Nothing like a recipe that only takes you 10 minutes and is super-delicious to eat! This recipe is designed for two people, but simply double or treble the ingredients to boost up the numbers if preparing for a party or a starter for a dinner party. Oily fish is extremely good for you – we have served this dish with pickled vegetables which you can buy in jars in the supermarket, or very easy to make yourself when you have time.

Serves: 2
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
NO COOK

INGREDIENTS:

2 medium sized smoked mackerel fillets, skin removed and flesh flaked
3 tbsp of low fat cream cheese, or crème fraiche
1 tsp horseradish sauce
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Juice of ½ lemon
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 or 4 cornichons (cocktail gherkins) finely chopped
Thin slices of sour dough or brown bread, lightly toasted

METHOD:

You can use a blender to make the pate if you prefer it smooth, but we prefer to make it by hand for more texture.

Place the mackerel flesh into a bowl and squash with a fork to make a textured paste. Add the cream cheese or crème fraiche, lemon juice, horseradish and mustard and mix rigorously with the fork or a spoon until reasonably smooth. Add pepper to taste. Put the mixture into a smaller ramekin or dish and top with the chopped cornichons.

Lightly toast the bread and serve on the side with pickled vegetables.

Oriental flavors make this quick and easy dish ‘sing’.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb lamb strips
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
6 spring onions or scallions, cut lengthways into thin strips
1 tsp fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp corn flour, blended with 2 tsp water

METHOD:

Place the lamb in a bowl and stir in the rice wine, soy sauce and sesame oil. Leave to marinate for 20 minutes.

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan. When it is very hot, drain the meat from the marinade, reserving it. Stir-fry the lamb for 2-3 minutes until browned then add the spring onion, garlic and ginger. Stir-fry for a further 3-4 minutes, then add the reserved marinade and corn flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring to combine everything together and thicken the sauce.

Serve immediately with steamed rice or noodles or delicious steamed pak choi.

Daikon are from the same family as radishes, and have the same if not stronger peppery taste – they come in all sizes – the very large ones are incredibly big and could cause damage if hit with them! Carrot is a perfect accompaniment, and herbs and spices mixed with noodles provide a really good appetizer or part of a buffet.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

1 daikon, about 8 in long, peeled, washed and grated
1 very large carrot, peeled, washed and grated
2 red chilies (green if you like it really hot), cut into fine rings
4 scallions, chopped finely
2 large eggs
3 tbsp sweet chili sauce
2 tbsp coriander leaves, freshly chopped
7 oz rice vermicelli noodles
Juice of one lime, plus 1 lime cut into wedges
1 tbsp plain flour (optional)
Vegetable oil for frying

METHOD:

Rehydrate the noodles in boiling water, cover with film. Drain and chop the noodles or cut with scissors into small to medium strips.

Beat the eggs and mix with noodles, sweet chili sauce, chili, carrots, coriander and scallions. The mix should be a little liquidy, but not too much. If too thin, add a tablespoon of flour to bind.

Divide mix and shape into ‘patties’. Heat oil in frying pan. Cook 3 or 4 patties at a time and keep warm whilst cooking the remainder.

Patties should be served hot, straight from the oven with more dipping sauce and some lime wedges.

Serves: 8 good slices
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes - 1 hour

INGREDIENTS:

4 oz butter
4 oz caster sugar
2 large free range eggs
6 oz self raising flour
2 oz desiccated coconut and a little more for the top
2 tbsp milk
4 oz icing sugar
Juice of 1 orange
Zest of half orange

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 320°F/160° C.

Cream the butter and sugar together until soft. Beat the eggs and add to the mixture a little at a time. Before adding the last part of the egg mix, add a little flour (this will prevent any possible curdling of the mix).

Fold in the coconut and flour. Add the milk and gently beat, until the mixture drops easily from a spoon.

Line a loaf tin with non-stick parchment paper and add mixture. Sprinkle the top with a little more desiccated coconut.

Bake for 50 minutes in the oven. Test the center of the cake with a skewer. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. If not, replace in the oven for a further 10 minutes and test again.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out to cool completely on a wire rack.

Once cool, decorate with the orange drizzle icing – simply mix together the icing sugar and orange juice to firm a thickish texture, and drizzle over with a spoon, or pipe it over if you wish. Top with some orange zest.

