The night-before-a-flight dinner party

So I just returned from the States yesterday after a whirlwind 9-day trip. It should have been closer to 14, but thanks to the Iceland volcano, it was cut short a bit at the beginning. So instead of flying out on Tuesday, we didn't get to fly out until Saturday.

All that aside, we had a great time celebrating my dad's 60th and our impending July arrival. We succumbed to gluttony a few times - hot chicken wings and queso dip spring to mind - but also scoffed many of my fresh favourites such as yellow squash and raspberries.

But flash back to the night before our flight out of London - we had some friends over for dinner before our trip and to show them our new place, which we'll be moving into next week. I needed something simple, fresh, and ideally easy to prepare ahead as we were doing lots of work at the new flat. I also needed something that wouldn't leave leftovers, and since the weather was so nice, I wanted something summer-inspired but in keeping with mid-spring availabilities.

Here's what I settled on:

• sticky lemon chicken (served cold)
• purple-sprouting broccoli and herb pasta salad (served cold)
• prawns in carrot sauce (served cold)
• mixed leaf salad
• fresh sun-dried tomato bread
• a round of camenbert (I abstained, pregnant as I am)
• white wine (spritzer for me)

I think it turned out well - we ate around 7:30, with it still light outside and the windows and doors open. It was a Friday, so everyone was in a good mood, and I wasn't in the least bit stressed thanks to the early preparation.

If you like any of these ideas, I've put general recipes for the ones in bold below. Check 'em out and let me know if you want more info, and I can surely provide it.

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Sticky lemon chicken
I only had an idea in mind, not a recipe, so after a bit of browsing I came across this recipe from Notecook and this one from Good Food, which I picked the best bits from.

To make:

1. Cut slices into the fat of drumsticks and thighs (maybe 10 pieces total?) and season. 
2. In a casserole dish, add the juice and zest of 2 large lemons, 1 tbsp of honey, 1 clove of garlic (chopped), 1 tbsp of oil, a pinch each of paprika/salt/pepper and whisk with a fork. 
3. Add the chicken and rub the juices into the chicken. Roast for 45 minutes or until done at 200 C / 400 F. 
4. Allow to cool, then refrigerate until you're ready to serve. Some chopped herbs on the top would look pretty here.

If I'm honest, it didn't end up quite as 'sticky' as I would have liked - I think I would have needed to add more honey or a little sugar to make it stickier. But the citrus aromas were lovely - I'd probably amp that up a little more too.


Purple-sprouting broccoli and herb pasta salad
This one was also an idea in my head - I was initially thinking asparagus, but couldn't get any British asparagus at the store. Purple-sprouting broccoli from Herefordshire looked good, so in the basket it went.

To make:

1. Blanch 400 g (14 oz) purple sprouting broccoli (regular is fine, just not as pretty) and then plunge into cold water to cool. Set to the side.
2. Boil 300 g (10.5 oz) fusilli pasta, rinse with cold water, then set to the side.
3. To make the dressing, use the juice of 1 lemon, 1 tablespoon olive oil, a handful of chopped fresh parsley, a handful of chopped fresh dill, and 3 tablespoons of basil pesto. (If you don't have basil pesto, use a handful of basil and 2 more tablespoons of oil).
4. Combine the broccoli, pasta and herb mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add more lemon juice or herbs if you like, and topping with lemon zest is a pretty touch.

Makes enough for 4 people with leftovers (so probably 6, if you're serving the chicken too).

Prawns in carrot sauce
Okay, so this one was a total cheat - my mother-in-law brought me back some carrot sauce from the Canaries, which I've been meaning to try out. It was actually quite nice - had the essence of cumin, onion and red peppers in it in my mind, though one site lists the ingredients as "oil, garlic, paprika, salt, vinegar, pureed carrot, thyme or other herbs". Anyway, it was good (though I did set the smoke alarm off in the middle of the night when I stir fried these bad boys up).

Sun-dried tomato bread
Okay, so kinda another cheat. I'm not perfect! This was a pre-mix that I used in the breadmaker - my breadmaker's not well equipped to take additions to the mix after the start, so if I want anything "fancy" I have to go pre-mix. The smell is fab. I'm sure with a little planning I could try doing something on my own, but my mind was on flights and ash clouds. Deal...

