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.

Caponata

Ingredients 50g sultanas, 50g olives, 1 aubergine, 10-15 cherry tomatoes, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp muscovado sugar, 1 onion or 1 stick celery, olive oil, 1 piece dark chocolate.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 1 hour

Caponata is a hot Sicilian aubergine salad, one of those marvellous Italian dishes which is equally lovely alone as antipasti or tossed with rice or pasta to make a meal. I particularly like this with butter beans to form a sort of stew. This combination of sultanas, olives and balsamic vinegar is the perfect balance of sweet and savoury flavours, soaked up beautifully by the melt-in-the-mouth perfection of aubergine. The leftovers are marvellous spread onto bread for lunch the next day.

1) Slice the aubergine into cubes, toss with a tsp of salt and add to a colander to rest for at least half an hour to allow the bitter juices to drain away. I like to set the colander on top of a bowl so that I can check the progress - from one aubergine you will get at least 50ml of liquid!

2) Peel and finely slice the onions, or finely dice the celery and add to a pan with a glug of olive oil. Sizzle for at least 10 minutes to allow them to soften completely, then add the brown sugar, sultanas and balsamic vinegar. Turn off the heat and leave to rest so that the sultanas soak up the wonderful flavours and become plump and juicy.

3) In a separate pan, Fry off the aubergines in a little oil until they are completely soft and the skin has turned a dark and vibrant purple. Transfer to the pan of onions/celery and sultanas and turn on the heat.

4) Pit the olives and blitz in a blender (or if you can't get hold of good olives - for goodness sake don't bother buying unpitted ones, they're like hunks of rubber! - a good olive tapenade will suffice), quarter the tomatoes then add both to the pan. Stir gently so as not to break the tomatoes down too much, just bring everything together.

5) Whether serving hot, or cold, grate a little good quality dark chocolate to season (I used 85% here but if your tastes are not quite so pure, 70% will be bitter enough).

Russian rose tea

Ingredients Tea leaves, 200g black cherries, 100g sugar, dried rose petals.

Preparation: X

"In Russia, we sweeten our tea with cherries" said Mikhail Baryshnikov in Sex And The City and amen to that! Being somewhat of a real tea enthusiast, I am pretty passionate about the culture and history of how tea is enjoyed around the world. From Kyoto to Paris and Morocco to Assam I think I have tried it every which way (always loose. Fnar) but having said that, I can't say that I'm a fan of Lapsang - Russian Caravan tea is too bitter and smoky for my tastes, but when served with my rose and black cherry syrup it is transformed and I could sup it by the gallon!

1) Pit the cherries and add to a milk pan along with the sugar, dried rose petals and 50ml water. Bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved and a syrup forms. Pass through a sieve.

2) Make your pot of tea and add the syrup, to taste.

Peanut butter & honey fudge

Ingredients 100g butter, 475g muscovado sugar 125ml milk, 200g peanut butter (I used Whole Earth 3 nut butter), 1 teaspoon vanilla essence, 400g icing sugar, 3 tbsp honey.

Serves: like, an army Preparation: 10 minutes plus chilling time

Fudge is just one of those things which is good in small doses... yet in order to make it one must make an awful lot of it. Even with the addition of peanut butter to cut the intense sweetness, this is still awfully rich. Therefore in the run up to Christmas - why not make some treats for the people that you love?

1) Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the muscovado sugar. Once it has melted completely, add the milk and bring to a rolling boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

2) Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter, vanilla essence and honey.

3) Fill a bowl with the icing sugar and pour in the fudge mixture. Beat until all of the icing sugar has melted, then pour into a baking dish and chill in the fridge until firm before cutting into squares.

No bake cake: Banoffee

Ingredients 200ml double cream, 30g butter, 60g muscovado sugar, 1 banana, 1 pancake.

Serves: 1 Preparation: 1 hour 15 minutes

I was recently sent some of the lovely Abra-ca-Debora pancakes for a foodspiration challenge and had a lot of fun with the concept of "no bake cakes." My interpretation was to quarter the pancakes and layer with toffee and banana, topped with whipped cream to form a single slice of banoffee cake. Abra-ca-FABULOUS.

