Plump little pork patties pack a punch with ginger and lemon zest, the mixture held firm with egg yolk and moistened by breadcrumbs mixed with crème fraiche. I served them over lentils moistened with stock piled with lightly cooked green beans but they go with anything you fancy or piled into warmed pitta bread with…

Simple but lovely flavours and slippery texture. An easy, almost healthy, colourful make ahead pasta supper. Serves 2Prep: 20 minCook: 30 min 2 small or 1 large Romano red peppers4 vine tomatoes1-2 tbsp olive oil200g orecchiette pastaknob of butter150ml baby spinach1 lime250g halloumi Heat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Halve the tomatoes round their…

I used a fish pie mix for this pie because I happened to have one (www.rickstein.com) in the freezer. Actually I had two, so ending up with a kilo of fish, adding raw, peeled prawns and half a dozen scallops. It was Easter. The fish is held in a parsley and hard-boiled egg sauce under…

Fear not if this mixture of herbs, vegetables, eggs and cheese sounds odd and the mixture seems crumbly, once the patties begin to fry, the halloumi melts into a safety net. Serve with a chilli-hot crisp salad or salsa. Serves 4Prep: 30 min plus 20 min chillingCook: 20 min 140g carrot180g courgette2 eggs3 spring onions50g…

Polpette is the Italian name for meatballs but I tend to use when the meatballs are smaller than usual, about the size of a cherry tomato. These polpette are flavoured with lemon zest and parsley and simmered in chicken. Some of the cooking liquid is simmered with roast tomatoes to make sauce for the polpette….

I have a small but devoted number of followers who were distraught when the Times dispensed with my Dinner Tonight column and tracked my website down. I am not very good at promoting myself but I always respond when I get e mails and the other day one of those followers, let’s call him Jim,…

The shepherd who makes this pie has leftover roast duck to finish up and he loves duck with peas. With a hint of lemon added to the mash, this is a rich and very special shepherd’s pie. There’s another duck shepherd’s pie amongst my recipes, here’s the link Roast Duck and Orange Shepherd’s Pie. Serves…

This is a very pretty and tasty dish of roasted hake wrapped in prosciutto or Serrano ham served over minted pea puree with tomato vinaigrette and garnish. An optional flavour boost, is to add chopped sage over the fish and under the ham. Salting the hake first and leaving it for a few minutes, firms…

It’s extraordinary the effect a spoonful of Seville marmalade has on a stew of lentils and sausages. It fills the kitchen with its powerful orangey aroma and brings sweet sour marmalade flavours to the onion and tomato stew that laps the sausages before the lentils are added. Lurking at the back of my food cupboard…

Look away now if you like a super-smooth fool. This one isn’t made with the usual pureed fruit, instead soft and sloppy, orange-flavoured roast rhubarb unfurls as it’s stirred through thick, creamy sheep milk yoghurt. It’s a pud to make when you have the oven on anyway, and want something healthy and easy, fruity and…