Stuffed Pumpkin: Saffron & orange cous-cous

Ingredients Pinch saffron, zest & juice of 1 orange, paprika, chilli powder, giant/Israeli cous-cous

Preparation: 45 minutes

Halloween is a comin' and I'm filled with festive ideas for serving food. These TEENY PUMPKINS are adorable but there's not a lot of good eating in them, so they're merely a receptacle for this exotic mixture of meltingly soft giant cous-cous and tangy spices.

1) Slice the top from your munchkin pumpkin and carve out the flesh and seeds.

2) Roast in the oven for 25 minutes and set aside.

3) To make the filling - Pour the cous-cous into a pan of boiling water with a pinch of saffron and stir through for 6-8 minutes before straining in a sieve. Stir in the orange zest, iuice paprika and chilli powder.

4) Spoon the filling into the munchkin pumpkin and bake for a further 15 minutes before serving.

Red rice burgers

Ingredients 1 cup Red rice, 1 bell pepper, white onion, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp coriander, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, butter, 1 garlic clove, 1 egg

Serves: 4 Preparation: 1 hour

I went to London as a teenager on a theatre trip with some school friends, and on the final night, I ordered a brown rice burger for dinner. It was the first time I'd ever had one and to this day it remains one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten. It took me 14 years to dare to recreate it (with my own spin, naturally) as I was worried that it would never live up to the glorious burger of my memory. I'm pleased to say that this spicy, juicy burger is even better. Give it a try.

1) Cover the rice with salted boiling water and, stirring frequently, simmer for 30 minutes, adding more water if necessary.

2) Remove the core and seeds from a bell pepper and finely dice it. Peel and finely dice a white onion, and crush a clove of garlic.

3) Fry off the onion in a little butter, then add the pepper and garlic along with the spices and sizzle on a low heat for 20 minutes until completely soft.

4) Add the cooked rice, straining off any remaining water in the pan and stir to incorporate. Set aside to cool just enough for you to be able to handle the mixture.

5) Whisk an egg and stir into the rice, then form patties with your hands, or by pressing into a circle mould. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 200 degrees and serve with salad and the condiments of your choice in a bread bap.

Lavender curry

Ingredients 400g Coconut milk, 1 tsp lavender, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp coriander seeds, 1 white onion, 400g spinach, 1 courgette, butter or ghee, 2 cloves garlic

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

My personal curry tastes appeal more to the Thai style "soupy" green curries, but lavender could be used in a thicker Indian style Korma sauce if you prefer.
The exotic fragrance and flavour works in the same way coriander or mint does to cut the spices, and as in previous recipes - lavender is a perfect partner to coconut.

1) Grind the lavender with the spices in a mortar and pestle and set aside.

2) Finely dice the onion and add to the pan with the butter or ghee. Cook until the onions are soft, then add the garlic and spices and stir through.

3) Slice the courgette and cut each slice into quarters. Add to the pan and stir through, before adding the coconut milk.

4) Turn down the heat and allow to simmer gently until the courgette has begin to soften. Add the spinach and stir through until it has wilted, though not begun to lose its colour. Serve with rice or naan bread.

Curly fries with avocado & cucumber mousse‏

Ingredients 1 avocado, 1/4 cucumber, mint, salt, potato, polenta, cayenne pepper

Preparation: 10 minutes

This recipe is unusual for me in that I am using equipment that few people are likely to have. This blog is aimed at people who want to learn to make very simple, but gorgeous food using ingredients that are widely available and do not require speciality equipment. I recently bought a spiralizer, which cuts vegetables into... you've guessed it... spiral strands or strips so that one can make curly fries or vegetable spaghetti so whether you want my recipe for the perfect spiral fries, or want to just make this delicious, fresh mousse... here you go!

1) 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 with 2-3 mint leaves and 1/4 of a peeled cucumber then blitz thoroughly.

2) Season to taste with salt and chopped mint. This goes beautifully with something spicy - if you don't have a spiralizer, try seasoning potato or sweet potato wedges instead to dunk into it.

3) To make the curly fries: spiralize the potato and add to a bowl. Dust with polenta and shake the bowl until the potato is covered. Deep fry for 3-4 minutes and season with salt and cayenne pepper.

