Summery chicken stew

The Boy and I have spent a glorious week touring the country to see friends and family. Naturally, our trips tend to revolve around food. We’ve barbecued near Bristol, sipped cider on the Cam (bringing a little bit of Somerset to Cambridge!) and noshed on marshmallows on a narrow boat.

Summer signals a flurry of activity for most people – time to make hay while the sun shines. If it’s raining – or if you’re busy dashing about doing a myriad of things simultaneously – you might like to come in after a long day to a bowl of stew.

This creamy chicken stew is light and fresh enough to suit a warm (if damp) summers day. As with all of my recipes, it’s easy and rather forgiving; you can leave it bubbling away on the stove (or in the oven – a similar amount of time at 180C should do the trick) while you go about your business. And, as long as you take care to ensure that it doesn’t boil dry, it won’t be ruined if you accidentally forget about it while you’re taking on the world.

This is a great recipe to have up your sleeve as a versatile and tasty dish. Although I’ve suggested kale, carrots and peas, you could throw in any vegetables that are in season and need using up. Asparagus works well if chucked in at the same time as the kale. In fact, you needed use kale – finely sliced cabbage, greens or spinach would work equally as well. An ideal one-pot supper to cut down on washing up without compromising on taste!

With all of the vegetables and light stock, this is a deliciously healthy meal. I would recommend using Quark instead of cream. It might sound like a Star Trek character but it’s actually a virtually fat free mild cheese that tastes lovely and creamy without being high in calories.

Summer Chicken Stew
Serves 4 – 6

6 chicken thighs, skin on
3 shallots or small onions, sliced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
4 carrots, sliced
½ chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
50g dried apricots, chopped
700ml chicken stock/water
300ml white wine/cider
50g curly kale, stalks removed and sliced
1 tbsp dried tarragon
100g quark or 100ml single cream
50g peas, ideally fresh from the pod but frozen is fine

- Add a drizzle of oil to a pan large enough to take all of the chicken pieces and vegetables with plenty of space over a high heat. Brown the chicken in batches, placing them skin side down for a few minutes and once golden brown, turn over. Remove from the pan.
- Brown the onion for ten minutes until golden brown and soft. Remove and set aside.
- Deglaze the pan with wine/cider; pour in the liquid and scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon or spatula to remove all of the cooked on flavour.
- Add the chicken and onions to the pan with the garlic, carrots, chilli, tarragon and apricots then cover with stock/water. Top up with boiling water if needed until everything is covered.
- Put a lid on the pan and turn the head down to a gentle simmer. Cook for 30 – 40 minutes until the carrots are tender and the chicken is cooked through.
- Remove from the heat and skin off a cup of the cooking liquor. Set aside to cool while you stir in the kale so that it is submerged in the liquid. The residual heat will cool it nicely.
- Meanwhile, whisk the quark or cream into the cooking liquor until smooth and lump-free. Add this back into the pan, along with the peas and stir through.
- Serve with jacket potatoes, boiled jersey royals or rice.

Butternut Squash Risotto

The winter cold season is well and truly upon us and there are people coughing and sneezing wherever I look. I’ve started using my newspaper as a shield during my commute (has covering your mouth when you cough and sneeze gone out of fashion?) in a feeble attempt to avoid the inevitable. So far so good though I’ve probably jinxed myself by saying that! Whether you are currently suffering or if you, like me, are desperately trying to dodge the sniffles that are doing the rounds, you could help yourself by eating right. Butternut nut squash is a fantastic versatile ingredient and it’s packed full of vitamin C (great for boosting your immune system!) and calcium as well as other fantastic vitamins and minerals. Despite its luxuriously silky texture, it’s also low in saturated fat.

We’re coming to the end of the winter squash season but they keep for up to three months in a cool dark environment so there’s still time to squirrel some away under the stairs or in your larder cupboard. I like to buy them up when they’re in season and cheap in the supermarket then peel and roast them when I’ve got the oven on anyway to save on energy. This is a great excuse, if you’re in need of one, to make a cake or maybe some cookies! You can then box or bag it up and freeze it cooked ready for winter salads, warming soups and hearty risottos.

