Recipes

One tin cream tea
I would never in a million years have come up with the brilliant idea of baking a scone in a single tin as Great British Bake Off winner Edd Kimber has done in his new book One Tin Bakes but then all the recipes can - miraculously - be cooked like that. I can't quite bring myself to call it a slab scone though which doesn't make it sound nearly as enticing as it is. So I've renamed it One tin cream tea (sorry, Edd!).

Hiyajiru (chilled miso soup) with cucumber ice cubes
The perfect hot weather dish from chef Tim Anderson's Nanban - even if you only make the cucumber ice cubes

Plum and Frangipane Tart
If you feel like baking this weekend here's a recipe from Christine McFadden's massively useful book Flour, a guide to how to use all the many new flours on the market.

Pot-roast chicken cooked in herby crème fraîche
A really lovely, summery way of cooking roast chicken from Olia Hercules beautiful new book Summer Kitchens.

Tomato and tapenade tart
The most perfect Provençal-style summer tart from Alex Jackson's evocative book Sardine, named after his London restaurant which has now sadly closed.

Honey & Co's chocolate and pistachio cookies
I tasted these gorgeously squidgy chocolate cookies last year at the Bath launch of Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich’s baking book which is a must-buy for anyone who loves baking. Or frankly, even if you don’t - you will by the time you've read it.

Sticky Pork Ribs Marinated in Black Vinegar, Muscovado and Spices
One of the most exciting books to come out last year was Angela Clutton's much awarded The Vinegar Cupboard which not only explains the origin of different vinegars and their culinary uses but contains some excellent recipes.

Summer gooseberry and raspberry upside-down cake
If you're looking for the perfect summer dessert to make for friends try Rosie Birkett's Summer gooseberry and raspberry upside-down cake from her lovely book The Joyful Home Cook.

Honey pastries with baked figs
I love this Spanish twist on baklava from José Pizarro's gorgeous new book Andalucia - it would make the perfect end to a summer meal.

Fromage fort
If you’ve been doing your duty by British cheesemakers you may well have a few odd pieces lurking in your fridge you couldn’t bring yourself to throw away and which are now past their best.

Max’s (well, actually Felicity’s) chocolate pots
One of the things that’s compensated for not being able to go to restaurants, as I explained here, is cooking with friends on Zoom.

Bulgur, herb, walnut and pomegranate salad
Bulgur is a useful grain that you can apparently eat if you're diabetic as I discovered when I was staying with friends in France a while ago. It makes a great base for a simple salad that you can basically adapt to whatever you have in the storecupboard and fridge.

Asparagus and ricotta tart with herb pastry
This unusual quiche comes from Great British Bakeoff star Flora Shedden's really charming cookbook Gatherings

Classic hot cross buns
The perfect Easter recipe comes from a lovely book called A Good Egg by Bristol-based cookery writer Genevieve Taylor who describes herself as an 'urban henkeeper'.

How to read (and adapt) a recipe
With many of us in isolation and some products already hard to find in the shops it can be difficult to cook, especially if you’re trying to follow a recipe.

Beetroot, goats cheese and walnut salad
One of the most useful things you can have in your cupboard at the moment is vac packed cooked beetroot which you can buy in the fresh section of most supermarkets. Fortunately it doesn’t look that appealing so there hasn’t been a run on it despite the fact it’s relatively inexpensive (90p in my local Co-op).

Monkfish, chorizo, saffron and chickpea stew
One of the things I’ve been trying to do in the current crisis is to support local producers and importers who are obviously affected by the closing down of restaurants and pubs.

Porridge, honey and raspberry loaves
The perfect weekend breakfast bake from Richard Bertinet's lovely book, Crumb.

Dublin coddle
If you're wondering what to prepare to celebrate St Patrick's Day, Coddle could be the answer. Here's the version from J P McMahon's magnificent new The Irish Cookbook.

Chocolate, fudge & smoked salt cookies
In many ways this is a bizarre recipe to pick from Gill Meller's wonderful book Time - there are so many inspiring and beautiful savoury recipes in it - but there are times when we all need a cookie and what better than chocolate AND fudge?
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