1) Melt the sugar in a pan, then add the butter and 100ml of the cream. Stir continually until a caramel sauce has formed. Set aside to cool, then chill in the fridge for an hour to form the thicker toffee.

2) Peel and slice the banana into 1/2cm discs, then spread the toffee sauce onto the pancake and top with slices of banana. Layer with more pancake, toffee and banana.

3) Whip the remaining 100ml cream and pipe onto the top.

Spiced apple pudding

Ingredients Cinnamon & raisin malt loaf, bramley apple, cinnamon, muscovado sugar, butter, cinnamon, red wine.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

One of my favourite things in the world is cinnamon and raisin malt loaf. I have such a passion for the toasted cinnamony goodness, dripping with butter. Oh my! I had a flash of inspiration this morning when working on another apple dish and created this to use up the leftover apple and discovered this crispy, melty, spicy little pot of yumminess.

1) Thinly slice the malt loaf and press into a pre-buttered timbale case to form a shell.

2) Peel and core the apple and dice the flesh. Add to a milk pan with a teaspoon of brown sugar, a teaspoon of cinnamon and a teaspoon of butter. Stir through and cook for 5 minutes, add a tablespoon of red wine, cook for a further 5 minutes and then spoon into the malt loaf cases. Butter the malt loaf lid and press it down, butter side facing up.

3) Bake for 15 minutes at 180 degrees and serve hot.

Carrot, feta & spiced apple salad

Ingredients  1 Carrot, 1 apple, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, muscovado sugar, feta cheese, watercress, pea shoots, ginger hummus

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes

I never understand why people think that salads are boring, or somehow something to be endured. For me they're one of the only types of food that one can put just about any other type of food into. Bread, potato, pasta, cheese, fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs, eggs, flowers... you name it!
This is a rather new concoction of mine to showcase the spiced apple slices and ginger hummus that I have quickly become very fond of.

1) Core the apple and slice into crescents. Sprinkle the crescents with a dusting of brown sugar, cumin, allspice and cinnamon and toast under the grill for 5 minutes, turning half way through.

2) Peel the skin from the carrot, then peel the carrot into ribbons. Toss with the watercress and peashoots, and crumble over the feta.

3) Add the apples and drizzle with ginger hummus before serving.

Lavender & white chocolate cookies

Ingredients 350g plain flour, 200g butter, 2 eggs, 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 175g brown sugar, white chocolate chips, 1 tsp lavender, 1/2 tsp salt

Makes: 10 cookies Preparation: 30 minutes

It's no secret that I love lavender. Whether I am making something sweet or savoury with it, it never fails to deliver an exotic yet comforting aroma and these warm, rich flavoured cookies are wonderful.
Using dried lavender in food rather than infusing say milk or water with lavender to release the sweetness and flavour is a rare approach for me. The effect in the mouth is that of the raw herbal perfume of mint, but the sweetness of the white chocolate counterbalances it.

1) In one bowl combine the flour, baking soda, salt and lavender and in a second bowl cream the sugar and butter together, then beat in the eggs.

2) Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until a smooth, elastic dough has been formed. Add the white chocolate chips, then roll the dough into a sausage about half the diameter of what you want your finished cookies to be. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes to firm it up.

3) Dust a surface with flour, then cut slices from the dough and roll each slice into a ball using the light dusting of flour. Press them lightly with the palm of your hand to form cookies no thicker than 2cm.

4) Arrange on a baking tray with plenty of space between them and bake in the oven at 190 for 15 minutes. These cookies are best enjoyed soft in the middle and crispy at the edge. Leave them to cool completely before eating.

Banana scones

Ingredients 225g self raising flour, 50g butter, 50g muscovado sugar, 75ml buttermilk, 2 bananas, pinch cinnamon.

Serves: 8 preparation: 30 minutes

I adore the flavour and scent of banana - so sweet and musky and mildly tropical. These scones have a wonderful texture and it's a good way to introduce flavour for those who don't like dried fruit.

1) First peel and pulverise the bananas in a blender, or by mashing with a fork.

2) Sift the flour, cinnamon and sugar together, then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

3) Mix the buttermilk and banana in with the dry ingredients until a dough has formed.

