Today’s recipe, a memorable component of our summer picnic lunches in Hungary, is introduced by a guest contribution from your father, king of the holiday morning routine. He has thrown in as many original Hungarian words as he can muster – presumably in a bid to convince the Consulate that he knows enough of theContinue reading “Stuffed eggs”
Category Archives: Vegetarian
Piperade
Variations upon a stew of onions, peppers and tomatoes are found across a range of cuisines. The name we use for our version, Piperade, is of Basque origin, although in a departure from the traditional template I would usually choose red and yellow peppers over green. In Italy, the dish is called Peperonata, while inContinue reading “Piperade”
Mango fool
After a slight hiatus on the pudding front, here is a recipe for a straightforward but richly aromatic fruit fool. It comes from Sophie Grigson’s Food for Friends (see Aubergine Parmigiana and Chickpea & tomato soup) and makes a great end to an Indian-themed meal, thanks to the cardamom and the orange-flower water, which transportContinue reading “Mango fool”
Pea, feta & mint fritters
It’s useful to have a range of vegetarian starters up your sleeve. This one tastes of early summer but has gone down a treat in December too. The recipe comes from Simple by Ottolenghi who, though not vegetarian himself, has revolutionized vegetarian cooking during the last decade. His newspaper columns and beautiful cookbooks have inspiredContinue reading “Pea, feta & mint fritters”
Greek salad
As a Classics student with a convenient bolt-hole at the British embassy in Athens, I spent several of my long university summer holidays in Greece, often travelling alone. My go-to evening meal at any local taverna (in Patmos, say, or Loutro or Porto Rafti) was Horiatiki or ‘garden’ salad (Χωριάτικη σαλάτα) washed down with aContinue reading “Greek salad”
Courgettes, courgettes
Courgettes (or zucchini) are wonderfully versatile vegetables. Cheap and quick to prepare, they can be served as a side dish or beefed up to make a main meal in themselves, and they go well with an array of herbs and spices from all sorts of cuisines. The recipes and pictures below are a mere selection,Continue reading “Courgettes, courgettes”
Omelette wraps
Nadiya Hussain is one of my cooking heroes: she’s a devoted mother, darling of Bake Off, and has done much to destigmatize mental health issues. A couple of years ago she demonstrated a recipe for egg and mushroom rolls on TV – basically a thin omelette fused to a tortilla wrap and filled with whateverContinue reading “Omelette wraps”
Potato salad
A homemade potato salad is infinitely preferable to anything you can buy in a shop, although you should feel no guilt about using ready-made mayonnaise, as you might for this dish’s close relative, tartare sauce. The main difference between the latter and this recipe is that I use spring onions here to bump up theContinue reading “Potato salad”
Lemon pasta
After the excesses and complexities of Easter, here is something very straightforward. Spaghetti al limone is another deliciously simple recipe from the first River Café Cookbook (see slow-cooked lamb shanks), easy to rustle up from limited ingredients. It makes a great starter for an Italian meal or a quick supper dish, served with a tomatoContinue reading “Lemon pasta”
Hot citrus pudding
The television series that accompanied the publication of Delia Smith’s Winter Cookbook in the 90s made a big splash and inspired a number of family meals that have stood the test of time (Colcannon potatoes and Mushroom risotto being two examples). This excellent hot pudding quickly became a favourite for Sunday lunch. Full of freshContinue reading “Hot citrus pudding”
Years of Practice 