Cavolo Nero is one of my favourite winter greens and this is a winning way to cook it from ” The Art of the Larder” by Claire Thomson. It goes very well with grilled meat ( if you do) , but is also good piled on to garlic rubbed toast, with or without some ricotta, or perhaps with a poached egg on top.
An old favourite from Madhur Jaffrey’s ” Quick and Easy Indian Cookery.” If you dont have a pressure cooker you can use an ordinary pan. Add 6 fl oz water and cook covered for 50 minutes before uncovering and boiling down the liquid.
A creamy and lightly spiced curry from Columbo to serve with rice or bread. The recipe is from Das Sreedharan, chef/ owner of Rasa restaurants. I found it in the book ” Curry” which includes recipes from a number of chefs and is published by Dorling Kindersley.
A simple courgette soup from Mexico which I found in ” Mexican Food made Simple” by Thomasina Miers. Serve as a starter or for a light lunch or supper, perhaps with Cheese and Courgette Filo Parcels .I sometimes serve this with Parmesan Croutons .
A light summery pasta dish from ” Cook” by Thomasina Miers. If you like you could toss in about 100g each of Serrano ham and Manchego cheese at the end.
A flavoursome nutty stir fry from ” Stir Crazy” by Ching-He Huang. You can add some blanched greens or steamed broccoli and toss together, or serve the greens alongside , together with some steamed jasmine rice.
This is a relatively mild version of the Thai classic Pad Kra Pao but if you like you could add three or four more garlic cloves and extra chillies. The recipe is from ” Dominique’s Kitchen” by Dominique Woolf. Its a quick dish to prepare and cook so makes a great midweek supper,
A simple and quick version of lasagne from ” Mezcla” by Ixta Belfrage. If you like you could use chicken stock or bone broth if you are not catering for vegetarians. Spinach, chard leaves or ham also make a good addition to the layers.
A sweet hot jam to make in late summer when all the ingredients are at their best. Serve with savoury breakfasts especially baked ricotta. Its from ” Alice’s Cook Book ” by Alice Hart.
A fancy cheese on toast for brunch . You can cut it up into quarters and serve with a crisp salad for lunch or dinner. Or you can cut into smaller squares and serve as a sharing snack. The recipe is from ” Mezcla” by Ixta Belfrage and can be doubled for a crowd.
