Roasted trout and artichokes with almonds, breadcrumbs and mint recipes

Ingredients:
* extra virgin olive oil
* 8 x 120 g trout fillets , from sustainable sources, ask your fishmonger
* 1 small handful almonds , blanched
* 1 bunch fresh mint , leaves picked
* 1 ciabatta , preferably stale
* 2 lemons , zest and juice of
* 1 clove garlic , peeled and finely chopped
* 12 marinated artichoke hearts , drained and sliced
* 4 rashers higher-welfare smoked streaky bacon
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
* 1 small handful fresh thyme , leaves picked
* 5 tablespoons fat-free natural yoghurt
*

Ingredients:
I used to go trout-fishing with Grandad when I was a kid. We would catch them, then go straight back to his pub and grill them with a little bit of butter. I liked to eat them with fried potatoes with onions — so good — and a nice squeeze of lemon juice. I came up with this recipe using preserved artichoke hearts from my local deli. In the picture I’ve used one large 8lb trout, but it works just as well if you use individual trout fillets. Salmon trout or salmon are both good too. Ask your fishmonger to scale, gut and fillet the fish for you.

Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7 and rub a roasting tray with a little olive oil. Lay 4 of the trout fillets, skin side down, on the tray, with a few bits of string under each fillet. Lightly toast the almonds in the oven for a couple of minutes – watch them carefully as they don’t take long – then bash them up using a pestle and mortar (or a metal bowl and a rolling pin). Try to get some powdery and some chunks. Put the almonds into a bowl and rip in the mint.

Take the crusts off the ciabatta and whiz it up in a food processor or chop up. Add the lemon zest, chopped garlic, artichoke hearts, and 5 tablespoons of olive oil to the bowl with a good pinch of salt and pepper. Mix it up well and sprinkle a good handful of the mix over each trout fillet. Place the other 4 fillets on top of the breadcrumb mix, skin side up, laying a bacon rasher along the top of each one, and secure with the string. Sprinkle the thyme over the top and any excess filling around the tray.

Place in the middle of the preheated oven and cook for about 15 minutes, until the trout is golden and crisp. Season the yoghurt generously with salt and pepper and add a little lemon juice.

When the fish is ready, cut the string and serve the fillets with a nice drizzle of yoghurt and a green salad. Give everyone a lemon half on their plate so they can squeeze the juice over their fish.

Fried pizza (Pizza fritta) recipes

Ingredients:
* 1 basic pizza dough recipe
* flour , for dusting
* vegetable oil , for frying
* 2 x 150 g buffalo mozzarella balls
* 5 teaspoons dried oregano , optional
* For the tomato sauce
* extra virgin olive oil
* 1 clove garlic , peeled and finely sliced
* 1 bunch fresh basil , leaves picked
* 400 g good-quality tinned plum tomatoes
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
*

Ingredients:
When I took my students to Italy to see how olive oil was made, we ate these ‘fried’ pizzas at a great little restaurant called Il Vescovino in Panzano in the Chianti region. The chef fried the thin bases in oil, like poppadoms, then quickly topped them with tomato sauce, mozzarella and a little bit of oregano and popped them straight under a hot grill. They were the lightest pizzas I've ever eaten – just incredible – and this is how the first ever pizzas were made.

First, make your basic pizza dough. Now make your tomato sauce. Heat a saucepan, add a splash of oil and the sliced garlic and cook gently. When the garlic has turned light golden, add half the basil, the tomatoes and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Cook gently for about 20 minutes, mashing the tomatoes until smooth, then taste, season again and put to one side.

Preheat your grill to its highest temperature. Divide the dough into 10 pieces and press them flat on to a floured work surface. Roll them out to about 0.5cm/¼ inch thick and allow them to rest for 10 minutes or so. Heat a frying pan over a high heat, add about 2cm of vegetable oil and fry each pizza for 30 seconds or so on each side. Remove with tongs and place on a baking tray.

Once all the bases are fried, smear each one with a spoonful of the tomato sauce and tear over some mozzarella and a leaf or two of basil or dried oregano. Drizzle with olive oil and grill until the cheese is bubbling and the dough is light brown and cooked through.

