Oranges in Spiced Orange Syrup

I wanted a simple dessert to follow a curry and have a load of oranges in my fridge, so I rustled up this! It's just sliced oranges in a lightly spiced syrup with a few nuts and berries, but looks rather pretty. This seems a very summery recipe, though actually it's peak orange season in the UK right now!

Save the spiced orange syrup, it's great on pancakes, ice cream or any number of other desserts.

• 1-2 oranges per person (depending on size)
• 1 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 5 cardamom pods
• 2 star anise
• A few black peppercorns
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Handful of frozen red berries
• Handful of pumpkin seeds or pistachio nuts, toasted and chopped

1. With a potato peeler, remove the zest from 2 oranges and reserve. Remove the rest of the peel with a sharp knife, and cut the fruit into slices.
2. Add the water to a small pan, bring to the boil and add the sugar, stirring until it dissolves.
3. Add the zest and spices and simmer for 15 or so minutes, it should be a rich and glossy consistency but still runny.
4. Place the sliced oranges in a bowl, pour over the hot syrup including the zest and spices. Cover and leave the oranges to steep for an hour or so, or overnight in the fridge.
5. For decoration, fish out a few longish pieces of peel and shred into thin strips. Toss in caster sugar and dry in the oven for about 30 minutes on a low setting, until crisp.
6. To serve, place 5-6 slices on plate with scoop of ice cream and a scattering of nuts and berries, and spoon over some of the syrup. Top with the candied peel.

Variations

Use any combination of spices you like - cloves, ginger and added lemon peel also work. Sliced ruby grapefruit would also work as a substitute for the oranges, if you're feeling daring.

A glug of dark rum or Campari add nice boozy notes to this dessert - add a splash to the syrup at the end when it's still hot, before pouring over the fruit.

Smoky Bean Soup

The winter's biting at this time of year, and there's nothing better to keep warm than a hearty, colourful soup. Having half a pot of cold Lapsang souchong left over in my teapot I experimented with using it in this recipe, and I was pleasantly surprised at how it adds a lovely smokiness and depth of flavour!

Use any kind of common beans - haricot, pinto or kidney beans - either in a can or soaked and boiled until they're just slightly soft. I buy a big bag of dried pinto beans from a local shop, they're cheap and look pretty with their mottled red and white skins. Chop the vegetables roughly for a chunky soup, or smaller for a finer soup. Adjust your cooking time for the size of vegetables.

• 450g can of beans
• 2 red peppers, chopped
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• 1 leek, sliced
• 3 carrots, roughly chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 500 ml strongly brewed Lapsang souchong tea
• 2 tsp good vegetable stock powder
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder or flakes
• 1 tsp thyme
• A handful of sweetcorn

1. Splash some oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions for a few minutes before adding the other vegetables, apart from the sweetcorn. Fry on a gentle heat for about ten minutes, stirring.
2. Add the tomatoes, tea, chilli, thyme and sweetcorn. Stir and simmer for about twenty minutes. If the vegetables aren't quite covered add some water.
3. Taste for seasoning and to check the vegetables are soft and fully cooked through.
4. I like a nice thick soup but add water if you want a thinner consistency.
5. Serve with a scattering of parsley and a bit of grated cheese. Guaranteed to keep out the cold!

Variations

Rather than brewing the tea, grind two teaspoons of loose leaf Lapsang souchong to a fine powder using a grinder, or pestle and mortar. Add this directly to the soup, with the equivalent amount of water.

Festive Quorn Wellington

I remember someone once saying to me "oh Christmas must be so boring for you as you're vegetarian", as if turkey is the only exciting thing about the festive season! 

I love dreaming up a tasty and attractive centrepiece for the Christmas dinner table, and something wrapped up in pastry always impresses. I'm happy with a nut roast or something similar for Christmas, but this Quorn roast smothered in apricot and mushroom paté and wrapped in pastry will wow any meat-eating relatives! It's also good cold.