4)  Roll out the dough 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 the last drizzles of the milk to help the surface colour.

5) Bake at 200 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Raisin bran loaf

Ingredients      1 cup Bran Flakes, 1 cup sultanas,      1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 cup milk, 1 cup self raising flour.

Serves: 1 Preparation: 1 hour (plus overnight)


I have never posted a recipe on this blog that I did not create myself or adapt from a classic recipe so this is a first for me! My dear friend Paul, who climbs mountains on foot or by bike and other impressively healthy things is rather addicted to this scrumptious low-fat bread and gave me his recipe to try. Initially I was intrigued by the retro notion of creating bread from cereal - it seemed like WW2 rationing but I genuinely couldn't believe how delicious the bran and raisin combination was.


1) Add the bran flakes and sultanas into a bowl and cover with the milk. Leave to soak overnight, ensuring the bran flakes are submerged in liquid.


2) Stir the flour and sugar into the bowl until the mixture forms a rustic dough. 


3) Transfer into a cake or loaf tin and bake in the oven for 45 - 50 minutes at  180 degrees.


4) Allow to cool before serving and keep well wrapped to retain the moisture. Like making banana loaf or malt loaf I recommend putting it straight into the freezer from the oven for 5 minutes. This recipe also works well with a combination of dried fruits and mixed peel. I made a second batch with dried figs, ginger and cherries with a little cinnamon and it was spectacular!

Chai tea loaf, pancetta, pear & leek stuffing

Ingredients Chai tea loaf, 1 pear, 1/4 leek, 100g pancetta, 1 egg, butter.

For Christmas lunch this year, I thought I would sex up the turkey stuffing to mirror the spices I put in the brine bath. My Chai tea loaf is magnificently spicy but decadently sweet so I added savoury notes with the leek and pancetta and juiciness with the pear. Once it soaks up the turkey juices it is truly magnificent.


1) Crumble the tea loaf into rough breadcrumbs and set aside.


2) Peel and dice the pear and sautee in a little butter until soft.


3) Finely dice the leek and add it to the pear along with the pancetta.


4) Stir through the tea loaf crumbs and add a whisked egg. Pack it tightly into the turkey cavity and roast along with the bird.

Chai tea loaf

Ingredients     75g raisins, 75g sultanas, 75g currants, 300ml chai tea, 250g self-raising flour, 200g brown sugar, 1 egg, cinnamon, allspice, butter,

Serves: 8 Preparation: 1 hour 30 minutes (plus overnight)


Teapigs make, without a doubt the best tea I have ever tasted - unlike most tea it comes in tea temples (little silk bags, not paper) and contains real tea-leaves (not dust). Gorgeous tea also makes gorgeous tea loaf so give Teapigs a try. Annoyingly I forgot to take a picture of this before I started tearing it up to make Christmas turkey stuffing with so here... this is the biggest remaining piece!!!


1) Soak the raisins, sultanas and currants overnight in 300ml of chai tea.

2) Add the flour, sugar, a beaten egg a teaspoon of cinnamon and allspice into a bowl and mix thoroughly. Pour in the tea and fruit and mix with a spatula until the batter is smooth.

3) Pour into a greased loaf tin and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean).

Mince pies

Ingredients450g plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 240g unsalted butter, 1 tbsp caster sugar, 140ml orange juice, zest of 2 oranges, 3 roses, 250g cranberries, 100g sultanas, 100g raisins, 2 apples, 1 tbsp allspice, 1 tsp cinnamon, 100ml brandy, 20g brown sugar.

Serves: 24 Preparation: 2 hours (plus overnight)


I love mince pies - the crumbly texture of all butter pastry with a hint of orange, the heady, boozy fruit in the centre and that dollop of thick cream. Mmmm. Nothing is more Christmassy and they're so easy to make.


To make the mincemeat: 


1) Pour the sultanas and raisins into a bowl and cover with brandy. Leave to soak overnight.


2) Wash the roses thoroughly, remove the petals and cover the petals with the brown sugar. Leave overnight.