Pear tart tatin recipes

Ingredients:
* 125 g caster sugar
* 40 g cold butter , chopped
* 1/2 tsp ground ginger
* 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
* 3 large pears , peeled, cored and cut into wedges
* 375 g all-butter puff pastry
* Double cream , to serve
*

Ingredients:
Recipe by Jennifer McLagan
Some dishes need no introduction. Sweet pears, fragrant warming spices and crisp pastry. Heaven.

Preheat oven to 200C/gas 6. Put a 21cm-diameter frying pan with an ovenproof handle on a hob over a medium heat. Add the sugar and heat to a lovely caramel colour, stirring constantly. Add the butter, ginger and cinnamon and stir to combine.

Place the pears in the caramel and spoon over the mixture. Turn the heat down and cook for 5–10 minutes, until the pears are just tender and cooked but retain their shape. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Arrange the pears prettily in the pan.

Roll out the pastry to about 5mm thick and cut a disc slightly bigger than your pan (about 24cm). Place the pastry disc on top of the pears and caramel, then carefully tuck it snugly around the outside of the pears and down into the sides of the pan.

Bake the pie for 30–40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and puffed up. Remove from the oven and leave for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge, place a large plate over the top and carefully turn the tart onto the plate. Serve with cream.

Marinated Mediterranean olives recipes

Ingredients:
* 1½ tablespoons coriander seeds
* 1 lemon
* 200 g Kalamata olives
* 200 g green queen olives
* extra virgin olive oil
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
*

Ingredients:
Use a pestle and mortar to crush the coriander seeds, but don’t let them get too fine. Peel off long thick strips of lemon zest and place in a bowl with the olives. Squeeze the lemon then top with 3 times as much extra virgin olive oil. Add salt, pepper and the crushed coriander seeds. Pour the dressing over the olives and leave to marinate. The longer you leave them, the better they’ll taste.

Asian pinch salad recipes

Ingredients:
* 24 frozen raw peeled jumbo king prawns , from sustainable sources, ask your fishmonger, defrosted
* 1 pinch Chinese five spice
* 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger , peeled and finely chopped
* 1 lime , zest and juice of
* sesame oil
* 50 g fine rice noodles
* 1 fresh red chilli , deseeded and finely sliced
* 25 g sesame seeds , lightly toasted
* 1 small bunch fresh coriander , leaves picked
* 2 round lettuces , outer leaves removed and discarded, inner leaves reserved
*

Ingredients:
In a bowl, mix the raw prawns with the five-spice, ginger, lime zest and a splash of sesame oil, then leave to marinate.

Meanwhile, cook your rice noodles following pack instructions. Drain and toss in a little sesame oil. Allow them to cool then add the lime juice, chilli, sesame seeds and coriander leaves. Mix well.

Heat a frying pan or wok until really hot and stir-fry the marinated prawns for 2 or 3 minutes until cooked. Set aside.

To assemble your pinch salad, take a nice, cupped lettuce leaf and pile on a little of the noodle salad. Top with a couple of cooked prawns. Repeat until you have 12 little lettuce cups. To eat, pinch each cup together with your fingers and enjoy!

Lollipops recipes

Ingredients:
* juice
*

Ingredients:
My lovely nan and grandad used to run a village pub called the Plough and Snail in Paglesham in Essex. When I was a kid they used to send me and my sister, Anna-Marie, a huge box of about 200 ice lollies at the start of the summer holidays every year.

The ice lollies would arrive with the deliveries from the same butcher that we’ve always shared and we would keep them in the big chest freezer outside the store shed. This was great, as it meant I had a constant supply I could help myself to whenever I wanted. I was always quite popular with the local kids because of this.

So much so that my supplies would dwindle very quickly. So, I started to make my own lolly pops. The nice thing about them was that they weren’t full of a thousand E numbers because I would make them out of apple juice, orange juice, lemonade, pineapple juice – all sorts of stuff. Even cocktail combinations are good. I would also sneak into the pub for some cider shandy to make lolly pops!