Recipe for chicken livers with bacon, leeks, broad beans and parmesan

Every time I’m out visiting my in-laws in Stock, I always stop by Lathcoats Farm Shop. I love their apples and enjoy the trawling the various shelves for something new.

Last time, in addition to the bags upon bags of Egremont Russets, I happened upon some chicken livers from Essex Birds. I think I’ve only had chicken livers maybe once in my life, and certainly not cooked by my own hand, but I’ve been keen to try them for a while – they’re cheap, protein-tastic, and rich in flavour – a little goes a long way, really. So a small 220g pack from Essex Birds (for a pocket-pleasing 99p!) went in my basket and onto my freezer to wait patiently for a bout of inspiration on my part.

Cue the gloomy weather and chicken livers suddenly sounded perfect – earthy and filling. I considered stew – but wanted something that took less than 30 minutes, not more. I wanted as healthy as possible – so out went the creamy dishes.

My internet search revealed that if you want to eat liver, you really should pair it with bacon. I dutifully agreed, deciding to add broad beans (also out of the freezer, to remind us of sunnier days), leeks and a bit of parmesan on top. Sounded perfect to me.

But I’m no fool – there’s no way that was going to fill my husband, who’s recently gotten back into swimming daily at the London Fields Lido. The man needs (even more) carbohydrates – broad beans just won’t pass muster. So into his portion of liver loveliness went 150 g of bucatini (wonderful thick spaghetti with holes down the middle, presumably to increase surface area and soak up even more saucy goodness…)

I know livers turn some people off, but I highly recommend giving them a try. This recipe is really simple and quick, too. Just remember – don’t take a bit of just chicken livers EVER. Ensure there’s a mix on your fork at all times. You’ll thank me.

Chicken livers with bacon, leeks, broad beans and parmesan

(serves 2)

220 g (a small pack) of chicken livers, rinsed and separated into chunks

4 rashers of streaky bacon, chopped

300 g frozen broad beans

1 tsp olive oil

200 g leeks, chopped

25 g parmesan, grated

salt and pepper.

optional: pasta to accompany

Heat the olive oil in a pan and bring a pot of water to the boil (two, if you’re including the pasta). When the oil is hot, add the chopped bacon and fry for a few minutes. When the water is boiling, add the broad beans to one pot and parboil for about three minutes. If you’re making pasta, add it to the second pot of boiling water and cook according to the package instructions.

To the bacon and oil, add the chicken livers, searing on each side for 2 minutes. Add in the leeks and stir well, ensuring everything is coated with the various flavours. Add a ladle of the pasta or bean cooking water to the pan as well as the drained broad beans and reduce heat to medium – season well and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes. Add half the parmesan and mix through before plating up.

If you’re having the dish sans pasta, just split in half and serve in shallow bowls, perhaps along with any other vegetable you’d like (though I quite liked it on its own). If one person is having pasta, then plate up half the mixture, and then add the pasta to the mixture in the pan and stir, ensuring its gets fully coated. (Perhaps needless to say here, but if you’re both having pasta, mix it all in together before splitting the mixture evenly.) Top with the remaining parmesan and enjoy!

The bottom line... 

For a standard serving - 410 calories. 

For a standard serving with 100 g pasta - 726 calories

Recipes I'm going to play with this week...

...courtesy of the August issue of Gourmet magazine, my monthly treat from the States. You can find all their recipes online, though, but perusing the pages of the print version brings me much joy.

For iPhone lovers - Epicurious (the online home to Gourmet and Bon Appetit recipes, amongst others) has a great free app now. Wonderful for browsing on a train or bus ride home.

Baked tomatoes with hazelnut bread crumbs
Roasted tomatoes in general are one of my favourite summertime side dishes, but the addition of hazelnuts was just too exciting to pass up. I won't, however, use a half of a stick of butter - 1 tbsp of olive oil - max - will do just fine. In my opinion, butter would really mask the flavour of the tomatoes. Is that just me?

Baked chicken meatballs with peperonata
Okay, I don't even know if you can get minced chicken here in the UK. But you can get minced/ground turkey, which should work just fine. And I'll probably skip the pancetta - not because I think I wouldn't like it - but I'm on a budget here and I think it will taste lovely even without.

