Spaghetti Bolognese

Only 1 hour to make

Rich, slow-simmered, and deeply comforting—spaghetti Bolognese is all silky pasta tangled with a hearty, savoury sauce, best eaten steaming hot, with a sprinkle of Parmesan or simply savoured as it is.

In fact this isn’t Bolognaise but would be if the red wine was replaced with white wine, what we have actually made here is a Ragu.

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Serves: 2

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time:

Bolognese – Minimum 1 Hour
Spaghetti – 9–11 Minutes

Ingredients

For the Bolognese:

1 Medium–Large Onion, finely chopped
1 Carrot, finely chopped
1 Stick Celery, finely chopped
2 Mushrooms, roughly chopped
250g Minced Beef or Steak
1 Tin Chopped Tomatoes
300ml Red Wine
1 Tbsp Tomato Purée
1 Beef Stock Cube
3–4 Rashers Streaky Bacon
1 Tbsp Dried Oregano
1 Sprig Fresh Rosemary (or 1 Tsp Dried Rosemary)
1 Red Chilli, chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
2 Bay Leaves
2 Tsps Olive Oil (or other oil of choice)
6–7 Basil Leaves (chopped) or Flat-Leaf Parsley
Salt and Pepper, to taste
20g Parmesan Cheese, plus an extra 10g for garnish

For the Spaghetti:

150g Spaghetti

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Spicy Sausage Rolls

Golden, flaky, and still warm from the oven—sausage rolls are a small triumph. Crisp pastry giving way to seasoned and spiced up meat, wrapped by hand.

They’re best warm and fresh, but nice cold too Eat standing up in the kitchen, with a mug of tea and nothing scheduled. Or plate them up and watch them disappear at half time with a beer when watching the football/rugby/hockey/basketball (delete as necessary)

You will be very popular so long as you leave some for them!

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Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

The recipe lists the following ingredients for a batch of sausage rolls:

Puff pastry: 457g ready-rolled
Sausagemeat: 350g
Ground coriander: 1 tsp
Ground cumin: 1/2 tsp
Ground ginger: 1 tsp
Cayenne pepper: 1/2 tsp
Smoked paprika: 1/2 tsp
Flour: 2 tbsp
Egg: 1, for use as an egg wash

The recipe also suggests trying variations with other spices to change the flavor.

Cooking Tools

The necessary tools for this recipe are:

A large mixing bowl
A baking tray and parchment paper

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Omelette

Only 10 minutes to make

Two or three eggs, depending on how hungry you are, a knob of butter, and whatever’s left in the fridge. An omelette doesn’t ask for precision—you don’t have to fold it – just a gentle hand and a little heat. Its another for the invention test.

Cheese, herbs, a scrap of ham, a mushroom or two, yesterday’s vegetables— It’s fast and fulfilling.

Remember to warm the plate.

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This recipe is for one person and has a preparation time of 10 minutes and a cooking time of 7 minutes.

Ingredients

2 or (if hungry) 3 eggs
Small splash of milk
Small bunch of basil leaves (washed)
3 to 4 mushrooms of choice
40-50g of cheddar cheese (grated)
Seasoning

Equipment

A small frying pan is needed for cooking.

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Base Roasted Sauce

Only 45 to 60 minutes to make

A base sauce of our own making as a base for lots of other particularly tomato or ragu based dishes.

It just involves cutting, roasting and food processing then using or freezing until needed.

Remember to label if freezing!

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Whatever quantities of the following you might have, I had these when i made this particular batch.

Ingredients

2 Potatoes
1 Onion
2 Parsnips
2 Carrots
Half a Butternut Squash
A Handful of Chives
3 Tomatoes
1 Bell Pepper
2 Chilli Peppers (hot)
1 Stick of Celery
1 Tin of Tomatoes
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste
2 Cloves Garlic

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Madeleines

Preparation time 20 mins Cooking time up to 15 mins

Soft, shell-shaped, and just sweet enough—madeleines are more light sponge with crisp golden edges, best eaten warm, with a cup of tea or just savoured on their own.

You can add lemon zest, a splash of vanilla, or leave them plain; perhaps dip in dark chocolate.

Impossible to eat just one!

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Ingredients

155g plain flour, sifted
140g unsalted butter, cubed
100g granulated sugar
120g light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange, 1 lemon, and 1 lime
Pinch of salt

For Cooking
A large mixing bowl and 1 Madeleine Tray

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Custard

Only 30 minutes to make

Silky, golden, and just the right side of indulgent – custard is the quiet hero of the pudding world. Poured warm over sponge, fruit crumble, or even a sneaky slice of cake, it turns something simple into proper comfort food.

Make it the old-fashioned way with egg yolks, sugar, and a splash of vanilla, stirred gently until it coats the back of a spoon. Or take the quick route with a trusty tin or packet – there’s no shame here, only comfort.