Butternut Squash Risotto with sage
Serves two amply 

½  medium-sized butternut squash, seeds removed
½ onion, finely diced
1 stick celery, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
1 clove garlic, sliced
150g risotto rice
80ml white wine or dry vermouth
500ml vegetable stock
1 small bunch of fresh sage, chopped or 2 tsp dried sage
50g butter
50g parmesan

-          Preheat the oven to 190C. Peel and chop the squash into 1.5cm chunks. Pop them on a non-stick baking tray and stick them in the oven for 30 minutes or so while you make the risotto. Check the squash every so often and turn it with a spoon to ensure that it cooks evenly. The squash is cooked when its soft and slightly golden. If you are using pre-cooked butternut squash, you can obviously skip this step and commend yourself for being well organised.

-          Heat a little oil in a heavy-based saucepan and sweat the onion, carrot and celery until soft and sweet.

-          Tip in the rice and stir until it has absorbed all of the juices of the vegetables in the pan. Pour in the wine and keep stirring while that absorbs to ensure that the rice doesn’t stick.

-          Add the garlic and then the stock a ladleful at a time, stirring until all of the liquid is absorbed before adding more.

-          Check the butternut squash, which should be cooked through. (If it isn’t, cover the risotto and turn off the heat below it.)  Mash half of it to a course purée and stir this into the risotto with the butter, sage and parmesan. Fold in or top with the rest of the roasted squash.

Autumnal Tomato & Marrow Soup

It definitely feels like autumn. The days are starting to draw in and I'm getting forgetful... If you're part of the Facebook revolution, you'll already know that we went away to enjoy some time on our friend's narrowboat this weekend. I'd prepared a warming casserole for our first meal on the boat and promised to share more details with you on my return. Now, I can be rather forgetful at times so I wrote a list for myself. Toothbrush? Check. A little light reading? Check. Camera? Check. All set. Or maybe not because, when I packed away my faithful camera, I didn't check that it had a memory card in it. School girl error! So I had a camera but no way of recording what turned out to be a lovely meal (though I do say so myself). I gave myself a stern talking to, I can tell you. That aside, we had a fantastic weekend with lots of picnic lunching on the roof.

For now, please warm your cockles with another marrow recipe. Come rain or shine - blustery chilling showers or crisp icy sunshine - this soup is rich, flavoursome and easily prepared in far less than thirty minutes. I made it first thing in the morning so that the only thing that stood in our way of a tasty hot dinner was a little heating up. I even took a serving to work for my lunch, which went down a treat.

This recipe was great for using up some of the marrow that I've recently been given by a colleague however there's still half left in the fridge so there's sure to be another marrow recipe popping up on here in the next few days!

Autumnal Tomato & Marrow Soup
Serves 4

½ onion, sliced
½ large marrow, cubed (my whole marrow was about 40cm by 15cm - a whopper!)
1 green pepper, sliced
1 tin of plum tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp of vegetable stock powder
1 sprig of thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 sprig of oregano or 1 tsp of dried oregano
1 clove garlic, sliced

- Sweat the onion in a large saucepan for a few minutes until soft and slightly translucent.
- Throw in the marrow and cook over a medium heat. It will soften, break down and become a little watery in the pan.
- Add the tomatoes, pepper, stock and herbs to the pan. If the juice from the tomatoes doesn’t cover the marrow, top up with boiling water. Bring to a simmer and add the garlic.
- Simmer for 10 minutes or until all of the vegetables are soft.
- Serve with grated cheddar or crumbled goats cheese and a hunk of crusty bread.

Hearty Healthy Pizza Stuffed Marrow

It's not often that I get déjá vu however this particular incidence is unique because it revolves around vegetables. Marrows, in fact. Around this time last year, we had been gifted tons of courgettes and marrows through The Boy's workmates. This year, it's my workmates that are donating their vegetables to us. I've turned to my trusty stuffing technique for the ginormous marrow that's been taking up the best part of an entire shelf in our fridge for the last few days.