What do you think? I'm really excited about trying them - they should be fun, cheap ways to inject some excitement into summer suppers.

curry powder to the rescue

It's amazing what curry powder can do to a leg of chicken and a couple of parsnips. All you need is a few tablespoons of this magic dust, rubbed on and under the skin of the chicken, which then goes into the oven for 45 minutes alongside some parsnips.

Serve it alongside some steamed frozen green beans and you've got a great weeknight twist on meat and two veg.

chicken soup with lemon and mint

I got this recipe from Nigel Slater's Kitchen Diaries. It's one of the only January recipes I really fancy. It's perfect the day after a roast dinner, as you'll have leftover chicken and, if you're on the ball, some yummy chicken stock to use. It's super quick to make - literally less than 15 minutes.

I've kept it almost the same - the only difference is I've substituted fresh parsley for fresh coriander and used more noodles.

Chicken soup with lemon and mint
(serves 2)

200 g cooked chicken breast, shredded
1 litre homemade chicken stock
2 dry blocks of medium egg noodles
juice from 1 lemon
30 g finely chopped mint
30 g chopped parsley

Cook the egg noodles in boiling water. Rinse in cold water and leave to the side.

Bring the chicken stock to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the chicken, mint, parsley and lemon and simmer for a couple minutes.

Add the noodles and simmer for one more minute. Check the seasoning - add salt if necessary. Serve in a big bowl with a fork and a spoon.

Calories per serving: about 500

chicken soup for the soul

This soup should be made on the same day as roasting a chicken. When you eat it is up to you - you can eat it the next night - a Monday - or freeze it and eat it another time. But it's soooo good.

country chicken soup
(serves 2)

300g roasted chicken, shredded (ideally leftover from a roast)

1 large leek, sliced
1 large carrot, diced
1 large stalk of celery, sliced
1 tbsp olive oil

750 ml chicken stock (ideally made from the chicken)
100 g dried soup mixture (peas, lentils, etc), cooked per instructions
1 large red pepper, chopped
1 large courgette, chopped
200 g mushrooms, sliced
100 g spinach leaves
salt and pepper
lemon juice
basil and sour cream (to garnish)

Heat the oil in a large pot. Sautee the celery, carrots and leek for about five minutes. Then add the hot stock little by little. Add the courgette, peppers and mushrooms and bring to an almost-boil, before reducing to a simmer for about 25 minutes. Then pour in the drained country soup mixture, the spinach leaves and the lemon juice. Season well.

If serving immediately, top with basil leaves and sour cream. Otherwise, freeze it as is, and slowly bring to a boil.

Calories: less than 350 for half. A great deal. And boys like it too, if "we can have this again" is anything to go by.

harissa-coated chicken thighs in tomatoes, leeks and butter beans with avocado and steamed broccoli

Yet again, I’ve been missing in action. 15 days. I’ve been massively busy, without much time to cook. Late nights at the office, evening functions, leaving dos, catching up at the pub… you name it, and it has kept me out of the flat this April.

This has really opened my eyes to how hard it is to cook with a busy schedule. But I’m determined to figure out a way that it will work.

Now that winter has nearly passed, I think it will be easier. Softer, more delicate produce inherently takes less time to cook. So time’s on our side.

And I’ve rededicated myself to fast, healthy, simple, amazing meals. No small challenge, I know.

This dinner, which I cooked up last night, ticks all of those boxes. And another one – the cheap box – to boot.

Harissa-coated chicken thighs in tomatoes, leeks and butter beans with avocado and steamed broccoli
(serves 2 medium portions or 1 large, 1 small portion)

4 skinless boneless organic chicken thights
2 tsp harissa
1 large leek, sliced lengthways in half and then thinly across
1 tin of cherry tomatoes
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 tin of butter beans, rinsed and picked through
1 large ripe beef tomato, chopped
5 sprays of olive oil

1 head of broccoli, chopped
1 small avocado, peeled, stoned, pitted, halved and sliced
1 lime, juice of

a handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped
5 sprigs of mint, chopped (optional)

Coat the chicken in the harissa and allow to sit for 30 minutes. (Or, coat in the morning and leave to set during the day.)

