Here’s something to make if you have some time to kill and want to impress your guests – or just want to treat yourself or someone you love. You’ll need at least one hour to prepare this, but this lukewarm vegetarian aubergine tarte is oh-so-lovely. Many thanks to Linda, who introduced this to me and gave me the recipe.

The following works for my 200x200x50mm square Pyrex dish, and makes a meal for three people, lunch for four, or starters for eight. Adjust amounts according to your dish size:

Cut 3 pretty large aubergines into 4..5mm thin slices. Spread out on some greaseproof paper, salt generously. Let rest for 20 minutes, then brush with olive oil, turn over, and repeat the process on the other side.

Meanwhile, oil a fireproof dish, cut 3 or 4 tomatoes into pieces, salt slightly, and put in the oven for roasting (about 30 minutes at 180C).

Cut a small onion and a little garlic into fine dice, and melt in some hot butter. Wash and clean 500g swiss chard (use fresh Spinach as an alternative), and briefly steam with the garlic and onions. Don’t add liquid other than the droplets that come from washing the greens, and do not add salt. You don’t want this to turn soggy.

Grind some fresh Parmesan and Gruyere cheese. Prepare some goat cheese (crumple); blue cheese could also be nice but might be too overwhelming. Dry-fry some mushrooms (optional).

Put the aubergines under the grill until the look great (a few minutes, but you may need to do this in two or three batches).

Finally, find that 200x200x50mm square Pyres dish I told you about. Line with baking paper, then line with one layer of aubergine slices, covering the sides and the bottom. Make it look nice; this is what people will look at when done.

Then, layer greens, cheeses, mushrooms and aubergines into the dish. The original recipe suggests adding Basil or Marjoram, but I don’t like the idea of Marjoram in this dish, and don’t think Basil is necessary either. A small amount of pepper within the layers will suffice, but be careful not to add salt (or only very tiny amounts) – you’ve salted the aubergines already. A pinch of nutmeg with each layer of greens is optional but nice.

Before you put the last layer of aubergine slices on top, mix two free range eggs with one or two tablespoons of cold water, and pour over the dish. Shake and move the dish to allow the liquid eggs to fill the gaps – this is the glue that holds it all together.

Finally, make a nice lid with another layer of aubergine slices, and put in the oven at 190C for 20 minutes, adding the grill in the last 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, run the roasted tomatoes through a blender. Don’t add anything, just make sure you have a medium-thick nice and flavorsome roasted tomato sauce. It couldn’t be simpler, but you will need fairly good tomatoes for this to work the miracle all by itself.

Take the tarte from the oven when done. Give it 10 minutes to cool down a little, then turn over, remove the baking paper, and let cool down further.

This can be eaten hot, but I find it is best served lukewarm, with the slightly colder roasted tomato sauce on the side.

This lovely chicken recipe is your chance to fight bird flu. Eat them before they can get anywhere. I was browsing my copy of The Silver Spoon (Thanks again to K&D for that rich source of inspiration), when a photo in the poultry section inspired me to the following, still nameless, chicken delight.

The idea is to make some succulent chicken roulades with a mushroom sauce and sage-flavoured pasta.  Here we go:

Get one chicken leg per person. Clean and dry, de-bone. Fill each deboned leg with a generous portion of a salsa that you made from fresh herbs (sage, basil, parsley, rocket salad), capers, anchovies, pepper, and olive oil. Wrap the meat with bacon and use a skewer to hold all together, if needed.  Gently fry on both sides until browned. Meanwhile…

Pre-heat the oven to 180 Celsius. Bring salted water to the boil, enough for 150g of Spaghetti per person. Meanwhile…

Remove birds from frying pan, place in a roasting dish, and pop them into the oven. Quick-fry a handful of olives and small whole onions in the remaining fat. Remove onions and olives temporarily. Sweat some flour in the remaining fat, add olives, onions, porcini mushrooms, and a glass of while wine. Season to taste with salt, pepper. Let simmer for a few minutes until onions are tender.  Meanwhile….

Melt 50g butter and fry a handful of finely chopped fresh sage. Drain the spaghetti, toss with the sage butter, remove chicken from oven and serve, finish the sauce seasoning with fresh herbs (basil, rocket salad, flat parsley), and serve sauce with chicken. Delicious!

OK, this might be no candidate for the "Quick ‘n’ Easy" department, but it’s worth the effort. Try it!

Oh, and if you find a good name for it, please let me know. Thanks.

People, the battle of the sexes can be ended in the kitchen!

Here’s your ultimate quick fix that works for both: works for the wife ‘coz its nice and healthy with salad and stuff, and works for the blokes because it comes with a nice steak: Spinach Steak Salad. Goes like this:

Go and get yourself a nice steak. Angus Rump or Sirloin works for me. Make it 150g per head (or more if you want to please your man). Also get some young fresh spinach and some roasted (Spanish) peppers. Olives, roasted pine kernels, goat or blue cheese all optional.

Fry the steak gently until medium. Make sure not to overcook, even if you normally prefer it well done. Meanwhile, quickly rinse and drain the spinach, cut the peppers in stripes and add to the spinach (olives, pine kernels, whatever else takes your fancy). In a cup, quickly throw together some Balsamic Vinaigrette: one teaspoon of Mustard, 2 tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar, one tablespoon of lime juice, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, freshly crushed black pepper, pinch of salt. Mix until it blends, and toss with the salad. Add cheese if you so desire.

Remove steak from pan. Let rest on board for one minute, salt and pepper well, and cut into thin stripes (5mm?).  Toss with the salad, serve with crisp white bread. Eat immediately and with tremendous pleasure.

Nice and easy, and pleases all sexes, ey?

A wonderful opportunity to use my new blender: Thai Green Curry. Its fairly easy to make and highly rewarding with a full and fresh mix of taste, so forget about your local Thai cafe for once and give it a go:
A full day before having the meal, prepare the curry paste by blending the following: 4 cloves of garlic, 4 spring onions, one lime (peeled), a large bunch of coriander, one hot red chilly, three Thai green chillies, juice from 3 inches of fresh ginger, 3 finely chopped stalks of lemon grass, 4 lime leafs. Also add a tablespoon of ground coriander, one of ground ginger, one of Nam Pla (Thai fish sauce), one of dark soy sauce. Add a teaspoon of ground turmeric, of a large pinch of saffron. Blend it all well, cover with cling film, and chill for 24 hours.

3..4 hours before the meal, clean the meat. I normally use chicken thighs, but you may also use breasts, or prawns, or pork meat. Drizzle a flat dish with toasted sesame oil, place the meat of fish pieces in the dish, add a generous amount of Thai sweet basil, crushed red chillies, and lime juice. Cover and let the meat marinate until its time to cook.

To cook: heat one tablespoon of toasted sesame oil and one of olive oil, and fry the meat. When slightly coloured, add the curry paste, and a pint of chicken stock. Add 5..6 thin slices of a peeled fresh ginger root, 2 stalks of lemon grass (cut), and more lime leafs. Cover and let simmer until the meet is cooked. Add a can of coconut milk, season to taste.

Add a generous amount of fresh coriander and sweet Thai basil. I always add mushrooms, too.

Serve with fragrant rice and lots of appetite.