Smoky fish with spinach, gnocchi, cream and mustard

A super-easy, delicious, midweek supper from Gill Meller's latest book Outside which you could, as he says, cook indoors or outdoors.

"Most of the things we cook inside on the hob can be cooked outside over a hot fire. That’s the case with this recipe, anyway. I’m not barbecuing any of the ingredients as such – I’m simply setting a pan down over the hot embers and cooking in a rather conventional way – although in this instance, I’ve replaced the ceiling with the sky and the walls with a view.

What’s particularly nice about this recipe is that it all comes together in the one pan. It’s rich, creamy and autumnal, and one of the tastiest things I’ve eaten in ages."

SERVES 2

100ml (3½fl oz) double (heavy) cream

a small colander of tender spinach leaves, roughly chopped

200g (7oz) skinless smoked fish fillet, cut into bitesize chunks

200g (7oz) gnocchi

1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard

25g (1oz) mature cheddar, grated

freshly ground black pepper

a handful of flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped, to serve

Set a large, deep frying pan over a medium–hot fire. Pour in the cream along with a few tablespoons of water.

Add the spinach and fish to the simmering cream and cook for a minute or so. Add the gnocchi, mustard and cheese and give everything a gentle stir. If the sauce seems a bit thick, add a dash more water.

After a minute or so, the gnocchi will be ready, so you can take the pan off the fire. Add a good twist of black pepper, and sprinkle in the chopped parsley before serving.

Extracted from OUTSIDE by Gill Meller £30 Quadrille. Photography: Andrew Montgomery

What to drink: I'd go for a smooth dry Italian white wine like a Soave or Gavi di Gavi with this but a subtly oaked chardonnay or chenin blanc would work well too. Or a dry cider or perry

Smoked Salmon and Spinach Lasagne

I'm normally a bit daunted by chefs' books but Chefs at Home, a collection of recipes from some of Britain's best loved chefs which has been put together in aid of Hospitality Action, a charity that supports the restaurant industry, is full of the kind of food they actually make for their families.

This one is from Tom Kitchin who writes: "This comforting pasta bake is easy to prepare and always popular. The recipe is based on a Scandinavian dish that my wife Michaela has been making for years. It’s absolutely delicious and has the added advantage that it can be prepared in advance, ready to bake and serve when required."

Serves 4

100g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing

100g plain flour

950ml whole milk

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon grated nutmeg

½ leek, cut into thin strips

400g baby spinach

2 garlic cloves, crushed

8–10 lasagne sheets

500g smoked salmon, cut into 2cm squares

250g cheddar, grated

50g parmesan, grated

4 dill sprigs, chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper

green salad, to serve

Melt 75g of the butter in a heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat. Add the flour and cook out for 1–2 minutes, then slowly add the milk, stirring as you go. Cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring continuously without letting the sauce boil too hard, until thickened. Once thickened, add the mustard and nutmeg.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/Gas mark 4 and grease a lasagne dish with butter.

Melt the remaining 25g of butter in a saucepan, add the leek and cook for 2–3 minutes to soften a little. Season with salt and pepper, then add the spinach leaves (a handful at a time is easier) and the garlic and cook for a further 2–3 minutes, until the spinach has wilted. Drain off the excess liquid.

Spread some of the sauce over the bottom of the dish and place a layer of lasagne sheets on top. Top with some of the leek and spinach mixture, then some smoked salmon. Sprinkle over some cheddar and parmesan. Repeat the process, finishing the top layer with sauce, a few pieces of salmon, and grated cheese. Bake for 45 minutes, until golden and the lasagne is tender. (To check if the lasagne is cooked, insert a fork – if there’s no resistance, it’s ready.)

Sprinkle the dill over the top and serve with a fresh green salad.

What to drink: I'd go for a rich full-bodied white like an old vine chenin blanc, a godello or a grillo with this

Extract taken from Chefs at Home: Delicious Family Recipes from the UK’s Leading Locked Down Chefs (£26, Jon Croft Editions)

Photography ©Kris Kirkham

Cauliflower curry, boiled eggs & coconut crumble

Cauliflower and eggs are two of my favourite things, here ingeniously combined by Dan Doherty of the Duck & Waffle in his brilliant book Toast, Hash, Roast, Mash.

Dan writes: "I fell in love with vegetable curries while spending time in India and Bangladesh – cauliflower curry being one of my favourites. The coconut works really well, adding flavour and a rich creaminess, with a crunch in the topping."

Serves 4–6

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

olive oil

1 cauliflower, broken into florets

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon onion seeds

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 onion, finely chopped

2.5cm (1 inch) piece of ginger, grated

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 red chilli, finely chopped

150g (5 ½ oz) cooked yellow lentils

2 x 400ml (14fl oz) cans of coconut milk

sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons desiccated coconut

8 eggs, hard-boiled and shelled

a large sprig of coriander

Heat some olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and brown the cauliflower florets on all sides.

Meanwhile put the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, ground turmeric, onion seeds and curry powder in a dry frying pan over a medium heat and toast for a few minutes, shaking the pan, until you can smell the aromas and the spices look toasted.

Add the onion to the cauliflower pan and cook over a medium heat without letting it colour for 5–6 minutes, or until soft . Add the ginger, garlic and red chilli and cook for a further 3 minutes, again without letting them colour. Stir in the toasted spices and cook for 3 minutes, then add the cooked lentils and pour over the coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a dry pan, toast the desiccated coconut over a medium heat, shaking the pan, until golden brown.

After the final 10 minutes cooking time, the cauliflower should be cooked but retain a little bite. Add the eggs and cook for 3–5 minutes more. Roughly chop the coriander, stalks included, and stir through.

Transfer to a serving dish and scatter the toasted coconut all over, like a crumble, then serve.

What to drink:

Assuming you manage to resist the temptation of having this for breakfast (I would be sorely tempted, personally) a glass of dry white wine such as a chenin blanc, (not too oaky) chardonnay or viognier would be delicious with it. And if you're having it for brunch, why not a glass of champagne or cava?

See also The Best Wine Pairings for Cauliflower

Extracted from Toast Hash Roast Mash by Dan Doherty, published by Mitchell Beazley, £20 www.octopusbooks.co.uk. Photograph ©Anders Schonnemann

Carrot pie with apple and goat cheese

This unusual recipe from Dutch cookery writer Yvette van Boven's lovely Home Made Summer is a great way to kick off National Vegetarian Week.

It's well worth getting the book for the other recipes too - including an imaginative range of drinks.

Carrot pie with apple and goat cheese

for 6 to 8 servings

8 carrots, peeled

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 fresh, tart apple, peeled, cored, and sliced as thinly as possible

4 oz (100 g) soft goat cheese

½ cup (100 g) crème fraîche

½ cup plus 2 tbsp (150 ml) carrot juice

3 large eggs

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Boil the carrots in salted water for 8 minutes, until just tender. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Halve them lengthwise and set them aside.

Grease a 9-inch (24-cm) tart pan with a removable bottom with a little butter.

On a well-floured counter, roll out the puff pastry into a nice round slab the size of the pie plate. Press the dough firmly into the plate and trim the edges neatly. With a fork, stab some holes in the bottom, then cover the dough and place the pie plate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Arrange the onion and apple over the bottom of the pastry in the pie plate and place the halved carrots on top in a spoke pattern. Crumble the goat cheese over the pie, somewhat in between the carrots.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the crème fraîche, carrot juice, and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the mixture over the carrots and sprinkle everything generously with pepper.

Bake the pie on the lower rack of the oven for about 35 minutes, until golden brown.

What to drink: Almost any crisp fresh white or rosé would work with this. I'd probably go for a smooth Italian white like a Soave, an unoaked Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc or a Provencal rosé. Verdelho would be nice too. Or cider . . . yes, cider would be lovely.