Admittedly not my best photograph for this very reason and I very nearly didn't post it for that very reason but I couldn't let vanity get in the way of showing you just how big this beast was! I decided to go for a combination of tomatoes and herbs to bring out the sweet roasted marrow flavour. Topping the whole lot with a little cheese made it quite reminiscent of pizza! The trick with this recipe is to reduce the filling down until it's almost dry; that way, the marrow doesn't go soggy when you stuff it. Slice it up and serve it with wilted swiss chard and wild rice or crusty bread to mop up the juices.

Pizza Stuffed Marrow
Serves 4 - 6

1 marrow (30cm or so long)
1 onion, chopped
1 stick of celery, chopped
1 can of plum tomatoes
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tsp vegetable stock powder
50g mature cheddar cheese

 - Preheat the oven to 190c.
 - Rinse the marrow and cut it lengthways. Scoop out the insides, leaving a 1cm (or so) strip of flesh around the skin. Place the empty halves on a baking tray and put in the oven for 20 minutes.
 - Meanwhile, sweat the onion and celery in a little oil over a medium heat while you chop the marrow innards into chunks. Add them to the pan and let them cook down. They'll express a lot of watery liquid and when they do, turn up the heat to simmer it off. Sprinkle the herbs and garlic into the pan.
 - While the marrow simmers, drain the tomatoes (keep the juices for something else) and roughly chop. Add them into saucepan and stir. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally to ensure that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
 - When the mixture has reduced down so that there's no remaining liquid, remove the marrow halves from the oven and spoon the mixture into it until it is level. Top with cheese and pop back into the oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown.

Succulent Baked Plaice with Olives

Plaice isn’t necessarily the prettiest of fish. As a flat fish, it can look (as the name suggests…) a little squished and it’s dull grey skin with violent orange spots wouldn’t be a great advert for the latest face cream. Despite the fact that it won’t be winning any beauty pageants any time soon, it is totally delicious and a great base for flavours.

It’s a pretty fiddly fish so unless your fishmonger is willing to fillet it for you, I would recommend baking it whole. I like to pop it in the oven with some herbs to infuse the flesh while it cooks. Go for woody herbs as a base which will withstand the fierce heat of the oven without wilting into nothing. Their flavour will survive but their structure is hardy too so they’ll stay bushy and hold the fish away from the baking tray – this will encourage heat to circulate around the fish and allow it to cook evenly. Keep any softer herbs – like parsley and dill – for sprinkling on top just before serving.

I paired our plaice with fresh tomatoes and black olives but you could add a few anchovies or capers if you've got them knocking about. If you're not feeling the lemony hint, try a combination of sliced orange and fennel.

Succulent Baked Plaice with olives
Serves 2

1 whole plaice
1 bunch/handful of oregano, thyme or rosemary (or a mixture)
1 handful of parsley or dill (or a mixture)
½ lemon, sliced
12 or so black olives
1 handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
Drizzle of olive oil
25g butter

- Preheat the oven to 180C.
- Rub both the sides of the fish and a baking tray with a little olive oil.
- Place the herbs in an oval in the middle of the baking tray and scatter with lemon slices.
- Put the plaice on top and surround with the olives and tomatoes.
- Bake for 15 - 20 minutes depending on the size of the fish – it should be white and opaque all the way through.
- To serve, cut along the centre line of the fish and gently peel the skin back. Add a knob or two of butter, the chopped parsley/dill and a little seasoning. The flesh can be pushed off the bones by placing the flat side of a fork against the spine and brushing outwards.
- Plate up with sauté potatoes and fresh summery salad.

