Lancashire leek tart

Ingredients Pastry: 4oz plain flour, 2oz butter Filling: 3 eggs, 1 large leek, 2 tsp French mustard, 100g Lancashire cheese.

Serves: 4-6 Preparation: X

My husband loves a good tart. Fnar fnar... And he has very exacting standards, so when I say that this tart made it into the top 5 meals that I have made for him during our years together, that should tell you just how savoury and scrumptious it is. It aint so much to look at, but it really tastes like heaven.

1) To make the shortcrust pastry, cut the butter into small cubes and drop along with the flour into a food processor until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Drip in 2-3 tablespoons of cold water until the mixture quickly forms a ball. Wrap this in clingfilm and put in the fridge for 15 minutes. Once chilled, roll out and press firmly into a buttered pastry case. Bake blind for 10 minutes and set aside to cool.

2) Slice the top and tail from the leek, slice in half and then slice thinly. Sautee in a pan with a little knob of butter until soft.

3) Whisk the eggs and mustard together and crumble in half of the cheese.

4) Spoon the leeks into the tart case and pour over the egg and cheese mix, adding the remainder to the top then bake in a pre-heated oven at gas mark 5 for 30-40 minutes. The tart should be solid, rather than wobbly in the centre with a golden surface.

5) Serve hot or cold.

Gurkensalat

Ingredients 1/2 Cucumber, 2 large tomatoes, 1/4 white onion, 2 tbsp soured cream, 1 tsp dill, 1 tsp parsley, 1 tsp white vinegar, 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp dijon mustard.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 5 minutes (plus half an hour for chilling)

As part of the World Cup Food Challenge 2014, this recipe represents a traditional meal of Germany. Most of you will know my feelings about raw onion by now, I absolutely LOATHE it with a fiery passion and never include it in my own food, including coleslaw which is a common side dish in German cuisine. As I have, however, posted many coleslaw recipes before from the conventional carrot and cabbage combination to those including beetroot and pear, I decided to force myself to eat raw onion by making Gurkensalat instead, a cucumber and tomato salad with a creamy mustard and vinegar dressing given depth by dill and parsley. Did I pick out the onions after tasting it? Yes. Was it otherwise delicious? Absolutely.

1) Whisk together the soured cream, vinegar, herbs, mustard and sugar. Rather than use it immediately, I allowed it to rest for half an hour in the fridge for the flavours to really come together and the soured cream to thicken back up a little.

2) Slice the onion and cucumbers finely enough to be translucent when held up to the light and the tomato as it comes.

3) Stir in the dressing and serve! If, like me you are not so fond of onions, scatter them on the top and after trying them and dress the rest of the salad later!

Bratwurst with braised cabbage

Ingredients 1 white cabbage, 1 onion, 1 tsp cloves, 1 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp white wine or cider vinegar, 1 tsp mustard, 4 bratwurst sausages.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

As part of the World Cup Food Challenge 2014, this recipe represents a traditional meal of Germany. It feels like such a cliche and so unimaginative to instantly associate Germany with sausage, but if you look past the meat (typical vegetarian, eh?) and simply delight in the utter fragrant glory of the bed of cabbage, I can promise you that this dish is a national treasure for a very very good reason.

1) Peel and chop the onion into 1/2cm slices. Pop out the rings and add to a pan along with the butter and cloves. Sautee gently until the onion is completely soft and translucent and take the pan off the heat. Pick out the cloves and discard.

2) Cut the cabbage into 1/2cm slices, then slice into thin strips. Parboil for 5 minutes, drain and add to the pan of onion.

3) Return to the heat, add the vinegar and mustard and stir through until the cabbage becomes soft, adding a little extra butter for glossiness if desired.

4) Grill or fry the sausages for 6-8 minutes, then serve atop the cabbage.

Cauliflower mac & cheese

Ingredients 1 cauliflower, 100ml double cream or almond milk, 1 leek, 200g cheddar and gruyere, 2 cups macaroni, 1 tsp mustard, 1 leek, 1 tbsp butter.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

Mac and cheese and cauliflower cheese are both, individually, comfort foods of glory. In typical fashion for this greedy, cheese-obsessed foodie, I like to have my cake and eat it too, but this dish is surprisingly light and needn't be too cheese heavy, for those who may wish to cut down on their fat intake and it's a genius way of getting vegetables into children or adults who may be fussy about vegetables for reasons best known to themselves.
Cauliflower and almond are perfect partners, the nutty flavour of the almonds goes so beautifully with the cheese and by ramping up the savoury notes with leek and mustard, less cheese is necessary to achieve the desired results. Oh if you wish you can use double cream, but seriously - the almond milk gets a massive thumbs up from me here!

1) Prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets and add to a pan of boiling water. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until the cauliflower is soft and yielding, but do take care not to overcook it or the taste will be impaired and let's face it - you're killing off the nutrients!

2) Slice the leek, add to a pan along with the butter and sizzle until soft. Transfer to a blender and pulse thoroughly, adding the almond milk, mustard and drained cauliflower bit by bit until a smooth puree is formed.

3) Simmer the macaroni for 6-8 minutes in boiling, salted water, then drain and return to the pan.

4) Pass the cauliflower, leek and almond mixture through a sieve and into the pan, adding half of the cheese (grated) to stir through the mixture.

5) Transfer to and ovenproof dish and top with the remaining grated cheese. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes at 200 degrees and then serve hot. I personally prefer a gooey cheese topping to a crispy golden one, and besides you don't want the gorgeous, unctuous macaroni to dry out, but this is of course a matter of taste. Should you be the sort of person who prefers a solid slab of pasta, then by all means cook it for longer! (I'm afraid I must judge you just a little though, especially if you also like mac and cheese pies... *rolls eyes*)

Beetroot soup with mustard yoghurt

Ingredients 2 beetroots, 1 potato, 1/2 pint vegetable stock, 1 tsp mustard, 3 tbsp Rachel's Organic Greek yoghurt.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 1 hour

Beetroot is the perfect vehicle for spicy, tangy flavours and this combination of creamy soup and mustard yoghurt is one of the loveliest I have discovered in quite some time. I happened to be dressing a potato and beetroot salad with honey mustard dressing when suddenly inspiration struck!

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

2) Peel and dice a potato and simmer until soft in the vegetable stock. Strain the potato, retaining the stock. I like to grate a little ginger in with the potatoes to give the soup an extra kick, but this is optional.

3) Carefully peel the beetroot with the nick of a knife, then puree it, along with the potato in a blender. Gradually add the vegetable stock until the desired consistency is reached (I think this works best as a fairly thick, creamy soup but if you want to stretch it further, or prefer it thinner that's up to you!) and return to the pan to keep warm whilst you prepare the yoghurt.

4) Stir the mustard into the yoghurt, and swirl into the soup to serve.

Deep fried cauliflower with brie dip

Ingredients Cauliflower, breadcrumbs, 1 egg, brie, mustard, almond milk.

Preparation: 15 minutes

This recipe goes hand in hand with my deep fried brie with cauliflower dip - I tend to serve them side by side for anyone who doesn't like cauliflower. Because naturally, me being me, I refuse to accept that a person could deny themselves such luscious, creamy goodness!

1) To make the brie dip: Slice the rind from the brie and add to a milk pan along with the almond milk and mustard. Warm gently whilst whisking until melted and creamy. Set aside, reheating if necessary

2) To make the breaded cauliflower prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets.

3) Prepare two dishes - one with a beaten egg in it and one with the breadcrumbs. Dip the cauliflower into the egg, then roll into the breadcrumbs until coated - double dipping if necessary.

4) Bring a pan containing a couple of inches deep of vegetable oil to the boil (or turn on your deep fat frier) and fry the cauliflower until golden brown.

Deep fried brie with cauliflower dip

Ingredients Brie, breadcrumbs, cauliflower, 1 egg, vegetable oil, almond milk, mustard.

Preparation: 15 minutes

This recipe goes hand in hand with my deep fried cauliflower with brie dip - I tend to serve them side by side for anyone who doesn't like cauliflower. Because naturally, me being me, I refuse to accept that a person could deny themselves such luscious, creamy goodness!

1) To make the cauliflower dip, prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets. Dice both and either steam or add to a pan of boiling water for 8-10 minutes until soft.

2) Drain the cauliflower and puree in the blender, adding a little almond milk until the desired dipping texture is reached. Flavour with mustard to taste (I usually add a teaspoon) and transfer to a dip dish.

3) To make the breaded brie, prepare two dishes - one with a beaten egg in it and one with the breadcrumbs. Dip the trianges of brie (I like to make them relatively bitesized as you'll only get one good dunk before biting into the lovely liquid centres!) into the egg, then roll into the breadcrumbs until coated - double dipping if necessary.

4) Bring a pan containing a couple of inches deep of vegetable oil to the boil (or turn on your deep fat frier) and fry the brie triangles until golden brown.

5) Serve the brie triangles with the cauliflower dip immediately.

Irish rarebit

Ingredients Bread, 200g Irish cheddar, 100ml Guinness, spring onions, butter, 1 tsp mustard, pepper, 50g breadcrumbs, 2 egg yolks.

