Recipe

Cauliflower and sweet potato add such abundant nutrition to this traditional curry dish with a twist. Both vegetables are rich sources of antioxidants including beta carotene and sulphoraphane, which help protect the body from the stress and disease.

This curry is fabulously frugal and the tastiest way I know to make the most of less-than-desirable looking vegie odds and ends in the fridge. Don’t be bound by my ingredients list; make this curry your own by using any limp veg hiding in the fridge. For a yummy soup, add another cup of stock, remove the cinnamon stick at the end and blend on high for a few seconds.

Cottage pie is one of those comfort dishes that make you feel nurtured and warm. My vegan version is easy make and will satisfy the whole family. I always serve it with some steamed green vegetables or salad.

Marmalade always makes me think of my dear Nanna who was from Lancashire in England and would always smother it on toast. I’m sure she would have loved this cake, particularly for its secret ingredient: cannellini beans! This cake offers a wonderfully light but flavoursome taste, sweetened only with honey and that gorgeous sticky marmalade drizzle. And, no, you can’t taste the beans at all.

Broccoli and Stilton are a combination I became familiar with living in London where it’s a common feature on restaurant menus. It’s also the first place I tried watercress, which, despite its unassuming nature, is highly nutritious, given its calcium, fibre, vitamin C and antioxidant content. This is a simple salad that combines the three and adds walnuts for some delicious crunch.

A classic corned beef, also known as silverside, screams English comfort food for me. On my English side, everyone loves it and it’s a homely dinner to serve to your loved ones. It also keeps in the fridge for a few days afterwards.

For me, English food is comfort food, especially bubble and squeak. This dish takes me back to my childhood — granted they were usually frozen, though. This recipe is a great way to use up leftover mashed potato.

The secret to making a quick and healthy stir-fry is to chop and measure out all your ingredients before you go to the stove.

This pasta is one of my favourite vegetarian midweek meals. It’s quick and easy to make and really tasty. You can make it with any kind of mushrooms but I like a mix of shiitake, oyster and field or Swiss brown.

This is even quicker if you have the rice left over from a previous night and ready to go. Simple with delicious flavours, this dish is full of fibre, protein, magnesium and B vitamins.

This dish does require a little prep; however, it can be done the day before or in the morning. It’s a DIY meal that everyone can get involved with, even the kids. The BBQ sauce may sound like a lot of effort but once made you have a really versatile flavour bomb to use with everything. There are a number of online versions of this kind of sauce but this is my favourite combination. I recommend doubling the quantity!

This is a fantastic quick dish to have during the week. It provides you with loads of vegetables, complex carbohydrates and a good amount of protein and leftovers are great to have for breakfast the following day.