Pork & Udon Noodle Soup

I’m not going to lie – this recipe was the result of a rainy, cold day and me needing and craving a satisfying but light soup to warm me up. Since I had some leftover Chinese BBQ Pork in the fridge and am currently addicted to Udon noodles, this soup was a natural choice. I hadn’t made this version before but being a lover of Pho I used that as inspiration and simply used what I had in the house. Even better I had homemade chicken stock in the freezer just waiting to be used in a dish just like this. I have to admit there is something really satisfying about using what you have and creating exactly what you were craving. This soup took no time to make at all and was absolutely perfect….The perfect pick-me-up for a rainy, cold September day.

Serves 2 generously (easily doubled)

750ml chicken stock (homemade or the best quality you can get)

1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced

3 slices of ginger

1 star anise

1 red chilli, sliced (remove the seeds for less heat)

2 or 3 lime leaves (fresh if possible but dried is fine)

1tsp fish sauce (or to taste)

½ lime

200g packet of udon noodles

Leftover pork, shredded (or other meat of your choice) – as much as you have or want in your soup

Handful of sugar snap peas (approx. 100g), cut in half diagonally

Sprinkling of fresh coriander (optional)

Put the stock into a medium sized pan then add the garlic, ginger, star anise, red chilli, lime leaves, fish stock and a good squeeze of lime juice. Bring it to a boil then leave to gently simmer for about 5-10 minutes to let the flavours infuse the stock (you can leave it for longer if you like, it’s more about how much time you have, just don’t let it reduce too much).

Add the udon noodles and cook for a couple of minutes (or according to the time on the packet). For the last minute add the pork and the sugar snap peas and cook just long enough to warm the pork and slightly soften the peas. Taste to check the balance of flavours and adjust if necessary adding more lime or fish sauce as needed, then ladle into deep bowls and serve at once. Chop sticks are optional but they are perfect for slurping up the noodles!

Favourite Vegetarian Recipes for National Vegetarian Week

In honour of National Vegetarian Week I thought it would be fun to put together a collection of some of my favourite vegetarian recipes that I have on my blog. I won't lie, there is a lot of pasta but since I'm a pasta-holic it's to be expected I guess. I love eating vegetarian food and think it's good for everyone to have at least one or two nights a week enjoying a delicious meal without meat. I hope you like the collection as much as I do but I have realised that I definitely need to come up with some more vegetarian recipes that don't feature pasta!

From Top L-R: Tomato & Mozzarella Tart; Lemon Spaghetti; Mozzarella, Almond & Pomegranate Salad; Spicy Tomato & Mozzarella Gnocchi; Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles; Quinoa Salad; My Favourite Bruschetta; Hearty Italian Vegetable Soup: Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni; Tomato & Vodka Spaghetti; Flatbread Pizza; Mushroom Bruschetta with Cheat's Aioli; Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli; Penne Arrabiata; Zucchini & Lemon Spaghetti and Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Tomato & Mozzarella Tart

Lemon Spaghetti

Mozzarella, Almond & Pomegranate Salad

Spicy Tomato & Mozzarella Gnocchi

Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles

Quinoa Salad

My New Favourite Bruschetta

Hearty Italian Vegetable Soup

Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni

Tomato & Vodka Spaghetti

Flatbread Pizza

Mushroom Bruschetta with Cheat's Aioli

Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli

Penne Arrabiata

Zucchini & Lemon Spaghetti

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Spaghetti with Broccolini, Garlic & Chilli

Tenderstem Broccoli, Broccolini and Broccolette - all names referring (as far as I can tell) to the same wonderful thin, long-stemmed variety of broccoli. It is one of my all time favourite vegetables and when it comes into season I am always so happy!

This is by far one of my favourite ways to enjoy it, as a quick and simple delicious pasta dish ideal for knocking up for a midweek meal that is filling but light at the same time. The amount of time needed to cook the broccoli will depend on how thin the stalks are but as a guide the latest bunch I had were almost pencil thin and therefore needed no more than 1 minute for the stalks and 30 seconds for the florets, but if they are a bit thicker the stalks might need up to 2 minutes.

