Gingered Glazed Ham

Ham is a traditional meat for the Christmas table, alongside the usual turkey.  We particularly enjoy them together at tea time as cold cuts with salad, pickles and chutneys. Cooking the ham completely or partially in ginger ale, rather than conventionally in water, gives a lovely sweet flavour which penetrates the whole joint of meat. Adding [...]

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Bajan Style Lamb Stew

I have finally finished watching Gary Rhodes’ series of programmes exploring the food of the Caribbean. This dish, from Barbados, tasted as good as it looked on television and it was not too difficult to make.  I have cooked with beetroot as a vegetable in a stew with success and found some lovely lamb fillet in the supermarket.  The [...]

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Grilled Chicken with Sumac & Roasted Banana

I was intrigued by the rusty red slightly acidic tasting powder which was liberally sprinkled over our dinner in our local Turkish restaurant.  After enquiring, the waitress told us it was Sumac and I realised that I had read about this middle-eastern seasoning not long before in foodie biography set mainly in Egypt.  When I [...]

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Lasagne al Forno

Lasagne al Forno, which I make with my own version of Ragu Bolognaise, has developed over the years. The combination of minced beef with a small amount of diced bacon in a rich sauce, layered with sheets of Lasagne pasta, is one of my daughter’s favourites and regularly turns up as the main course on her [...]

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Roasted Lemon Chicken

I often abandon traditional roast dinners in the hot weather, but this zesty lemon flavoured dish has a ’summery’ feel and would be good served with salad, although it could equally as well be eaten with potatoes and vegetables.  The original recipe was called Chicken with Spicy Potatoes, which was how I first served it, except I successfully used [...]

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Roast Lamb with Chilli Sauce

In her novel Chocolat, Joanne Harris writes a little about the Mexican background of the history of chocolate and the novel’s heroine, Vianne, serves her customers hot drinking chocolate flavoured with chilli. It may seem unusual, but cocoa has also long been used to complement the flavour of meat and is a key ingredient in the [...]

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Chicken with Orange & Mint

I usually do not like the combination of meat and fruit together, but I broke my own rule for this as it didn’t seem as if it would be too sweet. I was proved right.  The recipe was very simple to cook and absolutely delicious.  The chicken was beautifully tender in a buttery orangey sauce with the hint of mint [...]

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Double Salmon & Avocado Pizza

This pizza topping uses both smoked and fresh salmon, which combines beautifully with the creaminess of the avocado augmented by a few spoonfuls of creme fraiche.  It is very simple to put together, especially if you have some ready made tomato topping in the freezer and, if you are short of time, use the quick to make scone [...]

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Creamy Pasta with Bacon & Courgettes

Ever since I removed this recipe from a magazine it has proved to be one of our most popular family pasta dishes. I have lost count of the number of times I have made it, or variations of it, including on holiday last year in France. It is truly quick and easy - as the family know, [...]

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Pork Sausages Indian Style

This recipe has made a welcome re-appearance in our house having not been made for several years.  It is relatively simple to make, with the very little extra work of cooking with fresh/frozen ginger, garlic and ground spices being well worth it: it beats a ready made sauce from a jar any day!  You know exactly what you [...]

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