You can keep this cake for up to 4 days in an airtight container, it will still be soft and moist – but it will be eaten before then!!

This is a glorious adaptation of a traditional old English dessert ‘Eton Mess’ originally made simply with strawberries, crushed meringues and cream. History says that this dessert was created for the annual sporting competition between two top private schools in the UK, and nicknamed ‘mess’ due to its appearance. It now appears on dessert menus in high quality restaurants throughout the world, with variations on the original theme.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: No Cook

INGREDIENTS:

10 small meringues or 1 medium sized meringue, broken into pieces
8 oz mixed fruit (you can choose your own) such as kiwis, berries
8 oz heavy cream, whipped or whipping cream
Optional – sliced almonds, strawberry sauce, grated chocolate!

METHOD:

Hull and slice strawberries if using, peel and cut kiwis into chunks, add other berries whole. (Passionfruit is another lovely addition to cut through the sweetness)

Whip the cream until slightly stiff and forming peaks.  Fold the fruit and crushed meringues through very gently to avoid breaking them up too much.

Add strawberry sauce, grated chocolate or almonds to the top. Serve.

How to transform a plain macaroni and cheese into a stunning, filling dish. A soft, melting but deliciously stringy cheese accompanies the macaroni and bite sized pieces of pancetta or bacon – absolutely yummy and full of flavor. It can be made in advance and the crispy bread crumb topping put on just before reheating – temptingly tasty and wholesome! Use as many combinations of your favorite cheeses as you want. Blue cheese will give the macaroni that extra ‘bite’. If you want to pack your macaroni with more texture, add some diced peppers with the onions.

Serves: 8
Preparation Time: 30 minutes (including cooking macaroni)
Cook Time: 20 minutes for finishing in the oven

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp olive oil
2 oz butter
1 lb macaroni or elbow pasta
70 oz of good quality shop-bought fresh white sauce (or make your own!)
5 oz cheddar-style cheese, grated
3 oz fresh parmesan, grated
3½ oz gruyere cheese, grated
3½ oz mozzarella, pulled into pieces
1 tbsp yellow mustard
1 tbsp ground black pepper
7 oz pancetta, cubed or bacon, diced
2 white onions, finely diced
7 oz button mushrooms, roughly chopped
9 oz breadcrumbs from a day old loaf
4 medium sized tomatoes, sliced (optional)

METHOD:

Heat oven to 350°F/180°C/Gas mark 4. (Do this on the day you are actually going to serve, in order to heat the pasta dish through and brown the breadcrumb mix.)

In a frying pan, fry off the pancetta or bacon. Once cooked, turn down the heat, add a little olive oil and gently soften the onions and mushrooms in the same pan. Set aside.

Cook the pasta as per packet instructions until al dente. Drain and wash off the excess gluten.

Gently heat the white sauce in the largest pan you have, and one by one add the mixture of cheeses, excluding the mozzarella. Add the mustard, continue to heat (do not allow to boil) mixing well to combine all ingredients.  Season to taste.

Put the pasta into the sauce and mix well. Add the pancetta, onion and mushroom mix. In a large rectangular baking dish, pour in the pasta and sauce mix and evenly mix.

At this stage, you can refrigerate for the next day. When you are ready to cook or reheat, dredge the breadcrumbs over, dot with mozzarella cheese and butter pieces.  Arrange tomato slices on top (optional) and a couple of shakes of dried herbs (optional). Cook for 20 minutes in the oven at 325°F/160°C/Gas mark 3.

Serve bubbling hot with the rest of the meal.

Don’t panic – it’s only a little tequila! This is a great starter for a dinner party or part of an evening meal or party. They are quite spicy, so moderate the marinade to serve your own taste buds.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 6-8 minutes (until prawns turn pink and cooked through)

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb raw peeled prawns
2 tsp chili powder
Juice and zest of 1 lime
A little canola oil for frying (you can do these prawns on the barbeque as well)
1 tbsp honey
4 circles of bread, toasted

For the dip/sauce
Juice of 1 lime
2 shots tequila
1 tbsp honey
1tsp chili
A few grinds of black pepper

METHOD:

Mix together the marinade ingredients for the prawns – chili, honey, juice and zest of lime.