Spelt-otto: Orange & saffron

Ingredients   1 pint vegetable stock, 1/2 white onion, butter, 1 orange, pinch saffron, salt, paprika, chilli powder, Pimms, 1 cup spelt

Serves: 2 preparation: 25 minutes

All risottos (no matter what the ingredients) can be made in 3 simple stages. The first is called tostatura - coating the rice in fat, the second involves cooking off some alcohol and the third involves releasing the starch from the rice one ladle of stock at a time. It's this process of releasing starch into a sauce which makes a risotto a risotto and I was delighted to learn that spelt (a kind of wheat) can also be used. It has a fabulous texture and flavour and really brings out the sweet hay-like scent of saffron. I read recently that monks used saffron as a treatment for melancholy and this struck me as good inspiration for the exotic Eastern combination of orange and chilli.


1) Soak the spelt in cold water for 5 minutes

2) Finely dice the onion and sautee in a little butter until soft. Drain the water from the spelt and stir into the onions. 

3) Add a glug of Pimms and the juice and zest of one orange. Once the alcohol cooks off, add the first ladle of stock along with a pinch of saffron and stir through.

4) Continue adding the stock to the risotto, one ladle at a time until the spelt has fluffed up and softened. Add paprika and chilli powder to taste and serve.

Stuffed Cabbage: Giant cous-cous, pepper & tomato

Ingredients 6 Savoy cabbage leaves, 2 bell peppers, 6 baby plum tomatoes, 1 cup Giant (aka Israeli) cous-cous (I bought mine fromMillie's Organic in Leeds), Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt, mozarella, 1 tsp chilli powder, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp tomato puree.

Serves: 3 preparation: 30

I often get dejected emails from people who cannot or choose not to eat products containing flour and I'm always surprised by how many of them do not ever think of wrapping the contents of a sandwich in iceberg lettuce rather than bread or a tortilla, or don't think of using a razor thin shaving of courgette or other vegetables to replace pasta in tagliatelle or cannelloni. The same goes for the humble cabbage leaf. I would far rather use savoy cabbage over vine leaves - they taste fantastic, they're more robust and easier to handle and the fabulous wrinkly texture is perfect for stuffing because all the little nooks and crannies are filled. This dish has a gorgeous creamy sauce on the outside and a richer, slightly spicy centre.

1) Pour the cous-cous into a pan of boiling salted water and stir through for 6-8 minutes before straining in a sieve and setting aside to cool.

2) Slice the tops from the bell peppers and remove the seeds. Remove the portions of flesh from between the membranes and slice into strips. Roast in the oven along with the whole tomatoes for 15 minutes at 200 degrees, drizzled with a little oil.

3) Peel and crush the garlic and sautee in a little butter along with the spices and tomato puree, then stir in the peppers and tomatoes and the cous-cous.

4) Blanch the cabbage leaves in hot, salted water for 5 minutes, then plunge into ice-cold water so that the leaves retain their colour.

5) Dry thoroughly (I found shaking them outside before patting them with kitchen roll to be the easiest way) and spoon 2 tablespoons of the mixture into the centre. Roll up as you would a burrito and place seam side down in a casserole dish - as below.

6) Grate mozarella into Greek yoghurt and spoon over as much as you wish. Rather than completely covering the cabbage, I thought a tablespoon and a half or so on top of each leaf to be sufficient. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes until the sauce bubbles and serve!

Chachouka

Ingredients 2 bell peppers, 10 baby plum tomatoes, 1 white onion, 2 cloves garlic, 200g spinach, 2 eggs, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp coriander, 1/2 tsp paprika, pinch saffron, 1 tsp chilli powder, olive oil, butter

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

Chachouka is a North-African casserole - I remember strings of melting soft onion, spices and the sharpness of the saffron and tomato under creamy egg yolk the first time I tried it in Paris, years ago. Because, as you know, I loathe onion - I've added spinach to the mix with fabulous results.

1) Slice the tops from the bell peppers and remove the seeds. Remove the portions of flesh from between the membranes and slice into strips. Roast in the oven along with the whole tomatoes for 15 minutes at 200 degrees, drizzled with a little oil.

2) Peel and slice the onion, then break into rings. Sautee in a little butter along with the spices on a medium heat for 15 minutes, adding the garlic at the last 2.

3) Stir in the spinach, pepper and tomatoes, then transfer to an ovenproof dish. Press wells into the surface with a tablespoon and crack the eggs into them. Bake in the oven until the egg white has just turned opaque, then serve.

Sweet potato & feta burrito

Ingredients 1 sweet potato, 100g feta, 1/4 cucumber, tortilla, cumin, paprika, chilli powder, onion powder, dried coriander, Hummus: Chickpeas, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, sesame seeds

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

Now that the summer months are approaching, I'm looking forward to sitting outdoors to eat a refreshing, light lunch instead of huddled in the warmth of the office eating leftovers from the night before. This combination of soft, spicy sweet potato, crunchy cucumber, tangy feta and smooth savoury hummus is the perfect filling for a soft tortilla.


