I bought two huge aubergine at a knock down price from my high road fruit and veg stall and one of them went into this very successful tagine. It was a big bruiser at 600g with its seeds noticeable when I cut it in half, so bothered to soak it in salted water to draw…

There is lasagne love going on in my kitchen. Lasagne al Forno last week and chicken and leek this week. The sauce could be made in advance and is a simple stew of onion and leek with small scraps of chicken with a thick and creamy white wine, chicken stock and milk sauce; a very…

I make various kinds of lasagne, sometimes using slices of roast aubergine instead of pasta but the real deal is lasagne al forno. I like it with layers of stewed tomato as well as meat and béchamel, so it ends up really squishy but is lighter to eat. The three components: meat, tomato and seasoned…

A lovely way of making the most of a small bunch of asparagus, adding it with peas to a simple chicken ragout enriched with smoked bacon lardons and a glass of white or rose wine, it really becomes a gorgeous stew. Lovely with new potatoes. Serves 2Prep: 20 minCook: 30 min 1 tbsp olive oil100g…

This is one of those thick omelettes that may or may not slip out of the pan but is sliced in wedges like a cake. A few asparagus spears are cut in 2 or 3cm lengths, quickly boiled in salted water, drained and added to the eggs once beaten with salt, pepper and finely grated…

There is a lovely smell wafting up the stairs from my kitchen, a bit like the old Bisto add with waves of intense deliciousness. The cooking begins with onions, then adding rosemary and bay, browning the meat, a sprinkling of flour then chopped tomato and tomato puree, leftover red wine then stock, salt and pepper….

Scallops on my recent visit to Cornwall were abundant and huge, with big, gleaming corals. These days they are most often sold without their shells, occasionally on the half shell. I don’t mind as I’ve got huge piles of these pleasing and useful shells of various sizes and use them for butter and salt, dips…

I’ve come increasingly round to the joy of making roast soups. If that sounds incongruous, just let me say that the ingredients are roasted, sometimes with seasonings, then liquidized. It makes soup making very simple, fills the kitchen with glorious aromas and requires very little chopping and faffing. For this soup, scrubbed or scraped carrots…

This unashamed cheat recipe is a hit with everyone who tries it. The little pasties are glazed with beaten egg and finished with fennel, poppy or sesame seeds, or a mixture. Good with a chunky tomato sauce or pickle, or a big crunchy salad. If you can’t find the unlikely sounding but quite excellent Eazy…

Gurnard is one of many superb but unfamiliar fish that in these post-Brexit days we should discover. It looks like red mullet with a big head so weighs badly on the slab but has a dense texture, good clean flavour and few bones. In Newlyn, where it’s prolific and where I saw it many years…