Spinach & avocado soup

Ingredients 800g spinach, 1/2 nutmeg, 1 onion, 1 avocado, 1 potato, 1 tsp avocado oil.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 20 minutes

I love soup. I find all the chopping, stirring and pureeing very soothing, the warm smells that fill the house comforting, and I love ladling out steamy bowls of soup for people to dunk hot crispy bread into, dressing it with ever more creative croutons or swirls of cream and yoghurt. This soup is so thick and glossy and brimming with super-healthy spinach and avocado to keep those winter colds at bay.


1) Peel and finely dice the onion and the potato. Add the onion and avocado oil to a pan and allow to soften (about 5 minutes if you've chopped it finely enough) before adding the potato and enough water just to cover them (ideally about 1/4 pint)

2) When the potatoes are soft (about 10 minutes), add the spinach to the pan in installments, stirring well as it wilts down. Remove from the heat and strain the liquid away from the other ingredients (do not discard).

3) Halve the avocado around the stone and twist it apart. Remove the stone and scoop the avocado flesh from the shell. Add to a blender and blitz thoroughly. Add the contents of the pan and puree, adding a little of the liquid at a time until the desired consistency is reached. I like a good, thick soup but this is entirely your preference.

4) Stir in about half of a freshly grated nutmeg (don't ever bother with the powdered stuff - it tastes and smells of nothing!) with half a teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper (and salt if you wish, though I never do) to season, and serve.

Artichoke baked beans

Ingredients 1 artichoke, 1 tsp dried/chopped avocado oil, 1 can cannellini beans, 1 bulb garlic.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 1 hour

When artichokes are out of season, or if I don't have the time or inclination - these are one of the few ingredients that I am happy to cheat with and buy in a jar. Marinated artichokes keep for a long time in the fridge and add rich, slithery flavour to all manner of dishes. But making your own is of course always more satisfying and delicious. These beans are utterly lovely and great on toast or with proper baked potatoes.

1) Break the stem of the artichoke as close to the base as you can, then put the artichoke head first into a pan of hot, salted water and keep it submerged with an upturned pan lid (or plate). It will take 20-30 minutes to cook until tender - test the base with a knife - if it goes in smoothly it's ready!

2) Roast the entire bulb of garlic in the oven for 20 minutes, then carefully peel and squeeze the cloves through a garlic press and into the oil. Add the basil and oregano and set aside until the artichoke is ready.

3) Slice the petals from the artichoke heart and leave to marinate in the flavoured oil. (I tend to scoff the hearts immediately but these can of course also be marinated!)

4) All of the previous instructions can be done in advance, or omitted if using a jar of marinated artichokes. Parboil the beans for 5 minutes in hot salted water, then drain and add the artichokes and a little (about a tablespoon) of the oil marinade to the pan. Allow to simmer until the beans are soft (usually another 5 minutes) then serve hot or cold.

Avocado dauphinoise

Ingredients 1 avocado, 1 large King Edward potato, avocado oil, cheddar.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 30 minutes

I absolutely adore dauphinoise potatoes. The taste, the texture, the utter indulgence... I don't know anyone that doesn't like it. (Come on, out of the woodwork with you then! Prove me wrong!) The only thing that ever makes me hesitate about eating it, is the fat content. So much cream, so much cheese... it's so very naughty. I have recently been somewhat obsessed with avocado, and made it my mission to feature it in this healthy alternative to dauphinoise potatoes - less carbs, no fatty sauce, yet no compromising on texture.

1) Slice your potatoes finely with a mandolin or a knife. Brush lightly with avocado oil (you can use olive oil if you don't have any) and bake for 15 minutes on a high heat.

2) Halve the avocados and scoop the fruit from the shell, discarding the stone. Slice into approximately 1/2 centimetre thick slices.

3) I used vintage cheddar for this recipe, a good strong flavour, but this is entirely according to taste. You could use a diet cheddar, but for the right texture, it's really got to be a relatively waxy cheese. Slice about 1/2 centimetre thick.

4) Starting with a slice of potato, layer the avocado and cheese between slices of potato. You could fill a ramekin or individual circle moulds, or make a larger version in a casserole dish.

5) Bake for 5-10 minutes until the top slice of potato begins to crisp, and the cheese has melted. Serve hot or cold.

Southern Comfort fajitas

Ingredients 300g Quorn steak strips (or beef steak strips), southern comfort, tomato passata, 1 white onion, iceberg lettuce, soured cream, butter, jalepenos, cumin, cheddar, tortillas, Guacamole: 3 avocados, jalepeno, lime, coriander, soured cream, avocado oil.

Serves: 6 preparation: 20 minutes

I have never been a fan of Southern Comfort - the smell turns my stomach and I find the taste too sweet. Usually when cooking Mexican food I use tequila but a lack of tequila and the dregs of a bottle of SoCo that someone brought to a party recently made me wonder if the fruity, spicy flavour would work well as an alternative. Turns out it did! Enjoy...


1) To make guacamole, see my previous recipe.


2) Marinate the Quorn in Southern Comfort for about 5 or 10 minutes (it's like a sponge and will soak it right up - if you're using beef you might want to make it an hour beforehand).


3) Peel and finely dice the onion and sautee in a little butter until completely soft. Add the Quorn and any excess Southern Comfort and cook off the alcohol.