3) The next day, peel, core and dice the apples, then add to a pan with the cranberries, rose petals and sugar. Add a little water and allow the mixture to come to the boil. After about 5 minutes the fruit should be macerated and most of the liquid evaporated. Add the brandy, sultanas and raisins, allspice and cinnamon.


To make the pastry:


4) Cut the butter into small cubes and add to a food processor with the flour and sugar. Pulse until it becomes the consistency of breadcrumbs.


5) I like to use clementines for this because they're the Christmassiest oranges! Zest two, then squeeze the juice of about 5, giving you about 140ml of juice. Add the zest of the oranges into the food processor, then the juice in a steady stream until the pastry begins to form a ball.


6) Remove from the blender - if it's sticky, add a little more flour - roll up in clingfilm and put in the fridge for an hour to firm up.


7) Roll out the pastry (you shouldn't need a floured surface - if the pastry is sticky then you have used too much liquid) to about 1/2 a centimetre thickness and cut out circles of dough. I like to use a large circle on the bottom and a smaller circle for the top but you could use a dough shape like a star or a tree if you like for the top.


8) Press the large circles of dough firmly into your baking tin and add about a teaspoon and a half of the mincemeat. Add the tops and bake for 20 - 25 minutes at 200 degrees.


I like to eat these hot, served with a generous dollop of champagne cream.

Lavender scones

Ingredients    225g self raising flour, 50g butter, 50g brown sugar, 150ml milk, 150g dried lavender.

Serves: 10 Preparation: 30 minutes

My favourite ingredient is lavender. It has an incredible flavour and scent, has been used in cuisine and home-remedies for centuries and to me manages to be both seductive and comforting. Snuggling under a bedsheet washed in lavender scented soap brings sweet dreams but breathing in the scent of my lavender plants enlivens me. These scones are subtly flavoured and perfect with my lavender jam.


1) First infuse the milk with the lavender by setting it to steep for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.


2) Sift the flour and sugar together, then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.


3) Strain the lavender from the milk, pressing firmly on the lavender to squeeze out as much flavour as possible, and mix the milk in with the dry ingredients until a dough has formed. I like to add in a teaspoon or so of the damp lavender to the actual scone dough to give it a stronger flavour but it's entirely a matter of taste. The subtle lavender flavour is lovely as it is.


4)  Roll out the dough 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 the last drizzles of the milk to help the surface colour.


5) Bake at 200 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Pumpkin & walnut bread

Ingredients  1 1/2 cups wholemeal bread flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 cup/240ml pumpkin, 1/2 cup /240ml   butter, 2 eggs, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp allspice, 1/2 tsp   cinnamon, 1/2 cup walnuts. (Optional - 2 cups sugar)

Serves: 12 slices Preparation: 2 hours


At this time of year I go pumpkin crazy, making soup, bread, pasta dishes and pies. I even made pumpkin chips last year but the least said about that the better... this bread can be made sweet or savoury and is equally glorious. It's also something I always make at the same time as pumpkin soup because it only requires a small amount of pumpkin. Waste not want not!


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) Sift together the flour, salt, spices, nuts and baking soda. (if you are making sweet pumpking bread, add the sugar at this stage)


5) Melt the butter and mix into 1 cup of the pumpkin puree. Beat in the eggs and 1/4 cup of the pumpkin juice.


6) Combine the wet and dry ingredients, but do not mix too thoroughly. Pour into a loaf tin and bake for 50 minutes at 180 degrees or until a skewer comes out clean.

Baked grapefruit

Ingredients 1 Pink grapefruit, 2 tsp muscovado sugar, 1 tbsp Greek yoghurt

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes


I love grapefruit. If I ever get time in the morning to eat at home, rather than at my desk I love nothing more than the fresh tang of a juice grapefruit. This recipe is a twist on the classic healthy breakfast for winter mornings.


1) Slice the grapefruit in half with a serrated knife and loosen each segment with the knife


2) Sprinkle each half with a teaspoon of sugar. Bake in the oven at 180 for 10 minutes.


3) I like to finish by caramelising the top further with a little extra sugar and a brulee torch but you could do this under the grill. Serve with a tablespoon of greek yoghurt - in this case I used the fabulous Apple & Elderflower yoghurt by Rachel's organic because it's also low fat making this breakfast both yummy and healthy.