Butternut Squash 'Mac' & Cheese

I love Butternut Squash and combined with a cheese sauce it makes for a fabulous variation of the classic pasta dish, Mac and Cheese. It adds a lovely richness to the dish and a real sweetness which kids especially love. I am very fortunate that Ben is a great eater and thankfully loves vegetables but if you have a child (or other family member!) that isn't so keen on veg then this is a great way to sneak it in to their meals.

I wouldn't normally add cream cheese to my Macaroni & Cheese and to be honest the first time I tried it was purely because I had a lot of cream cheese needing used up so I thought why not? It turned out that the tang of the cream cheese balanced the sweetness of the squash so well that I kept it as part of the permanent recipe. If you would rather not use cream cheese however, then simply replace with 85g or 3oz of your favourite cheese such as mozzarella or gruyere.

Broccoli & Boursin Soup

I absolutely love Broccoli Soup (in fact I think my favourite soup of all time is still my Broccoli & Nutmeg) and at this time of year you can't beat Broccoli and Stilton Soup. Only problem in my home is that I'm the only one that likes Stilton! So I came up with this delicious version as a way to keep everyone happy. It has so much comforting flavour and the addition of the Boursin just adds a lovely creaminess to the soup without being too heavy. It is the perfect soup to enjoy piping hot on a cold, snowy Winter's Day.

(If you would prefer a lighter, non-dairy Broccoli Soup then try my Broccoli & Nutmeg soup.)

Serves 4

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced

1 leek, cleaned and sliced

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 large head of Broccoli (approx. 12oz)

750ml Chicken or Vegetable Stock

115g/ 4oz Boursin Cheese, plus extra for garnish

Salt and Pepper

In a large pan heat oil and butter until the butter is melted and sizzling. Add the onion and leek and cook gently for 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and the broccoli, stir well then put a tight-fitting lid on and leave to sweat for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes add the stock and some seasoning then partially cover with the lid (just leave slightly askew) and leave to cook for roughly 10 minutes or until the broccoli is tender. Leave to cool slightly then transfer to a blender (or you can use a handheld blender) and blend until smooth. Add the Boursin then blend again until everything is well mixed and the cheese melted into the soup. Return the soup to the pan and gently reheat. Taste to check the seasoning and adjust if necessary then serve sprinkled with a little extra Boursin on top and a touch of freshly ground black pepper.

Curried Sweet Potato & Squash Soup

This recipe came to be because I literally had a sweet potato and squash in the pantry and I wanted a warming Autumnal soup to make for a family Saturday lunch. It is so quick and easy to make and is a really homely, comforting soup that tastes great. I teamed it up with my delicious savoury Cheese and Spring Onion Scones which were warm from the oven and slathered with butter. It was the most perfect lunch for a rainy, grey Saturday spent indoors with my family!

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

1 onion, roughly chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 tsp curry powder, plus extra for serving

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

½ butternut squash, roughly chopped

1 sweet potato, peeled and roughly chopped

1 litre chicken or vegetable stock

Salt & pepper

Heat the oil and butter in a large pan then once the butter has melted and is sizzling add the onion. Cook for roughly 5-7 minutes until softened but not coloured then add the garlic and curry powder and cook for about 1 minute before adding the carrot, squash and sweet potato. Stir everything well together then pop on a lid and let the vegetables 'sweat' for around 10 minutes, stirring from time to time. 

After 10 minutes add the stock and some seasoning and cook for a further 10-15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and a knife can cut into them easily. Leave to cool for a bit before blending until super smooth and silky.

When ready to serve gently reheat the soup and taste to check the seasoning, adjusting if necessary. Sprinkle over a touch of curry powder and serve at once.

Year-Round Creamy Tomato Soup

Temperatures and leaves both start to drop, days are shorter and nights cooler. All of these are the first signs that Summer is over and it's time for a new season, but for me the arrival of Autumn and Fall is all also the welcoming start of Soup Season. Don't get me wrong there are the occasional times in the Summer when I will want a bowl of soup but they are generally light soups saved for cooler days. Autumn however, marks the start of piping hot bowls of really comforting, homemade soup that will warm you up and satisfy you in an instant.