Heat the olive oil and sear the chicken for about 3 minutes each side in a large sauté pan. Add the leeks and garlic and sauté for another minute before slowly adding the cherry tomatoes (juice first). Mix rapidly to deglaze the pan. Fill the can halfway full with water and add to the pan. Bring to boil, reduce, cover and allow it to simmer for about 10 minutes.

Spread the avocado on a plate and sprinkle with the lime juice and salt.

After about 10 minutes, add the butter beans, half of the fresh tomatoes and parsley to the pan. Season well. Stir and recover, and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes.

Place the broccoli in a steamer and cook for about 6 minutes, until al dente.

When the mixture is ready, remove the cover. Add half of the broccoli to each plate, and spoon the correct amount per portion onto each dish. (The dish contains four small portions.) Place the sliced avocado on the side, sprinkle with mint and parsley, and serve immediately.

Though it looks fairly plain, the combination of subtle earthy harissa, clean cool mint, creamy avocado and butter beans and tangy tomatoes really work well together, and the flavours are just spot-on. I think it would work well with fish too - or even as a vegetarian dish.

I got the nod from the hungry man next to me on the couch. There’s that final box ticked then.

Sunday's simple surprises

The brilliance of the Sunday roast dinner (or lunch, depending on what time of day you eat) lies in its tradition. There’s just something comforting about roast chicken, beef, fish, or lamb. It’s soothing. It whispers to you: “Come on, every thing will be all right, just sit down and eat.” And the smells are out of this world.

I love cooking a roast dinner, partially because I can prepare, go away, return as necessary, checking on progress, and continue about my day, pottering about the flat.

But as some one who enjoys cooking new recipes and ideas, the simple roast can get a bit old. So my job is to add pieces of flair to the roast without it losing its simple, traditional roots.

There are obvious ways of tarting up a chicken, but they’re not all particularly healthy – butter, sausage meat, bacon, the works. Instead, I want something that will inject flavour and make the bird sparkle without worrying about clogging up my arteries, thanks very much.

That’s why I was intrigued by this recipe in the Sunday Times supplement a week ago. Now, I normally stuff herbs between the skin and the breast meat on a whole chicken (and in the old days this is where the butter would come in), but I hadn’t thought of cream cheese.


A lovely mixture of fragrant thyme, chopped garlic, lemon zest and cream cheese (I used light, without any problems) gets stuffed under the skin prior to roasting – keeping the breast meat juicy and succulent, but allowing the skin to brown quite nicely (for those who can’t resist a bit of chicken skin).

The 2 kg bird needs about 1 hour and 40 minutes in the oven, so I don’t have to do much else, aside from basting the chicken every 20 minutes with lemon juice (my favourite trick – you don’t need oil or butter, or even wine, lemon juice is top), until about 30 minutes before the chicken is due to come out of the oven. No need to rush – the chicken sits happily for about 15 minutes on the counter prior to carving.

On to veggies – purple sprouting broccoli, chantenay carrots (quite possibly the world’s perfect carrot), steamed leeks, boiled red potatoes, and some steamed sweet potato. It sounds like a lot – but I planned it that way. There are tons of leftovers, perfect for weekday lunches. And all the veggie trimmings get dumped into a pot with the carcass to make a load of wonderful stock.

An hour after dinner, pleasantly stuffed full of proper food, I feel very pleased with myself.

Image credit: Sunday Times

mustard chicken

Tonight – here’s another healthy dish that’s full of flavour. If you’ve got a George Foreman grilling machine, use it – if not, grill/broil it in the oven. Either way works well; I just love the grill marks that the George Foreman leaves on the chicken.

I’ve chosen Dijon mustard, because I’m in the mood for it – but French mustard, Colman’s (albeit sparingly), American mustard, or any other type you like will work just fine.

Serve with freshly steamed vegetables of your choice.

Grilled mustard chicken with sautéed shallots and steamed broccoli
(serves 2)

2 free-range chicken breasts (about 130 g each, give or take)
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 medium to large head of broccoli, chopped

About 8 shallots, peeled and sliced
Olive oil, about 20 sprays

Preheat the grill. Coat the chicken breasts with mustard and season. Add the chicken breasts for about 10-12 minutes, turning halfway through.

