Quinoa, tomato and courgette salad

We joined up with friends for a picnic at the weekend. I would normally have taken the tabbouleh but I needed to provide a couple of gluten-free recipes. We also had a load of home-grown baby tomatoes and a couple home-grown courgettes, gifted by a neighbour. And quinoa is of course GF, so I made this. What I particularly loved is that it allows the true flavour of the home-grown produce to sing.

Tabbouleh

As I write, it’s the start of a weekend that promises to be properly summery. I’m sure many BBQs are being planned (including ours). In which case, I can thoroughly recommend this glorious tabbouleh. It uses very few ingredients and is one of those recipes that is so much more than the sum of its…

Nigella’s vegan spag bol

Friends have started sending me recipe recommendations. This one came to me at the end of Veganuary. No matter, because we still seem to be vegan at the moment. I’ve been on the lookout for a deep-flavoured vegan/vegetarian bolognaise recipe for a while. This one is full of smoky, mushroomy overtones. It’s a gorgeous recipe…

Vegan sourdough-starter brownies

New year, new project: sourdough! I’m right at the beginning of my sourdough journey of testing, trying, perfecting. I know that there are questions I need answers to. I also know that there are questions I don’t yet know I need the answers to! From what I can gather, it’s a long journey and fraught…

Lentil and lemon soup

A great starter soup for #veganuary, this is so quick to make, so effortless and so nutritious. And delicious – the addition of lemon juice just at the end makes it lighter than you’d expect. Ingredients (serves 4) 2 tbsp olive oil 1 large onion, finely chopped 1 garlic clove, crushed 150g red lentils, washed…

Courgette caponata

I’d never bothered with caponata, partly because it’s usually based on aubergine, which I don’t mind but other members of the family are less keen on, and partly because aubergine usually involves enormous quantities of olive oil. Also, I never knew what to have it with. But earlier in the summer, I was researching ideas…

Olive, almond and parsley tapenade

I made this more as a dressing on a harissa-spiced chickpea and lentil salad (with halloumi). But it’s my new favourite thing and great with thin toast, oat cakes, rice cakes, crudités… and it improves with time. Ingredients 250g green or black olives, depending on your preference – I used olives in brine, drained 1…

Oven-dried tomatoes

I am slightly addicted to tomatoes. And they’re wonderful at the moment, especially if you’re lucky enough to source Isle of Wight Tomatoes. I eat them like I would sweets. But I also love this slow recipe for very ripe, larger tomatoes. You need five hours – but can do a batch and it only…