Mix the dip ingredients together in a separate bowl (you should not use any remaining marinade from the prawns as the dip).

Marinate the prawns for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Heat the oil in a frying pan or skillet (you don’t need oil on the bbq if you are using it) and fry the prawns until pink and cooked through.

Cut out circles of bread either using a cutter or the rim of a glass or cup. Lightly toast.

Heap the prawns on to the toast so they are divided evenly. Serve with a salad garnish and either pour the marinade over the dish, or let your guests serve themselves.

Delicious salad either on its own, or as part of a meal or buffet. It is quite common in the Middle East to use feta cheese, but for a change we have changed this to soft goats cheese. The secret of this salad is plenty of herbs and the addition of harissa paste to give it a zing. You can also use bulghur wheat instead of couscous.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes for couscous (covered in boiling water)

INGREDIENTS:

7 oz couscous or bulghur wheat
8 oz watermelon, peeled and roughly chopped
4 oz goats cheese, crumbled
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 handfuls fresh parsley, chopped
1 handful fresh mint, chopped
1 red onion, finely diced
2 tsp harissa paste (1tsp if you don’t like it too hot)
2 tbsp olive oil
Seasoning to taste

METHOD:

Prepare the couscous or bulghur wheat by placing in a bowl and covering with boiling water. The water should cover around 2 inches above the couscous. Leave to cook for 10-15 minutes.

Place the watermelon, red onion and herbs in a large bowl. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest and harissa paste in a jug or bowl, whisking to combine.

Mix the couscous, watermelon bowl and dressing together until fully coated. Place on a serving plate and crumble over the goats’ cheese. Season with freshly milled black pepper.

Lightly spiced, enjoy the flavor of this particular chicken – it works well if you can marinate it overnight to let the flavors develop. The chicken is moist and tender – serve with a simple salad of tomatoes, onion and cucumber, with chopped fresh coriander or a cucumber raita with fresh yogurt. This dish is relatively low in fat and quite healthy.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes plus 2 hours or overnight marinating
Cook Time: 30-35 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

For the chicken
8 boneless chicken thighs
Juice of 1 lemon

For the marinade
1 small pot low fat plain yogurt (approx 4 oz)
4 large garlic cloves
2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
½ tsp medium chili powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp cumin powder
A little vegetable oil

METHOD:

Prepare the chicken by making fairly deep slits in the meat in order for the marinade to seep into the chicken pieces. 3 or 4 slits will be fine. Place in a bowl and toss the chicken in the lemon juice and set aside for approximately half an hour.
Blitz the marinade ingredients together and pour over the chicken.  Place in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours or preferably overnight, it makes a difference to the flavor.

You can either bake the chicken in the oven to cook for 30 minutes, or under the grill, turning frequently to prevent burning for around 25 minutes. You should have a little ‘charring’ around the chicken to add flavor to the pieces.

Serve the chicken on lettuce with your side salad and a wedge of lemon to squeeze over. You can either serve one or two thighs depending on size.

Yummy! Coating chicken breasts with a little Dijon mustard, saffron and a sprinkling of breadcrumbs (panko) will get everybody asking for more! Cauliflower rice is obviously so much healthier than normal rice, and just as tasty. You can adapt the chicken used here however you want, with your own favorite coating or flavors.

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

4 or 5 – 6 oz skinless and boneless chicken breasts
½ tbsp saffron powder
4 oz panko breadcrumbs
1 tbsp fennel seeds, crushed
A little olive oil for baking
Extra dried herbs or spices if required, for the paste, such as cumin.

For the cauliflower rice
1 medium sized cauliflower
Handful of fresh coriander, chopped
Heaped teaspoon of black onion seeds (nigella seeds)

METHOD:

Heat oven to 340°C/170°C/Gas Mark 5.

Mix the saffron, mustard, fennel seeds and panko breadcrumbs with a little olive oil to form a paste.

Coat the chicken pieces with breadcrumb mixture. Add some extra herbs if desired.

Place in a baking dish and pop into the oven for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the cauliflower by cutting off all the hard core and placing the florets into a processor.  Pulse until resembling rice! Microwave in a bowl covered with cling film for approximately 5-6 minutes until tender. When cooked, mix in the coriander and the black onion seeds.

Serve the chicken and the cauliflower rice alone, or with extra vegetables.