Heat the oil in a small frying pan and add the shallots. Keep them moving in the pan so as not to burn. Reduce heat to medium, and if more moisture is needed, add a sprinkle of water.

Bring the water to boil in a steamer and put the broccoli (with a sprinkle of salt) on for about 6 minutes.

Check that the chicken is done; if so, serve immediately.

This dish is super healthy and comes in at under 250 calories. I try not to have a starchy vegetable every single night, and this is my “off night” – but if you want one, a bit of steamed squash would be lovely, or, perhaps about 50 g of couscous, seasoned with some thyme or oregano.

chicken complements

Chicken gets a bad rap sometimes – especially with the (justifiable) concerns over battery chickens. But free range and/or organic chicken is guilt free (depending on who you talk to). The problem is, it can be quite bland, unless you’re roasting a whole chicken, which is like the holy grail of chicken.

Chicken breast is very healthy, low in fat and calories, and quite filling. The problems lie in the ingredients cooks use to entice their patrons, like butter, cheese and oil.

Finding tasty, healthy ingredients is easier than you think: sun-dried tomatoes and dried wild mushrooms taste great rolled into a flattened chicken breast. Herbs make the task simple: chopped parsley and garlic are my favourites, but rosemary, thyme and others work fantastically well too.

In my opinion, something needs to ooze out of the chicken to make it exciting. Use a reduced-fat cheese like mozzarella.

Skinless, boneless chicken thighs stuffed with mushrooms, garlic, mozzarella and parsley
(serves 2)

4 chicken thighs, skinned and deboned
1 125g ball of reduced-fat mozzarella, sliced into eight thin slices
large handful of parsley, chopped
125 g dried mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped finely
salt and freshly ground black pepper
cocktail sticks

Heat the oven to 200 C.

Pour half of a pint of freshly boiled water into a small bowl over the dried mushrooms. Allow to soak for about five minutes.

Use a meat tenderiser to pound the chicken thighs to a thickness of 1cm. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the mushrooms and pat dry with a paper towel.

Add the mozzarella, mushrooms, parsley and garlic to the top of the chicken. Roll up the chicke and secure with two cocktail sticks for each piece. Season again with black pepper.

Cook for 30-35 minutes and ensure the chicken is fully-cooked before serving.

Serve with green vegetables, such as curly kale, broccoli or green beans.

a slow week, a simple meal

Despite my best intentions, I haven’t felt like cooking this week. Originally, visions of smoked mackerel fishcakes (don’t worry, I’ll still make them) and spicy tomato-mussel pasta danced in my mind. But after an evening cooking the books and a few long days at work, these visions were replaced by quick fixes, like gorgonzola pizza at the Lauriston. Perhaps not the healthiest choice, but everyone needs a treat sometimes.

Now it’s Friday and only last night did I get back on track, cooking a simple and healthy meal to make up for my night at the Lauriston. It may not sound exciting, but actually, it was wonderful, with clean flavours and the savoury crunch of the stir fry. What’s more, it took no more than 15 minutes to conjure up.

Pan-fried chicken breast with cabbage-leek stir fry and steamed cauliflower
(serves 2)

2 free-range chicken breasts
5 sprays of olive oil.
1 small head of savoy cabbage
2 large leeks
10-15 sprays of olive oil
water for the stir fry
1 small head of cauliflower, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper

You’ll need a small wok, a frying pan and a steamer. First, chop up the cabbage: remove the outer leaves, quarter and remove the stem and slice thinly. For the leeks, remove the green parts, slice down the middle and then crossways into thin rings. Keep stirring.

Heat a few sprays of olive oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the cabbage and leeks and season well. Stir continuously, and sprinkle water over when necessary to ensure the vegetables don’t burn. Add another 5-10 sprays of olive oil too.

Heat five sprays of olive oil in a frying pan over med-high heat. Season the chicken breast and sauté for about 8-9 minutes, turning halfway through.

Once the chicken is on, bring water to boil in a steamer and add the cauliflower. Season with salt and pepper and steam for about 5 minutes.

The chicken is done when there is no pink visible in the breast and the outsides are golden brown. Serve with a large portion of the cabbage and leeks and the freshly steamed cauliflower.

