Roasted butternut, borlotti and barley with creamy tahini dressing

Eating roasted butternut squash in season is so amazing. Really sweet and intense. Used pre-made Jamie Oliver grains from a packet which is such a great time saver. I chopped a bit of apple into the mixture too to add sharpness and the creaminess in the tahini sauce was from tofu, spiked with garlic and lemon. Such a comforting recipe.

Lemon sole with braised fennel and harissa cous cous

I got the idea for this really brilliant, easy supper recipe from a friend of my MIL's who did it with potatoes and monkfish instead. I loved the idea because you can  make the sauce well in advance and then warm it back up, steaming the fish on top with a lid on. Very very easy, healthy and delicious. Definitely one to do again!

Seared tuna with spelt pasta salad

This is a Jamie Oliver 15min spesh and it really was easy and quite popular with both young and old for a weekend lunch. Spelt pasta is lighter than normal and therefore works well with filling tuna. I had leftovers for lunch the next day and it was excellent still with its salty olives which really zing.

Mega-boost flapjacks

I made these as something sweet for after supper as he misses chocolate at that time. Turned out to be a great recipe for him particularly as it had loads of omega 3 packed linseeds but also because they had bananas, honey and porridge oats all of which I gather promote good sleep - a clever second benefit! My sister even liked them despite them not tasting that sweet.

Salt and pepper squid with a vegetable stir fry

Now this was good... The squid I was taught on a brilliant one day fish cookery course at Abinger Cookery School in Surrey. Amazing to eat in the comfort of your own home as I normally think of it as real restaurant cooking, especially with the deep-fried parsley, garlic and chilli garnish (hate that word). As it was a main course I did an easy veggie stir fry with it, consisting of egg noodles, crispy veg and black sesame seeds. 

Spiced three bean stew with pomegranate and coriander

The base here was red thai curry paste then of course onions, chickpeas and mushrooms. Very autumnal and filling especially with brown rice. I actually froze quite a bit of it for another night which I know will taste maybe even better second time around. 

Ginger and apple cake with honeyed pecans

As I think I've mentioned before, vegan puds are the greatest challenge for me. I pinched this recipe from a good American blogger who clearly knows her stuff because it turned out really well. The icing is very sweet and needs refrigerating to make it go anything like solid but everyone claimed to enjoy it. Icing was made out of soya butter, vegan soft cheese and icing sugar.  It's very like a carrot cake but using (home-grown) apples which keeps it moist and prevents the sponge itself being too sweet. It felt like a good pudding for Halloween and Autumntime.

Baked gnocchi with fried mushrooms, smoked tofu and crispy sage

Very seasonal and very delicious were the comments from my diner. Big meaty favours jumped out of this quite humble dish that was very interesting to eat in terms of flavours and textures. Baking gnocchi was an idea I stole from Nigella a few years ago - I think nicer than the slimey boiled versions and perfect for he who loves something crispy!

Squash and chickpea filo tart

Ripped out of the Times magazine this recipe was a massive hit. The pictures show the cooking process which was two phase - the filling then the filo pastry but it wasn't at all tricky. I will definitely make this again for friends as it feeds 4. I liked it with a simple green salad with added pomegranate seeds.

Skate wing with capers and kale

A classic where you flour the fish then add capers, lemon and parsley at the end of the cooking process, leaving you with a very moreish, piquant sauce. I've always loved skate but watch out as it does go off much quicker than other fish so buy it and eat it fast. 

Lemon sole with quinoa, tomatoes and a lime and ginger sauce

This recipe is a great example of how easy and quick fish is to cook. Probably took 10mins or so from start to finish. The nutribullet whizzed the sauce for me and the quinoa was pre-cooked. Before this year a dish like this wouldn't have excited me, but I think the more you cook and eat fish the more you love it.

Sweet potato, beetroot hummous and a green salad

One of the things I love about cooking vegan food is how much it lends itself to creativity. When you pare back the ingredients so much, it forces you to turn simple things into something wonderfully tasty. Like this very easy supper... Potato, chickpeas and salad was made into a seriously punchy plate of food. You've just gotta know which store cupboard ingredients to throw at it. Everyday hummous got fennel and beetroot, sweet potato got rosemary, some warming spices and spring onions and the old salad got a classic French dressing. Frying some of the tamari seeds on with some coriander lifted it even more. When you aren't spending money on meat and cheese which are expensive you can afford to get a good variety of fresh herbs, seeds, nuts, spices etc to lift everyday veg into something really special.

