Cranberry Sauce with Orange

Ingredients
150g sugar
225g fresh cranberries
125ml orange juice/water
Orange zest

* put the sugar and water/juice in a pan and heat gently until the sugar is dissolved
* add the cranberries and zest, and cook on a low heat until all the berries have burst and are softened

Christmas cake 2

Glazed fruits make a pretty alternative to the traditional marzipan and royal icing. I used cherries, pineapple and apricots, but any dried or glace fruits would work.

Ingredients
1 heaped tbsp apricot jam
2 tbsp brandy
Dried or glace fruits of your choice

* in a small pan mix together the jam and brandy and gently heat
* brush the top of the cake with about 1/2 the jam mixture
* arrange the fruits over the top of the cake and glaze with the rest of the jam.

Mincemeat Pinwheels

I know I could make my own puff pastry, but frankly I can't be bothered when you can buy it ready made!

Ingredients (makes 12)
1 sheet ready made puff pastry
1/3 jar mincemeat

* cut the pastry into squares, approx 8cm
* place 1/2 tsp mincemeat in the centre of each square
* make diagonal cuts from the mincemeat out to the corners of the square
* fold in alternating corners over the mincemeat to create the pinwheel shape.
* transfer to a greased baking sheet and bake at 220C for 10 minutes or until golden
* dust with icing sugar to serve

Christmas cake

I always used to make a really dark, rich cake with the traditional marzipan and royal icing. It tasted great, but it was a bit much. Last year I decided to try something different and came across this recipe from DeliaOnline which is lighter in colour and flavour. The apricots and pineapples make it really fruity.

Ingredients
100g glace pineapple, chopped
175g glace cherries, chopped
225g sultanas
110g dried apricots, chopped
3 tbsp brandy
110g walnuts, chopped
110g candied peel
75g crystallised ginger, chopped
225g butter
80g light muscavado sugar
145g caster sugar
4 eggs
225g plain flour
1tsp ground nutmeg
1tsp ground cinnamon

* mix together the apricots and sultanas with the brandy and leave to soak overnight
* add the other fruits to the bowl and mix well
* cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy
* add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each one
* sift in the flour and spices, and fold in, then fold in the fruits and nuts
* tip the mixture into a lined 20cm round cake tin and level the top
* bake at 170C in the middle of the oven for 1 hour, then cover the top with a double layer of Brown paper, lower the oven temp to 150C and bake for another 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
* leave to cool in the tin

Tuna Potato Cakes

Ingredients (serves 2)
450g potatoes, peeled
Knob of butter
Slosh of milk
Tin tuna chunks, drained
4 Anchovy fillets (optional)
1/2 onion, finely chopped
Salt/pepper

* boil the potatoes for 25 minutes or until cooked
* mash with the butter and milk, and season well
* mix the onion, tuna and anchovy into the potato
* shape the potato mix into cakes and coat with a little flour
* fry until golden

Pineapple and Apricot Quinoa Bake

Ingredients
90g uncooked quinoa
2 tsp cinnamon
250g chopped fruit (I used tinned pineapple and dried apricots)
250g semi-skimmed milk
1 egg
2 tbsp golden (or maple) syrup

* heat oven to 180C and grease and line a loaf tin
* mix the quinoa with the cinnamon and pour into the base of the tin
* arrange the fruit over the quinoa making sure it's well covered
* beat together the milk, egg and syrup and pour it over the fruit layer
* bake for about an hour, or until set 

Great served warm with cream

Egg in a bacon cup

Ingredients (serves 1)
2 rashers bacon
2 eggs

* heat oven to 200C
* put the bacon under the grill, or fry, for a couple of minutes until part cooked
* lightly oil 2 muffin tins and wrap the bacon around the inside
* crack an egg carefully into the centre of each bacon cup, and season
* bake for around 15 minutes, or until the egg is cooked through.

Homemade Pop Tarts

Got this recipe from the website of the wonderful Jack Monroe. If you've not come across her yet I really urge you to check out her website. This recipe is from her series recreating ready meals on a budget and is fab!

I'd never made pastry before. For some reason I was under the impression that it's really hard to get right, but this took under 5 minutes and turned out really well. I plan to make some more - this time with nutella filling and cocoa powder in the icing.