All you need to do to make lolly pops is buy a couple of those really cheap ice lolly sets. You can find them in most kitchen shops. Fill them up with your chosen juice and put the stick in before freezing. It’s nice to have something cold and fruity to hand in your freezer when it’s a scorcher outside.

Caramelised strawberry dipping kebabs recipes

Ingredients:
* 6 long woody sprigs of fresh rosemary
* 600 g strawberries (roughly 20 fruits)
* 120 g caster sugar, plus 1 teaspoon extra
* 100 g mascarpone
* 25 ml limoncello
* 1 lemon, zest of
*

Ingredients:
It’s a bit retro, but everyone loves a toffee apple from time to time. There’s something strangely exciting about getting all sticky and messy as you eat it. These kebabs are like the strawberry equivalent of a toffee apple. Look for lovely big fruits if you can as they’ll work better. They are messy to eat, but are great fun for a party, and I’ve given you an easy sweet dip recipe to enjoy on the side. Don’t let the kids help you with this one as the caramel gets super hot.


If you can’t get long woody sprigs of rosemary, you can use wooden skewers instead. Strip most of the leaves off of the rosemary sprigs, leaving a 1cm nice tip at the end of each one. Finely chop the leaves from half a sprig, keep the rest for a different recipe. Divide the strawberries between the skewers, lay them on a serving board or platter and put to one side.

Place a pan on a medium heat. Add the sugar and 200ml of water and bring to the boil. Remember that sugar gets really hot and can burn easily so don’t be tempted to touch it. Let the sugar dissolve then leave it to bubble away for 12 to 15 minutes, or until you have a fairly thick syrup. Jiggle the pan occasionally but don’t stir it.

Meanwhile, mix the mascarpone with the remaining teaspoon of caster sugar. Have a taste and a little more if it needs it. Beat it for a few minutes with a wooden spoon, or until it goes really shiny and smooth. Add the limoncello, chopped rosemary and lemon zest, then mix again until well combined and transfer into a little serving bowl for dipping.

Once the caramel is lovely and golden, carefully pour it over the strawberry kebabs, trying to make sure they’re all evenly coated. Again, don’t be tempted to touch as the caramel will still be really hot. Leave the caramel to set then serve the kebabs with the tweaked mascarpone on the side for dipping.

A basic recipe for fresh egg pasta recipes

Ingredients:
* 600 g Tipo '00' flour
* 6 large free-range eggs
*

Ingredients:
Place the flour on a board or in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and crack the eggs into it. Beat the eggs with a fork until smooth. Using the tips of your fingers, mix the eggs with the flour, incorporating a little at a time, until everything is combined. Knead the pieces of dough together – with a bit of work and some love and attention they’ll all bind together to give you one big, smooth lump of dough!

You can also make your dough in a food processor if you’ve got one. Just bung everything in, whiz until the flour looks like breadcrumbs, then tip the mixture on to your work surface and bring the dough together into one lump, using your hands.

Once you’ve made your dough you need to knead and work it with your hands to develop the gluten in the flour, otherwise your pasta will be flabby and soft when you cook it, instead of springy and al dente.

There’s no secret to kneading. You just have to bash the dough about a bit with your hands, squashing it into the table, reshaping it, pulling it, stretching it, squashing it again. It’s quite hard work, and after a few minutes it’s easy to see why the average Italian grandmother has arms like Frank Bruno! You’ll know when to stop – it’s when your pasta starts to feel smooth and silky instead of rough and floury. Then all you need to do is wrap it in cling film and put it in the fridge to rest for at least half an hour before you use it. Make sure the cling film covers it well or it will dry out and go crusty round the edges (this will give you crusty lumps through your pasta when you roll it out, and nobody likes crusty lumps!).

How to roll your pasta:
First of all, if you haven't got a pasta machine it's not the end of the world! All the mammas I met while travelling round Italy rolled pasta with their trusty rolling pins and they wouldn't even consider having a pasta machine in the house! When it comes to rolling, the main problem you'll have is getting the pasta thin enough to work with. It's quite difficult to get a big lump of dough rolled out in one piece, and you need a very long rolling pin to do the job properly. The way around this is to roll lots of small pieces of pasta rather than a few big ones. You'll be rolling your pasta into a more circular shape than the long rectangular shapes you'll get from a machine, but use your head and you'll be all right!