1) To make your own hummus, see previous recipe.


2) Slice the sweet potato into chunks and drizzle with olive oil before tossing in a bowl with the dry spices so that the potato is coated evenly.


3) Roast in the oven, skin side down for 20 minutes then set aside to cool.


4) Slice the feta and cucumber into chunks of similar size and along with the  sweet potato spoon on the centre of the tortilla in a straight line. I think this works best by pressing it onto a layer of hummus, though you could dollop hummus over it instead of course.


5) To fold the burrito, take the left and right side and lift to ensure the contents are dead centre, then first fold the bottom over the contents, then the left and right sides and tuck in the top. This will keep it all intact in your lunchbox. Serve cold.

Creamed cabbage & potato cakes

Ingredients Pistachio, chilli & lime potato cakes, irish cheddar, cabbage, leeks, double cream, butter, black pepper

Serves: 2 preparation: 10 minutes


When I make potato cakes, I tend to like thick almost scone-like cakes that are crispy on the outside and meltingly perfect mash in the middle. On the rare occasion that I have "proper" flat potato cakes, I like to treat them as toast. In honour of St Patrick's Day (because what's more Irish than potatoes and cabbage?) I have created this creamed cabbage, cheddar and leek concoction to serve them with.


1) For instructions on making potato cakes see my previous recipe.


2) Dice the cabbage and leeks, then sautee in a little butter for 5 minutes, adding a tiny splash of cream once the leeks are soft.


3) Stir through some grated Irish cheddar and season well with black pepper.

Serve on the toasty hot potato cake

Dukkah with romanesco broccoli

Ingredients     Sesame seeds, pistachios, himalayan pink sea salt, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, black peppercorns, paprika, chilli powder, cumin seeds, romanesco broccoli, pumpkin oil, basil oil.

Serves: 5 preparation: 10 minutes


I'm introducing three elements to you with this recipe. Firstly Dukkah, an absolutely stunningly delicious Egyptian dry spice mix which is usually served with bread and dipping oils. Secondly pumpkin oil which I bought at the incredible Cornucopia at Leeds Corn Exchange this week. It's a fabulous healthy oil made from dry roasted cold pressed pumpkin seeds which is evocative of sesame oil but FAR nicer. As soon as I tasted it, I knew it would change Dukkah for me forever. Thirdly, romanesco broccoli which is a gorgeous vegetable comprising of fractal spirals of crunchiness with a creamy flavour somewhere in between broccoli and cauliflower. I can rarely bear to cook it, instead preferring to admire the vivid green colour and sink my teeth into it. I chose to dunk the florets into the pumpkin oil and dukkah today and may never eat it with bread again! YUM!


1) Add equal quantities of the seeds and nuts to a hot pan and toast them off for 1-2 minutes or until the mustard seeds begin to pop.


2) Transfer to a mortar and pestle along with the sea salt, paprika, chilli powder and black peppercorns and grind until you have a rough, gritty powder.


Dukkah can be kept sealed in a jar in the cupboard for some time and makes a fabulous, fabulous dry rub for meat. I mixed the pumpkin oil with a little basil oil to bring out the sweetness of the romanesco broccoli.

Pistachio, chilli & lime potato cakes

Ingredients  leftover mashed potatoes, 100g pistachios, 2 limes, 1 tbsp chilli powder, white flour, olive oil.

Serves: 2 preparation: 10 minutes


Of all the exotic and delicious foods that I cook on a daily basis for your viewing pleasure, if you were to ask me what my favourite food is, I would probably answer mashed potato. Whenever I was poorly as a little girl my mum used to make me mashed potatoes and let me lay on the sofa under a duvet watching Disney films with a bowl of pure comfort. Leftover mashed potato isn't a regular occurrence in this house but on the occasions that I've made far too much I love to make potato cakes with it - and these tangy, spicy little lumps of heaven are spectacular.


1) Grind the pistachio in a mortar and pestle (or pulse in the blender) - until you have a good mix of fine crumbs and chunks, then stir into the mashed potato along with the lime juice and the chilli.


2) Season well and form into patties, then dust with flour. Personally I like them as you see, quite thick and scone like but it's more traditional to have them about half the size...


3) Drizzle a little olive oil in a frying pan and drop in the potato. Using a fishslice or a wooden spatula, turn them frequently until the surface is crisp and serve!