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.

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.

Lamb, mint & almond meatballs

Ingredients    500g Lamb mince, mint, 6 tbsp toasted ground almonds, 1/2 small white onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp cumin, coriander seeds

Makes: 16 meatballs Preparation: 20 minutes

Put out of your mind the sweet perfumed taste of almond and think of the seductive, exotic spices of Moroccan cooking. Lamb and almond is a classic combination and these fragrant meatballs are absolutely wonderfull.

1) Toast the almond slivers and coriander seeds in a dry pan until they are lightly golden, ensuring you shake the pan regularly to ensure they're evenly cooked. The seeds will begin to pop when they're ready, about the same time as the almonds. Grind in a mortar and pestle until they resemble fine crumbs.

2) Peel and dice the onion, then add half of it to a blender, along with 2 cloves of minced garlic, salt, pepper and the chopped mint. Blitz for a few seconds and then add the minced lamb, cumin, coriander seeds and almonds.

3) Pulse thoroughly until the meat has combined to form a ball, then remove from the blender, divide into 16 and roll in the palm of your hand to form small meatballs.

4) To cook the meatballs, add a little drizzle olive oil into a pan and add the meatballs, shaking the pan regularly to ensure they roll around and become evenly coloured. It should take no more than 5 minutes to cook them.

I served these in just a little tomato and red wine sauce with a little extra chopped mint - coated in the sauce they make a fantastic filling for pitta bread!

Thai green curry

Ingredients Quorn chicken pieces, coconut milk, thai basil, coriander, coriander seeds, peas, shallots, garlic, green and red chillis, lemongrass, lime juice, thai ginger/galangal, cumin.

1) To make Thai green curry paste soften the lemongrass in lime juice, then either blend or grind in a mortar and pestle along with the galangal, coriander seeds, cumin, garlic and finely diced shallots. The number of chillis that you add should be to taste. A true thai curry paste will use about 30 green chillis but if you're not great with spices I would go for 6-8.

2) To make the curry sauce separate the cream from the coconut milk (turn your tin upside down before opening and pour the milk out, or spoon the cream from the top and leave the milk in the tin) and spoon into a hot wok.
Cook on a high heat, stirring continually until it has reduced by 1/4.

3) Add 3 or 4 spoons of the thai paste to the coconut cream and stir through.
Add the Quorn chicken pieces (or real chicken of course!) and some chopped red chilli for contrast. Stir through.

4) Add some peas and the rest of the coconut milk. Simmer for 10 - 15 minutes and stir through the finely chopped coriander and thai basil.

5) Serve with wild rice and naan bread.