Japanese broth with udon and rainbow veg

This was such a wholesome, zingy bowl of goodness. Harry ate his in half the time that I did which just shows how much he loved it. The mixed seeds on top were fried with a dash of tamari which gives them a very savoury, marmitey taste. Great one if you have a cold to blow it away!

Sizzling Moroccan prawns

Jamie Oliver's recipes are always reliable,  delicious and modern. I cooked this fab dish for Harry's birthday supper. Prawns were Sainsbury's frozen Taste the Difference and were excellent. A very pretty looking plate too!

Sesame tuna with swiss chard, rice noodles and a spicy sauce

Harry declared this restaurant-level grub. It was very very good but I did make the spicy sauce MEGA hot 😡. With thanks again to the Itsu cookbook and the magic ingredient that is silken tofu!

Beetroot falafels with coriander mayo

Best best vegan snackie lunch with added seeds and rocket in toasted pitta. Mayo made with my best new creamy ingredient substitute... Silken tofu

Squash, smoke tofu and quinoa with a zingy herb sauce

For quick salads boosted with carbs I love to use merchant gourmet pulse packs and this one used their quinoa mixed grains. I also roasted a squash, fried courgettes and made a green herby sauce from the brilliant Itsu cookbook (thanks to my sister Alice).

Salmon with brown rice, fried courgette and crispy kale with a miso dressing

Using ingredients bought in our local organic farm, this dish was so tasty and wholesome. Oven crisping kale is our best way of eating this super healthy green.

Pear, apple and blackberry crumble with chia

Everyone loves this - even he who says "I don't like pears" (H). Blackberries picked from the garden. Who needs butter in a crumble anyway??!

Spiced sweet potato wedges with marinated smoked tofu topped with mixed seeds

Loved this dip into the new world of tofu... Marinating hard, Japanese-style tofu is the way forward for this born again kitchen. We even quite enjoyed it! Eating like this really needn't mean feeling short-changed on the flavour or filling front. A very delicious supper.

Best mackerel salad

Massaged kale, mango, spelt, fried aubergine and smoked mackerel all went into this fruity salad topped with fresh basil. A very pretty and tasty salad for the end of August.

Courgette, mint and lentil salad with beetroot hummus and falafels

Beetroot hummus had toasted fennel seeds, cumin and flax oil added. The salad was so fresh tasting - good old Ella's ideas there. I used sprouted lentils and mixed seeds toasted with soy sauce. Very tasty washed down with some rose on a fri night!

Simple tomato salad

Few things can beat a bunch of ripe tomatoes sliced with oil, balsamic and basil. These were given to me by a kind friend from her garden and tasted amaaazing. All seven different types!

Fresh crab, beetroot, carrot and avocado remoulade with pumpernickel

Fresh crab is such a treat and this lunch was so good - very much my kind of food and pretty filling too. I love rocket with crab. 

Butterbean, kale pesto and tuna salad with toasted pittas

Slightly threw this together but it became such a healthy feast of toasted paprika and cumin pittas, kale and seed salad and this protein-rich, filling main dish. It was a hot day too so nice to eat very fresh and zingy flavours such as these. Served with a cool pimms... 😎

Gilt-head bream with pea purée and a tomato salad

Such a good piece of fish, very succulent and delicious pan-fried. Harry's been getting hungry of late so bulked the pea and garlic purée out with a small handful of breadcrumbs. Good quality tomatoes tasted out-of-this-world-good with oil, balsamic and basil. 

Spaghetti puttanesca

Courgette, kalamata olives, capers, onion, garlic and parsley make a potent accompaniment to linguine. Harry had some leftover tuna steak on top whilst I had parmesan. So easy and yet restaurant-level good.

Smoked salmon and hummous

This hardly warrants a post but doesn't it look pretty and easy to throw together? 

Smoked mackerel fishcakes

Panko breadcrumbs were the secret to the success of these crispy beauts. Think next time I will incorporate some strong Thai flavours to cut through the fishiness of mack. A very satisfying Saturday lunch though.

Green Thai salad with black sesame, pomegranate and toasted cashews

Far too much garlic added to this by mistake but other than that it tasted divine - very fresh flavours and also filling. Such a pretty dish too.

Salmon tartare with toasted rye bread

Such a great substitute for having the steak version. We both thought this was such a treat... Harry had an avocado with his too and I had a few quails eggs otherwise it wasn't filling enough as a main course.

