1 loaf ciabatta
4 tbsp olive oil
400g/14oz portabellini or other large mushrooms
20g¾oz bunch of basil
25g/1oz parmesan, finely grated
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
1 Cut the ciabatta in half vertically and again horizontally. Drizzle with a bit of the olive oil and place on a baking sheet.
2 Cut mushrooms into thick slices.
3 Heat the remaining olive oil in a large saucepan until shimmering, then throw in the mushrooms.
4 Cook on a fairly high heat, stirring regularly until the mushrooms start to release their natural liquid.
5 Turn off the heat, add a few torn basil leaves and put the lid on. Leave to infuse while you grill the ciabatta on a fairly high heat for about 5 minutes until it is just browning and going crunchy.
6 As soon as the bread is ready, place on plates, divide the mushrooms between them and sprinkle with the remaining basil leaves and parmesan.
Tip
• Dice two or three really ripe, sweet vine tomatoes and sprinkle on top.
poached eggs on wholemeal toast
285ml½ pint water
4 medium eggs (free-range/organic if possible)
4 slices wholemeal toast
butter
Serves: 4 children
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
1 Put the water into a small pan and bring to the boil. Crack one egg into a cup. Using a spoon, stir the water in the pan very quickly to create a ‘whirlpool’. Slide the egg into the water then simmer for 3 minutes until the egg is firmly set. Remove with a slotted spoon.
2 Repeat with the remaining eggs.
3 Serve the poached eggs on hot buttered toast.
Tips
• Fantastic served with a slice of ham underneath the egg, or grated cheddar cheese on top.
• It is even easier to make this if you buy little egg poachers that clip onto the side of a saucepan.
Muesli can contain many different dried fruits and nuts, but this combination is the one we like best.
300g/10oz rolled oats
35g/1½oz dried banana chips
35g/1½oz dried coconut flakes
600ml/1 pint fresh orange (or apple) juice
400ml/⅔ pint natural yoghurt
100g/4oz raisins
100g/4oz dried cranberries
100g/4oz dried apricots cut into small chunks
125ml/¼ pint runny honey
300ml/½ pint whole milk
50g lightly toasted flaked almonds
Serves: 4–6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: soak overnight to allow oats to swell and soften
1 Mix together the oats, banana chips and coconut flakes with the juice and yoghurt in a mixing bowl. Cover with clingfilm and leave overnight in the fridge.
2 Add all the dried fruit, honey and milk into the oat mixture and stir through.
3 Just before serving sprinkle over the toasted flaked almonds.
Tips
• This is delicious served with a warm fruit sauce. Simply place a handful of red berries (blueberries and raspberries are my favourites) into a small pan with a teaspoon of caster sugar and gently heat until they start to bleed and soften. Spoon onto the top.
• Apple is also delicious simply sliced or grated on the top.
This is a delicious alternative to the traditional tinned varieties! I would not dare compare – I am a huge fan myself – but I love this recipe and find that when I have the time it is great to do a couple of batches at once. I use what I need and then freeze what’s left.
450g/1lb dried haricot beans
3 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
3 tbsp olive oil
2 level tsp paprika
½ tsp ground cloves
3 heaped tbsp tomato ketchup
250ml/9fl oz passata
300ml/10½fl oz water
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
salt
1 rounded tsp soft brown sugar
Serves: 6–8
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 3 hours (plus overnight soaking of beans)
1 The night before, put the beans in a large bowl and cover well with water. Leave them to soak overnight.
2 The following morning, drain and rinse the beans. Put them in the casserole, cover with water and simmer on the hob for 1 hour.
3 Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/GM2.
4 While the beans are simmering, make the sauce. Start by frying the onions and garlic in the olive oil on a gentle heat. When the onions are soft and golden, sprinkle in the paprika and ground cloves and stir for about 1 minute. Then stir in the ketchup and mix well. Gently add the passata and water and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes before liquidizing until smooth.
5 Once the beans are cooked,