I should dedicate an entry to mushroom patés as I make lots of versions, and they're particularly good for parties. You can either buy mushroom paté (it tends to be higher in fat than mushrooms) or use this BBC recipe, and add chopped dried apricots for festive colour and sweetness. Use shop-bought puff pastry, or make it yourself if you're not busy enough already this Christmas!

• 500 g Mushroom paté
• 1 Quorn family roast (defrosted and removed from wrapping)
• 1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry

1. Roll out the pastry and cut into a big circle with a diameter about 1.5 times the length of the Quorn roast.
2. Spoon some paté in a line along the centre of the pastry, then place the Quorn on top. Spoon more pate over the top of the Quorn, smoothing down the sides until it's snugly encased in a paté layer about 1 cm thick.
3. Take the two flaps of pastry lying against the long side of the Quorn, and bring them together over the top of the Quorn, making the shape of a giant Cornish pasty.
4. Press the pastry so together so it's tightly wrapped around the Quorn, crimping the join with thumb and forefinger all the way across the top.
5. Trim any excess pastry. With the leftover pastry scraps, cut various shapes like holly leaves, stars, trees - go crazy, be creative!
6. Beat an egg, stick the pastry decorations on with the egg wash, then glaze the whole thing. Cut a few holes in the top of the pastry to let steam escape.
7. Bake in the oven at 200C for about 30 minutes until the pastry is golden and the Quorn heated through. Leave for a few minutes to rest, take to the table, slice, and wow your guests!

Variations

Shortcrust pastry will also work here, previously I've made a walnut shortcrust pastry for Christmas, which tastes delicious and smells heavenly in the oven. Puréed chestnuts are also good as a paté alternative, buy canned or pouch chestnuts but make sure they're not too wet.

Posh Pear and Plum Crumble

Everyone loves a crumble and I still have lots of plums to use, so I thought I'd try a more fancy restaurant style advocated by the likes of Raymond Blanc.

This recipe takes the heretical approach of cooking the crumble separately so it's more crunchy. I have to say I was outraged at the very idea, what do French chefs know about our British crumble?! I love the traditional way crumbles have that soft, gooey transition between the fruit, the juice-soaked crumble, and the crunchy top.

I was prepared to hate this deconstructed crumble, but it's actually quite nice, if not quite traditional. It's a bit like having stewed fruit with that oat-crunch cereal on top.

The fruit here is particularly special, with a richly reduced sweet wine sauce. I used Amaretto but any sweet dessert wine or red wine will also work. Another advantage of the deconstructed approach is you can make it look pretty in individual serving bowls.

Stewed fruit:

• Five large black plums, stoned and quartered
• Four pears, peeled, cored and quartered
• 1 glass of Amaretto or sweet wine
• 4 tbsp sugar (to taste)
• 1 tsp almond extract

Crumble topping:

• 100g plain white flour
• 50g ground almonds
• 25g flaked almonds
• 100g demerara sugar (or simple granulated)
• 50g butter

1. Put the fruit and wine in a large pan, and gently stew for ten minutes or so until the fruit is well cooked but the pieces retain their shape.
2. Strain the fruit, reserving the delicious liquid, and return the liquid to the pan.
3. Dissolve the 4 tbsp of sugar in the liquid, and leave it to gently simmer and reduce until it's thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
4. Preheat the oven to 200C.
5. Make the topping by rubbing together the flour, butter and sugar in a bowl so it forms rough clumps, then mix in the ground almonds.
6. Spread the crumble onto a baking dish, sprinkle the top with the flaked almonds, and bake for about 10 minutes until it's lightly browned and crunchy.
7. Mix the reduced sauce with the cooked fruit and the almond extract, and pour into a deep serving dish.
8. When the crumble is cooked, sprinkle on top of the fruit, and enjoy with cream or custard!

Quorn and Mushroom Strudel

Believe it or not, the Viennese strudel was originally made with turnips, so they have fine tradition in savoury veggie cuisine! I fancied a pie, and with a pack of puff pastry on hand this is a variation on the ubiquitous chicken and mushroom pie. I've made a large one here for simplicity, but it's also great to make individual pies for lunches or picnics.