Emergency Mushroom Pasta

Everything is relative. When I first started cycling to work about a year ago, I thought that sixteen miles was a long way to cycle. Now, it feels reasonable. A little wimp-ish even. It might be something to do with having friends who are seasoned road cyclists and will do a hundred miles in a weekend without batting an eyelid. I now cycle between 30 and 50 miles a week and am hoping to up it as the weather improves (it’s going improve, right? Right??). Anyway, on a similar vein, time is also relative. Half an hour might not be very long to wait for a meal in the grand scheme of things but when you’ve just finished a sixteen mile ride in the rain, it seems like an eternity. My tummy isn’t very big either but it can feel like an echo-y cavern when it’s not been filled with tasty things.

This particular trick of time and space was my quandry just the other day. And once again the cupboard was bare. Our fridge sported a pack of mushrooms, a little butter, some milk and a wizened nugget of parmesan. Oh great. My hunger was starting to peak after my ride and my stomach was making it clear that it was very unhappy indeed. Thankfully, my windowsill herbs have been flourishing so I had fresh parsley and basil at my disposal.

Cue, the crisis food. This dish would probably be lovely with cream cheese, crème fraiche or even cream if you have it knocking around but we didn’t. A roux (butter and flour) thickens the milky mushroom-y mixture so that’s its deliciously warm and satisfying. Just what I needed.

Emergency Mushroom Pasta
Feeds two hungry people

1 onion, sliced
150g mushrooms, sliced
1 clove of garlic, minced
150g pasta or spaghetti
100ml semi-skimmed milk (or whatever you have)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
50g parmesan cheese, finely grated
Small handful of parsley or basil, chopped
Sunflower or Olive oil

- Sweat the onions and garlic in a large saucepan over a low heat in a little oil for around five minutes or until they are completely softened and sweet.
- Add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes until tender.
- Put your pasta on to boil.
- Pour in the milk and stir until it is just off simmering.
- In a bowl, cream the butter and flour together into a paste.
- Take a ladle or two of milk from the mushrooms and whisk into the flour/butter paste until smooth. Add this into the saucepan and gently heat through, stirring as you do so, until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Add the grated parmesan and continue to stir until its mostly dissolved
- Once your pasta is cooked to your liking, drain it, reserving the cooking water, and add to the saucepan of sauce.
- Loosen the mixture with a little cooking water until it’s to your preferred consistency – I was in the mood for a light sauce so I made it relatively thin.
- Throw in the herbs, stir through and serve immediately with extra parmesan shavings and a whole lot of gratitude.

Hand picked wild mussles and Moules Marinaire

Having anchored our boat in a quiet bay, The Boy was feeling intrepid and ventured out onto the scratchy, barnacle-clad rocks in search of little fishies. After a period of disappearance, he returned, pink cheeked with pride bearing all sorts of goodies. His bucket contained a variety of delicate, spritely fish, an baby starfish and five shrimps. 

The incy, wincy starfish (only an inch or so across) was coo-ed over and then gently placed back into its pool but we held on to the shrimps - good eatin' to be had there! Our seas and beaches are full of gorgeous goodies that anyone can make the most of if you know where to look.

Buoyed by his successful hoard, we went to for a wander along the surf and what did we find? Several mammoth rocks encrusted in midnight blue mussels which, in turn, were stuffed with silvery barnacles. We grinned gleefully at one another and picked eagerly at the shells. They weren't as stuck fast as I expected - I had memories of a mini-me whacking unsuspecting limpets with rocks in an attempt to knock them off their home rocks before they suckered themselves on. Mussels are far easier to harvest, as it turns out. 

After a quick google (the wonders of Smart phones) and some advice from our elders, we made quick work of collecting a box full. They were quite easily teased from the rocks by twisting them which broke their 'beards' away - the delicate strings that fix them to the surface of the stone - without damaging the mollusk. We mostly picked from the waterline and chose mussels which stayed in the water for as long as possible - our intuition told us that these would be the freshest but I've no idea if this is correct. We mostly went for mussels which were 6 - 7cm long and avoided the baby ones (less than 5cm). As with all foraging, we only took what we would be able to eat and left more than we took (we wouldn't want to spoil it for others now, would we?). Since our expedition, I've read that mussels actually spawn between May and August so harvesting is generally discouraged during this time. We stored them in a large plastic box which was filled with fresh sea water and kept them in the shade for the trip home.