This dish is an excellent guilt-cleansing dinner, as the veggies with about 150g of chicken will only set you back round 300 calories. Great for making up after a pizza-laden week. My husband liked it too, probably because it met the basic Englishman’s requirements of meat and two veg.

the wonders of fennel pesto

I saw this little jar on the shelf at the shops this weekend, waiting patiently for me to espy it, I presume. I actually shrieked a little when I saw it, to be honest. I had heard the concept bandied about recently, and kept meaning to make it, but the time or the meal wasn’t right.

But this little jar, despite the fact that it was not a part of the plans I had for this week’s meal, simply had to be purchased.

An Italian chicken salad was originally on the menu for last night, using the leftover chicken breast from the roast, shredded and combined with pomodorino tomatoes and red and yellow peppers roasted in red wine vinegar.

But my prized fennel pesto led me to tweak this dinner by making Italian chicken pasta instead. The outcome was quite nice, if I do say so myself – full of strong flavours which compliment each other well.

My favourite thing about this dish is that it can be served either hot or cold, depending on one’s mood. Just be sure to use the right type of pasta (linguine works well for hot; fusilli or macaroni is a better choice for cold).

This dish is also speedy, too, and most parts can be made ahead of time: the chicken taken from leftovers, and the tomatoes and peppers roasted a day earlier. And it’s healthy too. (Beat that, Nigella)

Italian chicken pasta
(serves 2)

200 g wholemeal linguine
250-300 g shredded cooked chicken breast
200 g pomodorino tomatoes – or any other type available, as long as they are ripe
2 bell peppers (I used one red and one yellow for colour), deseeded and sliced
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
15-20 sprays of olive oil (3-4 ml)
2 tbsp fennel pesto
2 small handfuls of baby spinach leaves
A handful of black olives (15 or so), sliced
10 g of basil leaves, chopped
A sprinkle of grated parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Note: the tomatoes and peppers can be made ahead by roasting them with red wine vinegar, salt and pepper, and a couple sprays of olive oil for 30 minutes in a 200 C oven. If roasting the tomatoes at the same time, begin with this step, and proceed to the next step after 20 minutes of roasting.

Bring a large pot of water to boil – when bubbling, add the linguine and cook for about 10 minutes, until fairly soft.

Meanwhile, heat a pan with a few sprays of olive oil and add the shredded chicken over medium/medium-high heat. Allow to cook through. When the tomatoes and peppers are done roasting, add the entire contents of the tin to the chicken. Stir and cover.

When the pasta has finished boiling, drain and return to the pan, but remove from the heat. Mix through the baby spinach and half of the pesto and stir. Cover for a minute or two to allow the spinach to wilt.

Add the chicken, peppers and tomatoes to the pasta and again stir through.

Split evenly between two large bowls – top with equal proportions of the chopped basil leaves, olives and the remaining pesto. Sprinkle a bit of parmesan over, and season with a few grindings of salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Of course, fennel pesto is not a requirement for this dish – though it certainly adds a different, softer perspective than say, basil pesto or red pepper pesto.

Other uses for fennel pesto:
-Atop a butternut squash soup
-On bruschetta with a bit of goats cheese
-Mixed into mayonnaise as a dip for sweet potato chips
-A marinade for grilled white fish – or even a darker fish such as mackerel
-spread onto courgettes and grilled for a couple of minutes

But don't just take my word for it:
-The BBC recommends it in a pan-fried sea bass with fennel pesto and tomato salsa
-Sacla, makers of fennel pesto, offer up a pumpkin ravioli with fennel pesto recipe
-use it on fresh spaghetti with hot pepper flecks

autumn roast chicken that will last for at least four meals

I admit, I may be harping on and on about the season, but for good reason. Nothing feels – or tastes – better than cooking seasonally. There must be some synapses in the brain which fire when seasonal produce hits the tongue or when the eye spies the colours of the season.

Sunday evening’s menu, on the face of it, may seem uninspired: roast chicken with vegetables. But seasonal cooking takes a seemingly ordinary dinner and completely enlivens it. Roast chicken with vegetables becomes apple-stuffed roast chicken with butternut squash and kale. I also added a few spices – some dried thyme and a bit of ground ginger.

