You could make the puff pastry if you wish (the recipe is in the book), but we cheated and used a pack instead. It does take time to make this recipe, but you could make the filling in advance if you wish and it’s so worth it! We made the full amount but then put half of the filling in the pie and the other half in the freezer – things like this always taste good after freezing.

Ingredients (serves 4-6, fills a dish roughly 1.5 litres in capacity)

For the filling

10g dried porcini mushrooms

200ml very hot water

100g lardons (diced streaky bacon)

800g lean boneless stewing steak (chuck or skirt) cut into 5cm cubes

About 2 tbsp olive oil (if needed)

3 shallots, peeled and quartered

1 tbsp plain flour

500ml red wine

2 garlic cloves, crushed or finely sliced (we don’t have a crusher, so we sliced it!)

1 bay leaf

Salt and black pepper

1 375g pack all-butter puff pastry (thawed if frozen)

Beaten egg, to glaze

Method

1. Heat your oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the dried mushrooms into a heatproof bowl, pour over the very hot water and leave to soak and rehydrate until needed.

2. Put the lardons into a cold flameproof casserole dish and set over medium heat (we have a stoneware one that only goes in the oven, so we used a large non-stick pan for this bit). Fry, stirring frequently until the fat melts and the lardons are golden. Remove from the dish/pan with a slotted spoon to leave the fat in the pan, and set aside for later.

3. Add the beef to the dish/pan a few pieces at a time, and fry until brown on all sides (add a little oil here if needed). As each batch of beef is browned, transfer to a large plate with a slotted spoon. Then add the shallots and brown quickly, before removing and adding to the beef.

4. Turn the heat down to low and add the flour to the dish/pan. Stir until slightly coloured, stir in the wine and the mushrooms with their soaking liquid. Return the beef and shallots to the dish/pan along with the garlic, bay leaf, and a little salt and pepper (go easy on the salt – the lardons are salty!).

5. Bring everything to the boil. If using a casserole dish, cover and put in the oven. If not, transfer from your pan into an oven-proof dish, then cover and place in the oven. Cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours until the meat is very tender.

6. Remove the bay leaf from the dish. Stir in the lardons and then adjust the seasoning as required. If cooking the pie in the same dish, place your pie raiser (or egg cup) in the middle, and leave the whole thing to cool. (I must admit that we didn’t leave it to cool, mainly because we started cooking it later than we anticipated! So we just put the mixture in a new dish – see next step).

7. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface, and trim the lid to the correct size of your dish. Then cut some 1cm strips of pastry and use a little water to dampen the rim of the dish, before pressing the pastry strips so they completely cover the edge. Join the ends and trim as necessary.

8. If you’re using a separate dish, fill it with filling and then place your pie raiser in the centre. Then (for either method!) dampen the pastry strip with water, cut a hole in the lid where the raiser will be and then place the lid on top. Press the edges carefully to seal it, and decorate it if you wish.

9. The recipe says to chill the pie at this point as the oven heats up to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. We ignored that bit too, and it was fine! Brush the pie with beaten egg to glaze, and then bake for 15 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 for a further 20-25 minutes until the pastry is puffed up and golden brown. Serve with some vegetables and mash or roasties. Yum!

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Ingredients

Serves 8

900g of tomatoes, halved
3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 sprigs thyme
75g fresh breadcrumbs
75g pine nuts
2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped chives
100g feta

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 120 degrees Centigrade. Lay the tomatoes cut-side up on a roasting tray. Mix the garlic with 3 tbsp of the oil, brush over the tomatoes and season. Roughly tear the thyme over the top then transfer to the oven for 2 hours until very soft and slightly wrinkled.

2. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in a large, non-stick frying pan and add the breadcrumbs. Cook for 1-2 minutes until golden then add the pine nuts. Cook for a further 1-2 minutes then remove from the heat and stir through the herbs.

3. Spread two-thirds of the breadcrumb mixture over a serving plate and top with the tomatoes. Sprinkle over the remaining mixture then crumble over the feta.

We served this with some chicken, which was delicious! Yum

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It’s a Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK this weekend – hooray! No Sunday night feeling this weekend  If you’re planning to cook something a little special, then look no further – we made this amazing lamb dish at Easter and it is my new favourite. It serves 4 people but we served 2 people with this meal and then used the other 2 portions for a fab leftover recipe – look out for that soon…

The recipe for the roast shoulder of lamb with herbs and honey is by Valentine Warner and comes from the BBC website. The recipe for roast red onions with basil comes from Nigella Lawson’s ‘Nigellissima’. I’ve written the method here combining the two recipes, so that you can just follow one thing if you want to make them both!

Ingredients

For the lamb:

1.4kg/3lb shoulder of lamb, trimmed
A handful of dried camomile (or the contents of 4 camomile teabags)
½ bunch fresh thyme, leaves only
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves only
12 fresh sage leaves, roughly chopped
1 tbsp dried oregano
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, juice only
1 tbsp good Greek or wild flower clear honey
2 tbsp olive oil
125ml/4fl oz water

For the roast red onions with basil (for 4 people)

500-600g small red onions, quartered then peeled
70ml olive oil
1 tsp fennel seeds (we actually used cumin seeds because Tom hates fennel!)
1 tsp sea salt flakes (or to taste)
1 tsp best-quality balsamic vinegar (or to taste)
Large bunch fresh basil (approx. 50g)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.