Best served in generous quantities, because nobody ever asks for less custard.

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Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 20 to 30 minutes.

For 6 people

Ingredients

700 ml Whole milk 200 ml Double cream 120 g Caster sugar 2½ tbsp Corn flour 4 egg yolks 1 tsp vanilla extract

This really isn’t worth the effort unless you are making for at least 4 people. You can always freeze what you don’t want to use immediately

For Cooking

2 large sauce pans 1 large mixing bowl and a great deal of care

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Thai Fish Cakes

Only 30 minutes to make

Some evenings you want fire. Not a roaring blaze — just a flicker. A crackle. Enough heat to wake you up from the quiet.

Thai Fishcakes do the job.

Minced white fish, red curry paste, fish sauce, chilli flakes a squeeze of lime — punched together into rough little patties with one or two other bits thrown in and fried until crisp at the edges. They’re sharp, salty, just the right side of fierce. Served with a hot Thai sauce, sweet chilli dip if you’ve got neither then, a wedge of lemon will do.

This isn’t about authenticity its about thinking of nothing but the sizzle in the pan.

They’re fast. They’re loud. And they’re gone in a flash.

Not comfort food — more like a jolt. Some nights that’s what you need.

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Serves: 1 person. Preparation Time: 20 mins Cooking Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

225 g Cod or haddock or salmon
1 tbsp Fish Sauce
1 tbsp Thai curry paste
1 tbsp Cornflour
1 tsp Chilli flakes
1 Egg
1 Lime for zesting and juicing
1 small bunch Green beans or Spinach (chopped)
1 small bunch Beetroot salad leaves
Seasoning

For Cooking:

1 large mixing bowl
Blender
1 large frying pan

This is a bit fiddly so I recommend doing double the quantity to make it worthwhile and share. Inviting a pal round and having a nice beer with them.

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Gravy

Only 10 minutes to make

The thing that pulls it all together. A jug of warmth poured over roast potatoes, soft bread, or whatever’s left from the week. Gravy doesn’t ask for much—just the scraps from the pan, a splash of stock, maybe a drop of wine if there’s any open, and time.

Stirring it gently, watching it thicken, there’s a kind of calm in the making. It’s not just sauce—it’s memory, flavour, and the quiet satisfaction of using every bit.

Serve it hot. Pour it generously. Let it soften the edges of the day.

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Ingredients

• 175–200g root ginger, peeled (using a spoon) and chopped

• 900ml – 1 litre of cloudy fresh apple juice

• Juice of 1 whole lemon, squeezed and deseeded

• 1 cinnamon stick

• Pinch of cayenne pepper

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Carpaccio of Beef with Salad

Carpaccio of Beef Fillet

Only 20 minutes to make

This may look expensive but a single 6oz or perhaps 8oz piece of fillet steak done in this way is a great supper for two, if presented as a sharing plate with some fresh crusty bread and butter and a nice glass of red or a good quality beer to wash it down. It’s a very special experience. You can push the boat out and do more with a bigger sharing platter and perhaps some sautéed new potatoes if you have a (slightly) larger but still special group coming to call.

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Ingredients

6–8oz Fillet Steak
1 Medium Red Onion
2 Medium Fresh Tomatoes
2 Inches Cucumber, sliced
1 Bunch Flat-Leaf Parsley
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar (optional)
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Half a Dozen Shavings of Parmesan

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Cottage Pie

Only 1 hour 45 to make

This is in comfort food category. A base of rich, savoury minced beef slow-simmered with onions, carrots, and a splash of Worcestershire sauce — topped with a golden crust of creamy mashed potatoes. Nothing fancy. Just honest, hearty comfort, made with what’s usually knocking about in the fridge.

It’s the kind of meal that fills the house with a quiet warmth while it bakes.

Serve and eat it from the deep sided dish you’ve cooked it in with a side of nothing. Well that’s what I do. It doesn’t need anything else. This is a meal that remembers, reassures, and restores.

For the nights when the world feels a bit sharp around the edges — this this your blunt instrument of comfort.

Great to prepare the day before and leave in the fridge to chill. Bring out an hour ahead of cooking

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Cottage Pie

Person with leftovers.

Preparation Time: 20 mins Cooking Time: 1 ½ hours

Ingredients:

2/3 medium sized potatoes.
250g beef steak mince
½ stick of celery
½ large carrot
1 tbsp of plain flour
½ a large onion (red or white)
2 small sprigs of thyme
1 clove of garlic
1 bay leaf
500 ml of beef or chicken stock
150 ml of red wine (or good quality beer)
1 tbsp of tomato puree
1 tbsp olive oil (or other oil of choice)
1 tbsp Worcester Sauce
Ground nutmeg

For Cooking:

Oven Proof dish
Large sauce pan for potatoes
Large frying pan

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