Fresh mackerel salad with lentils and roasted peppers

The added extra flavours were fennel and roasted onions to give it a bit more interest, but this was a very nutritious weekday supper. 

Ottolenghi's winterslaw salad

Such an amazing salad - a real adult family favourite. Adapted to be vegan friendly with replacing the butter for frying the nuts which still made them crispy. 

BBQ'd baby aubergine, peppers, beetroot and almonds with pesto dressing, garlic flatbreads

This was a delicious summer lunch with family, served with Good Life falafels and a green salad. Kids got chipolatas too! The flatbreads were really popular with everyone - such a treat when homemade.

Sardines with garlic, parsley and lemon

Sadly neither of us liked these sardines. Just TOO FISHY and BONEY! We couldn't even finish them. Lucky we had cauliflower rice and spinach to eat with toast instead... One source of omega 3 we don't like.

Pan fried seabass with tomato salsa and curly kale

Looks fancy but takes the time it takes for the potatoes to boil to cook. Seriously! So full of nutrition as all ingredients organic. 

Smoked mackerel and quinoa salad

Very easy quick supper that's really just an assembly job of pre-made red quinoa, a beautifully smoked whole mackerel from the fishmonger and edamame. I made a good dressing with strong flavours that work wel with the fish - lime, ginger and chilli flakes. 

Rainbow granola

Inspired again by my sister, this low sugar granola took minutes to make. I just chucked some oats, crushed nuts, linseeds, flaxseeds, chia, some walnut oil and agave into a massive bowl and gave it a stir... Threw it into the oven for a roast then added goji and figs as it cooled. The children loved it on strawberries and honey yoghurt and we enjoyed more traditionally for brekkie with almond milk.

King prawn Thai curry

Beautiful colours in this Thai curry because of all the yummy veg - just a use-up job from what was in the fridge though. Served it with brown rice. 

Herb stuffed mackerel with jerseys and a green salad

First time I've bought fresh mackerel and it was really good. Stuffed it with breadcrumbs, lemon zest, fried onion and herbies but I loved the (soya) yoghurt  and herb dressing more. The meat of the fish was so delicate and succulent. A really underrated treat.

Salade Nicoise

Incredible, sushi-grade tuna from our fishmonger - so delicious and fresh. Had it with steamed Jersey potatoes, sugar snaps and broccoli plus kalamata olives and a parsley/lemon zest dressing. Really fresh and summery food which we both loved. 

Cod with caramelised leeks, Jersey royals and asparagus

Indulging in the fruits of the season here! Very easy to cook as such simple ingredients. I do think cod needs a good flavour boost as it's such a plain fish - the leeks did this. Such a clean-tasting supper.

Quinoa, avocado and salmon salad with fresh spinach

I made this with my amazingly cheffy sister Alice. Such a treat to eat this together in Guernsey after a big beach walk.

Wholemeal pasta with vegetable ragu

This was delicious... Very like a beef ragu in its richness and texture. I used loads of organic veg and not too much water so it was thick and a bit chunky. I didn't do this but next time I will... Try and recreate parmesan using ground almonds seasoned with salt. Might raise the dish even higher!!

Asparagus and grilled spiced aubergine with a romesco sauce served with spinach gnocchi

Look at the colour of this sauce! So fresh and delicious as a summery Sunday lunch. The children had roasted chicken thighs instead of the aubergine which they actually both liked when they tried, surprisingly. Really delicious but needed the filling pud of vegan banana loaf with banana ice cream to make sure it was filling enough. 

BBQ'd tuna with courgette and radish noodles

After discovering my new fishmonger who delivers to my door, I've got much fresher and a wider range of fish to cook with. This weekend lunch of BBQ'd tuna in a ginger and garlic marinade, served with Ella's courgette noodles with avocado dressing was really tasty. Extra real noodles done for the kids too as wasn't sure they'd love the raw courgette version. Which they didn't!

A new approach to tart bases

This tart base made from vegan ingredients was so flavoursome... Ground almonds, pumpkin seeds, linseeds, walnut oil, rosemary. Very crumbly but didn't matter as tasted so good! Might add flaxseed/water to bind it more next time. Could fill it with any veg you like.

Raw Thai curry salad

Now this was a triumph. First use of the spiraliser and made the sauce in the nutribullet so very much new age non-cooking. Just an assembly job really. Made with pepper, turnip, green beans, courgette noodles with roasted almonds, herbs and crispy kale.

A new brownie recipe (no dates!)

Rich and silky the main ingredient was black eyed beans! Not that you could taste them as so chocolatey.