Leek and Potato Soup

I always said that I hated soup, but lately I've realised that what I hate is 'cream of ...' soup, or any soup which has been blitzed completely smooth. Homemade soup with lots of chunky veg in it is actually pretty good and has the advantage of being cheap to make. I forsee a lot of soup in my immediate future.

Ingredients (serves 3-4)
2 leeks, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, chopped
450g potatoes, peeled and chopped
100g pearl barley
1 litre vegetable stock
Herbs, pepper etc to season

* heat 1tsp oil in a large pan and saute the leek, onion and garlic for a couple of minutes
* add the stock, potato and barley and season
* bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for about an hour

Mushroom and chicken stroganoff

I had intended to make a mushroom stroganoff, but I had a load of cooked chicken left from Sunday roast so I threw that in too.

Ingredients (serves 2)

Small onion
150g mushrooms
165g cooked chicken
120ml half fat sour cream
300ml vegetable stock
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chopped garlic
Salt/pepper

* chop the onion and mushroom and fry in a little oil for a couple of minutes
* add the sour cream and stock, paprika and garlic, and season well
* add the cooked chicken
* simmer for 20 minutes then serve with rice

Spicy butternut Squash and pumpkin soup

Ingredients

300g butternut squash, peeled and chopped
150g pumpkin, peeled and chopped
2 carrot, peeled and chopped
Onion, sliced
1 litre vegetable stock 
40g pearl barley
1/2 tsp lazy chilli
1/2 tsp paprika
Herbs
Salt/pepper
Sunflower oil

* mix the squash, pumpkin and carrot with 1 tsp oil in a roasting tin with some herbs eg rosemary and thyme
* roast at 180C for around 25 minutes
* Meanwhile heat 1tsp oil in a large pan and fry the onion for a few minutes until softened
* add the stock and pearl barley, plus chilli and paprika
* when the veg have roasted add them to the soup and simmer for a further 30 minutes.
* season with salt and pepper to taste

Chicken with rice and peas

Ingredients (serves 2)
4 chicken drumsticks
1/2 bottle reggae reggae sauce
150g rice
Tin of coconut milk
1/2 tin kidney beans
Small onion, chopped
Salt/pepper

* marinade the chicken in the reggae reggae sauce for a couple of hours
* heat the oven to 200C and bake the chicken for 30 minutes, turning regularly
* tip the coconut milk into a large pan and top up with water
* Add the onion and season well
* bring to the boil then add the rice, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes
* Add the kidney beans and continue to simmer until the rice is cooked
* Drain, and serve with the chicken

Tarting up the basics 2

Another cheap and cheerful dinner option

Ingredients
1 tin meatballs in tomato sauce
2 mushrooms
1/2 onion
Clove of garlic, crushed
Tomato ketchup
Dried Herbs, eg basil, thyme

* heat a little oil and fry the chopped mushroom and onion for a minute or so
* add the garlic then the tin of meatballs
* Add a good squirt of ketchup and whatever herbs you fancy
* heat through for a few minutes then serve

Beef casserole

Ingredients
250g diced beef
1 onion
1 parsnip
2 carrot
Sweetcorn
Mushrooms
Handful of pearl barley
Beef stock cube
1tbsp plain flour
Thyme

* heat oven to 180C
* heat a little oil in a pan and fry the meat until browned
* stir in the flour, then add half a pint of water and the stock cube
* peel and chop the veg and put into a casserole dish with the pearl barley
* Add the meat and stock. Season and stir well
* cover, and cook in the oven for 90 minutes

Peach cobbler

Ingredients (serves 4)
75g self raising flour
100g caster sugar
120ml milk
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tin sliced peaches
50g blueberries (optional)

* grease a small oven dish and heat oven to 190C
* tip peaches and blueberries into the dish
* mix together the flour and sugar, then beat in the vanilla and milk
* pour the batter over the fruit and bake for 50 minutes

Butterscotch brownies

Ingredients (makes about 18)
225g butter
400g Brown sugar
3 eggs
10ml vanilla extract
240g self raising flour
50g choc chips

* heat oven to 180C
* melt the butter in a large pan then add the sugar and mix well
* allow to cool a little, then beat in the egg and vanilla
* sift in the flour and mix well, then stir in the choc chips (or chopped nuts if you prefer)
* pour the mixture into a greased brownie tin and bake for 30 minutes

Chicken soup

Not exactly a recipe, more of a method. This is a great way to get an extra meal out of a chicken. How meaty your soup ends up depends on how much is left on the carcass. The one I used today was a small chicken with not much meat left do it's more of a chicken flavoured vegetable soup.

