts in a frying pan until golden brown then remove from the pan and put to one side. Add the butter to the pan and once it is hot add the sage and fry until it is crispy and the butter is light brown. Keep the heat low for this last bit and take the pan off as soon as you see the butter turn brown, as it can burn really quickly.

Ladle into bowls and top with the sage and hazelnut brown butter.

Lemony lentil and crispy kale soup

I love this simple soup, which is somewhere between a dhal and a soup – it reminds me of the curry that is served in southern India with dosas. This soup is cleansing and clean, thanks to being spiked with turmeric and a lot of lemon. It’s what I crave if I’ve over-indulged or been around food too long (an occupational hazard – a very nice one). I serve this with a kitchari.

Turmeric is a favourite spice of mine. If I am feeling off-colour I stir a teaspoon into hot water and sip it as a reviving tonic. I love the vibrant, deep saffron-gold colour, the clean, sharp, savoury acid note and the hard-to-put-your-finger-on flavour. It’s a real star on the health front, as it is an anti-inflammatory and has anti-carcinogenic properties. What a spice.

SERVES 4–6

a splash of olive or rapeseed oil

1 leek, washed, trimmed and finely sliced

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons black mustard seeds

juice of 2–3 lemons

250g split red lentils

1 veg stock cube, or 1 tablespoon veg stock powder

4 handfuls of kale (or other greens), washed, trimmed and shredded

TO SERVE (OPTIONAL)

yoghurt, stirred with a little sea salt

Get a large pan on the heat. Add a little oil and turn the heat to medium. Add the leek and fry for a few minutes, until it has softened and smells sweet, then add the spices and fry for another couple of minutes. Squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon and stir around to lift all the spices from the bottom of the pan.

Next, add the lentils, 1.5 litres of water and the stock cube or powder and allow to bubble away for 20–35 minutes, until the lentils are cooked and the soup has thickened.

Turn off the heat and, if you like, you can blitz the whole lot to a thin dhal consistency, then squeeze in the juice of the remaining 2 lemons, tasting as you go to make sure it doesn’t get too lemony. It may seem like a lot, but you really want the lemony tang to come through.

Just before you’re ready to serve, sauté the kale in a little olive oil until it slightly softens but begins to crisp at the edges.

Ladle into bowls and top with the salted yoghurt and the crispy kale.

White beans, greens, olive oil – my ribollita

I spent a good few years of my life cooking Italian food, and I am still in the midst of what I know will be a lifelong love. This is one of the dishes that made me love it so. It is a diva of a dish and it demands you use the very best of everything for it to perform. A ribollita made from the best oil, tomatoes, cavolo nero and bread takes a lot of beating.

I remember every note of my first taste of this in the kitchen of Fifteen London, at the hands of a wonderful chef, Ben Arthur, a Londoner who cooks like an Italian. Dishes like this changed how I looked at food, how I understood it – why the oil needed to be the very best, why there needed to be a lot of it, why traditions were followed and techniques respected. A life-changing bowl of soup, you could say.

This is an autumn version. In summer I use chard or spinach in place of the cavolo and squashed fresh tomatoes instead of tinned ones. I use tinned beans here for ease, but you could cook your own too.

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.