I love a dish with a bit of a kick to it, and this buffalo pasta has just that. If you’re not too sure on spice level, you can always leave out the jalapeños, and just add a little hot sauce, then add more at the end to taste. There’s some heat to the Cajun spice too. Yes, spice on three levels. Perfect! A mild Cajun spice will work as well though....

In fact, I probably would make this several times this week, except Chris and I have just got back from a blissful weekend break in Barcelona, and I NEED to recreate some of the gorgeous food we stuffed ourselves silly with whilst we were there. Chris’ mum took the kids away for a few days to Wales, so we pretty much had the plane tickets booked before she finished her sentence of ‘we’d like to take the children away…....

Meet the second in my series of hot smoothies for October - The cranberry and apple hot smoothie. I may have been slipping slightly into Christmas mode already with the cinnamon and cranberry flavours, but they just work so well! I’m going to be moving onto some creamier smoothies next week, so if you prefer to stay with fresh and fruity, then this one or my hot green smoothie is definitely what you’re looking for....

I kind of get the whole ‘au jus’ thing - a little trickle of meaty, flavourful sauce on your slices of meat, whilst leaving the potatoes and vegetables bare, so they look vibrant and colourful. But I don’t want a little drizzle of au jus. I want gravy. And loads of it! I want it all over my roast beef, roast potatoes and veggies. I want an extra puddle of it on my plate for dipping purposes, and I want my yorkshire pudding filled with it, so you get the excitement of cutting your yorkshire pudding open like a gravy river whooshing from a crispy golden dam....

Are you a ‘I’ll just have a spoonful’ apple sauce eater? or a ‘gimme the bowl, I’ll eat it by itself’ apple sauce eater? Please tell me it’s the second option. We love apple sauce at home. I wouldn’t dare make roast pork without it. I admit to testing 3 or 4 spoonfuls whilst the rest of the dinner is cooking, and I basically have to serve it in a soup bowl....

In fact everyone in my house seems to eat it out of the jar. Those lovely clumpy bits always go first - pretty much within the first couple of hours of me making a batch. If I actually manage to find a clumpy bit by the time I’m serving it up for breakfast, I guard it with my life! MY CLUMPY BIT. I love serving this with Greek yogurt, a few fresh berries and sometimes with a drizzle of honey....

A cute little pastry treat to feed your loved one on Valentines day! I’ve got to say (and I’ve probably mentioned it before on the blog), that Chris and I don’t really do anything for Valentines day. Is that bad? Married nearly 10 years and sounds like we’ve lost the romance, but it’s not true!! We also don’t buy each other Easter gifts or anniversary gifts, and I think we’re on the verge of not bothering with Christmas cards for each other too (we just about managed to get each other a card on Christmas eve this last Christmas)....

Even though this is a cold Asian salad, the miso dressing with red pepper flakes and ginger make it feel comforting and satisfying. This is one of the recipes from my new Seriously Good Salads book - which has got salads to see you right through the year. Check out some of the other Winter recipes it includes further down in this post. So how do we make this Asian Noodle Salad?...

Jump to:📋 What do we need? 🔪 How to make this beef stir fry 🍽️ What to serve it with 📺 Watch how to make it 🍲 More fantastic stir fry recipes Black Pepper Beef 💬 Reviews Pepper doesn’t just have to be used as a simple seasoning. Freshly ground black pepper has a beautiful warming flavour to add heat to a dish without the need for chillies. Two teaspoons of black pepper does sound a lot in a dish for four people, but it mellows in the sauce, so you get a gently heat, rather than the harsher heat of using chillies....

These little crispy, spicy bites of chicken are so good and amazingly crispy.Forget about serving them as a starter. In fact, forget about the rest of dinner. I’ll just have a plateful of these dipped in sweet chilli sauce. I love how the gram flour gives them a mild, nutty taste. Plus it also happens to be gluten-free, so it’s a great option if you have gluten-free guests or family members....

