This isn’t really a recipe but it might just save your dinner some evening.
Wine Suggestion: This really works with a zippy, fresh white like the Höpler Gruner Veltliner. Elegant and minerally with a real purity of pear and lemon flavours overlaid with a light white pepperiness and savoury umami finish
Pea, broccoli & pesto tortellini – serves 2
200g tenderstem broccoli, cut into short pieces
100g frozen peas
250g pack spinach & ricotta tortellini
1 lemon, zested and juiced
4 tbsp fresh pesto
Parmesan, to serve
best extra virgin olive oil, to serve
Bring a large pot of salty water to the boil, then add the broccoli and cook for 1 minutes. Add the frozen peas and cook for 2 more minutes, then scoop all the veg out with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Bring the water back to the boil and cook the pasta according to the pack instructions.
Drain the pasta well and return it to the pan. Add the lemon, cooked veg and pesto and gently toss to combine. Serve in warm bowls with Parmesan and a glug of olive oil if you like.
These are great with drinks and much lighter than actual sausage rolls. You can also freeze them uncooked and then cook from frozen for a handy standby.
Wine Suggestion: Bubbles of course … we’re particularly fond of the Domaine de la Taille aux Loups Triple Zero, so named as it uses no chaptilisation, no liquer de tirage and no dosage. As unfettered and refined a Pet Nat you can find anywhere and very special for it.
Little salmon sausage rolls – makes 24
1 x 320g sheet all-butter puff pastry
1 egg beaten
FOR THE FILLING:
200g skinless salmon fillet, finely chopped
115g smoked salmon, finely chopped
125g full-fat cream cheese
25g Parmesan, finely grated
small bunch of dill, finely chopped
6 scallions, finely chopped
juice of ½ lemon
75g dill pickle from a jar, finely chopped
Heat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Preheat a large baking tray.
Put all the filling ingredients into a large bowl, season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Roll the puff pastry sheet out on a lightly floured surface to make a rectangle 30 x 40 cm. Brush with the beaten egg, then divide vertically into 3 even-sized pieces.
Divide the filling into 3 and make a mound down each piece of pastry. Lift and fold the pastry over and seal by pressing down with the back of a fork.
Cut each section into 8 and brush the tops with the beaten egg.
Line the hot baking tray with non-stick baking paper and place the rolls on top. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.
(Original recipe from Mary’s Foolproof Dinners by Mary Berry, BBC Books, 2024.)
A delicious prep-ahead dish that only improves if made in advance. Serve with salad and crusty bread.
Slow-cooked lamb with butterbeans – serves 4
2 tsp coriander seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
2 ½ tsp cumin seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
¼ tsp sea salt flakes
800g lamb neck, cut into bite-size cubes
4 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, quartered
2 bay leaves
1 lemon, finely shave the skin into strips, then cut into wedges to serve
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and lightly smashed
4 anchovies, finely chopped
1 tbsp thyme leaves
1 tbsp rosemary leaves, finely chopped
250g cherry tomatoes
75ml white wine
500ml chicken stock
1 x 700g jar good quality butter beans, drained and rinsed
150g thick Greek-style yoghurt
10g parsley, roughly chopped
Mix the coriander seeds and 2 tsp of the cumin seeds together in a small bowl.
Mix the remaining ½ tsp of cumin seeds with the sea salt flakes and set aside.
Season the lamb with salt and pepper.
Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large shallow ovenproof casserole over a medium-high heat. Add the lamb in batches and cook until nicely browned. You can add another tbsp of oil if needed. Scoop out with a slotted spoon onto a plate and set aside.
Add 2 tbsp of the oil to the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Add the onions, bay leaves, lemon strips and garlic and cook for about 6 minutes, stirring now and then. Add the anchovies, the coriander-cumin mix, thyme, rosemary and half the tomatoes. Cook for a minute, then return the lamb to the pan. Cook for a minute, then add the wine. Let it bubble for 30 seconds, then add the stock and season well with salt and pepper. Increase the heat and bring to a simmer, then cover and transfer to the oven for 1½ hours, until the lamb is very soft and the liquid well-reduced.
Add the butter beans and the rest of the tomatoes. Stir, cover again and return to the oven for another 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
Serve sprinkled with the salt and cumin seed mix and the chopped parsley.
Salad and crusty bread is all you need on the side.
