BBQ ribeye steak in Jack Daniels sauce

Ingredients 150ml Jack Daniels, 1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 tsp chipotle chilli paste, 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp dark muscovado sugar, 1 tbsp salt, 1 tbsp groundnut oil.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 20 minutes, plus 1-2 days for marinating

As part of the World Cup Food Challenge 2014, this recipe represents a traditional meal of America. Steak and baked potato with soured cream is an American institution, and sexing up the steak with this luscious, mouthwatering, sticky Jack Daniels sauce certainly made my husband very happy!

1) To make perfect baked potatoes, please see my previous recipe. Serve with a little butter mashed through and a generous dollop of soured cream. I also finely diced some salad onion and chive but this is a matter of taste of course!

2) To prepare the marinade, peel and finely dice the onion, crush the garlic and sautee in the groundnut oil until completely soft. Add the sugar and bring to the boil until it melts into a gorgeous, dark caramel liquid.

3) Remove from the heat and stir in the chipotle chilli paste, pomegranate molasses, soy sauce and salt. Set aside to cool to room temperature, then transfer to a tupperware box or ziplock bag and add the meat, rubbing it in to ensure maximum coverage. Leave to marinate at least overnight, but for best results for 2 days before cooking.

4) To cook, simply add (from room temperature) to the BBQ and sizzle. I cooked these for a minute and a half on each side to ensure the centre was still nice and pink and juicy, but this is of course a matter of taste.

Harissa rice with grapes

Ingredients Grapes, rice, bell pepper, Smoked chillis, garlic salt, paprika, mint, rose petals, cumin, caraway seeds, olive oil.

Preparation: 20 minutes

Harissa is one of those ingredients that I just can't live without. Stir it into yoghurt for an instant dip of GLORY, spread it on sandwiches, thin with a little oil for a fabulous marinade... it is just altogether yummy. The sweet refreshing pockets of juicy grape in this otherwise spicy dish are absolute perfection.

To Make Harissa:

1) Remove the core and seeds from the bell pepper, then grill until the skin is almost completely blackened. Allow it to cool, then peel off the charred skin carefully.

2) Blitz the dried, smoked chilli in a blender, then add to a mortar and pestle and grind into a relatively fine dry paste. The ratio of spices is relatively simple for my recipe, though of course you can adjust for taste. Add 1 tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp caraway seeds and grind into the chilli. Add a teaspoon of oil.

3) Add the bell pepper, 2 or 3 mint leaves and the rose petals (about half the petals from a single red rose) into a blender and pulse, then combine the rose, mint and pepper mixture into the spice and oil paste.

4) Stir into boiled rice, adding halved grapes and serve. Beautiful hot and cold!

Roast tomato & sweet potato soup

Ingredients 1 lb tomatoes, 1 can coconut milk, 1 onion, 2 cloves garlic, 2 sweet potatoes, coriander, chilli flakes, 1 orange, butter.

Serves: 6 Preparation: 1 hour

This soup was a sort of Frankenstein's monster, I'll be honest, but whilst the majority of time I plan to create a specific recipe - sometimes something evolves from a "bung it" and turns out to be spectacular! I've been all about pistachios this week and whilst roasting some tomatoes to make bruschetta with my pistachio pesto I had a glut of roast tomatoes left over and also some baked sweet potato so decided to make soup. To make the juicy tomatoes go further and add a silky feel to the thick sweet potato I combined it with coconut milk and then suddenly this scrumptious spicy warm Autumn soup emerged!

1) Add the tomatoes, whole, to a lidded ovenproof dish and roast at 200 degrees for 25 minutes. This keeps every bit of that luscious tomato juice and has a completely different flavour from just boiling the tomatoes in stock. Bake the sweet potatoes in their skins for the same amount of time.

2) Peel and slice the onion and sautee in a little butter. When the onions are soft, add the garlic cloves, crushed, then take off the heat before they begin to brown.

