Cooking spree...

I have had an unusually productive weekend, trying to organise as much as possible for Christmas... our next few weekends are tied up, so I have been feeling a bit stressed. My mental 'to do' list gets longer and longer. The cure is work: and lots of it. So I worked super-hard on Saturday. As well as freezing some cute puffs (below) I managed to make a huge pan of soup for the week and even wrote for a couple of hours and cleaned the house. (I was on my own - husband was called in to the hospital - and I am always more efficient when it's just me!)

Then - after a trip to the farm shop on Sunday - I even got our Christmas cake baked and stored. I used Nigella's Chocolate Fruit Cake recipe, which turned out really beautifully - rich and full of that gorgeous Christmas-baking scent. I am going to try making a delicately vanilla-flavoured marzipan to go on top, and if I find time to order metallic gold lustre... all will be perfect!

It has made me feel a bit too smug and complacent this morning, though. I am trying to kick-start the day but I still have this all-wrapped-up feeling. And I have soooo much left to do, and everything is soooooo not all-wrapped-up. Not in the slightest.

We did have a yummy butternut squash and spinach tart on Saturday, which I might write up, but, I mainly wanted to post this really lovely soup recipe. Will be eating it with seedy brown bread later tonight. It's not very strongly flavoured, but quite simple and warming. Also a great source of protein and see-in-the-dark vitamins!

SPICY CARROT AND RED LENTIL SOUP

400g carrots, washed and chopped
2 onions, chopped
4oz (4 heaped tbsp) red lentils
1tbsp curry paste (from a jar)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1" ginger, chopped, if available
1-2 pints Marigold vegetable stock

Gently soften the onions, ginger and garlic in the curry paste, with a lid on, in a large casserole. After about 5 minutes add the carrots, without stirring, and replace the lid. Leave to sweat for another 10 minutes, then stir well. Finally tip in the lentils (no need to rinse) and stock, season gently, and replace the lid (leaving a gap). Simmer for at least 20 minutes, then put the lid on properly and leave to cool slowly in the pan. When you're ready, blend thoroughly, and serve with a sprinkle of chopped coriander - or toasted almonds - and warm bread.

LENTIL & PORCINI SOUP

This is really a thick, rich mushroom stew - the lentils and onion providing a complex savoury background to woodland porcini. You would want to eat this on an autumn day after conkering - or a bleak August day blackberrying, as I've just done! It was a recipe that, upon reading and even upon sniffing the simmering pan, I doubted would come together so well as it did. Lentils and mushrooms just make sense, in theory, but this didn't really come together until the very last stages.

I should also say that I have adapted this from a recipe in 'Fagioli'; Judith Barrett's version does not feature ordinary mushrooms. I am serving this with farmhouse bread (picture to follow) and spiced plum crumble. Having soup is a great excuse to eat pudding! This serves two at dinner or four as a starter.

1/2 cup lentils verde, washed and checked over
1 onion, finely chopped
2tbsp olive oil
2 large bay leaves
1 large tomato, chopped
1/2 cup porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes
1 cup finely-diced chestnut (ordinary) mushrooms
3 cups hot water

First soak the porcini and set aside. In a soup pan, warm the olive oil and add the onion and bay leaves; stir to soften and sizzle. After a couple of minutes - or when it's ready - add the chopped tomato and mushrooms. Continue to stir until most of the liquid has gone and the vegetables are soft. Drain and finely-chop the porcini and add it to the pan with the green lentils and 4 cups of warm water. Bring to a fierce boil, lid off, and set the timer for 10 minutes. After that, turn the heat down to a gentle putter, and cook for another 35 minutes. You may want to add a little more water to reach the right consistency.

Make sure it's hot, remove the bay leaves and, if you like, garnish with a swirl of cream - it's rich enough to take the dilution - and chopped chives. Or a swirl of truffle oil and chopped rosemary... or whatever you have to hand... if you haven't already started eating!

ROASTED PUMPKIN HUMMOUS

Roasting is my favourite way to treat a pumpkin; the edges turn gold and crusty and the interior loses its watery lacklustre. You get intense flavours and an interesting texture - I can eat this stuff cold, on toast, with goats' cheese, or... ooh, any which way.