4) Add a little tomato passata, cumin and some chopped jalepenos to taste


5) Serve with shredded iceberg lettuce, grated cheddar, guacamole and some soured cream in a tortilla.

Avocado & pea soup

Ingredients 1 can marrowfat peas, 3 avocados, 2 tablespoons vanilla yoghurt, parsley, 1/2 pint vegetable stock, avocado oil.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 20 minutes

This soup is thick and velvety and amazingly comforting to eat - a definite winter favourite.

1) Pour the can of marrowfat peas into a pan and simmer for 5 minutes, strain the peas from the juice and put the juice back into the pan along with the half pint of vegetable stock and stir through.

2) Halve the avocados and scoop the fruit from the shell, discarding the stone. Pulse the avocado in the blender along with 2 tablespoons of Rachel's organic vanilla yoghurt (this may sound strange but trust me, it works!)

3) Add the peas into the blender and blitz through until they have been fully incorporated, then pass the pea, avocado and yoghurt mix through a sieve and back into the pan. This removes the shells from the peas and gives the soup that wonderful smooth, moussy texture.

4) Simmer on a low heat for a further 5 minutes and then serve, sprinkled with parsley and a dollop of yoghurt.

Avocado & pink grapefruit salad

Ingredients 1 avocado, 1 pink grapefruit, rocket, tsp balsamic vinegar, tsp avocado oil, feta

Serves: 2 Preparation: 10 minutes


I adore grapefruit. It's so refreshing and vibrantly coloured and better yet it's an acquired taste that I grew up wanting to like because my mother did so there's always that tiny sense of achievement that I trained myself to love it. It's the perfect partner to creamy avocado and this salad is a definite favourite of mine.


1) Slice the avocado in half and use a tablespoon to scoop it from the shell. If the avocado is ripe enough the stone will pop out with a spoon but another good method is to prick it with a knife and pull it out. Slice the avocado into segments.


2) Peeling a grapefruit is best done with a chef's knife - peel through the thick skin and white pith until the pink of the fruit is revealed. Remove the segments by cutting into the natural sections of the fruit and popping them out with your knife.


3) Toss your rocket in a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar and avocado oil, then arrange the grapefruit and avocado over the top - this salad is perfect just as it is but I like to also add a little goats cheese to bring out the tang of the grapefruit.

Bacon and avocado rolls

Ingredients Smoked bacon, 1 avocado, bread, lettuce leaves, 4 eggs, lemon juice, salt, 1 pint avocado oil, pine nuts

1) Separate 4 egg yolks from the whites (discard the whites) and put in a large clean bowl to whisk (or use the whisk attachment on your blender if you have one). Add the lemon juice/vinegar, a pinch of salt and whisk thoroughly.
Now add the avocado oil ONE DROP at a time until the mayonnaise is thick and glossy. You don't have to use all the oil - I like it quite thick but if it's too thick you can always add a little warm water to thin it back down again.
Spread the mayo onto lightly buttered bread.

2) Grill the bacon until it is just crisp and served in the bread roll on a bed of sliced avocado and fresh lettuce leaves.

Guacamole

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Ingredients 3 avocados, jalepeno, lime, coriander, soured cream, avocado oil.

1) Slice the avocados in half, remove the stones and scoop the flesh from the shell with a spoon.

2) Deseed and finely dice a jalepeno and add it, along with the avocado and a squeeze of lime juice to a blender.

3) Pulse the avocado thoroughly, adding a teaspoon of soured cream and a handful of chopped coriander halfway through, and a splash of avocado oil to make it glossy.

Traditionally served with tortilla chips - I used Fudge's delicious cheese and black pepper flatbreads.

Tempura avocado

Ingredients Plain flour, 1 egg, 2 avocados, olive oil.

Tempura batter is made extra crispy due to the effect of icy cold batter and very hot oil. Before you make the batter, make sure you thoroughly refridgerate 1 cup of water and add it at the very last minute when the oil is hot. If you like a lot of batter (which I do not) then I would recommend frying the avocado twice, dipping it in a second layer of batter.

1) To make the batter whisk 1 cup of plain flour, 1 egg and 1 cup of ice water. Keep the batter a little lumpy rather thank whisk it completely smooth.

2) Shell the avocado and slice into slivers. Dip the avocado into the batter and drop into a pan of boiling oil (I used an inch deep of avocado oil. You can obviously use a deep fat fryer if you own one). Retrieve the avocado with a slotted spoon after 20-30 seconds and serve.

This goes perfectly with my aioli or sweet chilli sauce.

Aioli

Ingredients 2 garlic cloves, 4 eggs, lemon juice/white wine vinegar, salt, pepper, 1 pint oil (olive or vegetable - I'm using avocado oil today)

1) Separate 4 egg yolks from the whites (discard the whites) and put in a large clean bowl to whisk (or use the whisk attachment on your blender if you have one).

2) Add the lemon juice/vinegar, a pinch of salt and whisk thoroughly. 

4) Crush 2 cloves of garlic and sautee in a teaspoon of butter. Add to the eggs and lemon juice and whisk thorougly.

5) Now add the oil ONE DROP at a time until the mayonnaise is thick and glossy. You don't have to use all the oil - I like it quite thick but if it's too thick you can always add a little warm water to thin it back down again.

Aioli is fabulous as a dip with chunky chips (recipe inspired by one of my culinary heroes Heston Blumenthal) or with my tempura avocado.