Tomato Soup may seem more of a Summer Soup but for me it really is a year-round soup to enjoy. When I was pregnant with my son and finally over my morning (or rather 'all-day' sickness!) Tomato Soup with Cheese Toasties was my staple lunch and I don't know where I would have been without it! In the height of Summer when tomatoes are in abundance I love to use fresh vine-ripened tomatoes such as in my Fresh Tomato Soup recipe, but for the rest of the year it has to be tinned tomatoes. This recipe was taken from the book Pretty Delicious by Candice Kumai (read my review of the book here) and as far as I am concerned is the most fantastic Tomato Soup ever. I make it all the time because not only does it taste fabulous, but it takes no time to make at all and despite it being a 'creamy' tomato soup, there is actually no cream in it so it's healthy too!

I changed a few things in the recipe to suit our tastes but the core of the recipe is courtesy of Candice Kumai. If you like Tomato Soup, try this and I promise you will never buy tinned tomato soup again!

Spicy Tomato & Mozzarella Gnocchi

One of my favourite things about going on holiday is the food you get to enjoy. In my opinion one of the absolutely best ways to experience and understand a country is by trying the food and eating what locals eat. This dish is one I make over and over and is inspired not by a dish I had (unfortunately!), but one my Dad had 4 years ago. We were all in Rome on the last day of our holiday after flying to Italy for my Brother's wedding. I was 27 weeks pregnant and we were spending the day experiencing as much of Rome as we could in the short time we had left. We managed to see most of the magnificent historical sites (beautifully breathtaking) but of course as important as that was so was sampling some delicious Italian food(!), so we stopped off at a lovely little restaurant and sat out on the terrace with awnings protecting us from the bright sun. I chose this simple Gnocchi dish which arrived at the table still bubbling and simmering in the terracotta dish it was baked in. A light, fresh tomato sauce coated each little pillow of potato gnocchi and in amongst it all were small pieces of mozzarella that had formed molten pools of creamy, silken mozzarella goodness!

The dish was light, simple and so flavourful that it really stuck with me, and as I said I have been making my own version ever since. Since I am such a lover of spicy food I couldn't help to add a little touch of fresh chilli to the dish, but you could easily miss that out if you prefer. This to me is classic Italian cooking – simple to make, using good ingredients and absolutely delicious to eat. Buon Appetito!

Fish & Corn Chowder

Although I refuse to accept that Summer is almost over it has certainly cooled down in the last week and the forecast unfortunately predicts grey, rainy days for the next few days. Not my idea of Summer, however this Fish and Corn Chowder is. It is so full of bright, fresh seasonal flavours and although hearty enough to enjoy on a cooler evening for dinner, it is a lovely light chowder with only a little cream added at the end. Being a chilli lover I love the addition of the fresh, spiky hot chilli at the end to cut through the creaminess but if you aren't a fan you can easily miss it out. Try it though – I guarantee you will love it! Served with some hot, garlicky crostini this is the most perfect late Summer meal.

Nigella's Happiness Soup for Random Recipes

I love Random Recipes but for the past few months (probably more, I just don't want to count) for various reasons I haven't been able to take part. This month however I had no excuses because to celebrate 30 months of Random Recipes the lovely Dom decided we had to pick book number 30 from our collections and turn to page 30 to find out our fate for this month. By sheer coincidence book number 30 from my list of books in my Cookbook Room was none other than Forever Summer by Nigella Lawson, which I just happen to be reviewing this month anyway! Total bonus. Unfortunately though page 30 turned out to be the title page for the chapter on Pasta so since we all at times like to turn back the clock a bit I went to pages 28 & 29 which was her recipe for “Happiness Soup”.

I know what you are probably thinking, what on earth is “Happiness Soup” and even I myself thought she may have overstepped the mark just a touch with this one, however the first line of the recipe is asking us to forgive her for the tweeness of the title. Ok Nigella, you are forgiven, especially because after making the soup I can kind of see where she was coming from as this soup is so incredibly bright and summery it would cheer up anyone on even the dreariest of days! The recipe is incredibly simple and straightforward and the end result delicious. It's very light and the lemon juice gives it a lovely bright, refreshing taste, but the addition of the rice makes it heartier.