Back at our rented caravan, we prepped our goodies. Have a look at the instructions above if you haven't done it before and are curious. It's a bit labour intensive but it's well worth it. Myself, The Boy and my Mum-in-Love stood around the sink and chatted away while we worked so it was no hardship. After the cleaning was done, there was one dish in the fore front of all of our imaginations that would showcase these little treasures of the sea.

Moules Marinaire

Serves five as a starter

1.5kg prepared mussels, rinsed

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

100ml white wine or cider

120ml single cream

Sunflower oil or butter

 - Sweat the onion and garlic in a splash of oil or knob of butter in a saucepan large enough to take all of the mussels until completely softened.

 - Add the mussels and stir well so that they're completely coated in onion.

 - Turn up the heat and pour in wine and cream. Cover and simmer for 3 - 4 minutes or until the majority of the mussels are open. Shake the pan every so often so move the mussels about.

 - Stir in the parsley and ladle into bowls. Serve with crusty bread to mop up any juices. Discard any mussels that have not opened during cooking.

Bacon and Broad Bean Hash

Having had yet another Mother Hubbard moment, I concocted this dish from the odds and ends that had been frequenting our fridge. One sad and solitary potato, the heart of a sweet heart cabbage and some bits of bacon that were left over from a pasta dish. I quite like the challenge of a near-empty fridge - sometimes too much choice can be a bad thing and an excuse for dithering.

With broad beans coming into season, this is a great way to use these deliciously savoury legumes. Ideally, they'd be fresh from the pod and into the pan but if yours aren't quite ready to eat or if, like me, you don't have a vegetable patch at your disposal then the frozen ones are great. If you're not a fan, substitute with peas though I'd probably go for finely chopped mint instead of parsley.

Super-simple flavours. Incredibly easy cookery! Great for summer - chuck everything in a pan to flash it with a little heat and then enjoy outside on your patio chairs. In our case, we'd be huddled on the back step. We just ate at the dining table but the sun was streaming through the window.

Bacon and Broadbean Hash
Serves 2

1 large potato, cubed
125g (smoked) bacon, sliced
½ onion, sliced
¼ sweet heart cabbage, chopped

100g broad beans

Handful of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped - with a few whole sprigs reserved to garnish (if you're feeling fancy)

 

 - Par boil the potatoes for three minutes. I like to do this in the microwave because it seems more efficient.

 - Meanwhile, dry fry the bacon in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. The bacon should colour up and expell any fat into the pan.

 - Mop up some of the fat from the pan with kitchen towel, leaving about a tablespoon remaining. Drain the potatoes (reserving the liquid) and add along with the onion and cabbage.

 - Keep everything moving around the pan so that it doesn't stick or burn. Fry for about four minutes or until the potato starts to colour.

 - Add the broad beans and a splash of the cooking liquid. Keep stirring and cook for a minute or two until they're cooked to your liking. If you're using frozen broad beans, cook for four minutes or until piping hot all the way through.

 - Just before serving, stir in the chopped parsley then pile onto your plates.

Israeli Couscous with Roasted Aubergine

As soon as IrvingWashington over at Hunger and Sauce posted her Israeli Cous Cous recipe, I knew I had to give it a try. It looked oh so delish with sweetly roasted figs, toasted hazelnuts and crumbly feta. Majorly droolsome.

I must admit that despite my Middle Eastern roots, I hadn't heard of the stuff before. I've used finer North African couscous since my uni days but had never seen this plumper variety. My first hurdle was to find the elusive carbohydrate; my local Sainsburys didn't stock it and the internet wasn't much help ("How much!?"). Luckily, my dearest Papa happened upon some in trusty Waitrose, marketed as 'Giant' Couscous. Dad's rock.