Okay, so this is one to try if you're a hummous addict like me. I make this chickpea dip in some guise every week, sometimes adding chopped roast pepper, lime or coriander, but always stuffing it into pittas with mixed leaves and chutney or pesto for my favourite lunch in the world. This is a bit of a weird way to perk up hummous but it worked beautifully, and makes a cracking sandwich with some rocket and pumpkin seeds on top.

8 pieces roast pumpkin (1" cubes)

75g dried chickpeas, cooked (soak overnight, then boil for 1.5-2hours)

2 cloves garlic

1tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)

Juice of half a lemon

2tsp salt

About 150ml warm water

The pumpkin wants to be cubed and roasted in olive oil for about 40 minutes (put it in the oven while you're cooking something else). Put the pumpkin, garlic, lemon juice and a little water into a blender or processor and whiz until smooth. Now add the salt, tahini, and about half the chickpeas; now whiz until grainy, adding water to help the process. Finally add the remaining chickpeas and give the briefest of whizzes, to maintain some nice chunks. Add water to get the right consistency (if the peas or pumpkin were warm, then the hummous will firm up a bit more as it cools).

Sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds and cayenne pepper to serve.

Hitipitiiiiiii
Greek red pepper and feta dip

This isn't a recipe of mine - it's from the brilliant 'Vegetables' by Sophie Grigson - but we ate it for lunch yesterday - with fresh focaccia and pumpkin hummous (recipe and piccy to follow) - and it was just sublime. We were actually fighting for the last scoop of the dish.

In fact, this is the first time I have cooked with feta cheese, and I plan to find a lot of new ways with it! If you get a red pepper in your veg box, if you like cheese (even a little bit), if you have a penchant for salt, if you love bread - do try this dip. If no bread in the house, cut up carrots or cucumber - whatever you need to do...

1 large red pepper
100g feta cheese, crumbled
2tbsp olive oil
0.5tsp paprika
Juice of 0.3 lemon

First, you need to roast the pepper - take off the top and the seeds, and roast in a moderate oven for about 30 minutes or until starting to blacken. Sophie says to remove the skins, but I didn't as I like the added smokiness. Tip into a blender and add the cheese, oil, lemon juice and paprika. Whiz to a grainy puree and spoon into a serving dish, scatter with extra paprika, and serve. Heaven in a bowl!

LEEK AND POTATO PASTIES WITH SAGE
This is rather a prized recipe of mine, and I post it with some reluctance, having spent a lot of time perfecting it. Delicious hot with beans and equally good cold, with ketchup. It's a good use of the leeks that arrive all autumn, and I always keep a pot of sage in the garden.

Makes 6
1 leek, finely chopped
2 medium potatoes, peeled, chopped and boiled
1 handful spinach, shredded (optional)
0.5 tub of creme fraiche
2tbsp chopped sage
1tsp Marigold bouillon
2tsp wholegrain mustard

Pastry - either Delia's wholewheat shortcrust, or ready-made shortcrust or puff.

Put the leek and spinach in a saucepan with a drizzle of olive oil, and leave to saute for a few minutes. Put the potatoes in a bowl with the creme fraiche, sage, bouillon and mustard, and mash together. Season generously.

Add the spinach and leeks to the potato mixture and set aside.

Roll out the pastry quite thinly and cut into rounds (using a saucer). Place on a baking sheet. Next, brush the edges with beaten egg, and put a tbsp of filling on each circle. Bring the sides together to form a half-moon pasty, and pinch the edges together firmly.

When they're ready, brush with the egg, and put into a preheated oven at about 180 degrees C for 20 minutes, until golden.

COURGETTE, LEMON AND TARRAGON TART

Sunny herbs and lemon make courgettes ever-so-much-more interesting. Serve with potato salad and green things, plus a bottle of chilled rose - perfect!

2 courgettes, finely sliced
0.5tbsp olive oil
1tsp tarragon, chopped
Squeeze lemon juice (about 0.25 of a lemon)
Salt and pepper
Puff pastry - half a packet (won't catch me trying to make this)!