Apple & cinnamon French Toast

Ingredients Wholemeal bread flour, cinnamon,   baking soda, eggs, vegetable oil,    apple sauce, muscovado sugar, vanilla essence, icing sugar, maple syrup, butter

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes

After making my apple & cinnamon bread I knew there was only one way to serve this... and it turned out to be one of my more perfect recipes.


1) Slice the apple & cinnamon loaf to about 1.5 cm thickness and dip in whisked egg.


2) Melt half a teaspoon of butter in a frying pan and drop the slice of bread into the pan.


3) Toast the bread, turning frequently. When you notice the steam puffing out the bread a little you will have achieved the fluffy yet crispy texture that makes French toast so glorious.


4) Serve dusted with icing sugar and drizzled with maple syrup

Apple & cinnamon bread

Ingredients    1½ cups wholemeal bread flour, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon   baking soda, 2 eggs, ¼ cup vegetable oil, 2 cups apple sauce, 2   tablespoons muscovado sugar.

Serves: 10 Preparation: 1 hour

I'm not a great baker - my skills lie in making bread, pastry, pasta, dumplings... cakes and biscuits are always risky experiments for me but I do continue to try until I get it right! This recipe was inspired by some apple and raisin toast that a friend of mine enjoyed recently and turned out to be a lovely combination of flavours.

1) Sift together the flour and baking soda in a bowl.


2) Whisk the 2 eggs, muscovado sugar and cinnamon in a seperate bowl, then gradually add the flour and baking soda, whisking in the vegetable oil to ensure the mixture does not become too dry.


3) To make the apple sauce: peel, core and dice the apples and cook in a pan with 2 tablespoons of water and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Allow to cool and whisk the apple sauce in with the bread mixture and transfer to a loaf tin.


4) I like to caramelise the top of the loaf so mixed a teaspoon of cinnamon with a teaspoon of muscovado sugar and half a teaspoon of vanilla essence, then crumbled this mixture over the top of the bread batter.


5) Bake for 50 minutes at 200 degrees, or until a skewer comes out clean and leave to cool. For a great serving suggestion, check out my French toast recipe!

French sage & onion soup

Ingredients 5 onions, 1 pint vegetable/chicken stock, 1 tsp muscovado sugar, 2 tbs butter, olive oil, old bread, 50g grated parmigiano and gruyere.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 45 minutes

French onion soup is a culinary classic - coloured by caramelised onions and always served with a cheesy crouton crust. Breaking through the crust with a spoon always reminds me of the pleasure of breaking through the sugar topping on a creme brulee. Sometimes the joy of food is in the unwrapping!

1) Peel and finely slice the onions then pop into separate rings with a spoon.

2) Bring a frying pan/wok to a high heat and add 2 tablespoons of butter and a teaspoon of sugar and allow it to brown. Add the onions and stir through until the onion rings have thoroughly caramelised. Add a little olive oil and stir through.


3) Add a pint of vegetable/chicken stock to the onions and stir through. (Transfer to a soup pan first if you're using a frying pan) Season with salt and add a handful of finely diced sage.


4) Allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes on a low heat then ladle into a soup bowl. Top with a layer of toasted bread (I used some ciabatta I had baked the day before), breadcrumbs and grated parmeggian and gruyere then bake under a grill until a crust has formed. Serve.

Earl Grey tea loaf

Ingredients    75g raisins, 75g sultanas, 75g currants, 300ml Earl Grey, 250g    self- raising flour, 200g brown sugar, 1 egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, butter,

Teapigs make, without a doubt the best tea I have ever tasted - unlike most tea it comes in tea temples (little silk bags, not paper) and contains real tea-leaves (not dust). Gorgeous tea also makes gorgeous tea loaf so give Teapigs a try.


1) Soak the raisins, sultanas and currants overnight in 300ml of Earl Grey tea.


2) Add the flour, sugar, a beaten egg a teaspoon of cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg into a bowl and mix thoroughly. Pour in the tea and fruit and mix with a spatula until the batter is smooth.


3) Pour into a greased loaf tin and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean).