I had forgotten all about this dish until a friend sent a picture and declared it ‘delicious’. Perfect for early autumn. 1 large red onion, finely sliced 4 tbsp olive oil 3 cloves garlic, chopped 8 small beetroot, peeled and quartered 6 carrots, sliced at an angle into pieces about 3cm long 3 bay leaves…

Carrie, who illustrated The Allotment Kitchen, made Springfield Cake (Pear and Ginger Sponge) for guests and, on the back of it, six copies of the book were sold. We had our neighbour in for dinner on Sunday and I cooked a smaller version, suitable for a 20-21cm diameter cake tin, by simply reducing the ingredients…

For the final time after ten years we are spending the last week of August on Madeira. We leave tomorrow on a very early flight. There is so much to do and the cats sense we will be leaving them. Despite the dry summer, we have a good crop of Opal plums. We picked buckets…

I was surprised to see that I had never listed this recipe which is high up there among my favourite meals. Tasty, easy and never fails. I have been cooking it for so long that it was refreshing to go back to one of the original recipes (I have come across this recipe in various…

Punnets of apricots can often be good value. My usual way of cooking apricots is to poach them, halved, in a syrup with a dash of brandy and a few blanched apricot kernels But when you find perfect apricots, this way of poaching them whole is delicious. Make a syrup by first boiling and then…

Sometimes the simplest meals can give the greatest pleasure. I am a great fan of hard boiled eggs but the dressing is crucial. This recipe was inspired by Simon Hopkinson. Perfect for today’s supper as we have a healthy crop of lettuce and chives brought on by the weekend’s rain. As with all simple recipes,…

Polenta chips go well with white fish or tuna. On Madeira wedges of polenta are served with tuna but I prefer thick chips which were on many menus in Provence. 225ml milk 1 clove garlic, crushed 75g instant polenta 25g Parmesan cheese, finely grated 1tbsp rosemary leaves, finely chopped 2 tbsp olive oil Salt and…

Richard Olney’s Simple French Food is a great book in which to browse. By chance I came across this recipe which is both simple and different. It is made with dried figs but I look forward to making it with what could be our best fig harvest in years. If not to be made in…

It is always good to sort through piles of cuttings and old magazines, mostly kept for recipe ideas or book revues. I am always surprised by the recipes that end up being the most tempting. Pictures of colourful salads with slivers of radish or dotted with pomegranate seeds are everywhere. Then I found this recipe…

It is so satisfying to have a great meal of home grown vegetables. Artichokes with broad beans is possibly my favourite meze dish. The fiddly part is preparing the artichokes. I tend to be wasteful, not trying too hard to get all the flesh from around the ‘choke’. 7-8 artichokes 500g broad beans Olive oil…