If using a machine to roll your pasta, make sure it's clamped firmly to a clean work surface before you start (use the longest available work surface you have). If your surface is cluttered with bits of paper, the kettle, the bread bin, the kids' homework and stuff like that, shift all this out of the way for the time being. It won't take a minute, and starting with a clear space to work in will make things much easier, I promise.

Dust your work surface with some Tipo ‘00’ flour, take a lump of pasta dough the size of a large orange and press it out flat with your fingertips. Set the pasta machine at its widest setting - and roll the lump of pasta dough through it. Lightly dust the pasta with flour if it sticks at all. Click the machine down a setting and roll the pasta dough through again. Fold the pasta in half, click the pasta machine back up to the widest setting and roll the dough through again. Repeat this process five or six times. It might seem like you're getting nowhere, but in fact you're working the dough, and once you've folded it and fed it through the rollers a few times, you'll feel the difference. It'll be smooth as silk and this means you're making wicked pasta!

Now it's time to roll the dough out properly, working it through all the settings on the machine, from the widest down to around the narrowest. Lightly dust both sides of the pasta with a little flour every time you run it through. When you've got down to the narrowest setting, to give yourself a tidy sheet of pasta, fold the pasta in half lengthways, then in half again, then in half again once more until you've got a square-ish piece of dough. Turn it 90 degrees and feed it through the machine at the widest setting. As you roll it down through the settings for the last time, you should end up with a lovely rectangular silky sheet of dough with straight sides - just like a real pro! If your dough is a little cracked at the edges, fold it in half just once, click the machine back two settings and feed it through again. That should sort things out. Whether you're rolling by hand or by machine you'll need to know when to stop. If you're making pasta like tagliatelle, lasagne or stracchi you'll need to roll the pasta down to between the thickness of a beer mat and a playing card; if you're making a stuffed pasta like ravioli or tortellini, you'll need to roll it down slightly thinner or to the point where you can clearly see your hand or lines of newsprint through it.

Once you've rolled your pasta the way you want it, you need to shape or cut it straight away. Pasta dries much quicker than you think, so whatever recipe you're doing, don't leave it more than a minute or two before cutting or shaping it. You can lay over a damp clean tea towel which will stop it from drying.

Vegan beetroot Carpaccio recipes

Ingredients:
* 8 medium beetroots , a mixture of colours looks wonderful
* 2 lemons
* a small bunch of fresh dill , finely chopped
* 1 red onion , finely chopped
* 2 tsp caster sugar
* 2 tbsp olive oil
* 1 tbsp capers , drained and rinsed
*

Ingredients:
Recipe by Pippa Kendrick

1. Begin by trimming the leaves from the beetroot, leaving about 2.5cm of stalk on each one. Place in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and leave to simmer gently, partially covered, for 40 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. Finely grate the zest of one of the lemons and squeeze the juice from both, passing it through a fine sieve to ensure no pith or pips remain. Add to a bowl with the dill, onion, sugar, olive oil, capers and 1 teaspoon of salt. Whisk all of the ingredients together until fully amalgamated.

3. Run the beetroots under a cold tap and gently slide off the skins (they should peel off easily). Trim the tops and bottoms from the beetroots and discard. Then, using a mandolin or a sharp knife, slice the beetroot into very thin rounds.

4. Arrange the beetroot slices on a serving platter or individual plates and spoon over the dressing, letting it sink into every crevice of the beetroots. Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving.

