Warm green and feta salad

The wonderful thing about a warm salad is that it is so quick and easy to make, and after a long day at work, when you really just want to get a takeaway and dive into bed, it is just the thing. There’s no need for accurate measuring, just measure out an amount that you think is suitable for how hungry you are. The amounts below are a suggestion only; really you can use whatever lurks in your fridge.

Serves 1

5 or 6 small potatoes (new baby potatoes are brilliant for this)

3 or 4 asparagus spears

6 or 7 sugar snap peas

6 or 7 mange touts

4 large cherry tomatoes

50g feta cheese

4 olives

2 half artichoke hearts (ready cooked, jarred and stored in oil, you can get them from most supermarkets)

1 egg

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

herbal salt

Wash the potatoes, and boil them in a little water. When they are nearly done, throw in the asparagus, mange touts and sugar snap peas, and simmer until these are tender.

Use a slotted spoon to fish out the vegetables. Keep the water boiling, and crack open the egg into it; to poach it. The poaching time depends on how well cooked you like your egg. You can use the flat side of a spoon to gently press the yolk to check the softness and thus the readiness.

While the egg poaches, arrange the vegetables on a plate. Slice the artichokes, feta cheese, tomatoes and olives, and sprinkle them over the vegetables.

Drizzle a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the food.

Use the slotted spoon to fish out the egg, and place it on top of the food.

Sprinkle a little bit of herbal salt over the top, serve and enjoy. 

Golden Root Stew

Fancying something sweet yet savoury for my dinner, I rummaged round my fridge to see what I could find. On offer were, amongst other things, several different types of roots. So it was an easy decision to make a warming stew. Not only is a stew easy to make, but with the right ingredients it can be a very cheap and nutritious meal. Roots generally contain a surprising amount of delicious vitamins, so they’re an easy way to fill up on good stuff after a long winter. Adding some lentils adds protein, which not only is good for you, but also fills you up and makes you feel fuller for longer (really useful for those of us trying to shed some pounds).

Serves 2

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion

3 small parsnips

¼ sweede

½ bitternut squash

500ml water

1 teaspoon herbal salt

1 teaspoon herbes de Provence

1 handful of red split lentils

1 tablespoon tomato puree

Finely chop the onion while the oil warms up in a saucepan. Sweat the onions, and leave them to get soft for about 5 minutes. I the meantime; peel and chop the parsnips, sweede and butternut squash. Add these to the onions, and stir for a few minutes until all the vegetables are warm.

Boil the water in a kettle (or separate pan) and add to the vegetables. Boiling the water before adding it prevents the vegetables from cooling down, and so reduces the cooking time.

Add the herbs (use any type of dried mixed herbs if you haven’t got any Herbes de Provence), the salt and the lentils, and slowly boil for about 30 minutes. Add the tomato puree, and leave to simmer for another 5 minutes. Test to see if the vegetables are soft. If they’re not, then leave to simmer until they are.

Serve in a bowl, tastes great with a toasted slice of bread.