If I had to criticise it I would say that there wasn't any need for the 3 tablespoons of oil (2 would be more than plenty) and the turmeric again could be cut down as it didn't do anything other than turn the soup an insanely bright luminescent yellow! Next time I make this (which I will) I'll definitely use less olive oil and half the amount of turmeric. I also have to say that this soup rather unusually for soups was better the day it was made. When I had some the following day I had to add more stock as the rice had absorbed the majority of it but the lemon flavour was a little overpowering. All in all though if you can get beautiful yellow courgettes/zucchini's then I definitely recommend giving this soup a try and see if it turns your frown upside down!

Warm Tomato & Chorizo Salad with Olives

Whenever my husband is away for work I always try to eat as many tomatoes as possible! It means I get my full-on tomato fix without having to listen to any complaints, change recipes or make him something else, and he's happy as he doesn't have to eat it!! Tomato Pasta is always high on the list as well as many different Tomato Salads including this one with Chorizo and Black Olives.

I'm not sure if this should really be called a Salad but in all honesty I couldn't think of a better way to describe it! It's a perfect meal for a warm Summer evening when you want something full of punchy flavours but still light enough not to leave you sluggish and overly full. I like to eat it with lots of fresh, crusty French bread to mop up all the sauces but it is also delicious served as part of a Tapas menu or for something a little more filling spooned through some hot pasta and for an extra special treat I have it with a few slices of mozzarella on the side. As far as I am concerned it doesn't get any better than this, especially when enjoyed outside in the sun with a cold glass of white wine. Bliss.

Since this is a dish I save as a treat just for myself this recipe only serves 1 but it can easily be adapted to feed many more.

Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles

I love Thai food and I love noodles so it's no surprise that I absolutely l-o-v-e this dish! This is my version of a recipe I tested from Rachel Allen's book Home Cooking. I've spiced it up but if you prefer it milder just miss out the Sriracha and chilli (if you like you could serve them on the side at the end for any chilli lovers you are feeding!). I've also changed some of the vegetables used which of course you could also change to what you like or happen to have in the house, and if you wanted you could also add some chicken or prawns, however I love this vegetable version for the perfect Meat Free Monday meal. It is full of so many fantastic fragrant flavours (try saying that 3 times!) but isn't too heavy. Try it once and there will be no going back or ordering from you local Noodle restaurant! Thanks Rachel!

Baked Potato Soup with Crispy Potato Skins

This soup is really a meal in itself. It is filling and delicious and if you like Baked Potatoes you will love this! It takes a little bit of time to make since you have to bake the potatoes first but it is well worth it.

4 medium sized baking potatoes, washed & dried

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for the potatoes

1 onion, roughly chopped

1 leek, roughly chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

750ml vegetable or chicken stock

250ml milk

60ml cream

Salt & freshly ground black pepper

For the toppings:

Sour Cream or Greek Yogurt

Grated cheddar cheese

Spring onions or chives, finely chopped

Bacon, cooked til crispy then crumbled into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 220C/425F. Rub a little olive oil over each potato then put in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 190C/375F and continue to bake them for a further 45-60 minutes until you have crisp skins and fluffy, cooked centers (check by piercing a small sharp knife into the center of the potatoes to make sure they are tender and soft). Set aside and leave until cool slightly then cut them in half and let them cool some more.

Increase the heat of the oven to 200C/400F.

Once cool enough to handle carefully scoop out the potato flesh leaving the skins intact with enough potato still on them to make potato skins. Set the scooped potato aside. Cut each potato skin in half then put them on a baking tray and drizzle with a little olive oil. Season with salt and pepper then put back in the oven and bake for roughly 20 minutes until golden and crisp.

In a large pan heat the butter with the tablespoon of oil then add the onion and leek and cook for roughly 7 minutes until softened but not coloured. Add the garlic and cook for another minute before adding the cooked potato, stock and seasoning. Leave to cook for 5 minutes then remove from the heat. Leave to cool slightly then liquidize in a blender until smooth. Return the soup to a pan then add the milk and cream. Taste to check the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Once the potato skins are almost ready remove from the oven then put a little grated cheese on each one. Return them back to the oven just until the cheese has melted. To serve add a small spoonful of sour cream or Greek yogurt to each one then sprinkle over some thinly sliced spring/green onions.