Ultimate quesadillas recipes

Ingredients:
* ½ lime , juice of
* 250 g cottage cheese
* 1 yellow pepper , flesh finely chopped
* 1 red pepper , flesh finely chopped
* 1 red chilli , deseeded and finely chopped
* ½ a bunch of fresh coriander , leaves picked
* 120 g Cheddar cheese , freshly grated
* 4 large flour tortillas
* For the pineapple salsa
* olive oil
* ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
* ½ red chilli
* 227 g tinned pineapple rings in juice , chopped, juice reserved
* ½ lime
* For the guacamole
* 2 ripe avocados , halved and stoned
* ½ bunch of fresh coriander , leaves picked
* ½ red onion , finely grated
* 1 red chilli , deseeded and chopped
* 2 limes , juice of
* 2 tomatoes , roughly chopped
*

Ingredients:
The trick with quesadillas is to keep the filling really simple, then go a bit mad with your sides.

For the salsa, add a little oil, the mustard seeds and chilli to a small pan over a medium–high heat. When it’s fragrant, add the pineapple and juice, and a big pinch of pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, till thick and sticky. Squeeze in the lime, then put in a serving bowl.

For the guacamole, squeeze the avocado flesh into a bowl. Add the coriander, onion, chilli and lime juice. Season; add the tomatoes, picking out any larger bits of skin. Mix well, with a potato masher or hand blender, and then set aside.

Stir the lime juice and a pinch of salt and pepper into the cottage cheese. To assemble, mix the peppers, chilli and coriander with the Cheddar. Scatter across two tortillas, then top with the remaining tortillas. Cook in a non-stick pan for 2–3 minutes each side, or till the tortillas are golden and the cheese melts. Cut into quarters and serve with those delicious sides.

Negroni recipes

Ingredients:
* 1 part Martini Rosso
* 1 part Martini Bitter
* 1 part Bombay Sapphire gin
* 1 whole orange , sliced
* ice , cubed
*

Ingredients:
1. Add equal parts of Martini Rosso, Bombay Sapphire and Martini Bitter to your glass

2. Add plenty of ice to your glass

3. Stir with a bar spoon and drop in a fresh orange slice

Bumble-O recipes

Ingredients:
* 1 red pepper , finely diced
* 1 red onion , finely diced
* 2 tsp rapeseed oil
* 100 g polenta
* 80 g sorghum flour , (See note)
* 40 g buckwheat flour
* 2 1/2 tsp gluten-free baking powder
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1/2 tsp black onion seeds
* 45 g capers
* 2 large free-range eggs
* 150 ml whole milk
* 150 g corn oil
* green salad , to serve
* For the topping:
* 160 g onion marmalade , or sweet onion chutney
* 230 g mature cheddar cheese , grated
* 75 g blue cheese , grated
* 1 tsp dried basil
*

Ingredients:
Recipe by Honeybuns

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4. Place the red pepper and red onion in a baking tray, drizzle on the rapeseed oil, sprinkle with black pepper and roast for about 15 minutes, until the vegetables start to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

2. Grease and line a 30cm x 20cm baking tin with parchment paper. For the base, pop the polenta, flours, baking powder, salt, black onion seeds and capers in a mixing bowl and stir. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, milk and corn oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour in the wet ingredients and stir with a spatula until well combined.

3. Spread the cooled onion and pepper mixture over the prepared baking tin. Spoon the batter on top and carefully spread to the edges. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

4. Remove the tin from the oven and turn the oven to 200C/gas 6. Let the bumble-o cool slightly then spoon the onion marmalade on and spread it to the edges. Sprinkle over the grated cheeses and dried basil and bake the bumble-o for another 10–15 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling. Serve with green salad leaves.

Note: Sorghum flour is available from health food shops and Asian grocers and online.

Veggie chilli recipes

Ingredients:
* 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes , approximately 500g
* 1 level teaspoon cayenne pepper , plus extra for sprinkling
* 1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin , plus extra for sprinkling
* 1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon , plus extra for sprinkling
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
* olive oil
* 1 onion
* 1 red pepper
* 1 yellow pepper
* 2 cloves garlic
* a bunch of fresh coriander
* 1 fresh red chilli
* 1 fresh green chilli
* 2 x 400 g tinned beans, such as kidney, chickpea, pinto and cannellini
* 2 x 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
*

Ingredients:
This is a lovely alternative to traditional chilli con carne. It's packed with good stuff so is a great choice for veggies and meat eaters alike. I like to serve it with soured cream, guacamole and either rice or tortilla chips, but it’s totally up to you.