2. With the tip of a sharp knife, make shallow scores through the outer layer of skin and fat of the lamb shoulder, but not into the meat, cross-hatching the entire surface.

3. Mix the dried camomile, the thyme, rosemary, sage and oregano together in a bowl. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

4. Press a handful of the herb mixture into the skin of the lamb, massaging it in well all over the flesh of the lamb. Sprinkle some of the herb mixture across the bottom of a casserole dish with a lid, and then place the lamb into the dish.

5. Squeeze the lemon juice over the top, before sprinkling with any remaining herb mix. Then drizzle the honey over the top of the lamb and pour over a little olive oil.

6. Pour the water into the casserole, then put the lid on. Transfer to the oven and cook for 2½ hours. Check the dish after one hour – the lamb should be taking on a little colour. If the water has evaporated, add a little more to maintain the dish’s moisture.

7. When you check the lamb after 1 hour, tip the quartered onions into a roasting tin. Pour the olive oil over them and then scatter over the fennel (or cumin) seeds, and then shake the tin to ensure that all the onions are coated. Put the tin in the oven and cook for 1 hour.

8. After 1 hour, remove the onions from the oven and sprinkle with the salt and drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the top. Leave (for up to 1 hour) to come to room temperature, or keep warm if you prefer.

9. After the 2½ hours cooking the lamb meat should pull away easily from the bone. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 4-5 minutes. We made some gravy with the meat juices by adding a few gravy granules.

10. To serve, using a knife and fork, pull large pieces of meat away from the bone and arrange on plates. Add the basil leaves to the onions and mix everything together before plating up. We also had Yorkshire puddings (not homemade – sorry!) and the gravy too. We’ll be making this again very soon!

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This gorgeous recipe takes quite a long time to cook, but it is honestly worth every minute! It comes from the March 2014 issue of BBC Good Food magazine, and the quantities here will serve 6 people (you could always freeze the rest for another day). Why not make it this weekend?

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
4 duck legs
2 onions, finely chopped
2 fat garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp plain flour
250ml/9fl oz red wine
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
1 chicken stock cube, made up to 250ml/9fl oz stock
3 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked and chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp milk
600g/1lb 5oz paccheri or pappardelle
Parmesan, grated to serve

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the duck legs and brown on all sides for about 10 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside, before adding the onions to the pan and cooking for 5 mins until softened.

2. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then stir in the cinnamon and flour and cook for a further minute. Return the duck to the pan, and add the wine, tomatoes, stock, herbs, sugar and seasoning.

3. Bring to a simmer and then lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for 2 hours. Stir every now and again.

4. Carefully lift the duck legs out of the sauce and place on a plate (trying not to lose any meat as they are very tender). Pull off and discard the fat, then shred the meat with two forks and discard the bones. Add the meat back to the pan, along with the milk, and simmer (uncovered) for 10-15 minutes while you cook the pasta.

5. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, adding a little oil to the water so it doesn’t stick. Drain when cooked, reserving a little of the water, and add the pasta to the ragu. Stir to coat all of the pasta and cook for another minute, adding a splash of the water if it looks a little dry.

6. Enjoy with a dash of grated parmesan and the left over red wine

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If you’re planning meals for the weekend, then this recipe is definitely a winner for Sunday! It’s perfect on a cold Autumn day – proper comfort food. The recipe originally comes from James Martin’s ‘Slow Cooking‘, which is a great book packed with recipes that you can take your time over (you don’t need a slow cooker either). This recipe takes about 3 hours altogether and serves 4, so we had half on Sunday and had leftovers on Monday night which was brilliant! I have to admit that I did leave out the celery and parsley as they’re two of my least favourite ingredients, but I have included them in the recipe below. I’ve used my own recipe for herby dumplings here, but you could make plain ones if you prefer.

Ingredients

500g stewing beef
50g plain flour
4 tbsp olive oil (you can use beef dripping if you prefer)
100g celery
100g carrot
1 large leek
3 garlic cloves
150g whole baby onions (I used shallots)
150ml red wine
500ml beef stock
3 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the dumplings

100g self-raising flour
50g suet (beef or vegetable is fine)
2 heaped tsp mixed herbs
Pinch of salt
Enough cold water to make a pliable dough

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas mark 2. Toss the beef and flour together in a bowl with salt and pepper. Cut the celery, carrot and leek into 2.5cm pieces. Roughly chop the garlic and peel the onions.

2. Heat a large flameproof casserole dish until hot, add a little oil and enough of the beef to just cover the bottom. Fry until brown on each side, then remove and set aside. Repeat with more oil and beef in batches.

3. When all of the beef has been cooked, add the vegetables to the pan and cook gently for 5-10 minutes until softened and lightly coloured.

4. Return the beef to the pan and add the red wine. Simmer until reduced by half, then add the beef stock and bring back to a simmer. Cover with a lid and place in the oven for 2 hours.

5. To make the dumplings (about 15 minutes before the 2 hours is up), mix the dry ingredients together and then slowly add a little cold water at a time, mixing thoroughly until a slightly sticky dough has formed. Flour your hands and then roll the mixture into 6-8 balls.

6. After the 2 hours is up, remove the stew from the oven and carefully place the dumplings on top. Return to the oven for 20 minutes (mine actually took 35!) uncovered, until the dumplings are cooked through and have turned light brown. Roughly chop the parsley and sprinkle over the stew to serve.

Enjoy!

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