To serve the soup ladle it into 4 bowls then as with the potato skins top with some grated cheese, a little Greek yogurt or Sour Cream, some spring onions and some bacon pieces. Serve at once with the potato skins on the side.

*If you prefer and want to cut out some of the calories serve the potato skins plain - they are still absolutely delicious and perfect for dunking!

Cookbook Review ~ Bill Granger Easy {And Marinated Steak Rolls with BBQ Sauce}

When I bought this book (over the internet so with only a brief preview) I was a little worried that the recipes might be a little too easy and simplified since Bill Granger's books are generally always filled with fairly straightforward, relaxed recipes, however, I shouldn't have worried. What fills the pages are beautiful recipes that aren't too complicated but still have a bit of oomph to them so that I wasn't bored or had seen the recipes hundreds of times already. It became obvious very quickly that this was a book that I really wanted to cook from and with 100 recipes I had plenty to choose from.

One of the first things that I loved about this book was the fact that the chapters are divided up by specific ingredient such as 'Piece of Chicken', 'Slab of steak', 'Mince & Sausages' and 'Carton of Eggs', (to name a few). I found this approach really helpful cause it means you can go raid your fridge or freezer, decide what you want to cook with and then just jump straight to the chapter for instant inspiration. There were so many recipes that I wanted to try that I literally gave up bookmarking them since it seemed I was putting a sticky note on almost every page! In the end I managed to try 6 recipes but I still have quite a few that I want to try!

The Tested Recipes:

Orange and Oregano Marinated Pork

Marinated Steak Rolls & Barbecue Sauce

Light Butter Chicken

Spanish Fish Stew

Individual Baked Beans with Eggs

Chilli, Sausage and Broccoli Pizza

Chicken, Vegetable & Barley Soup

When I was recently back home in Scotland I went out quite a lot for lunch and the one thing that I always love when I go out for lunch there, is that the soups are always fantastic. Now to be honest there is no excuses for bad soup, but the thing I love about the soups I had was that they weren't fancy soups with exotic or indulgent ingredients, they were the simplest soups you could imagine, using everyday ingredients. They were the kind of soups that my Gran used to make using good quality stock from the roast they had cooked on the Sunday and using some of the left-over meat along with vegetables that were in the fridge or pantry and sometimes a grain to help bulk it up and turn it into a hearty, nourishing and completely delicious bowl of soup.

This is my version of a soup I had at a wonderful farm shop and restaurant near to Perth. It is definitely a soup that needs a good stock so if you don't have any homemade stock then use the best quality, good tasting stock you can. It's a basic hearty soup so feel free to change the vegetables around and use whatever you have available, and for a vegetarian version simply miss out the chicken and use vegetable stock instead.

150g (¾ cup) pearl barley*

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 leek, cleaned and sliced

2 stalks of celery, sliced

2 carrots, peeled & sliced

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 medium potato, peeled and cut into cubes

1.5 - 2 litres chicken stock**

Salt & pepper

Couple of handfuls of cooked chicken, shredded or cut into small pieces

2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

Squeeze of lemon juice to serve (optional)

Rinse the barley well under water then put into a medium sized pan. Cover with cold water, bring to a boil then leave to boil for 10 minutes.

While the barley is boiling heat the oil in a large pan and saute the onion, leek and celery until softened but not coloured (roughly 5-7 minutes). Add the garlic, carrots and potato and stir everything together and cook for a couple of minutes until the barley is ready.

Drain the barley then add to the vegetables along with 1.5 litres of the stock. Season with salt and pepper and leave to simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the barley is cooked and tender. Taste to check the seasoning and adjust if necessary then add the shredded chicken and parsley. Cook for a further 2 minutes just until the chicken is warmed through then if you like spritz with a little lemon juice. Serve at once for a hearty and healthy soup that will warm you up in an instant.

