Moutabal is the aubergine equivalent of Lebanese hummus, rich with garlic, lemon and olive oil pounded with smoky grilled aubergine. It’s luscious and silky, giving its creamy richness to these simply seasoned, quickly made chicken kebabs. I matched it with squeaky al dente fine green beans from my extraordinarily prolific front garden plants and a…

My sister, who lives in Sydney, introduced me to this addictively delicious avocado dip scooped up with tortilla chips and loved by everyone who tries it. It is perfect bbq advance snack food, served on a platter for sharing but it works well as a starter on individual plates, giving fairer portion control. It really…

For many years my friend Tessa and I have spent a week together on Lemnos in Greece but this year as Tessa lives in Sydney, we can’t. Every day we would be driven by Andreas to Thanos and the highlight would be lunch at Harry’s. Sadly Harry is no longer with us but his brother…

Sad news about the Le Caprice closing. It was a favourite for years; I really loved that restaurant. During the Mark Hix years, I regularly ordered his tomato and basil galette. The pastry base for those little tarts was thin and elegant, topped with neat slices of peeled tomato scattered with a few basil leaves….

I’ve never been to Argentina but I know all about chimichurri, their garlicky, piquant, chilli-hot, herb vinaigrette used as marinade and relish with barbecued meat. It pops up a lot in Francis Mallmann’s books and I’ve now adopted his way of making it with fresh oregano (dried is fine, possibly better than fresh marjoram, a…

Oranges were the only fruit during a stay with my son in the Black Mountains where we cooked the books of Francis Mallmann, a chef worth discovering, particularly if you barbecue. He raves about briefly cooking oranges in end-of-bbq cinders. They emerge grey and dusty but once peeled and sliced, the flavour is amazing. I…

It was a lucky co-incidence that two highly piled metal bowls of big, dark plums were en route for the £1 table at my local fruit and veg stall when I called by. I bought them both, some oranges and lemons and rushed home to check I had enough sugar to make jam. An hour…

I love my fishmonger (www.coventgardenfishmongers.co.uk). Yesterday I was tempted by clams, fresh crab meat from Newlyn (www.seafoodandeatit.co.uk), a pack of his excellent smoked salmon (www.goldstein.com) and a big handful of particularly fresh and vibrant samphire. Clams and samphire combine wonderfully well in this simple recipe redolent of the sea. Serve with spoon and fork with…

There’s a mini basil field flourishing in an old wooden wine box planted up in the sun-trap that is my front garden. I’ve just picked enough to make a decent quantity of pesto without making a dent on its profusion and it’s a good treat to have in the fridge. Last night we had a…

Traditionally, lettuce soup is the preserve of gardeners; a lovely summer soup made with bolted lettuce leaves. It’s usually thickened and improved by peas, sometimes potatoes too and young onions. This particular version was prompted by bad shopping, too many packs of lettuce stacking up in the fridge and petits pois a-plenty in the freezer….