The chopped Bramley apple serves as a humidifier from within the chicken’s cavity, keeping the breast meat ever so moist. The butternut squash, once chopped and loaded into the pan with the chicken along with a few red onions, soaks up some of the lovely juices from the bird without becoming completely drenched. And the kale – needing only four minutes in the steamer – provides a fresh, textured, and importantly, green, counterpart to the chicken and squash.

As for the chicken, although £7.50 may seem like quite a lot for a 2 kg free-range corn-fed chicken, remember that there will be enough breast meat for another meal (either another round of this meal – or, as I’m doing, putting the shredded breast meat into an Italian chicken salad). Furthermore, there’s enough dark meat for some excellent chicken and cucumber sandwiches to take to lunch, and the carcass will boil up wonderfully with all the odds and ends of your veggie basket (i.e. the hearts of celery, carrot peelings, the dark green part of leeks, the skin of onions…)

Luckily, you don’t have to take my word for it – try it for yourself. There are ten weeks of autumn left, before my mind converts to winter and I begin espousing the credentials of pears, cabbage and swede. (And you know I’ll do it.)

Apple-stuffed roast chicken with butternut squash and kale
(serves 2-4, with leftover chicken for another night’s dinner, lunchmeat for sandwiches, and a rather beautiful stock for a carrot soup I’m making later this week)

2 kg free-range chicken
1 large Bramley apple, cored and chopped
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, scooped, and chopped
1 medium red onion, sliced
1 bag of curly leaf kale
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Spray olive oil
Dried thyme (or fresh, if you have it)
Ground ginger

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Prepare the chicken by rinsing out the chicken and coating the inside with salt and pepper. Place in a foil-lined roasting tin. If using fresh thyme, stick the herbs between the skin and the breast meat and season. Spray a few squirts of olive oil.

Surround the chicken with the chopped butternut squash and a few slices of onion. Sprinkle with a bit of thyme and ginger. Roast for 2 hours – 30 minutes plus 45 minutes for each kilogram – checking on the chicken every 20 minutes or so. Use a basting brush to redistribute the juices over the chicken.

Once the chicken is done (meaning the juices run clear), remove it from the oven and transfer to a carving plate. Allow it to sit for 10 minutes before carving. Move the butternut squash and onion to another dish and pat with a paper towel to remove excess fat.

Place the kale in a steamer over medium-high heat and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Steam for about five minutes.

Carve the chicken, and serve the desired cuts with a bit of the apple from the inside of the chicken, a helping of butternut squash and onion and a healthy serving of kale.

chicken cacciatore with steamed broccoli and green beans

Chicken casserole dishes: love or hate? On one hand, they are wholesome, usually cost-effective, and homey. On the other hand, they tend to be a bit boring, and if the chicken is not cooked correctly, the meat will be dry and flavourless despite the juices surrounding it.

For these reasons, I have often stayed away from cooking chicken casseroles like coq au vin. They just do not excite me. But when I found Delia’s recipe for a version of the Italian classic chicken cacciatore, I had to try it. The vivid orange-red of the sauce, flecked with deep green rosemary and bay leaf, had an entrancing effect. Look for yourself.

I substituted several chicken drumsticks in place of the whole chicken and found it worked really well. The chicken needs to be browned off first and left to sit while concocting the rest of the casserole. Don’t skip this step!

Of course, all of that chicken skin adds quite a lot of fat to the dish. Although it can be messy, I advise removing the skin before eating with a fork and knife. It could save 300-400 calories, which is quite a lot. Much of the flavour remains, since the chicken and the sauce were still cooked in the skin casing. Besides, the rich liquor of tomatoes, wine, tomato puree, garlic, onion, and rosemary is fantastic all on its own.

This recipe takes about an hour and a half to prepare and cook. I would recommend it for a lazy Sunday afternoon when you can check on the dish intermittently whilst reading a book or watching a film.

Serve the chicken cacciatore with some freshly steamed broccoli and green beans. Delia recommends green tagliatelle, but I think vegetables fit better with the overall dish.

Calories per serving (2 chicken drumsticks with one-third of the sauce, with the skin removed before eating): around 700. Using other, less fatty, cuts of chicken would decrease the calorie count.

spatchcocked poussins with cucumber-dill salad and sweet potatoes

One of my favourite things about cooking is experimenting with new flavours and sampling new foods, but after a few years of voracious "lab work" in my kitchen, it sometimes feels as though there isn't much new to try.