Ingredients
1 chicken carcass
Water
Whatever veg you have in the fridge or freezer
Herbs
A couple of big handfuls of pearl barley

* put the chicken carcass in a pan and cover with water. Season well, bring to the boil and cook for around half an hour.
* Drain the liquid off into a bowl, retaining the chicken
* chop up your chosen veg. I used carrot, parsnip, onion, garlic and sweetcorn
* return the stock to the pan. Add the veg and pearl barley. Add whatever herbs and seasoning you fancy.
* pick over the chicken carcass and remove any meat. Add the meat to the soup.
* simmer for an hour, or until everything is cooked

Fruit cake

Ingredients
225g self raising flour
1tsp mixed spice
100g butter or marg
100g caster sugar
175g dried fruit (I used sultanas, cherries and apricots)
2 eggs
2 tbsp milk

* heat oven to 180C and grease a 7 inch cake tin or a loaf tin
* sift the flour and spice into a bowl and rub in the fat until it looks like fine breadcrumbs
* stir in the sugar and fruit
* beat eggs and milk together and mix in to a soft consistency
* pour into the tin and bake for 55 minutes

If the cake sounds bubbly when it comes out of the oven, it's not quite done so give it a few more minutes
Cool the cake in the tin

Reggae Reggae lamb stir fry

We had roast lamb last night, and there was plenty of meat left. This was a quick way to turn some of the leftovers into dinner.

Ingredients (serves 1)
100g roast lamb, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced lengthways
3 mushrooms, sliced
50g broccoli florets
Big dollop reggae reggae (or bbq) sauce

* heat a little oil in a pan
* stir fry the veg for a couple of minutes
* Add the meat and sauce.
* cook until the lamb is heated through and the veg is cooked

I had it with some noodles.

Sweet potato hash

Found this idea on a website called nomnompaleo and thought it looked well worth a try.

Ingredients (serves 1)
1 sweet potato
1 clove garlic
1/2 small onion
Salt/pepper
Oil spray

* finely chop the onion and garlic
* cut the sweet potato into little sticks. I used the julienne blade on my mandolin. Mix the potato with the onion and garlic and season well
* heat a couple of sprays of oil in a pan and fry the potato mixture over a medium-high heat for a few minutes 
* put a lid on the pan and cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the potato has softened.

I had it as a side dish with a couple of sausages and some steamed veg.

Stuffed mushroom

Ingredients (Serves 1)
1 large flat mushroom
1 rasher bacon
1 spring onion
1/2 clove garlic
Breadcrumbs approx 1/2 slice
15g cheese, grated
Salt/pepper/thyme to taste

* lightly grease a small baking dish and heat oven to 180C
* chop bacon, onion and garlic quite finely
* remove stalk from mushroom, finely chop and add to bacon etc
* fry bacon etc until cooked and stir in breadcrumbs. Season
* place mushroom in baking dish and spread over the stuffing mixture
* top with cheese and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Bolognese

Ingredients (serves 4)
400g mince (beef/lamb/pork/quorn depending on your preference)
1 tin tomatoes
1 onion
1 clove garlic
Mushrooms
Basil/oregano/thyme as much as you like
Worcester sauce 1/4 tsp
Big squirt of ketchup
Stock cube to complement mince

* heat a large pan and dry fry the mince, pouring off any fat.
* Add chopped onion, garlic and mushroom and cook for a minute or so
* Add the tomatoes, herbs and other seasonings
* Cook on a low heat for at least half an hour
* serve with pasta

Versatile tomato sauce

This was one of the first things I ever cooked, and at uni it probably formed a quarter of my diet largely due to the simplicity of cooking and the low cost of ingredients.