Preparation: 10 minutes

Once upon a time, I believed that the best rarebit sauce was created with Newcastle Brown Ale and Lancashire cheese. Despite the booze and cheese being English, it was still a Welsh Rarebit in my book and bloody lovely it was too. And then, then I learned of Irish rarebit. Oh glorious Irish rarebit with your cheesey bread sauce and your tangy, stouty flavour. Bread on bread! GENIUS. This recipe is so 100% Irish* that I am considering my nationality - soda bread, Irish cheddar, Irish stout and even Irish butter. LUSCIOUS.

*erm... except for the spring onions and the mustard... shut up.

1) Slice the spring onions and add to the pan along with the stout and mustard. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat.

2) Grate in the cheese and whisk until amalgamated with the stout, then whisk in the two egg yolks and breadcrumbs and season with pepper and if necessary, another teaspoon of mustard.

3) The sauce should be thick, but pourable. Toast the bread on one side, then butter, allowing it to rest for a moment until the butter has melted before adding the cheese sauce. Grill until the top begins to colour and serve hot.

Ale & mustard potatoes

Ingredients 1 King Edward potato, 50 ml Hobgoblin ale, 1 tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp grainy mustard.

Serves: 2 Preparation: X

Coming as I do from the right side of the Pennines, I must of course deny all knowledge of what a Lancashire hotpot is *narrows eyes* but allowing potatoes to cook in delicious liquid and then crisp up doesn't half make a cracking dish. I invented this quick, simple side as part of my vegetarian alternative to the potatoes I had cooked in the juices of a roasting chicken and it's returned time and time again to my table.

1) Finely slice your potato (I don't bother to peel it - half the flavour's in the skin!) with a mandolin, food processor attachment or a good knife and add to a pan with enough ale to just submerge the potatoes. Parboil for 5 minutes, allowing the ale to reduce and soak into the potato a little, then drain away the excess ale.

2) Add the butter and mustard to the potatoes and stir through, then layer in a baking dish.

3) Roast in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the skin just begins to turn golden, season and serve.

Vegan cauliflower cheese

Ingredients 6 tbsps cashew nut cream, 50ml water, 1 cauliflower, 1 tsp mustard

Serves: 4 Preparation: 30 minutes

My approach to cauliflower cheese is unparalleled. Indulgently finished with cream and two kinds of cheese, richly flavoured with Guinness and mustard it is everything a person could want. For vegans however, one would think cauliflower cheese was... well... impossible! But it's not and what's more it's absolutely delicious. I used cashew cream flavoured with no more than a teaspoon of mustard and a teaspoon of salt and black pepper and was blown away by the creamy, delicate sauce topped with a fine crispy crust.

1) Prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets.

2) Steam or parboil the cauliflower for about 6 minutes, strain and set aside to rest in an ovenproof dish.

3) Spoon the cashew cream into a pan, pour in the water, add the mustard, salt and pepper to taste and reduce on the hob for 5 minutes.

4) Pour the sauce onto the cauliflower and bake for 20 minutes at 220 degrees until a golden crust begins to form and serve!

Pasta with spinach & ale sauce

Ingredients 1/4 cup Hobgoblin ale, 300g spinach, 1/2 tsp grainy mustard, 1 tbsp buttermilk, 150g gruyere, pasta.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 20 minutes

I am a spinach junkie. I cannot get enough of it and it's such a great ingredient - so quick and satisfying and gloriously healthy. This dish is a little more indulgent given the cheese and beer content but it's magnificent nonetheless.

1) Bring the pasta to the boil in a pan of salted water and simmer for 8-10 minutes.

2) Reduce the ale in a milk pan and stir in the spinach, mustard and the buttermilk, then remove from the heat once the spinach has wilted.

3) Grate the gruyere into the pan and stir through until a completely smooth, elastic sort of fondue has formed. Strain the pasta and stir into the spinach sauce.

Butterbean croquettes

Ingredients 400g butterbeans, 1 tbsp Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt, 1 leek, butter, parsley, 1 lemon, 1/2 tsp mustard, old bread, 1 egg

Serves: 6 preparation: 45 minutes

Greek cuisine is magnificent. I love the combination of fresh herbs and citrus flavours with savoury ingredients. These croquettes are so simple but they're packed with flavour and the beans make a nice change from potato.

1) Simmer the butterbeans in hot, salted water for 5 minutes, then strain in a colander.

2) Pulse in a blender and then parse through a sieve, leaving the shell behind and a thick almost pate like consistency in the bowl below.

