Marrow 'pasta' with tomatoes, mozzarella and pesto

Shame on me! I haven't been into my garden in... 3 weeks! I've been so busy that whenever it has been on my schedule of things I must do today, I either collapse with exhaustion or life gets in the way. It's been a tough couple of weeks at work, but I've survived and things should start to return to normal throughout the next week.

I've also not posted anything for a while. Could there be a better way to quell my guilt than combine the two?

When I finally hacked my way through the overgrown ferns and made it to the garden, I was surprised to see that my neglected courgette plant held a solitary marrow -albeit slightly nibbled. It had produced more, but only their stumps remained. (I feel very guilty.) At least they're organic! I was also faced with a lot of weeding...

When faced with a marrow so many people have no idea what to do with it. I understand, I really do. Marrows are, alone, quite watery and bland in taste. However, they are also a quite versatile vegetable, and deserve a second chance. With the correct treatment, seasoning and accompaniment, the humble marrow can be transformed into something exciting and unusual. A few years ago I made a lasagne using marrow instead of pasta, and today I have followed the same principle.

1 marrow

4 tbsp pine nuts
Pinch of salt
250g fresh basil leaves
50g Parmesan, grated
300ml extra virgin olive oil
A few handfuls of cherry tomatoes, halved
A ball of mozzarella


1, Slice the marrow lengthways, about 1 cm thick. Heat a griddle and colour the marrow, taking care not to overcook, until al dente.
2, Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan, and then cool completely. Lightly crush half of them in a pestle and mortar, along with a pinch of salt (if you don't have a pestle and mortar, a blender or food processor will work, if it is small enough to catch the sauce)
3, Add the basil leaves to the pestle and mortar, and working as quickly as possible, pound them into the mixture until you have a thickish paste.
4, Mix in the cheese, and then gradually incorporate the oil. Taste to season.
5, Slice the marrow into chunks, about 2 inch long, then add them to a large bowl.
6, Add the tomatoes, pesto and mozzarella to the bowl, then leave for ten minutes for the flavours to infuse.
7, Garnish with basil leaves and a sprinkling of toasted pine nuts, and serve with crusty bread.

Rainbow bowl

The impulse to buy the exciting new season vegetables is one that I can rarely resist. Be it the abundance of mushrooms in Autumn or the new asparagus in Spring, there's something really beautiful about knowing that the food you're about to eat has been harvested freshly and locally and grown naturally.

I picked the best of the seasonal veg we had at work - all UK grown and abundant at this time of year. Round yellow courgettes, cheery cherry plum tomatoes (which are so sweet and succulent and ripe), beautiful fresh spring onions, and broad beans (need I explain the beauty of the first fresh broad beans?).

When surveying the fresh display at work, I usually create some recipe in my mind. Pulling all of the the ingredients that are in the cupboard at home and what's available to me there and then, I imagine what I can make out of these and then buy accordingly. This evening: quinoa with these beautiful, multi-coloured vegetables and feta.

This could be created using whatever is available - not everyone has the option to just pick up a round yellow courgette, for instance. Substitute where necessary but the more colours you can fit in the dish, the more appetising it will look and also the greater variety of vitamins you will receive from eating it.

2 round yellow courgettes
250g cherry plum tomatoes
250g broad beans - weight before shelling
a bunch of spring onions
100g quinoa
100g feta cheese (optional)
a handful of fresh mint
salt and pepper to taste

1, Start by cutting the courgettes into wedges - I chose to do them in sixths, but that is down to the size of the courgette itself. You need them to be thick enough that they won't turn to mush when you griddle or fry them. Drizzle the pieces in olive or rapeseed oil.
2, Place the broad beans in a small pan of slightly salted boiling water. Cook them for about 3-4 minutes, then drain.
3, Heat the griddle and lay the courgette out on it's flesh, then turn when they have browned. You may need to do more than one set, depending on the size of your griddle. If you are frying, follow the same instructions, taking care not to brown the skin.
4, Place the quinoa in a pan of boiling water with a little salt. Watch over it as it absorbs water quickly and the cooking time varies between brands. Keep the water a few centimetres over it and stir occasionally. It's ready when it has unfurled - a tail will have come out.
5, While the quinoa is cooking, slice the spring onion and the tomatoes. Place these in a large bowl and add the courgette and broad beans.
6, Break the feta cheese into cubes and sprinkle over the vegetables. Finely cut or tear the mint and add it, too.
7, Mix the drained quinoa through the vegetables and serve as a main on as a side dish.

Awesome vegetable lasagna

Mr. Fox and my nemesis had a face off this evening through the garden gate. Unfortunately it was all over before I could take any pictures, as they were scared off by a couple exploring the gardens backing on to the cliff. If this continues I'll have no more cat shit in the gravel! Go Foxy!


MM came back this weekend from his holidays - he's been away for two months - so I made an epic vegetable lasagne based on Green Kitchen Stories lasagne, which looked so beautiful I couldn't resist. It was lovely, very fresh and full of flavour. I upped the pepper and would recommend a little more seasoning in general - the huge amount of basil doesn't really come through, so don't be afraid to add more, even though it seems excessive to start.

Serves 4 generously and 6 normal appetites.

N.B. I have a generous appetite, and this was too much for me!