My meal plan fell to pieces when I managed to forget to buy figs. Oops. Still keen to try out my latest ingredient, I raided our fridge and came across an aubergine. I'd picked it up on a rare trip to Asda where they were selling them for 50p - half the price of Sainsburys where I usually shop. Some were little (half the size of the Sainsburys ones) but I rummaged one out which was a good size. I roasted it while I had one or two other bits in the oven so as to be as thrify as possible with my fuel. If you're turning the oven on for cakes or biscuits, why not pop a tray of aubergines or peppers in too? They'll keep well in a container in your fridge for at least a few days or you could freeze them for when you next need them?

Anyway, here's my Israeli cous cous recipe. I hope you like it! I'm still hoping that I remember to pick up those blasted figs when I'm next at the supermarket so that I can try out IrvingWashington's recipe!

Aubergine Israeli Couscous

Serves 2 as a side dish

1 aubergine
1 red onion, peeled
3 tbsp sunflower oil
100g Israeli or ‘Giant’ couscous
½ tsp vegetable stock powder (or around ¼ of a cube)
½ lemon, juiced and zested
2tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp white wine or cider vinegar
Handful of coriander, chopped
1 tsp chilli, finely chopped
1 clove garlic

- Whip the top off the aubergine, slice in half and cut into 5mm pieces. Do the same with the onion and place in a bowl. Pour 2 tbsp of sunflower oil over and toss until coated.
- Pop on to a baking tray and gently shake from side-to-side to level.
- Put into the oven and roast for 30 minutes at 190C. Remove the aubergine half way through cooking and stir so that it cooks evenly and goes golden on both sides.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tbsp of sunflower oil in a pan over a medium heat and add the couscous. Gently brown the couscous for a few minutes so that it darkens slightly.
- While it cooks, measure out 200ml of cold water and add the stock powder and the whole garlic glove. Stir until the stock has dissolved.
- Add the water to the couscous and stir. Turn the heat below the pan to low, cover and bring to a simmer.
- After a minute, remove the garlic clove and then continue to simmer for about 15 minutes or until the water has been absorbed and the couscous is tender. Stir every so often so that it doesn’t clump together. You may need a little more water depending on your couscous.
- Mince the garlic and combine it with the olive oil, lemon juice, zest, chilli, cumin, vinegar and coriander in a large bowl. Add the aubergine and couscous and toss with your hands until everything has an even coating of dressing.
- Serve garnished with coriander leaves. Lovely with poached eggs or harissa chicken.

Grilled Courgette & Halloumi Salad

Father's Day. A another celebration (to add to the list along with Mothers Day and Valentines Day) dreamed up by the ingenious card companies to line their pockets after the card-buying frenzy of Christmas. I love my Dad and I hope that he knows how much I appreciate him but I quite like having an excuse to treat him. I suggesting inviting both The Boy's and my parents over for the day along with my siblings (The Boy’s sister lives too far away, sadly).

We may have stuck a finger up at card-giving commercialism but it did mean that we’d be cooking for eight. Blimey. I decided on a simple menu – a shared lunch of salads with homemade bread and a roast for dinner – but was still faced with tons of preparation in order to get to relax on the day. So, after an hour of aerial hoop and lunch with friends, I got down to some serious prepping. I quickly realised that - after my earlier exertions - once I stopped, I wouldn't be able to start again so I got through as many of many tasks with as much vigour as I could muster. I peeled vegetables for the roast, I soaked pulses for a bean salad, I roasted aubergines for a salad and I melted chocolate for a low(ish) fat cheesecake. Phew!

Sunday dawned and my muscles had locked up into a knot of achey lead. The Boy had helped me to prep a salad of seasonal courgettes and haloumi cheese which I thought would go down well with one and all. As he griddled, his brain was whirring - my recipe idea had sparked some foodie inspiration. He added peppers to my base of courgette, cheese, oregano and olives and topped the whole thing off with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. While the grill pan was still hot, I whacked on a lemon and stuck the grilled, caramalised halves on the plate to dress.