*Depending on the type of pearl barley that you use, you might need to soak it first so follow the instructions on the packet up until the last 20-30 minutes of cooking.

**If the soup isn't all eaten straight away and is left to stand you will need to add more stock to it as it will continue to thicken as the barley soaks up the stock. 

Italian Sausage Soup

My sister-in-law Kim passed this recipe on to me after she made it for her family and it disappeared in an instant! Once I tried it I wasn't surprised – it is amazing and the perfect mid-week meal. The original recipe was for a slow-cooker but I've adapted this one to make it on the stove top. You can make it either way – just whatever is most convenient for you. I've changed the original recipe a little bit just to make more broth as the pasta absorbs a lot and I can promise you, you will want plenty of this soup! A delicious slightly spicy broth, with juicy sausage meatballs, pasta and spinach – it really is a complete meal in a bowl that your family will thank you for and perfect after a long day Christmas shopping!

For the Meatballs:

1lb sausages of your choice (mild Italian work well but use what you can get)

50g/ ½ cup dried bread crumbs

15g/ ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

60ml/ ¼ cup milk

1 large egg

½ tsp Italian seasoning

small pinch of salt

Freshly ground black pepper

For the Soup:

2 litres/ 8 cups good quality chicken stock/broth

2 tbsp tomato puree/paste

1 fat clove of garlic, crushed

¼ – ½ tsp chilli flakes (optional)

85g/ ¾ cup small pasta shapes (I like Ditalini the best but use your favourite)

3 large handfuls of baby spinach leaves (if you prefer you can add more)

To serve:

Parmesan cheese, grated

Pre-heat the oven to 350F/ 180C and line a baking tray with tin foil (aluminium).

Start by making the meatballs by removing the sausage meat from the casing. Put into a bowl along with the rest of the meatball ingredients. Mix well so that everything is well combined then shape into small meatballs. I use my smallest ice cream scoop for this which makes it even quicker and easier to do and means that they are all the same size. Using my ice cream scoop I usually get 35-40 meatballs so aim for that. Bake the meatballs in the oven for 20 minutes until just browned.

While the meatballs are baking make the broth by combining the chicken stock, tomato puree, garlic and chilli flakes in a large pan. Bring to a boil then add the meatballs and cook at a gentle simmer for 10-15 minutes. Increase the heat a little so that it is boiling again and add the pasta. Cook for roughly 10 minutes or according to the time indicated on the packet of pasta, stirring from time to time. As soon as the pasta is ready remove the soup from the heat then add the spinach. Stir well then cover with a lid and leave to sit for 5 minutes to allow the pasta to swell a little more, the spinach to wilt and all the flavours to mingle and become even more delicious!

When ready to serve ladle into bowls and finish with a good sprinkling of parmesan.

*If you would rather make this in a slow-cooker make the meatballs as above then put the stock, tomato puree, garlic and chilli flakes into the slow-cooker/ crock-pot and then add the meatballs once they have been browned in the oven, and cook on low for 5-6 hours. Add the pasta and cook for a further 30 minutes. Once it is tender add the spinach and stir until it has wilted. Serve as above.

Carrot & Lentil Soup

This soup is adapted from a version by Ross Dobson featured in his book, Kitchen Seasons. I had to include it here because it tastes just like the Lentil Soup my Mum used to make. It is not only delicious but hearty and comforting. Nothing else can make you feel better than a steaming hot bowl of this soup.

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced

1 leek, sliced

1 clove of garlic, chopped

2 tbsp tomato puree (you can use either sun-dried or normal)

3 carrots, peeled and grated

250g red lentils, rinsed

1.5 litres chicken or vegetable stock

Salt & pepper

A sprinkling of curry powder to serve (optional)

In a large pan melt the butter with the oil. Add the onion and leek and gently sauté for 5 minutes until starting to soften. Add the garlic and tomato puree and cook for a further minute before adding the grated carrots, lentil and stock. Stir everything together then season with some salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with a lid and cook over a medium-low heat until the soup comes to a boil, then lower the heat slightly, remove the lid (or have it on at an angle so that it isn't completely covered) and cook for 25-30 minutes or until the lentils are cooked and completely tender, stirring from time to time.

