Entertaining at Home - Rachel Allen

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Peel and core the cooking apples and cut into 2cm (¾in) chunks. Place the pieces and blackberries in a layer on top of the bread. Then arrange the remaining bread, again butter side down and overlapping if necessary, to cover the fruit.

      3 Pour the cream and milk into a saucepan, bring to just under the boil and remove from the heat.

      4 While the milk and cream are heating up, whisk together the eggs and caster sugar in a large bowl. Add the hot cream and milk and whisk to combine, then pour this custard over the bread and leave to soak for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the granulated sugar over the top and the cinnamon (if using).

      5 Put the dish in a bain-marie (a roasting tin filled with just enough boiled water to come halfway up the side of the dish). Place in the oven and bake for about 1 hour until the top is golden and the centre set.

      RACHEL’S TIP

      This can be prepared in advance and left in the fridge overnight, uncooked. If making it this way, don’t heat up the milk and cream but add them cold to the whisked eggs and sugar.

      MENU IDEAS FOR BRUNCHES AND LUNCHES

      Citrus honeyed fruit

      Skirt steak with spicy potatoes

      Lazy weekend Bloody Mary

      *

      Spinach soup with rosemary oil

      Venison sausage with celeriac purée

      Apple snow with shortbread biscuits

      *

      Clams marinara

      Penne with asparagus and Parma ham

      Almond meringue with apricot purée

      *

      Salade Niçoise

      Oven-baked courgette tortilla

      Polenta, orange and almond cake

       CASUAL MEALS

      Sometimes you just want to get together with your friends for no reason in particular. It might be a spontaneous thought, and next thing you know you’re on the phone to all your friends asking if they can come over. Poker night? Movie night? Just because it’s Friday? There are so many reasons just to get a big pot of something on the go. Here you’ll find great ideas for simple but delicious meals that you can serve at any time and to just about anyone — including many which kids love. You won’t find starters here because this is ‘tuck-in’ food. Instead you’ll find plenty of hearty and comforting mains and desserts!

MAIN COURSES

       Chilli sin carne

       This vegetarian chilli is so bursting with flavours that even the most ardent meat lover will be impressed. Make sure to serve it with all the traditional chilli accompaniments, rice, guacamole and tomato salsa, sour cream and tortilla chips.

      SERVES 8–10 VEGETARIAN

      4 tbsp olive oil

      1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

      8 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

      4 carrots, peeled and finely chopped

      4 sticks of celery, trimmed and finely chopped

      Salt and ground black pepper

      2 large red chillies, deseeded and finely diced

      2 tsp coriander seeds, ground

      2 tsp cumin seeds, ground

      200g (7oz) soya mince or TVP (textured vegetable protein), covered in cold water and soaked for 45 minutes

      2 × 400g tins of red kidney or pinto beans, drained and rinsed, or 125g (4½oz) dried beans, soaked and cooked (see right)

      2 × 400g tins of chopped tomatoes

      200ml (7fl oz) vegetable stock

      150ml (5fl oz) red wine

      3 tbsp chopped coriander, to serve

      Large casserole dish or saucepan

      1 Pour the olive oil into a large saucepan or casserole dish on a medium-low heat and add the onion, garlic, carrots and celery. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are softened and golden. Stir in the chillies and spices and cook for a further 5 minutes.

      2 Add all the remaining ingredients and taste for seasoning. Increase the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until thickened. Scatter with the chopped coriander and serve.

      RACHEL’S TIP

      To cook dried beans and pulses, soak them overnight in plenty of cold water, enough to cover the beans by a few centimetres, then drain and cook in fresh water until soft. It is best not to add salt to the cooking water as this toughens the beans.

      Cooking time varies according to the type of bean and also how old they are:

      Chickpeas = 45–75 minutes

      Haricot or cannellini beans = 40–60 minutes

      Pinto or kidney beans = 45–60 minutes

      Note: 1 × 400g tin = 250g (9oz) drained, cooked beans or 125g (4½oz) dried beans.

       Sweet potato and chickpea tagine

       I absolutely adore this vegetarian tagine recipe; it has a spicy, sweet complexity that might be bullied out of the way were any meat added. Chickpeas are better friends with the canning process than any other pulse, though they are also delicious cooked from dry (see tip opposite).

      SERVES 4–6 VEGETARIAN

      2 sweet potatoes (about 650g/1lb 7oz)

      5 tbsp olive oil

      Salt and ground black pepper

      1 red pepper

      1 yellow pepper

      3 tbsp olive oil

      1 large (300g/11oz) onion, peeled and thinly sliced

      3 cloves of garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

      3 tsp peeled and finely chopped root ginger

      2 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground

      2 tsp coriander seeds, toasted and ground

      2 tsp paprika

      1 × 400g tin of chickpeas, drained, or 125g (4½oz) dried chickpeas, soaked and cooked (see tip opposite)

      100ml (3½fl oz) vegetable stock

      1 tbsp honey

      3 tbsp chopped coriander

      75g (3oz) blanched almonds, toasted and roughly chopped

      1 Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F), Gas mark 8.

      2 Peel and cut the sweet potatoes

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