Jump to:📋 What do we need? 🔪 How to make this crispy prawns recipe 🍽️ What to serve it with 🍲 Love Prawns? Try one of these recipes Coconut Shrimp Recipe 💬 Reviews Would you call these coconut prawns or coconut shrimp?Usually in the UK, shrimp are known as the tiny little fingernail-sized brown shrimp. Whereas the bigger sized crustaceans are known as prawns.However for this particular recipe, UK folk (at least the ones I’ve asked, and after doing to online research) seem to refer to it as coconut shrimp....

I think I’m going to have to put a new category on the blog for Asian recipes. They seem to be taking over! I’ve always had a love for Asian food, and it doesn’t half save a bit of cash when you’ve got a couple of recipes in your back pocket to whip up instead of an expensive takeaway. This recipe was inspired by Chris’s all time favourite - Crispy Chilli Beef with Broccoli....

Salmon has become a bit of a staple at our house. In my unrelenting effort to reduce how much meat we eat, I’m trying to get us to one veggie day a week and one fish day. Salmon tends to be the fish of choice because I know everyone will eat it. So when I see sides of salmon on offer at the supermarket, I always grab one. Sometime I’ll cut it up into portions, but this time I decided to cook the whole thing....

Totally moreish, these nachos make the best vegetarian party dish! I have a lot of room in my heart for the traditional chilli-topped nachos (Chris makes an amazing version with slow cooked beef and pork). However, sometimes, I just want a plateful without having to wait for a few hours whilst the chilli-con-carne cooks. Usually, I’d serve up some nachos with salsa and guacamole for a quick-fix, but it’s not quite the same as having a star topping with lots of salty-garlicky flavour....

A word of warning though, it’s got raw egg white in, which means you can’t store and serve later. Also of course, raw egg is not recommended for little ones or those who are pregnant. If you wanted a great alternative, try the frosting from my ‘Frosted Orange Buns’ recipe. You just need to replace the orange (juice and zest) with lime instead. I’m a bit coconut mad at the moment, can’t get enough of the stuff....

My experimentation to get a gooey caramel filling that: a) Didn’t just melt into the brownie mix, leaving the bottom of the brownie lovely and caramelized, but the gooey centre indistinguishable from the rest of the brownie and b) Produced a lovely pocket of caramel that stretched and oozed when you bit in - regardless of whether the brownie was warm or had cooled completely, meant that I had to knock up a few of these sinful little Gooey Chocolate Caramel Brownies treats....

A creamy dip with a hint of garlic and dill and a refreshing addition of shredded cucumber makes Tzatziki one of my favourite dips. A bowlful of tzatziki with some torn up pita bread and a few veggies = a creamy, delicious, Summer lunch! ✔ Drizzle it on barbecued chicken, pork or lamb ✔ Wrap it up in a flatbread/pitta/tortilla with veggies and/or meat ✔ Add a big spoonful to a chicken nourish bowl or a fish taco bowl ✔ Serve with a big pack of crisps or crackers I’ve gone with all of these serving suggestions, but my favourite way to serve it is with Crispy Pork Gyros (a much-loved recipe to enjoy with a cold beer when the sun is shining)....

Every time I make marshmallows at home, I wonder why I haven’t made them in so long! I guess in my head, boiling up sugar syrup and dragging out the food mixer seems like a lot of effort, but actually they’re so easy to make. A little patience is all you need and you can make homemade marshmallows that taste EXACTLY like those really expensive ones you get at farmers markets and fairs....

I almost posted a beef ragu recipe today, but realised that would be a crazy idea in this boiling hot weather! I’m sitting here in our office, just off the kitchen, with the door open to the back garden. The cat is sunbathing, and I’m wearing flip flips and the floatiest clothes I could find. Normally I’m a wuss, and the first hint of a breeze has me looking for a cardie, but I can see that today is not going to be a cardie day!...

The days of ice cold smoothies have passed for another year! No more shivering whilst you down the icy cold green stuff in order to feel healthy and energised. But don’t put those smoothie makers in the attic! Warm, comforting, yet still-healthy smoothies are a real life thing (honest - I even did a whole series on them last year). This one is creamy and slightly sweet, but with a kick of caffeine, plus some seeds, nuts and oats to get you ready for a busy day....