Remove the soup from the heat and leave to cool slightly. At this point you can either serve it as it is – perfect if you prefer a chunkier soup, or you can blitz it up to make a thick and smooth soup (as pictured). And if you really can't decide, it's also delicious when you blend half of it and keep the other half chunky....then you get the best of both worlds!

Heat before serving and if you like, (as I do) finish it off with a little sprinkling of curry powder.

Witches Hair with Bugs {Spaghetti with Prawns}

Try not to be too grossed out by the name (or look!) of this dish as it is the perfect Halloween dish to get you in the mood for trick or treating or to quickly gobble down after! There is something about black spaghetti that just screams Halloween and so I just can't resist making it to mark the occasion. I love this dish as it takes no time to make – literally just as long as it takes for the pasta to cook – it tastes fantastic and has the perfect Halloween look to keep the children happy! Of course when Halloween has past this is still a fantastic meal which can be enjoyed minus the black spaghetti and with whole wheat or regular white spaghetti instead. We eat this dish a lot as it is the perfect quick and easy mid-week meal!

{Serves 4 easily doubled for a crowd}

400g black (squid ink) spaghetti

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 long red chilli, finely chopped (de-seed for a milder child friendly dish)

1lb prawns, cleaned*

Juice of ½ lemon

Sprinkling of fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Cook the pasta in a large pan of salted, boiling water for the time instructed on the packet. While the spaghetti is cooking heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a frying pan and gently cook the garlic and chilli until softened but not coloured. Add the prawns and toss well and cook until warmed through (or if using raw prawns until they have cooked properly). Squeeze over the lemon juice then take off the heat.

Drain the spaghetti reserving a tablespoon of the cooking water then add the spaghetti to the garlicky prawns. Add the reserved pasta water then mix well. Finish with the final tablespoon of olive oil to give a real 'glossy' look to the pasta then if using scatter over the parsley. Serve at once.

*For this particular dish I used small prawns since I thought they better resembled bugs(!) however ordinarily when I make this I use normal sized prawns. You can use either cooked or raw prawns for this dish, just make sure they have their shells off and have been cleaned. If you do use raw prawns they will require about 4 minutes to cook whereas the cooked prawns literally just need to be heated through.

**If you like you can miss out the prawns and have a super simple pasta supper of Garlic & Chilli Spaghetti – one of my favourites! 

Goats Cheese & Pesto Cannelloni

A perfect Summer dish for using up some fresh basil pesto that you might have in your fridge desperate to be used! Light tasting and full of Summer flavours, this dish is sure to become a family favourite. Serve with some steamed seasonal greens or a nice crisp salad and once you have tried the original recipe why not mix things up a bit by using some Spicy Red Pesto or your favourite version of pesto. If you aren't a fan of Goats cheese you could try using Boursin, Ricotta or even cream cheese.

There are a few things to note about this recipe…. First of all regarding the tomato sauce, due to my husband's dislike to tomato chunks I always blend my tomatoes or use passata (sieved tomatoes). If you prefer a smooth sauce blend away otherwise keep the sauce chunky! Secondly, the lasagna sheets that I buy are quite large so I cut them in half – if yours are smaller don’t bother cutting them. Finally, I use a rectangular glass Pyrex dish to cook my cannelloni in – approximately 9” x 13 ½” – and it fits perfectly. If you don’t have a similar dish use what you do have – you can always cut the cannelloni to make them fit! This is real, fresh home cooking at its best.

Classic Barbecued Beef Burgers

When it comes to Summer and barbecue season you can't let it pass without making plenty of burgers as you can't beat a perfectly grilled, slightly charred burger enjoyed outside on a sunny day. We eat burgers quite a lot – they are just so versatile and make the perfect Saturday night feast (even in the winter!). You can change things up by varying what you put on your Burger but we always have to have cheese, lettuce, red onion and pickles! Special occasions call for sauteed mushrooms, bacon and occasionally spicy jalapenos and of course I can never resist some slices of fresh tomato. Finished off with some mayonnaise, mustard and tomato ketchup and you have the perfect finger-licking burger!