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bay leaf

      2 garlic cloves

      Small handful of fresh sage leaves

      1 tbsp plain flour

      1 litre good-quality beef stock

      Small handful of fresh flat leaf parsley

       Croutons

      1 demi-baguette

      75g Gruyère cheese (or Parmesan works well too)

      Big pinch of English mustard powder

      Salt and freshly ground black pepper

      + Place a large pan on a medium heat with a drizzle of oil and the butter. Peel and very finely slice the onions. This is a bit of a task, but using a food processor fitted with the slicing blade attachment should make things a bit easier.

      + Add the onions to the pan with the bay leaf, pop the lid on and leave to cook for about 25 minutes until soft. Give them a good stir every now and then so they don’t burn. If they look like they are catching at any time, just add a little more oil.

      + Meanwhile, peel and finely chop the garlic, then finely chop the sage leaves and set both aside.

      + Preheat the oven to 150°C, (fan 130°C), 300°F, Gas Mark 2. Trim the baguette ends, cut it into eight thick slices (about 2.5cm thick) and lay them out on a baking sheet.

      + Next, roughly grate the Gruyère cheese (or Parmesan), sprinkle the mustard powder over, if using, and toss it all about to mix together. Then spread it evenly over the tops of the bread slices.

      + Check on the onions, giving them a good stir every now and then.

      + Once the onions are a few minutes off being ready, place the croutons into the oven to bake for about 4–5 minutes. You could also grill them for about 5 minutes if you prefer.

      + Once the onions are lovely and soft, add the garlic, sage and flour, giving them a good stir in. Pour in the beef stock, put the lid back on, increase the heat and bring the soup up to the boil. Then leave it to bubble away for 2–3 minutes before removing it from the heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

      + Remove the crisp, melted-cheese-topped croutons from the oven. Pick and roughly chop the parsley leaves.

      + Divide the soup between four wide serving bowls and serve with the croutons either sitting right on top of the soup or to the side of the bowl. Scatter the parsley over and serve.

      

       Salads

       ‘I am easily satisfied with the very best.’

      Winston Churchill

      I remember when a salad used to be a not-so-pretty-looking piece of iceberg lettuce, a few slivers of cucumber with a plump, round tomato quartered and scattered on top. Oh, how things have moved on! There is an incredible array of salad leaves, veg and even fruit now available since those heady days of big Afros and flared trousers, and in order to counterbalance my penchant for all things sweet, I tend to whip up a fast and fresh salad several times a week.

      Salads

       Mango, feta & avocado salad with fresh lime juice

       Wild Waldorf salad with toasted walnuts & Granny Smiths

       Courgette ‘pappardelle’ with asparagus, avocado salad & rocket

       Thai beef salad with roasted peanuts & chilli dressing

       Prawn Caesar salad with olive oil croutons & pomegranates

       Mackerel salad with horseradish crème fraîche

       Nifty Niçoise salad with hot-smoked trout & sundried tomatoes

       The Union cobb

      

       Mango, feta & avocado salad with fresh lime juice

      Mangoes are not the cheapest things to buy, and nor is their comrade the avocado pear. But once in a while, a tasty tropical treat for me is a necessity. In one of the many places that I love, Sri Lanka, the avocados grow in abundance. Early in the morning, I would wake up, grab my friend and stand ready under the avo tree. After a gentle shake, dozens of these emerald green fruits would come tumbling to the ground. Sitting in my kitchen back in London with the holiday blues, I devised this recipe as a way of transporting me back to the exotic, calming world that is Sri Lanka’s southern coast. I found the pea shoots in the supermarket near me – they are little baby leaves, very cute and tasty. If you can’t find them, wild rocket is fine to use instead.

      Time from start to finish: 20 minutes

      Serves: 4

      Equipment: Large serving platter

      2 × 250g packs of ready-prepared mango cubes (or 2 large ripe mangoes)

      200g feta cheese

      4 radishes

      1 ripe avocado

      Small handful of fresh basil

      1 bag of pea shoots (or wild rocket)

      A drizzle of a really good extra virgin olive oil

      1 lime

      Salt and freshly ground black pepper

      + Tip the mango onto a large serving platter. (I do love some prepared mango, at times!) Or if using whole mangoes, slice the two cheeks off either side of the stone. Cut them in half and then run the knife through the flesh close to the skin to peel it, as you would with a melon. Dice the flesh into bite-sized pieces and scatter onto the big serving platter. I like to go back and slice off the remaining skinny bits of mango and do the same thing with them so as not to waste any.

      + Crumble the feta cheese over. Top and tail the radishes and then slice them as fine as you can get them before scattering them over also.

      + Cut the avocado in half and discard the stone. I put the blade of a knife into it and then give it a twist – the stone usually comes out beautifully. Then carefully peel away the skin and slice or dice up the avocado and add to the salad.

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