(Original recipe from Ottolenghi Comfort by Yotam Ottolenghi, Helen Goh, Verena Lochmuller and Tara Wigley, Ebury Press, 2024.)
Inspired by a recent trip to Paris by Jules where she had to take shelter in a random place to get out of the rain and they served a delicious moules à la crème. A little bit more effort than Moules Marinière but very much worth it.
Wine Suggestion: Overlooked within Muscadet are certain vineyards and wines that stand out as having something extraordinary to them. Les Clos du Montys Muscadet by Jérémie Huchet is grown on a very special spot with unique soils that give this wine an extra fleshiness and body compared to other Muscadet which enables the wine to stand up to the extra level of richness of the Crème.
Moules à la crème – serves 2or 4 as a starter
1kg mussels (or more if you like), cleaned and debearded (chuck any that won’t close when you give them a sharp tap)
20g butter
3 shallots, thinly sliced
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves and a few sprigs of thyme tied together to make a bouquet garni
300ml white wine
200ml crème fraîche
2 egg yolks
parsley, finely chopped
Warm the buttter in a large saucepan over a gentle heat. Add the shallot and garlic and cook gently for 5 minutes. Add the white wine, bouquet garni and some black pepper. Turn the heat up and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the mussels to the pan, stir and clamp on a tight fitting lid. Cook for 2 minutes, then stir, replace the lid and cook for another 2 minutes. The mussels are ready when they have all opened – chuck any that stay closed.
Remove the pan from the heat and scoop out the mussels with a slotted spoon into a bowl.
Return the pan to the heat and boil the stock for 5 minutes. Put a fine sieve over a clean bowl and strain the stock into the bowl. Rinse the saucepan, then pour in the strained stock. Heat to a gentle simmer.
Whisk the crème fraîche and egg yolks together in a bowl. Whisk in a couple of ladles of the stock and then pour into the simmer stock, stirring continuously.
Keep gently warming the sauce and stirring until the sauce thickens slightly, then return the mussels to the pan and warm through briefly. Add the parsley and serve in warm bowls with lots of crusty bread.
(Original recipe from Lickedspoon with Debora Robertson, Substack, 2 Feb 2025.)
Such a colourful dish and equally delicious. Meera Sodha writes the best vegetarian recipes.
Wine Suggestion: There is definitely a wine match for this, but we had an Asahi beer instead and enjoyed it very much.
Tandoori cauliflower with coriander sauce and quick pickled onions – serves 4
FOR THE PICKLES:
½ red onion, very finely sliced
4 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp salt
FOR THE CORIANDER SAUCE:
100g unsalted cashews
100g fresh coriander, roughly chopped
¾ tsp caster sugar
3 long green chillies, deseeded and chopped
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
FOR THE TANDOORI CAULIFLOWER:
450g Greek yoghurt
2 tbsp lemon juice
5 cloves of garlic, crushed
2cm piece of ginger, grated
¾ tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
2 tsp salt
1½ tsp garam masala
4 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 tsp English mustard
2 large cauliflower, trimmed
naan breads, to serve
To make the quick pickled onions, put the sliced onion into a small bowl, add the lemon juice and salt, then scrunch with your hands and set aside.
To make the sauce, put the cashew nuts into a small bowl and cover with 125ml of boiling water, then set aside for 5 minutes. Put the cashews and their soaking water into a blender. Add the coriander, sugar, chillies, ½ tsp of salt the oil and 2 tbsp of lemon juice, blend until smooth, then taste and season further if needed.
Line two large baking trays with baking paper and oil them lightly. Heat the oven to 220C Fan/240C.
Place the rest of the cauliflower ingredients (except the cauliflower) in a large bowl and whisk together. Slice the cauliflowers into 1½ cm thick steaks – and keep all the smaller pieces too.
Dip the cauliflower steaks into the marinade, then shake off any extra and place on one of the baking trays. Repeat with the rest of the steaks. Put all the smaller pieces of cauliflower into the marinade and mix to coat well, then lift these out onto the other baking tray. Bake the florets for about 20 minutes and the steaks for about 25 or until the cauliflower is tender and blackened here and there.
Spread some of the coriander sauce on each plate, then top with the cauliflower and sprinkle with the pickled onions. Eat with warm naan breads.
(Original recipe from Dinner by Meera Sodha, FIG TREE, 2024.)
Jono & Jules do food & wine 