As our visitors arrived bearing various divine dishes - my Mum brought a fantastic homemade polenta based gluten free quiche while my Mum-in-Love brought a broad bean and bacon salad. Eight around our little table was, urm, rather friendly to say the least but it was made bearable by the mountains of food. My batch of green olive foccacia went down a storm but it was the courgette salad that was the real star of the show. The courgettes become sweet and soft when grilled which contrasts nicely with the salty bite of the green olives. The weather (predictably unpredictable) wasn't on our side and we didn't fancy barbecuing on our driveway so we used a grill pan but this could be popped on the barbie for a truly smokey flavour.

Grilled Courgette & Haloumi Salad
Serves 6 - 8 as a side dish

4 medium courgettes
2 peppers
250g halloumi cheese, drained and sliced
100g green olives, sliced
1 lemon
25g sesame seeds
handful of oregano leaves
sunflower oil

 - Put a griddle pan on a high heat to warm up until smoking. Alternatively, prepare your barbeque.
 - Wash the courgettes and cut them lengthways. Try to get them around 5mm thick but don't worry too much if you can't as they're not the easiest of things to cut! Deseed and slice the peppers and pop everything in a bowl with the halloumi cheese.
 - Drizzle the courgettes and pepper with a little oil and mix so that they are well covered. Carefully brush the griddle with a little oil on a heatproof brush or a kitchen towel.
 - Grill the courgette and pepper for a few minutes on each side until they are slightly softened and have charred lines. Remove to a serving dish.
 - Next, grill the halloumi for about 4 minutes, turning each slice so that it crisps up slightly and becomes charred. Add to the serving dish with the other vegetables.
 -  Turn off the heat under the pan and immediately put two lemon halves, cut side down, on to the grill. Leave for a few minutes until they are caramalised and browned.
 - Meanwhile, add the olives and oregano leaves to the dish and toss the salad. Top with sesame seeds and oregano sprigs. Serve with the grilled lemon halves to squeeze over.

Silver Spoon Plant Markers

Image from Shrimp Salad Circus

So there I was, enthusing about herbs when I happened across this amazing how-to for character-full plant markers. I love the idea of using old utensils to mark out plants that will eventually end up in the kitchen and then on your plate.

I’m something of a hoarder by nature, which probably drives The Boy crazy. I do my best to keep it under control and I’m much better than I used to be. I think this is something to do with the terror of moving in with someone and realising that they’re going to see how many boxes you bring through the front door. They have to live with your junk (as well as any emotional baggage you’re carting around) and you with theirs. It might also be something to do with the fact that I’ve moved at least four times in the last five years and lived out of a suitcase for around six months of that. It certainly teaches you something about travelling and living light...

Anyway, on seeing this, my hoarder tendencies have been whispering to me; encouraging me to buy up antique spoons from ebay and to make a little trip to our local charity shops in search of unusual cutlery. Surely one or two spoons or a funky spork wouldn’t hurt, says the little voice. But no. I’ll be good (I can hear The Boy breathing a sigh of relief).

Still, if you have the space, time and ability, why not make a few of these beautiful markers? A treat for the eyes and reusable too. And while you’re at it, be a doll and make me some too?

If you don’t have the space, time or ability (or maybe you don’t have the equipment or inclination), you can recycle your old butter or ice cream tubs that aren’t being used for growing herb seedlings. They can easily be turned into simple but effective plant markers that can be cut, labelled and put to good use in less than five minutes flat.

Simply wash out your old tub with warm soapy water and dry. Then cut out as many long strips of plastic as you need – I’d recommend making them at least 1cm wide so that they’re easy to write on but go as creative as you like. The top moulded edge makes an ideal top to the marker as the cut plastic can sometimes be a little sharp. Don’t forget to cut a point into the bottom of the strip for easy insertion into the soil.

One side will have the butter or ice cream branding or packaging colours on but if you turn it over and voila! You’ll have a nice white or cream blank canvas to write on. Use a permanent marker to mark on your plant names then just place in your pot and get growing. You can even reuse your marker when you’ve planted out your seedlings or eaten your herbs by removing the writing with a plastic scouring pad. Super thrifty recycling!