Slice the courgettes very thinly and leave in iced water, then drain, dry and soften gently in a large frying pan. Remove and toss with the olive oil, lemon and tarragon, then leave to infuse. Roll out the pastry and put onto a baking sheet. Score around the edge, leaving a 2cm gap. Now arrange the courgettes prettily over the pastry. Sprinkle the seasoning and remaining marinade over and add extra tarragon if you like it.

Bake for about 20 minutes until the pastry is golden and the courgettes are lightly tinged. Serve with new potatoes and rocket salad.

RIVER CAFE BEANS ON TOAST
(for one)

One good (or bad) thing about working from home is having the time and space to whip up something interesting for lunch.

The River cafe recipes are always more amazing than they sound on paper. Beans, spinach and white wine - what's great about that? Try it and see.

You will need some prepared tomato sauce: I sometimes have a batch in the freezer (handy for pizzas), made by stewing tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and olive oil for up to an hour until dark red and mushy. The River Cafe's tomato sauce is much the same - made with tinned tomatoes, plus chopped onion - but in the absence of either, a jar of Italian tomato sauce will do fine. Make sure it's a concentrated one, with lots of tomato.

RIVER CAFE BEANS
Cooked chickpeas or butter beans: about half a tin's worth (about 40g dry)
Swiss chard or spinach: 100g
Onion: a quarter
Carrot: a small one
Olive oil: 1tbsp
Tomato sauce: 0.5tbsp
White wine: 2floz
Pinch salt, pinch pepper, pinch dried chilli flakes (crushed together)

Warm the oil and soften the onion and carrot until both are tender (not brown). Add the seasonings and the white wine and reduce until almost all gone. Add the tomato sauce, the beans and the spinach or chard, cover, and simmer gently until the spinach/chard is cooked.

Cool slightly before serving (this is also scrumptious scooped cold from the fridge!) on toast, or with focaccia.

OVEN-DRIED TOMATOES AND PEPPERS

Perfect for summer! Serve these gorgeous little things outside, with focaccia, hummous and a bottle of wine. Or eat in pitta with hummous, like I am right now. Toss through salad. Or just serve on a plate as part of antipasto.

Organic tomatoes and peppers, in season, produce the most astounding flavour. Better than shop-bought any day!

1 small punnet cherry tomatoes (from organic box)
1 large Romiro pepper (the pointy sweet one - from box)
2tbsp olive oil
1tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to about 100deg C (200deg F). Halve the tomatoes and the pepper (and de-seed the pepper). Drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt, pepper and vinegar. Put in the bottom of the oven (poss when something else is cooking) for about an hour, then leave to dry out in the oven.

The tomatoes should only be semi-dry and the pepper should be soft. Chop the pepper into chunks, put the whole lot (scraping the tin's juices) into a small pot, and cover with olive oil. Refrigerate until needed.

ASPARAGUS QUICHE

When the asparagus is becoming woody (say, because someone you know bought it and didn't use it early enough!) and you can only use the tips, try this - a different way to combine the classic flavours of asparagus, lemon and cream.

Pastry:
4oz flour
1oz Trex
1oz butter
1oz parmesan
2tbsp cold water

Pastry: weigh out ingredients and combine with a knife, chopping the fat into small pieces. When relatively crumbly, start to add the water and pull together with a metal spoon. Finally, push the last remaining dry bits together, form into a rough ball and wrap in cellophane. Refrigerate for at least 30 mins.

Contents:
Asparagus tips (about 12)
Splash of stock
2 cloves garlic, crushed
6floz double cream
4 floz milk
Squeeze lemon juice
Salt and pepper
1 egg and 1 egg yolk

Steam/boil the asparagus tips lightly in a pan containing a splash of stock: bring to boil, cover and allow asparagus to absorb stock. Roll out the pastry in a quiche tin. Arrange the asparagus tips in a starburst pattern.

Blend the milk, cream, lemon juice, garlic and seasoning in a jug. Add the egg and egg yolk and beat well. Pour gently over the asparagus, and put into the oven for about 20 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with grated cheese, then return for another 10 minutes.