Serves 4

• 4 carrots, cut into sticks
• 1 onion, halved lengthways
• 300g (one bag) Quorn chunks
• 300g chestnut mushrooms
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp thyme
• 500g puff pastry (or pre-rolled sheet)

For the white sauce:

• 3 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp vegetable stock
• 500 ml milk (or water/milk)
• seasoning

1. Toss the vegetables and Quorn in oil, and roast in a hot oven for about 20 minutes.
2. Leave to cool a little, then chop the mushrooms and vegetables into rough chunks.
3. Make the white sauce either in a microwave or saucepan. (I've covered white sauces before so I won't repeat.)
4. In a bowl, mix chopped vegetables, mushrooms and Quorn with the white sauce, and leave to cool
5. Roll out your pastry into a large rectangle, about twice as wide as long. I'd suggest making it as wide as your baking sheet, for easy oven handling.
6. Preheat your oven to 220C.
7. Spoon the filling onto one long half of your rolled pastry, leaving about an inch/2 cm gap around the edge for sealing.
8. Wet the edges of the pastry with a finger, then fold over the other side of the pastry to cover, 
9. Crimp the edge with your fingers to make a seal.
10. With a sharp knife, slash across the pastry, trying not to cut quite all the way through. This allows the pastry to expand and leave a pretty pattern on top.
11. Brush with either egg or milk, and bake in the hot oven for 20 minutes until the pastry is risen and golden brown.

Chocolate banana bread

I swear my best recipes come about from necessity or leftovers, and this banana bread (cake, really) is my way of using up over-ripe bananas! I'm apparently unusual these days in liking bananas when they're ripe and sweet, but these ones were too black and spotty even for me, but they go great in this cake.

• 100g butter, softened or melted
• 120g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 200g self raising flour
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 large very ripe bananas, mashed with a fork
• 50g raisins
• 50 ml water (or ginger wine)
• 50g dark chocolate, chopped into small chunks or chocolate chips

1. Heat the raisins in a covered pan with either water or ginger wine until not quite boiling. Take off the heat and leave for an hour to sit and plump up.
2. When soaked, strain the raisins and coat them in flour so they don't sink to the bottom - I always forget this part!
3. Preheat the oven to 180C.
4. Whisk the butter and sugar together, then slowly add the eggs.
5. Stir in the flour and ginger til well mixed, then add the banana, chocolate and raisins.
6. Pour into a loaf tin and bake for about an hour, while the house fills with a gorgeous banana baking scent!
7. Use a skewer or toothpick to see if it's done - when inserted it should come out clean.
8. Leave to cool, if you can resist.

Variations

Nuts are a good addition or alternative to chocolate, I like chopped walnuts particularly.

This recipe also makes great muffins - just pour the mixture into muffin cases and cook for about 30 minutes.

Autumn Vegetable Soup

I'm much more of a winter foodie than summer, and these fresh bright autumn days make me yearn for soup for lunch! We're also getting the first of the winter vegetables like leeks, so I was going to make a leek and potato soup but I just kept throwing things in!

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 large leeks, sliced and thoroughly washed
• 200 g small waxy potatoes, quartered
• 6 carrots, cut into smallish chunks
• 1 tin of white beans
• 500 ml good vegetable stock
• Handful of frozen peas
• 2 tsp dill

1. Splosh oil and a knob of butter in a large pan and gently fry the onion for a minute or two.
2. Add the leeks and sweat them on a medium heat til they've cooked down a little and intensified their flavour. Don't let them burn, burnt leeks taste nasty.
3. Add the potatoes and carrots and cover with the vegetable stock. Add more water if the vegetables aren't quite covered.
4. Cook for about 15-20 until the potatoes are done.
5. Add the beans, peas and dill, and cook for another 5 mins.
6. At the end I give it a brief whizz with a hand blender - enough to break up a few of the vegetables but leaving most of them chunky.
7. Check for seasoning and consistency. I like a thick chunky soup but add more water if it's too thick.
8. Serve in a bowl with a dollop of plain yoghurt.