Ingredients
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
Couple of mushrooms, sliced
1 tin chopped tomatoes
Paprika, basil, thyme, oregano - as much as you like
Ketchup
Salt and pepper

* heat a little oil in a pan and fry the onion, garlic and mushroom for a minute or so.
* Add the tomatoes and a good squirt of ketchup or tomato puree
* Add herbs and seasoning.
* simmer for around 20 minutes

This is a really versatile recipe and forms the basis of a lot of my meals including lasagna, chilli, spag bol etc. It's great just as it is with pasta or can easily be made meaty by adding a tin of tuna or some bacon.

Teriyaki salmon

Ingredients (serves 2)
2 salmon fillets
3 tbsp Soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp honey
1 clove garlic, crushed

* mix the soy sauce, mirin, ginger garlic and honey in a flat dish
* add the salmon fillets and leave to marinade for at least half an hour
* heat and lightly oil a griddle pan, then griddle the salmon until cooked through
* while the salmon cooks, heat the left over marinade in a small pan until reduced and thickened and pour over the salmon to serve. 

I served the salmon with egg noodles, which I stir fried with some thinly sliced carrot, courgette, onion and some cashew nuts and seasoned with soy sauce and chilli. Also good are bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, broccoli or water chestnuts. 

Boulangere potatoes

Ingredients
1 or 2 large potato per person
Small onion, sliced
Clove of garlic, crushed
1/2 pint vegetable stock
Salt and pepper

* Heat oven to 200C
* thinly slice potatoes. I use a mandolin
* Place a layer of potato slices in the base of a lightly greased casserole dish and top with some onion and garlic, and season
* Repeat layering, finishing with a final potato layer
* Pour over the vegetable stick until it comes about half way up the potato layers
* Bake for around 40 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through. Cover with foil if the top is getting too crispy

As a variation, I sometimes mix in sliced swede, parsnip or turnip with the potatoes.

Eggy bread/French toast

Never understood the name 'french toast' considering you fry it, and it's always been called eggy bread in my family.

The rest of my family always insist this should be a savoury dish and they eat it with plenty of ketchup. I think they're wrong and always have it sweet. Maybe this is because I worked at a summer camp in the US when I was 19 and we had French toast with maple syrup for breakfast a couple of times a week.

Ingredients (serves 1)

1 egg

Splash of milk

Large pinch of cinnamon

1 1/2 slices bread

* crack the egg into a flattish dish, add the milk and cinnamon and beat together

* place the bread into the egg mix and let it soak in, turning when necessary

* heat a little oil in a frying pan and cook the bread until golden brown

I like it with golden syrup and sliced banana. Mmm...

Carbonara

This has been a favourite 'home alone' lunch for years. I think I first got the recipe from one of my student cookbooks.

Ingredients (serves 1)
75g tagliatelle or spaghetti
1 egg, beaten and seasoned
1 rasher bacon, sliced
3 mushrooms, sliced
1 spring onion, sliced
Cheese, grated (as much as you want)
Sweetcorn (optional)

* Cook pasta to packet instructions, adding sweetcorn if wanted
* Meanwhile, fry bacon, onion and mushroom together
* Drain the pasta, return to the pan then add the bacon etc, beaten egg and cheese
* Stir well. The heat of the pasta will cook the egg. Finish with a generous amount of black pepper. 

Don't be tempted to put the pan back on the heat or you might end up with scrambled egg!

Nutella Biscuits

Ingredients (makes approx 25)
200g nutella
110g caster sugar
120g self raising flour
1 egg

* heat oven to 180C
* mix all the ingredients together thoroughly
* roll the dough into balls of about 2cm in diameter
* place the balls on a greased baking sheet and press down to flatten somewhat, leaving space for them to spread
* bake for 10 minutes or so

I didn't have quite enough nutella so I used half nutella and half chocolate and caramel spread.

Tarting up the basics

I'm a big fan of supermarket value ranges. Being on a fairly tight budget, they are an absolute life saver and 'basic' doesn't have to mean boring.

A fave easy dinner involves livening up a tin of value chicken in white sauce.

Ingredients (serves 2 or 3)
1 can value chicken in white sauce
1 small onion
1 clove garlic
5 mushrooms
1/2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
Slosh of white wine (optional)
Salt and pepper
Oil

* heat a little oil in a pan, and lightly fry the chopped onion and garlic for a couple of minutes
* Add the mushrooms, then slosh in some white wine, if using.
* Add the tin of chicken and heat through
* Add the mustard and season to taste.