3) Add the onions and garlic to a food processor along with the tomatoes - juice and all - and blend thoroughly. Pass through a sieve and back into the pan, then peel and blitz the sweet potato and add the smooth puree to the concentrated tomato flavoured juice in the pan.

4) Add the coconut milk, season and taste. At this point I added the juice and zest of an orange but depending on the variety of tomato you use, your soup may not need this additional tang. It's a judgement call! Simmer for a further 20 minutes.

5) Serve with crushed chilli flakes and chopped coriander.

Chilli chocolate scones

Ingredients 225g self raising flour, 50g butter, 50g sugar, 1 tbsp cocoa powder, 75ml buttermilk, dark chocolate chips, chilli flakes

Serves: 10 Preparation: 30 minutes

The combination of dark chocolate and chilli is a particular favourite of mine - the scent, the taste - it's positively sinful and these scones are a wonderfully soft, crumbly vehicle for the unexpected flavour. I served them with marscapone whipped with a little orange juice and sugar.

1) Sift the flour, chilli flakes, cocoa powder and sugar together, then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

3) Mix the buttermilk and dark chocolate chips in with the dry ingredients until a dough has formed. It's best to work scones with cool hands so if yours are warm, run them under the cold tap first (and dry them) before working it.

4) Roll out the pastry on a floured surface and then fold it in half and roll again. Cut out rounds of pastry with a scalloped cutter and brush with a little milk to help the surface colour.

5) Bake at 200 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Cupcake Burgers: Beetroot, chilli & ginger

Ingredients Burger: 400g beef mince, 1/2 white onion, 2 portobello mushrooms, butter Frosting: 4 Maris Piper potatoes, 1 small beetroot, ginger, chilli flakes

Serves: 6 Preparation: 1 hour 30 minutes

This is possibly one of the weirdest of my creations, but I'm actually really proud of the way it has worked out! Cupcakes persist in being ridiculously hot in popular culture and ever more elaborate flavour combinations and decorations come flooding in. But what about people who don't like cake, or can't have sugar? Why should they suffer? Enter... the Cupcake Burger.
I have done a series of different "frostings" - this fabulous coloured and zingy mash is wonderful. If you'd rather try a different burger, including one of my vegetarian or vegan options... check out these ideas.

1) To prepare the beetroot, wash it and slice off the stalks and leaves. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. 

2) Peel and cut the potatoes, then boil in hot salted water for 20 minutes and strain away the water.

3) Finely dice the onion and mushroom and fry off in a very little butter until the juice from the mushrooms has evaporated. Add the mixture to a blender along with the beef mince. Pulse to combine and then separate into rough patties.

4) Press firmly into the cupcake tins, remembering the burgers will shrink a little when cooked, so be generous and pack it in tight. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes at 200 degrees.

5) Carefully peel the beetroot with the nick of a knife and grate into your blender along with a teaspoon of powdered ginger and dried chilli flakes to taste

6) Spoon the mash into a piping bag and top the burgers with a swirl of "frosting" just like a cupcake!

Satay green beans

Ingredients Green beans, 1 tablespoon peanut butter (I like Whole Earth Foods), 1/2 lemon, chilli flakes

Serves: 2 Preparation: 10 minutes

Satay sauce is scrumptious and so simple - just 3 ingredients and a little stirring  and any vegetable, meat or noodles can be transformed into a delicious dish.
I especially love sexing up green beans with this sticky, spicy goodness. 

1) Parboil the green beans in hot water for 2 minutes, then strain and add to a wok with a squeeze of lemon juice.

2) Add the peanut butter and stir through on on a gentle heat for 5 minutes until all the beans are coated.

3) Stir through the chilli flakes, to taste, and serve hot.

Greek baked beans

Ingredients 1 can butterbeans or cannellini beans, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes, 50g passata tomatoes, coriander

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

Last year I worked on a number of Greek inspired recipes, and since creating this, I have eaten it four or five times in the last month - that's how much I LOVE this dish. Butterbeans have long been a favourite of mine for their delicate flavour and yielding texture and they are a fantastic base for this tangy, comforting tomato sauce. Served hot, dolloped with Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt,  they make a fabulous side dish.