1. Preheat the oven to 200˚C/400˚F/gas 6.

2. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into bite-sized chunks. Sprinkle with a pinch each of cayenne, cumin, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat, then spread out on a baking tray and set aside.

3. Peel and roughly chop the onion. Halve, deseed and roughly chop the peppers. Peel and finely chop the garlic.

4. Pick the coriander leaves and put aside, then finely chop the stalks. Deseed and finely chop the chillies.

5. Place the sweet potatoes in the hot oven for 40 minutes, or until soft and golden.

6. Meanwhile, put a large pan over a medium-high heat and add a couple lugs of olive oil. Add the onion, peppers and garlic and cook for 5 minutes.

7. Add the coriander stalks, chilli and spices and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until softened, stirring every couple of minutes.

8. Drain the beans, then tip them into the pan with the tinned tomatoes. Stir well and bring to the boil, then reduce to a medium-low heat and leave to tick away for 25 to 30 minutes, or until thickened and reduced. Keep an eye on it, and add a splash of water if it gets a bit thick.

9. Stir the roasted sweet potato through your chilli with most of the coriander leaves. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if you think it needs it.

10. Scatter the remaining leaves over the top, and serve with some soured cream, guacamole and rice or tortilla chips.

Tips When you get the hang of this recipe, keep things interesting by varying the types of beans you use or swapping the chillies for some hotter varieties, if you like.

Street salad (Insalata di strada) recipes

Ingredients:
* 500 g new potatoes , scrubbed
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
* 3 handfuls mixed crunchy salad leaves, such as, radicchio, rocket, romaine
* 1 small handful fresh mint , leaves picked and torn
* 1 bulb fennel , halved and finely sliced, herby tops reserved
* ½ Cedro lemon , sliced wafer thin, optional
* For the Sicilian blood orange dressing
* 1 blood orange , juice of
* 3 tablespoons good-quality white wine vinegar or herb vinegar
* extra virgin olive oil
* 1 good pinch dried oregano
* 2 tablespoons capers , washed if using salted, chopped if large
* sea salt
* freshly ground black pepper
*

Ingredients:
In Palermo there's a night market called Il Borgo, where all the locals gather to eat at little stalls selling things like chickpea fritters, boiled baby octopus and some stuff that you wouldn't want to eat, like gizzards, spleen and other dirty wobbly things! A lot of the veg stalls have massive cauldrons of boiled potatoes and artichokes to serve to their customers – I guess you could say this is the original fast food – and they tasted absolutely brilliant.

Some of the stalls also make a version of this salad, which is absolutely delicious. They tend to dress it and have it hanging around for quite some time so it becomes a bit sloppy and past its best, but the principle of the salad is fantastic and all the locals absolutely adore it. In Sicily you can get these terrific Cedro lemons which are mainly pith and they are amazing in salads – but you may not be able to get hold of them. In this case I wouldn't recommend you use normal lemons as the flavour is quite different.

The way potatoes are cooked in Sicily is very long and very slow, on a low simmer with plenty of salt in the water. This is a fantastic method of making normal potatoes soft and floury, but in the case of new potatoes it would be a crime. So add them to fast-boiling salted water, as this will help retain a lot of their flavour, and cook them till nice and tender. The softer you can get them while still holding their shape, the better. While the potatoes are cooking, wash all your salad leaves and put them into a nice big bowl with the mint and fennel. If using a Cedro lemon, add the slices to the salad at this point.

For the dressing, mix the orange juice and vinegar in a glass jar or bowl with about twice as much extra virgin olive oil. Add the oregano and capers and season to taste with salt and pepper. Give it a good mix and have a taste. Don't forget that you want the flavour to be a little over the top, so that by the time you've dressed the salad with it and it has mixed with all the other flavours it's perfect because it's become more subtle. Drain the potatoes when cooked, then allow them to steam in a colander for 5 minutes. Throw them into the salad while still warm and toss together well. Absolutely fantastic – great with a plate of grilled fish or as a lunchie salad on its own.