3) Chop the leek and sautee in a little butter until completely soft. Stir into the bean paste along with a squeeze of lemon juice, salt, freshly chopped parsley and a little mustard and Greek yoghurt.

4) Roll the mixture into croquettes. At this stage, if you're preparing ahead you can refrigerate them until you're ready to cook.

5) Whisk an egg into a dish and pulse some stale bread in the blender to form breadcrumbs. Dip the croquette in the egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs until thoroughly coated.

6) The traditional Greek method of cooking is to fry them until the breadcrumbs crumbs are crispy. Personally I find baking them in the oven for 20 minutes at 200 degrees to be more than satisfactory and certainly more healthy!

Roast peppers with lavender goats cheese

Ingredients 1 Bell pepper, lavender goats cheese, lavender vinaigrette, spinach, rocket, watercress

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

This recipe uses two of my recent lavender recipes - lavender goats cheese and lavender vinaigrette. It might sound like a whole lot of lavender... but you can never have too much. This is absolutely delicious, and such a lovely twist of the classic roast pepper and goats cheese combination.

1) Slice the tops from your bell peppers, remove the core and seeds, then slice between the membranes to leave 3 or 4 slices of pepper flesh. Discard the core, seeds and membranes. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes at 180 degrees.

2) Top a slice of bread with the roast pepper, and add the lavender goats cheese balls. Roast in the oven for a further 5 minutes, then dress with the salad and eat hot.

Lavender vinaigrette

Ingredients 1 tsp grainy mustard, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 lemon, 1 tsp lavender, 1 tsp honey (or agave syrup)

Serves: 4 Preparation: 5 minutes

It's no secret that I love lavender, or that this Provençal glory features heavily in my cooking. The vinaigrette is one of the best loved French influences and adding lavender and lemon in place of herbs and vinegar gives this a really wonderful twist. Perfect with peppery salad leaves like rocket and watercress.

1) Add the honey into the lemon juice and whisk together - the fruit acid should help even crystallised honey break down and integrate well.

2) Grind the dried lavender in a mortar and pestle and add to the honey and lemon along with the olive oil and whisk thoroughly.

3) Toss your salad leaves in the dressing and serve.

Welsh rarebit

Ingredients   Bread, Newcastle Brown Ale, lancashire cheese, double cream, english mustard.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 10 minutes


This is a dish of division. The division between people who call it Welsh Rarebit or Welsh Rabbit. The division between people who use Cheddar and those who use Lancashire cheese. The division between people who use stout versus ale, sourdough bread versus seeded wholemeal... the list is endless! I have spent the majority of this week perfecting this recipe - I used different cheeses, different ales and stouts and I can confirm with absolute confidence that you will not find a better Welsh Rarebit sauce than that made with Newcastle Brown Ale and Lancashire cheese. Cheddar is too oily, too sharp tasting - the piquancy here comes from the mustard. I also prefer to serve this on seeded wholemeal bread, but watch out for my bacon bread recipe coming later today!


1) Reduce half a cup of ale in a milk pan, stir in a teaspoon of English mustard, a tablespoon of double cream and remove from the heat.


2) Grate the lancashire cheese into the pan and stir through until a completely smooth, elastic sort of fondue has formed.


3) Toast the bread on one side before spooning about 4 tablespoons of sauce, bit by bit onto the bread, allowing it to soak up the sauce as you spread it out.  When a layer of sauce about 1/3 of a centimetre high has settled on the bread, it's ready to grill.


4) I like to grill this until the cheese has begun to form a crisp brown layer, and run down the sides of the crust - this leaves a melting, soft centre of cheese but has a wonderful flavour on the top.

Cauliflower cheese

Ingredients   1 cauliflower, 1/2 cup Guinness, 2 cups grated cheddar, 1/2 cup grated gruyere, 1/2 cup double cream, 1 tsp grainy mustard.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 30 minutes


I love cauliflower cheese, scratch that - I love anything with cheese, but this dish is melting perfection with an unbelievably rich, tangy, sauce. The earthiness of the Guinness really works here and this is a perfect side dish for a roast dinner.


1) Prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and slicing the stem to the base. Slice around the stem to release the florets.


2) Steam or parboil the cauliflower for about 8 minutes, strain and set aside to rest in an ovenproof dish.


3) Reduce the Guinness by half in a milk pan and stir in the mustard and cream. Take off the heat and stir in the cheddar until it has melted into a thick, creamy sauce.


4) Pour the sauce over the cauliflower and sprinkle with the gruyere. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the cheese bubbles and just begins to colour.