1) Drain the can of beans and rinse away the brine. Bring to the boil in a pan of hot water, then strain in a colander and set aside.

2) Stir the paprika, chilli flakes and coriander into the passata and then stir in the beans.

3) Transfer to an ovenproof dish and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

To make more of a meal of this, try adding some finely diced, sauteed onions to the sauce and topping with slices of tomato before baking.

Sweet potato & ginger soup with harissa croutons

Ingredients 2 sweet potatoes, 1/2 pint vegetable stock, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp coriander, 1 white onion, 2 cloves garlic, Croutons: bread, rapeseed oil smoked chillis, garlic salt, paprika, mint, rose petals, cumin, caraway seeds, basil oil, bell pepper, Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt.

Serves: 3 preparation: 1 hour

This soup is nothing short of magnificent. Rich, warming and comforting with a velvet thick texture - this goes perfectly with the spicy croutons and cool dollop of yoghurt

1) Roast the sweet potatoes in the oven for 30 minutes at 200 degrees.

2) Peel and finely dice the onion and sautee in a little rapeseed oil. Add the coriander and cumin.

3) Peel the skin from the potato and stir the flesh into the spiced onions.

4) Add the vegetable stock and mash the potato into it. Leave to simmer for 30 minutes, then parse through a sieve, to leave a smooth soup. Top with a dollop of yoghurt and the croutons.

To make the croutons:

1) Remove the core and seeds from the bell pepper, then roast until the skin is almost completely blackened. Allow it to cool, then peel off the charred skin carefully.

2) Blitz the dried, smoked chilli in a blender, then add to a mortar and pestle and grind into a relatively fine dry paste. The ratio of spices is relatively simple for my recipe, though of course you can adjust for taste. Add 1 tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp caraway seeds and grind into the chilli. Add a teaspoon of basil oil.

3) Add the bell pepper, 2 or 3 mint leaves and the rose petals (about half the petals from a single red rose) into a blender and pulse.

4) Stir the rose, mint and pepper mixture into the spice and oil paste - now you have harissa!

5) Spread a thin layer of harissa onto a slice of bread, then cut into squares. Fry off in a drizzle of rapeseed oil until crisp. 

Harissa yoghurt

Ingredients Smoked chillis, garlic salt, paprika, mint, rose petals, cumin, caraway seeds, basil oil, Rachel's Organic Greek yoghurt, bell pepper.

Preparation: 20 minutes

Harissa is a spice mix which hails from North African countries like Tunisia and Morocco and is used as a base for everything from dry meat rubs to a paste which can be spread on bread or added to sauces.
As you might expect there are thousands of recipes out there, from sharp and spicy to mellow smokey flavours, but my version - with a rose base - is universally gorgeous in my humble opinion. I like to mix it with yoghurt to make a dip (as pictured) or add to fajitas.

1) Remove the core and seeds from the bell pepper, then roast until the skin is almost completely blackened. Allow it to cool, then peel off the charred skin carefully.

2) Blitz the dried, smoked chilli in a blender, then add to a mortar and pestle and grind into a relatively fine dry paste. The ratio of spices is relatively simple for my recipe, though of course you can adjust for taste. Add 1 tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp caraway seeds and grind into the chilli. Add a teaspoon of basil oil.

3) Add the bell pepper, 2 or 3 mint leaves and the rose petals (about half the petals from a single red rose) into a blender and pulse.

4) Stir the rose, mint and pepper mixture into the spice and oil paste - now you have harissa!

5) Stir 1 teaspoon of Harissa per 200g of yoghurt.

Chilli & egg tarts

Ingredients    1 slice bread, 1 egg, smoked chilli jam, butter

Serves: 1 preparation: 10 minutes


These tarts are so simple to make and so cute! For those of you with children, or for those occasions where you have lots of guests for breakfast they're a fun way of serving breakfast - the combination of egg and chili works so well for a saucy treat.


