Pumpkin, Apple and Cabbage Stew

I'm not fond of the word 'stew'. It seems to denote something grey and overcooked when often it is neither of those things. Stews can contain layers of flavour and even though the colour may not be as full of sparkle as, say, a vibrant salad with pops of red and bright green, they can …

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Easy Beans

Ok, yes, tinned beans are easy anyway, but sometimes you want more than just a plain bean. 1 tin butter beans Extra virgin olive oil 2 chopped fresh tomatoes, medium sized (PLEASE don't refrigerate your tomatoes, it ruins their structure) or 2 canned plum tomatoes, broken up 2 heaped tbs tomato puree 1/2-1 tsp salt …

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Mix It Up Rice Pot

I make this all the time. Husband loves it, especially with frankfurters as they get their smoke flavour right into the rice. You can change up the spice mix, change the beans, not add beans, add peas not sweetcorn, or use grated carrot, any veg chopped small so it cooks in 15 mins. Add chopped …

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Renata’s Polish Chicken

A few years back now, I worked with a lady called Renata. Originally from Poland, she had made London her home. We nattered a lot, usually about how she was transforming her studio flat into something that actually had storage space. Her design ideas were beautiful. Every stair up to her sleeping platform was a …

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Sad Mango Small Cakes

The cakes themselves are not sad, but the mango I found in my voluminous fruit/veg stand was. All bruised and forlorn on one side, bless it. I put it out of its misery quickly, peeled it and chopped all the usable flesh into small, fragrant, sticky pieces. It was early in the morning, and I …

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Quick Chickpea and Paneer Rendang

First of all, let me explain, this is not a rendang at all, because that is usually a meat dish, but I have used a rendang spice paste in it, so just go with me on this.Rendang is a spicy, dry meat dish which originated from Indonesia. Rendang is traditionally prepared by the Minangkabau community …

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Calcutta Cabbage Tangles

This is not my recipe, but one borrowed from Nisha Katona, founder and powerhouse behind the Mowgli chain of Indian restaurants. I say chain, but they are the furthest from the bland, corporate chain than anything could be. There’s a beating heart in each one, and each one, like siblings, retains the looks, but the …

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Cauliflower, parsnip, Jerusalem artichoke and coconut soup

This was one of those soups that came about because I had things I really needed to use up. It was cold and snowy, and I love having a big pot of soup on the stove plipping and pootling away gently. I know that seems like a lot of coconut, but it was a large …

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Borough, my Borough, and a recipe

Borough Market reopened yesterday after over a week closed, due to the aftermath of the terror attack. I couldn’t get there for the 10am ringing of the Market bell, though I dearly wanted to be there, so I went back that evening, just to walk about, and find my traders to hug. It had been …

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Comfort Soup: Quick Fasolada

I have a feeling that cheap and cheerful comfort foods are going to be big on the menu for a while. It was so cold today, I couldn’t shake it from my bones, no matter how I wrapped up, and so some sort of soup was on my mind when I got in from work. …

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