We had it on tagliatelle. Really quick and easy, and much nicer than just heating up the tin on its own.

Egg in the basket

Ingredients (serves 1)
1 slice bread
1 egg
1 tsp oil

* using a biscuit cutter, or knife, make a hole in the middle of the bread. (save the bit you cut out)
* heat the oil in a frying pan, add the bread and then crack the egg into the hole
* fry, turning when necessary, until the egg is cooked

I also fry the left over circle of bread at the same time. No sense wasting it!

Creamy tomato pasta bake

Had some veggies in the fridge that needed using up, so this was an obvious dinner choice.

Ingredients (serves 2)
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 courgette
1 yellow pepper
8 mushrooms
150g penne pasta
Tin chopped tomatoes
Herbs - thyme, oregano, basil, black pepper
1 tbsp ketchup
Slosh of worcester sauce
50ml natural yogurt
Olive oil
Cheddar cheese

* heat oven to 200C
* cut the veggies into chunks, drizzle with oil in a roasting tin, and bake for 20 - 30 minutes
* Cook the pasta according to pack instructions
* tip the tomatoes into a pan, add ketchup, Worcester sauce and herbs to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes then stir in the yogurt
* mix the drained pasta, tomato sauce and veg in an ovenproof dish and top with as much cheese as you fancy
* bake for 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly, then serve

If I had a bottle of red wine open, I would add a splash to the tomato sauce. Works well with tuna or bacon added.

Banana Bread

Don't know why we call it bread when it's clearly a cake, but this is a classic way to use up over-ripe bananas.

Ingredients
225g caster sugar
2 ripe bananas, mashed
115g butter, softened
60ml milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, beaten
240g self raising flour
1/2 tsp salt

* heat oven to 180C and grease a loaf tin
* put the first 6 ingredients into a large bowl and beat thoroughly until well combined
* stir in the flour and salt
* pour the batter into the loaf tin and bake for 50-60 minutes
* allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack

Chopped nuts or chocolate chips are a nice addition.

Jambalaya

Probably not remotely authentic, but it tastes good to me.

Ingredients (serves 2)
150g long grain rice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 small onion, chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
4 sausages, chopped
1 tin chopped tomatoes
Splosh of white wine
1tsp paprika
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp lazy red chilli
1 tsp olive oil

* heat oil in a pan and add the vegetables. Cook for a minute or so
* Add the chunks of sausage and cook for another minute, then add the rice and herbs/spices
* Add a good splosh of wine, then the tinned tomatoes. Add some water if it looks too thick
* cover, and cook until most of the liquid had been absorbed and the rice is cooked.

Also works well with chicken or prawns.

Turkey in creamy chive sauce

This is a recipe I got from Jillian Michaels' website, and adapted slightly.

Ingredients (serves 4)

4 Turkey (or chicken) Escalopes
1 teaspoon salt
Ground black pepper
1/4 cup plain flour
3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion finely chopped
Handful of mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
14 ounces chicken stock
1/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
Bunch of chives, chopped

• Season both sides of the turkey with salt and pepper. Place 1/4 cup flour in a shallow glass baking dish and coat the turkey in it. Discard the excess flour.
• Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, cover and keep warm.
• Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and mushrooms and cook, stirring constantly and scraping up any browned bits, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour; stir to coat. Add wine, stock and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil, stirring often.
• Return the turkey and any juices to the pan, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until heated through and no longer pink in the center, about 6 minutes. Stir in sour cream and mustard until smooth; turn the chicken to coat with the sauce. Stir in chives and serve immediately.

 I served it with some broad beans and spring greens which I steamed and then sauteed for a couple of minutes with a clove of garlic.

Smoked Salmon Pasta

A quick dinner idea.

Ingredients (serves 2)
150g tagliatelle
1 pack smoked Salmon trimmings
1/2 pack soft cheese with garlic and herbs
Splash of milk

* Cook pasta according to instructions
* Meanwhile, heat soft cheese in a small pan, adding as much milk as necessary to achieve a sauce-like consistency
* Add the salmon trimmings to the sauce and heat through
* Drain the pasta and mix with the sauce

Packed Lunch

When I was a kid, packed lunch meant a sandwich (usually ham or cheese on white bread) a bag of crisps and a chocolate biscuit. That was fine, but my tastes have changed over time.

