Plenty of leeks, a generous seasoning of thyme with a hint of lemon zest and garnish of crisp scraps of smoked bacon swirling round buttery and white wine-lapped rice, are a happy combination. I started cooking hours before the risotto was served, getting it to the stage where wine is added to buttery rice, so…

This chunky vegetable soup begins by browning smoked bacon lardons, releasing its fat to fry onion and giving nuggets of flavour. If you happen to have a chunk of Parmesan, grate some over the top, adding a swirl of your best olive oil. If not, it doesn’t matter, it will still be richly flavoured. It’s…

Ragu is short hand for well-seasoned mince in my house and in this case heading towards a lemony chilli con carne, flavoured as it is with chilli, lemon zest and juice, aniseedy caraway and garlic. I added leftover haricot white beans (lovely Spanish Navarrico in 800g jars with delicious bean stock that shouldn’t be wasted)…

I often roast Romano red peppers and aubergine with no particular end in view. Both are useful for so many dishes and here they combine in soup, liquidized with a few slightly too squashy cherry tomatoes, a spoonful of nutty tahini and chicken stock. A square of feta cheese brings incredible creamy richness to this…

The combination of slippery, soft and silky leeks in a thyme-flavoured, creamy sauce with chunks of roast chicken piping hot under a crisp, golden carapace is heaven indeed. I served it with carrots roasted while the gratin cooked and peas but whatever veg you fancy will go with this. Or serve it on its own….

This is one of those comforting one-pot dishes that is painless to prepare, fills the house with tempting aromas and is all at once comforting, exciting and healthy. It begins by making a stew with onion fried in the fat that oozes out of smoked cooking chorizo. These spicy, plump, little sausages come in packs…

This is a soup to cook and eat. Its exquisite flavour won’t fade but its bright verdant green colour will. The combination of roast tomato halves and whole shallots liquidised with spinach wilted in boiling stock is extraordinarily good. Far more delicious than you might have thought possible. Serves 2Prep: 15 minCook: 45 min 6…

Egg fried rice is excellent fridge tidy food. Those leftover peas, the pickings from the roast chicken or the single egg, can be the beginnings of Chinese-style egg fried rice. It was one of the first things my youngest son Henry learnt to cook. When he was about six or seven, he loved going to…