Sorrel ice-cream with strawberries and meringue recipe

If you don’t have an ice-cream machine, freeze the mixture in a shallow plastic container with a lid, stirring it two or three times over the course of eight hours, to give it a smooth texture. For ease, I’ve suggested buying in meringues, but you’ll have egg whites left over from the ice-cream, so make your own if you’re so inclined. Serves six.

200ml full-fat milk
200ml double cream
1 vanilla pod, split open lengthways and seeds scraped out
4 egg yolks
65g caster sugar
Salt
250g sorrel leaves, roughly chopped
3 tbsp honey
2 lemons; finely grate the zest of 1, then squeeze both to get 60ml juice
400g strawberries, stalks removed and cut into ½ cm-thick slices
40g shop-bought or homemade meringues
10g mint leaves, shredded

Put the milk, cream, vanilla seeds and scraped-out pod in a medium saucepan, and warm gently on a medium heat for about five minutes, until steaming. Turn off the heat and leave to infuse for 20 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and a pinch of salt, then pour in about two tablespoons of the milk mixture. Stir, then add the remaining milk mixture bit by bit, whisking continuously, until combined. Once all the milk has been added, quickly rinse out the saucepan, then pour the mixture back in, making sure you scrape in all the vanilla seeds.

Cook the custard on a medium heat for eight to nine minutes, stirring constantly, until it thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon (keep an eye on the heat because you don’t want the custard to boil, or it might split). Strain the custard into a medium-size bowl (remove the vanilla pod, rinse clean and reserve for further use). Stir in 150g sorrel, cover with cling-film, making sure the film touches the surface of the custard, to prevent a skin forming, then leave to cool.

When the custard has cooled, add the honey, lemon zest and remaining sorrel, then blend until completely smooth. Transfer the mix to an ice-cream machine and churn for about 40 minutes (timings will depend on your machine), until frozen and creamy, then transfer to a plastic container with a lid, and freeze.

About 20 minutes before serving, transfer the ice-cream to the fridge, to give it time to soften slightly. Toss the strawberries in the lemon juice and leave to macerate for five minutes. Using a scoop, spoon two ice-cream balls per portion into individual bowls. Break the meringue nests into small chunks and divide them between the bowls. Top with the strawberries and mint, and serve at once.

Asparagus pilau, mint butter recipes

If you make the butter in advance, remove it from the fridge a good half hour before using. It should be soft and fluffy.

Serves 2-3
broad beans a couple of handfuls
asparagus 18 spears
For the pilaf:
white basmati rice 120g
butter 50g
bay leaves 3
green cardamom pods 6
black peppercorns 6
cinnamon 1 stick
cloves 2 or 3
cumin seeds a pinch
thyme a couple of sprigs
For the herb butter:
mint leaves 8 large
parsley a small handful
spring onions 2
butter 125g, soft

Cook the beans in deep, lightly salted, boiling water for three or four minutes. Drain and pop the largest of the beans from their skins. Any very small beans can be left as they are. Trim the asparagus, removing any tough ends then cut the spears into short lengths. Boil or steam for five or six minutes until just tender.

Wash the rice three times in a bowl of warm water. This will prevent it sticking together. Melt the butter in a saucepan over a moderate heat, add the bay leaves, the cardamom pods lightly crushed, peppercorns, cinnamon stick, cloves, cumin seeds and thyme. Stir the spices and herbs around in the butter for a minute or two, then, as soon as they are warm and fragrant, drain the rice and add it to the pan. Stir the rice to coat it with the butter then pour in enough water to cover and leave 2cm of water above the rice.

Season with salt, turn down the heat so the water simmers and cover tightly with a lid. After seven minutes fold in the drained asparagus and the broad beans. Replace the lid and cook for a further five minutes. Remove from the heat, leave the lid in place and set aside for three minutes.

Put the mint leaves on top of one another, roll tightly, then shred finely

Make the butter by putting the mint leaves on top of one another, roll tightly, then shred finely. Remove the parsley leaves from their stems and finely chop. Discard the roots and darkest green shoots of the spring onions and finely chop.

Cream the butter until it is soft and fluffy. Season with coarsely ground black pepper and sea salt. Fold in the mint, parsley and spring onions.

Lift the lid from the rice, stir with a fork to separate the grains, then fold in the herb butter. Alternatively, divide the rice between the plates, place a spoonful of the herb butter on top and fold it in so the grains are coated.

Family tacos repieces

In my experience, the most successful family meals are when there are lots of things in the middle of the table for little hands to reach and grab for – the more colour the better. The salsa in this recipe is quite spicy and is intended to add some punch for the more adventurous palate, so I suggest splitting the salsa into spicy and non-spicy, so everyone is happy.

Serves 2 adults and 2 kids
For the flatbreads
400g white spelt flour (you could use plain flour too)
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp flaky salt
350g natural yoghurt

For the slaw
½ spring cabbage
8 radishes
1 apple
1 carrot
Juice and zest of 1 lime
100ml natural yoghurt
Flaky sea salt

For the salsa (optional)
2 big handfuls cherry tomatoes
½ bunch spring onions, finely sliced
1 red chilli (optional)
1 tsp chipotle paste, or to taste

For the filling
2 tbsp olive oil
½ bunch spring onions, finely sliced
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 x 400g tins cannellini beans, drained
A bunch of coriander, to finish (optional)

1 First, make the flatbread dough. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl, then stir in the natural yoghurt. Mix well until everything has come together into a ball, then get in there with one hand and knead until you’ve got a smooth and slightly tacky dough. If it feels like it is at all dry (this will depend on your flour), you can add up to 50ml of cold water, a little bit at a time, until the dough comes together nicely. Cover with a clean tea towel, then set to one side until you’re ready to cook the flatbreads.

2 Now, make the coleslaw. Slice the spring cabbage and radishes really finely, then combine them in a large mixing bowl. Shred the apple and carrot using the coarse side of a box grater, then add them to the bowl of cabbage and radishes along with the lime zest, half of its juice and a pinch of salt. Add the natural yoghurt. Stir really well until everything is evenly coated, then set aside.

3 Next, make the salsa. Cut the cherry tomatoes into quarters, and slice the spring onions. Add these to a little bowl, squeeze over the juice from the other half of the lime (left over from making the coleslaw). Divide the tomato mixture in half, then reserve one portion for the kids. Finely slice the red chilli and add this to the adult salsa bowl along with the chipotle paste and a little pinch of salt.

4 For the filling, heat the oil in a large pan and add the spring onions. Cook until they are soft and a little coloured, then add the spices. Stir until you can really smell their aroma, then tip in the beans, crushing them a little with your spatula as you stir. Add a pinch of salt, and a splash of water if the beans seem at all dry. Keep the filling warm while you cook the flatbreads.

5 When you’re ready to eat, prepare your flatbread rolling station, as close to the stove as safely possible. Sprinkle the worktop with flour, then tip out your dough. Divide the dough in two, then divide the first half into six pieces. Heat a large nonstick frying pan until it’s very hot, then roll out the first piece of dough until it’s very thin and about 20cm across. Carefully lift it into the pan and cook for around a minute on each side, or until it’s lightly coloured and the surface is littered with bubbles. Repeat with the remaining five small pieces of dough, then divide the second half into six pieces and repeat with those.

6 Serve everything in bowls on the table for people to help themselves. Keep the warm flatbreads wrapped in a tea towel to help them retain their heat, arrange alongside the beans, slaw, salsa and a bowl of coriander leaves for a final sprinkling.