A generous glug of olive oil
1 medium size onion (finely chopped)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1 tsp chilli sauce
A couple of handful green olives (pitted)
2 tbsp capers (drained)
4 large ripe tomatoes (cut in quarters)
2 tins plum tomatoes
A good handful of fresh basil
Salt & pepper
1 package of spelt whole wheat lasagne

For the ricotta cheese:
500 g ricotta cheese
Zest and juice of one lemon
A good handful of fresh basil
A pinch of sea salt
A pinch of lemon pepper

For the grilled vegetables:
Olive oil
A few pinches of sea salt
2 courgettes
1 aubergine
300 g chestnut mushrooms
300 g fresh kale or spinach
1 clove garlic

I ball of mozzarella, torn roughly.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4/350°F. 

1, Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add the onion and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute before adding the chilli sauce.
2, Add olives, capers and fresh tomatoes and cook it a couple of minutes more before adding the rest of the ingredients. Cook for 10 minutes, lower the heat and let it simmer for half an hour more under a lid.
3, Finely slice the courgette and aubergine lengthways. Heat a griddle until smoking. Brush the slices with olive oil and lay them on the grill, a set at a time, until soft and coloured. If you don't have a griddle you could use the grill, or even oven roast them.
4,  Fry the mushrooms and the kale/spinach in a pan for 5 minutes with olive oil, salt and garlic. Do this is batches if necessary as the greens will take up a lot of space until they wilt down.
5, Empty the ricotta cheese into a large bowl and add the lemon zest and juice to the bowl. Tear the basil roughly, add salt and lemon pepper and mix together.
6, Begin to assemble the lasagne by starting with a layer of tomato sauce, then a layer of lasagne sheets. Next, smear the ricotta cheese mix over the sheets - this take a bit if work as it is quite sticky. Don't worry about being too precise, it's all going in the oven at the end and will work into itself.
7, Next, lay about one third of the griddled vegetables and then the mushroom and green mix down as evenly as possible. Spoon another layer of tomato sauce on top.
8, Add a layer of lasagne, and repeat these steps until you run out of space of lasange sheets.
9, Make sure you top the lasagne with ricotta mix  - in spread dollops because there's no way of creating an even layer - and then sprinkle the mozzarella over.
10, Bake for about 45 mins - 1 hour.

Linguine with Mediterranean vegetables and ricotta

The vegetables I cooked for this dish were originally meant to go with milestone lentils - a sort of green puy lentil. My plan for the evening was slightly altered when I got home and discovered Mr. Fox asleep in my garden.

I had meant to do some gardening but didn't want to disturb sleeping beauty. The opinion of many is that foxes are vermin, and although I understand that it isn't pleasant to find your rubbish strewn across the street because the hungry animals have broken into them, I also feel incredibly sad when I see the thin animals roaming the streets in the evenings. This fox has been visiting the garden for the last few months, but I've never seen him so comfortable.

So, I ended up cutting back the ivy on the street and became so engrossed that I completely forgot about the lentils simmering away on the stove top. Needless to say, they burnt and I had to re-think my dinner.

Serves 2-3

One red onion

One aubergine

One courgette

A handful of ripe tomatoes

A handful of mint

Juice of one lemon

Cold pressed rapeseed oil/olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

One tub of ricotta cheese

Enough linguine to feed you

1, Begin by slicing your onion finely and add to a frying pan with a tablespoon of oil. 

2, Cube your aubergine and add it to the cooking onion, and sprinkle with a pinch or two of salt. Fry these together until the aubergine is browned - don't be afraid to add more oil if necessary. 

3, Slice your courgette and add it to the pan, fry until soft.

4, Add the pasta to a large pan of salted boiling water and drizzle a small amount of oil into the pan to stop it sticking together. After a minute or so stir the pasta.

5, Chop the tomatoes into chunks and add the frying pan. Keep this on the heat for a few minutes, stirring, then take it off and squeeze over the lemon juice. 

6, When the pasta is close the ready, chop the mint finely and add it to the vegetables. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
7, Drain the pasta when ready and return to the pan. Mix the ricotta through and then add the vegetables.

You may want to season this further on the plate, or add a grating of parmesan cheese. Personally, a drizzle of olive oil was enough.

Courgette soup

After spending the day studying and eating strawberries, I wasn't too in the mood to make something elaborate with the 5 courgettes that have been haunting my fridge for a week. It had got to the stage where if I didn't use them this evening, they'd have to be thrown - and that wasn't going to happen.

This soup is so simple, a throw-it-in-the-pan-and-carry-on-eating-strawberries kind of recipe.

5 or 6 medium courgettes, sliced
4 medium floury potatoes, 1inch dice
1 onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
veggie or chicken stock
bay leaf
olive oil
squeeze lemon juice
salt and pepper
a green of your choice - I used spinach
optional: single cream
to serve: grated parmesan or pecorino

1, In a large pan, soften the onion with the olive oil, then add the potatoes and garlic. Stir for a few minutes, then add the courgette. Add a splash of water to stop the potatoes sticking.
2, Make up your stock, and add it to the pan to cover.
3, Add the bay leaf and leave the soup on a low heat to simmer for about 20 mins.
4, Check the potatoes are cooked, and add the spinach.
5, When the spinach is wilted, remove from the heat and leave to stand until lukewarm.
6, Using a hand blender or a food processor, blend the soup.
7, Reheat gently and season with salt and pepper. If using, add the cream.