1) Rub a little butter onto a muffin tin and set aside.


2) Slice the crusts from the bread and discard, then flatten the bread with a rolling pin. Slice the bread in half and press one half into the muffin tin, then press the other half onto that layer and trim the top of the bread so that its level with the top of the tin, forming a case.


3) Add a teaspoon of smoked chili jam into each muffin tin.


4) Crack an egg over the top and then bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 180 degrees, or until the egg has formed. Serve hot.

Mexican Mole soup

Ingredients   6 squares 70% dark chocolate, 1 pint vegetable/beef stock, 400g beans (I used kidney beans, pinto beans,    cannellini beans and haricot beans but you could use black eyed   peas/rice), 1 onion, tomato puree,   olive oil, cumin, 3 cloves smoked    garlic, tahini, smoked chipotle pepper.

Serves: 5 Preparation: 45 minutes

This soup is incredibly, incredibly rich. It's my perfect winter soup - full of beans and exotic spices and the silky texture of chocolate. Seduction in a bowl, this would be wonderful served with a spoon of Rachel's Organic Greek yoghurt to contrast.

1) Finely dice the onion and add into the stockpot with a tablespoon of olive oil. Once the onions have softened, add in 2 cloves of minced smoked garlic, the diced smoked chillis (I have left the quantity up to you - personally I like my food ultra hot but not everyone has an asbestos tongue!) and the chocolate and stir through until the chocolate has melted.


2) Add a generous squeeze of tomato puree, a tablespoon of cumin, a teaspoon of tahini and stir through.


3) Finally add in the stock, the beans and simmer for 30 - 45 minutes which should allow the stock to reduce down to a lovely rich soup. Tesco sell a tin of  "taco beans" in a mildly spicy sauce, 2 tins of which are perfect for this soup if you don't want to go to the fuss of soaking your own beans.

Pumpkin cannelloni

Ingredients Pumpkin, marscapone, egg, passata tomatoes, mozarella, cheddar, smoked garlic, smoked chipotle chillis, white onion, sage

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes (+1 hour to make the pumpkin puree)


I love pumpkin, this time of year finds me baking pumpkin bread and making pumpkin soup and I always save some of the pumpkin puree to make cannelloni or ravioli with. When it comes to cannelloni I love to get creative - seeing people in the supermarket buying microwaveable spinach and ricotta cannelloni that I know will taste bland and have the texture of leather makes me feel so sad. It's so quick and easy to make. If you haven't already - check out my spinach & goats cheese, pork & apple and stilton & cashew cannelloni recipes.


1) Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds and pith with a spoon. Make sure all the stringiness has been removed. Peel away the skin with a chef's knife and cut the flesh into cubes.

2) Roast in the oven in an ovenproof dish with a lid for 50 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the roast pumpkin and blend until smooth.

3) Sieve away the excess juice - this, along with the juice in the ovenproof dish should make about a pint of liquid. The liquid remaining from this recipe, along with the rest of the pumpkin puree is perfect for Pumpkin Soup.


4) Sage really brings out the warmth of pumpkin - finely chop about 5 large sage leaves and stir into the pumpkin puree. Beat together one egg and the marscapone, then whisk in 200 of the pumpkin puree. Put in the fridge to firm up.


5) Pumpkin loves spices so to make this sauce sautee half a very finely diced onion in about a teaspoon of chilli oil then pour in 250g of passata tomatoes. 


6) Add half a bulb of smoked garlic, minced and a tablespoon of chopped smoked chipotle chillis and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes. Thank you to The Chilli Jam Man for the yummy smoked ingredients! Season with salt to taste.


7) Stuff 6 cannelloni tubes with the pumpkin mix using a teaspoon and rest in an ovenproof dish. Pour over the sauce and top with 100g grated mozarella and cheddar. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes covered with foil and a further 5 minutes uncovered to allow the cheese to crisp.