Last night, I found much pleasure in learning a new technique – spatchcocking – whilst preparing Cumin-Yogurt Chicken with Cucumber Dill salad, a recipe I found on the BBC website.

The recipe called for one large chicken, already spatchcocked, which are often available in larger supermarkets. However, I wanted to spatchcock my own – and decided instead to use poussins.

Whilst spatchcocking sounds complicated, the method is simple – use a carving knife or kitchen scissors to cut out the backbone of the chicken. Then spread the chicken flat. This method reduces the cooking time for the chicken quite dramatically – especially if the spatchcocked chicken is seared in a sauté pan or griddle before roasting.

Enough of the spatchcocking talk in any case. This recipe is an extremely good one, though, as always, it calls for too much oil.

I needed only two teaspoons of olive oil for searing the poussins.

And, as for the cucumber-dill salad (which was lovely and fresh – a perfect use of dill), FOUR TABLESPOONS of oil is completely unnecessary. It would completely drown the cucumber. Rather, a few sprays of olive oil (maybe 10) is all that's necessary.

I also added some roasted sweet potato chunks in with the chicken whilst roasting – they were a fabulous counterpart to the creamy yogurt marinade and the tangy dill.

One last thing: I used a chunk of sweet potato to wipe up some dill on the plate. Wow – an absolutely stunning combination that I otherwise would have never thought of. So actually, I learned two things last night.

take five

Five just could be the magic number when it comes to food. For one, the "get your five a day" campaign with regards to fruits and vegetables has been going for years, inspiring such juice drinks as FiveAlive (does anyone remember?)

And, although it's a bit spurious, since five is an odd number, it looks better in presentation. Any interior designer will tell you that odd numbers are more appealing to the eye. So why not put five on your plate? It's also the number of fingers on one hand. So why not the number of main ingredients in one recipe? It would allow you a representative from all the major food groups – grains, meat/protein, dairy, vegetables - plus one more for good measure.

Although it isn't always the case, the fewer the ingredients, the less time it often takes to prepare, which is a benefit on a Wednesday night.Simple doesn't have to mean boring, but it can mean healthy and tasty. Have a look:

(Small disclaimer: I'm not including olive oil spray or seasonings in my five)

Turkey breasts stuffed with mozzarella and spinach with roasted cherry tomatoes and green beans

(serves 2)

250 g lean turkey breasts, tenderized OR lean turkey steaks

1 large ball (125 g) of reduced-fat mozzarella, sliced thin

50 g baby spinach leaves

250 g cherry tomatoes, halved

300 g green beans (frozen, since it's not quite the season yet)

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Lay the turkey breasts flat and layer with the mozzarella and spinach. Roll them closed and hold together with toothpicks. Spray with a few sprays of olive oil, season with pepper and place in the centre of a foil lined roasting tin.Place the halved cherry tomatoes around the turkey rolls and spray with olive oil spray and season with salt. Cook for 30 minutes.

Five minutes prior to the turkey finishing, either pop the green beans in a pan of boiling water or microwave them for 3-4 minutes. (The latter method allows the beans to retain a lot of their nutrients).

Calories: approximately 350 per serving. To bulk it up, simply serve more beans.

Turkey breasts often come in 500 g packs, so it doesn't seem reasonable to only cook half sometimes. You have two options: use half, freeze half; or cook them all and take one for lunch the next day. Or if someone's really hungry at dinner, he or she can have the other.

The recipe is also easy to vary and often has some very tasty results:

Chicken breasts stuffed with cheddar and mushrooms served with broccoli and brown rice

(serves 2)

This one's lovely. Follow most of the same instructions, but flash-fry the mushrooms in some olive oil and black pepper and use 30 g of reduced fat farmhouse cheddar per turkey breast.

Steamed broccoli and 50 g of brown rice per person round out the meal and the entire thing is done in 30-35 minutes.

(If six is your magic number, throw some garlic in with the mushrooms for a very flavourful result)

Calories: 485 per serving (with 50 g of brown rice). If you're still hungry, add more broccoli.