My best mate and I went for a 10 mile walk yesterday and decided to take food with us rather than pay for a pub lunch. I opted for houmus, veggies and pitta bread, plus some fruit and a cereal bar. Very nice and kept me full for ages.

In praise of tinned fish

I always have tins of fish in my store cupboard as they are so useful for quick, easy meals.

Tuna is really versatile, as a sandwich filling, topping for a jacket potato, pasta sauce ingredient - the possibilities are endless!

I love anchovies, especially on pizza but they are also essential in a nicoise salad and work really well in bolognese sauce.

Sardines or pilchards in tomato sauce are my quickest lunch option. Warmed up, with a bit of sweetcorn and pepper, they are great on toast and that's what I had today.

Omelette

Not exactly a recipe, so much as a general method.

Ingredients (serves 1)
2 eggs
Splash of milk
Salt/pepper
1 spring onion
1 mushroom
1 rasher bacon
Chunk of courgette

* thinly slice the veg and bacon
* beat eggs and milk together and season to taste
* heat 1tsp oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and cook the veg etc
* pour over the eggs and cook for a couple of minutes, lifting the edges to allow uncooked egg to run underneath
* Cook the top under a hot grill if necessary

Magic Peanut Butter Cookies

'Magic' because they don't contain any flour.

Ingredients (makes about 20)
270g crunchy peanut butter
170g sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

* heat oven to 180C
* mix all ingredients together in a big bowl
* roll mixture into balls the size of walnuts
* place balls on a greased baking tray and press a criss-cross pattern into the top with a fork
* bake for 10 minutes and cool on the tray for at least 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack

Sausage Surprise

This has been a fave of my daughter's for years, and cooks in next to no time. It was something my mum used to cook with her Guides and my dad always said the 'surprise' is that it tastes pretty good. :-)

Ingredients (serves 1)
1 pack super noodles
2 or 3 hot dog sausages, sliced
Handful frozen peas or sweetcorn

* Cook noodles according to pack instructions, adding the sausages and veg at the start

Any flavour of noodles works, but we usually use mild curry.

Corned Beef Hash

Not the prettiest or healthiest meal ever, but very satisfying.

Ingredients (serves 2)
1 tin corned beef, cut into cubes
200g new potatoes, cut into cubes, unpeeled
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp whole grain mustard
1.5 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt/pepper
Oil and butter for frying

* parboil the potatoes for about 5 minutes
* fry the onion and garlic in a little oil for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned and softened
* put the corned beef in a bowl with the mustard, worcestershire sauce and onion/garlic. Season to taste and mix well, then tip into an ovenproof dish
* heat a knob of butter with a little oil in a pan, then fry the potatoes until golden and arrange on top of the corned beef mixture
* place under a preheated grill for 5-8 minutes, then serve

My daughter likes hers topped with a poached egg.

Nicoise Salad

Another light and easy lunch idea. I think a proper nicoise is meant to have potatoes and green beans, but I don't bother with them when it's for lunch. I expect there should also be some form of vinaigrette dressing, but I don't like salad dressings. I do like anchovies though.

Ingredients
Salad (own preference)
Hard boiled egg
Tin of tuna, drained
Anchovies

Assemble salad ingredients and top with fish and egg.

Creamy Avocado Pasta

Use a really ripe, squishy avocado for a creamy sauce.

Ingredients (serves 2)
10 or 12 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp olive oil
150g tagliatelle or spaghetti
1 ripe avocado
1 clove garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
Handful of pine nuts, toasted
Parmesan to serve

* Preheat oven to 150C
* Put the tomatoes on a baking tray, drizzle with 1 tbsp oil and bake for 30 minutes
* Just before the tomatoes are done, begin cooking the pasta as per packet instructions
* While the pasta cooks, put 1 tbsp olive oil, avocado flesh, chopped garlic, salt and lemon juice in a bowl and mash with a fork until smooth and well combined. Alternatively whizz it up in a food processor.
* Drain the pasta and combine with the sauce.
* Top with the roasted tomatoes, pine nuts and parmesan.

