Easy Lentil Dahl

So so easy, this Dahl tastes great the next day on baked sweet potatoes, with meat and fish or simply on its own. I served mine with spicy mango chutney, fresh coriander and pitta bread. 

To make the Dahl: serves 2 

1 tin of plum tomatoes 

1 cup of water

1 heaped tblsp of Indian curry paste 

1 cup of red split lentils 

Mix all the ingredients in a large casserole dish and break up the tomatoes throughly. Bring to the boil for 10 minutes. Cook for 10-15 more minutes at 160oc with the lid on in a preheated oven. 

Anchovy Spaghetti

When travelling in Verona, Italy I tried this dish with fresh homemade Italian pasta! Bellissima! Serve with fresh cracked pepper, Parmesan cheese and a side salad. 

To make the pasta: serves 1 

100g of dried wholemeal spaghetti 

A 50g tin of anchovies in olive oil 

Simply boil the spaghetti until cooked throughly. Chop the anchovies and throughly combine with the warm pasta, adding all the olive oil. 

Make sure you add no extra salt and go easy on the parmesan, the anchovies can be very salty. 

Coconut Cream and Poached Pear Chia Seed Pudding

Packed full of nutrition this is a creamy and sweet pudding. Try Pina Colada Chia Seed Pudding - just add pineapple instead of pear. Serve cold.

To make the pudding: serves 2 

2 tblsp of chia seeds 

1/4 cup of coconut cream 

1 tblsp of algarve syrup 

1 large poached pear or 2 tinned pear halves chopped roughly 

1/4 cup of filtered water 

Mix all the ingredients and refrigerate for 1 hour. Sir throughly. Leave for another 2 hours or ideally over night until a pudding consistency forms. 

Pear, Walnut and Stilton Salad

A salty and sweet salad that's delicious enjoyed in the sunshine! 

To make the dressing: serves 1

1 tblsp of olive oil 

1 tsp of algarve syrup 

1 tsp of finely diced red onion 

1 tblsp of finely chopped parsley 

1 tblsp of pear juice 

Salt and pepper to taste 

To make the salad: serves 1

1/4 of a small iceberg lettuce finely chopped

2 inches of cucumber sliced

2 tblsp of toasted walnuts

50g of Stilton cheese crumbled 

3 tinned or very soft fresh pear halves pealed 

Dress the lettuce, cucumber and walnuts. Pour into a plate, assemble the pear halves and scatter with the Stilton. 

Spinach Falafels

These crispy falafels are yummy served with red pepper hummus as a side dish or starter. Alternatively they make a great main in pitta breads or wraps! 

To make the falafels: 

1/2 a cup of gram flour (chickpea flour) 

4 frozen cubes of spinach defrosted

100 ml of water

1/4 tsp each of smoked paprika, cumin, turmeric and ground fennel seeds 

Mix all the ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Leave to soak for at least 30 minutes. Fry in a little olive oil for a few minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Cherry, Apple and Almond Crumble

A yummy crumble, great for family Sunday lunchs. 

For the fruit filling: 

2 large roughly chopped cooking apples 

1 tin of drained cherrys or 2 cups of fresh destoned cherrys 

About 1 cup of sugar 

Heat all the ingredients in a pan on a low heat until soft. Add more or less sugar depending on the sweetness of your fruit. 

Put into a deep serving dish ready to top with your crumble. 

For the crumble topping: 

120g of plain flour

85g of butter, cut into cubes

4 tbsp of caster sugar

5 tbsp of ground almonds 

3 tbsp cold water

Combine all the ingredients in a blender or by hand and then flake over the top of the fruit filling. Cook at 180oc for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with lashings of custard or cream.