Emerald salad

Ingredients2 tsp grainy mustard, 4 eggs, lemon juice, salt, pepper, 1 pint rapeseed oil, 1 tablespoon pumpkin oil, green beans, exquisa potatoes, 2 avocados, goats cheese.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

I can scarely believe that it's been less than a week since I discovered Pumpkin Oil but in these last few days it has been a major source of foodspiration for me! I knew the stunning nutty flavour would make the most unbelievably rich mayonnaise but I was worried it would be too light to "take". A combination of Yorkshire rapeseed oil and pumpkin oil later, I had a dish of vibrant green mayonnaise and couldn't wait to smother it on waxy, exquisa potates, silky avocado, tangy goats cheese and the fresh green crunch of fine beans. With a little mustard for added piquancy this really is a stunning salad.

1) To make your own mayonnaise - 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, salt and pepper and whisk thoroughly, adding the rapeseed oil ONE DROP at a time until the mayonnaise is thick and glossy. When the mayonnaise has started to thicken, begin adding the pumpkin oil. You can always alternate if you wish but do remember 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. Don't be afraid to stop whisking and keep checking. Once it coats the spoon without dripping it's mayonnaise, you won't get it wrong!

2) Prick the potatoes and put them on to boil for 20 minutes. Put the fine beans in with the potatoes for the last 2 minutes, then strain and run under cold water to bring them down to just above room temperature.

3) Stir the mustard in with the mayonnaise and spoon over the potatoes and green beans, stirring until they are evenly coated.

4) Slice the avocados in half, scoop the fruit from the shell (discarding the stone) and cut into chunks. Add to the salad with crumbled goats cheese and serve!

Sausage & mustard mayonnaise salad

Ingredients 3 Quorn sausages, 1 lemon, 1 tsp grainy mustard, 4 eggs, lemon juice, salt, pepper, 1 pint vegetable oil.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 10 minutes


Quorn is a funny old thing. When I was just starting out as a vegetarian the key thing for me was to fit in, to prove that I wasn't a total weirdo and I could still eat all the same things as my family did. So at Sunday lunch I'd have a Quorn chicken/turkey breast. When they had a lasagne or shepherd's pie, I'd have the same but with Quorn mince. And on Saturday mornings I could have quorn sausage sandwiches, at parties Quorn sausage rolls and when making curry or stir fry I could use Quorn chicken pieces. As you'll know from reading this blog, I rarely use Quorn as a source of protein now - preferring to get creative with beans and nuts and pulses but occasionally I do and this quick snack makes a great side dish or picnic snack. You can make it with "real" sausages too!
1) To make your own mayonnaise - 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, salt and pepper and whisk thoroughly, adding 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.


2) Grill the sausages, brushed with a little oil to help crisp the "skin", allow them to cool a little and then slice them into chunks.


3) Add a good squeeze of lemon and teaspoon of mustard into the mayonnaise and stir the sausages through it.

Brussel sprouts with lemon and mustard butter

Ingredients     200g brussel sprouts, grainy mustard, 1 lemon, butter

Serves: 4 preparation: 10 minutes


Brussel sprouts came into season yesterday and I am determined to bring sexy back to these underrated teeny cabbages. Growing up most of us associate Christmas lunch with being forced to eat soggy, bitter sprouts but done well, sprouts can be an indulgent treat. They're perfect partnered with a little lemon juice and butter with mustard bringing out the sweet natural flavour.


1) Brussel sprouts take 6 minutes to cook - drop them into a pan of salted, boiling water, checking first to discard any which smell bitter and peeling off any leaves which look old or scarred.


2) Strain the sprouts and add back into the hot pan with a tablespoon of butter, half a teaspoon of grainy mustard and a squeeze of lemon juice.


3) Stir until the sprouts are coated and serve.

Baked potato: tuna, peach & gherkin

Ingredients Tuna, mayonnaise, gherkin, peach, potato, 4 eggs, lemon juice/white wine vinegar, salt, pepper, 1 pint vegetable oil, mustard.

Serves: 1 Preparation: 45 minutes - 1 hour

Once you have made your perfect baked potato, you need to fill it! I have a pathalogical loathing of fish but The Boy absolutely loves it and he swears on peach and tuna as a taste-senstion combination!

1) To make your own mayonnaise - 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, salt and pepper and a touch of mustard and whisk thoroughly, adding 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.

2) Peel the peach and slice in half, around the stone. Pull apart and cut into slivers and then small cubes. Cut the gherkin into equal sized cubes and stir into a can of drained tuna.

3) Stir in a tablespoon of mayonnaise and rough up the mixture with a fork, adding black pepper to taste.

4) Spoon onto the potato and serve!