For a meaty addition, a couple of slices of smoked grilled bacon cut into strips works very well.

Simple Wrap Pizza

Not a recipe, so much as an idea/general method. This is one of my fave quick lunches and could easily serve 2 if you had a decent salad with it.

Heat oven to 200C
Place wrap on a baking tray and top with a thin layer of tomato puree or ketchup
Add pizza toppings of your choice. Mine today had ham, mushroom and basil.
Top with cheese (ideally mozzarella, but cheddar works pretty well)
Bake for about 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted

Egg Fried Rice

Ingredients (serves 2)

100g Long Grain Rice

Handful frozen peas

2 Spring Onions, chopped

1 egg

1 tbsp Soy Sauce

Ground Black Pepper

1 tsp olive oil

• Cook the rice in advance (earlier in the day, or even the night before), drain, rinse under cold running water and leave to cool.
• Heat the oil in a wok and lightly fry the spring onions for a minute or so
• Add the rice and peas and cook for a few minutes until heated through.
• Beat the egg with the soy sauce and pepper, then pour over the rice and stir continually until the egg is thoroughly mixed into the rice and cooked.

No Bake Lasagne

This recipe is from Martha Stewart, so for the full instructions click HERE.

I mostly made this because I'd just been given a pasta machine for my birthday and thought lasagne would be a good place to start, before we ventured into the realms of tagliatelle. It actually worked really well, although the portions ended up being HUGE because we'd made rather a lot of pasta and I didn't want to waste it.

Will definitely make this one again.

Cream Egg Brownies

Not very seasonal right now, but they work equally well as ordinary brownies without the cream eggs.

Ingredients
185g Unsalted Butter
185g Dark Chocolate
85g Plain Flour
40g Cocoa Powder
3 lg Eggs
275g Caster Sugar
6 Cream Eggs cut in half. I froze mine to make them easier to cut

• Pre-heat oven to 160C and grease a brownie tin
• Melt together the butter and chocolate in a bowl over boiling water, then leave to cool down a bit.
• Beat together the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until they go thick and creamy. The mixture should have roughly doubled in size and gone quite pale
• Pour the chocolate mixture onto the egg/sugar mixture and fold together gently.
• Sift the flour and cocoa powder onto the egg/sugar/chocolate mix and fold in until well mixed and an even colour.
• Pour into the baking tin and cook for 15 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and gently press the cream egg halves into the brownies, spacing them evenly.
• Return to oven and continue to bake for another 5-10 minutes.
• Leave to cool in the tin before cutting into individual brownies.

Very naughty but incredibly nice!

Refrigerator oatmeal

I admit, it looks a bit like sick but trust me - it tastes really good. This is another one of those recipes that seems to be all over the place at the moment and its appeal for me was that you make it up in advance, stick it in the fridge and then have nothing to do in the morning except eat it! A lot of the recipes I've seen include chia seeds and I was going to try them but have so far not been able to find them in any of the local supermarkets. Might take a look in the health food shop at some point, but to be honest it tastes great as it is.

Ingredients
1/4 cup Rolled Oats
1/3 cup Natural Yogurt
1/4 cup Skimmed or Semi-skimmed Milk
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
Fruit of your choice - I like frozen mixed summer berries as they are cheap and available all year round.

• In a lidded container (eg small kilner jar), mix all the ingredients together thoroughly.
• Refrigerate overnight, then eat!

It keeps in the fridge for a day or two and is a great quick summer breakfast.

Egg in an Avocado

I'd seen this idea a few times on various websites, so thought I should give it a go since eggs and avocados are amongst my favourite things.

Ingredients
1/2 Avocado
1 small egg
salt/pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 200C
2. Remove stone from avocado and scoop out a little extra flesh to make space for the egg. I didn't make more space and had some major egg white overflow issues!
3. Put avocado into a baking dish. I made it a little 'nest' out of foil to help keep it level.
4. Carefully crack egg into the hole and season.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, depending on how 'set' you want the egg to be.

As you can see from the piccy, I ate mine with a couple of grilled potato cakes. Really tasty and filled me up for ages.