recipe

caprese salad tartines

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Caprese salad is summer personified, although I eat these all year round to remind me of summer…the flavours and the white, greens and reds of the salad are not only the national Italian flag colours, they are also the Mediterranean on a plate. You get the crunchiness of the bread with caprese salad in a simple olive oil and balsamic dressing with lots of basil.
I love these tartines because they are not only delicious but I can imagine myself by the sea in Italy on a hot summer day with a glass of wine having a two hour lunch in a pair of espadrilles and a floaty caftan and dipping a toe in the pool. These are perfect for brunch, lunch or for a light supper.

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red onion bahji

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A freshly made onion bhaji is one of the finest things in life and surprisingly easy to make. The perfect bhaji is crispy on the outside and waffley on the inside with the perfume of Indian spices and fried onions, making this a fantastic snack or accompaniment to an Indian meal. I cooked them in healthier coconut oil and my friends that tried them loved the coconutty flavour the oil gave them. I serve them with wedges of lemon or lime and a sprinkle of fresh coriander, but they are equally good with mango or lime chutney, tamarind sauce or a cucumber raita.

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spaghetti with black truffles

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This is an authentic Italian recipe and it’s vegan, but you can serve it with Pecorino cheese finely grated on top if you don’t do vegan, both ways are traditionally Italian. I love truffles on nearly everything, eggs, chips, risotto, pasta, mashed potato…the list is endless. I gave my friends Timna and Vicki my black truffle carbonara a couple of weeks ago and they are still talking about how sublime they think it is. However, I wanted I to do a vegan version too. I think it tastes fantastic, all truffley and garlicky. Its very Italian and it only takes about ten minutes to make, or as long as the spaghetti is cooking. Perfect for a dinner party, you can multiply the amounts or halve the quantities for a super tasty date night.

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avocado and fries on toast

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All the best food in one, these are Gatsby sandwiches which are sandwiches with fries inside them also called chip butties here in England, however, this is a healthier version. So firstly you have char griddled bread, then a delicious avocado salad, then you garnish it with crunchy healthy fries. As all my girlfriends say, my kind of food. It covers all bases, sweet and savoury, crunchy and smooth. It’s a healthy tasty snack, starter or light meal. May I suggest only one for a starter as they are quite filling. An open sandwich taken to another level.

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Georgia O’Keeffe’s chocolate brownies

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These really are the best brownies I have ever tasted because they are not too sweet and are really chocolatey and nutty. My friends all ask me to bake them for them after they saw the shots on Instagram and started dribbling at the sight of them, and they really are dribble-worthy. The story about these amazing chocolate brownies is as follows. This recipe was found amongst the painter Georgia O’Keeffe’s collection of recipes in her cookbooks. She was a passionate cook and this recipe was hand written by her on Waldorf Astoria note paper. She was was staying there on April 30th 1963 to collect an award for the creative arts from Brandeis University, so they think she must have asked the hotel for the recipe because she loved them so much. O’Keeffe was a passionate foodie and collected recipes wherever she went, and a bit like me she dipped into healthy food and dipped into more indulgent food depending on her whim. Try them, they are beyond and there’s dairy free and vegan alternatives if you prefer.

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chewy double chocolate vegan cookies

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Chocolate biscuits are up there as one of the best things to munch on with a cup of coffee or tea, and I love to have a snack on the go at all times. These biscuits are really chocolatey and chewy because they are made with golden syrup. They have quite a grownup taste because the flavours are quite intense and very chocolatey, which I like. You really know you have had a hit of chocolate when you have had one of these. Ralph and I think they are beyond delicious and really moreish.

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easy kale crisps

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Kale crisps are really  crunchy and really tasty. My friend Amanda has been making these for years and I said I would do a version for her. Everyone is mad about Kale. I love peas, but kale is a another delicious  superfood that’s incredibly popular. I bake mine in coconut oil because coconut oil doesn’t become toxic when heated, unlike other oils. These kale chips are delicious as a low carb, high fibre snack that’s packed with vitamins and minerals. They are also perfect sprinkled on salads and other savoury dishes as a healthy garnish. I added truffle salt to mine to give them a bit more va va voom. Garlic salt will add a stronger flavour too as would a grating of Parmesan.

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caramelised roasted red onions

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These onions are roasted until they are caramelised and sitting in an unctuous balsamic syrupy sauce. This recipe pays tribute to the humble onion as a vegetable in its own right. They are fab with a roast dinner or as a side dish and they are also great at room temperature along side salads and bread. But apart from being delicious, studies  have shown that rosemary has amazing anti ageing properties, ten percent of the population in the town of Acciaroli in Italy are over 100 years and scientists are putting it down to the rosemary in their diet and scientific studies have also shows that rosemary helps maintain and improve brain function and memory. So I’m adding Rosemary to my diet whenever I can, which is easy as I love the taste and smell.

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guacamole

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Guac is the perfect tasty health food and this recipe is bursting with vitamins. Everyone  has their version of it and this is my version , it is silky smooth, except for the chopped red onion and tomatoes on top. It’s got all the authentic Mexican flavours of lime, chilli, oregano and cumin and it has a bit of a kick. You can put in half the chilli if you prefer it milder. I have eaten this ever since I went on the Fit for Life diet years ago. I’d have it on toasted rye bread with butter, but now I’d just make it with bread brushed with olive oil, roasted and sprinkled with a pinch of salt. It’s a lovely combo of crunchy, creamy and spicy and it’s super delicious. Perfect for lunch as it takes minutes to make.

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shrimp laksa bowl

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Laksa is a creamy coconutty broth which is spicy, delicious and is  a very traditional Thai dish. It’s always served in a big bowl with noodles and with lots of garnishes, so it looks scrumptious. You can also make this recipe with whatever takes your fancy, so you can add different seafood to it like squid and scallops or shell fish. It’s up to you and if you omit the noodles you have a very tasty, creamy low carb meal. It’s perfect for date night dinner with your darling, when you fancy something hot and spicy.

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