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LOW SUGAR GRANOLA

Serves 10

Most granola recipes are laden with oil and sugar. This is a healthier version but every bit as moreish. Use whatever oil you like but I love the nutty flavour of hemp and it brings with it a power punch of nutrients.

2tbs flax seeds

50g sunflower seeds

50g pumpkin seeds

25g coconut flakes

25g flaked almonds

25g hazelnuts,

25g sesame seeds

50ml maple syrup

10g dark brown sugar

50ml hemp oil

Pinch maldon salt

Pinch cinnamon

150g organic porridge oats

Pre-heat oven to 150c

In a large bowl mix everything together well, massaging it all together. Tip into a shallow baking tray and bake for about 50 minutes, stirring well every few minutes until it is nice and golden.

Cool and store in a tin or a kilner jar.

Serve with your favourite yoghurt and some poached or fresh fruits.

A useful thing to have in the freezer, all butter puff pastry makes an excellent base for a quick pizza style tart. Top with anything you have available – pesto, tomato sauce, braised leeks, olives, cheese…..

Here I have caramelised some onions with chorizo to make a flavoursome base and topped with wilted chard. Use any cheese you have available to finish.

For Four people

One pack all butter puff pastry (jus rol) (ready rolled)

About three medium onions

Large piece of chorizo (about three inches long)

Fresh thyme if you have it

Six black olives, chopped

Jar of red pesto (optional)

About six to eight large leaves of Swiss chard, stalks removed

Chunk of feta cheese

Ball of good quality mozzarella

Basil to finish

Extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt & pepper

Pre-heat oven to 180c

Finely slice the onions and chop the chorizo into little chunks. Put both into a saucepan and cook with a little rapeseed oil so that the chorizo oil is released and the onions cook slowly until very soft and caramelised. Season well and add some thyme if you have it.

Unpack the pastry and lay in a board. Roll out a little more so it is thinner, and fills and large baking tray, approx 12″ x 16″. Score around the edge, about half a centimetre in and prick over the whole thing with a fork.

Slice the chard leaves and wilt in a little oil/water until cooked. Squeeze out any excess liquid. Season.

Spread the onions all over the tart base. Top with the chard and then dollop pesto all over in any gaps. Chop the olives and scatter over and if you have a tomato handy you could add that as well.

Bake in the oven for about half an hour, preferable on a hot base so that the underside of the pastry is perfectly crisp. If not leave a little longer.

Scatter over crumbled feta and the mozzarella. Top with shredded basil (Greek basil works well here) and drizzle with extra virgin oil. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The appearance of wild garlic in spring brings a promise of good things to come in the kitchen. The vibrant leaf, heavy with garlic flavour is a lovely ingredient for risottos or pestos and turns a pasta dough a wonderful bright green. If used for ravioli, it is best to cook as soon as you can as these don’t last as well as ravioli made with regular pasta – they somehow soften more quickly and become less easy to handle but you could just make fettuccini or tagliatelle. These keeps well in a sealed bag, tossed with a little semolina to ensure it doesn’t clump together. It can also be frozen, or dried and stored in an airtight container.

I have used it to make ricotta stuffed ravioli and served them with a tomato sauce and some pea shoots.

PASTA DOUGH

This amount will make enough for four people.

40g washed wild garlic leaves, finely chopped

1 large egg and one egg yolk

200g Italian OO flour

Put the finely chopped garlic leaves and eggs into a food processor and blend until the leaves have disappeared into the eggs. Add the flour, gradually until you have a rough, breadcrumbs dough.

Turn out onto a board, knead it together and it will start to form a dough. Knead for ten minutes and then wrap in clingfilm and rest for an hour.

Roll out using a pasta machine. You may need to use a little flour to help stop it from sticking. Start on the largest setting, cutting the lengths in half if they get too long. Have semolina ready to keep the finished sheets on so they don’t stick. Make into whatever sort of pasta you like. If using for ravioli the sheets will need to be nice and thin.

RAVIOLI FILLING

150g ricotta cheese

Rind of one lemon

30g parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus more for serving

Fresh herbs (mint, tarragon, chives, parsley or basil). About 10 – 15g

Sea salt and black pepper

Mash all the ingredients together. You will need to chop the herbs finely. Use any combination you like. Season.

Use to fill the ravioli. Stamp out rounds of pasta with a biscuit cutter (about 2″) and put a little heap of ricotta mix in the centre. Dampen the edge of the pasta and top with another circle, ensuring all the air is pinched out and the edges well sealed. Keep each ravioli from sticking to each other using semolina.

Bring a pan of salted water to the boil and drop the ravioli in. It will be ready within a couple of minutes when it rises to the top. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a j cloth before serving on top of a tomato sauce and garnishing with basil, pea shoots, olive oil and more parmesan shavings.

Approx 225 calories per serving, including a tablespoon of greek yoghurt.

For two people

1 large firm pear (I used conference)

Cinnamon Stick

Star Anise

4 cardamon pods

1 orange, rind and juice

15g coconut sugar

1 teaspoon maple syrup

Granola:

10g oats (gluten free if necessary)

10g shelled pistachio nuts (unsalted)

10g skin on almonds (not to worry if you only have blanched)

Large pinch cinnamon

10g coconut sugar

2 teaspoons maple syrup

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Greek or coconut yoghurt to serve

First pre-heat the oven to 180c fan.

Peel the pear and cut in half. Remove the core. Slice each half into a fan shape and put both into a baking dish that is just big enough to hold them. Bash the cardamon pods in a pestle and mortar and take out the seeds, discarding the outer husk. Grind up and dust the seeds over the pear. Pour over the juice of an orange and add the cinnamon stick, star anise, coconut sugar and maple syrup. Cover tightly with foil and bake for about half an hour or until the pear is tender. Baste two or three times during the cooking process. Remove the foil about five minutes before the cooking time is up so that the juices can start to reduce.

While the pear is cooking make your granola. This isn’t proper granola, of course but it makes a lovely crunchy addition to the pear and is very quick to make. Just roughly chop the nuts and put them into a non stick frying pan with the oats. Add the coconut sugar and maple syrup and a dash of vanilla extract. Melt very very gently over a low heat so that the sugars start to melt, whilst the nuts and oats toast and then are coated by the melting sugar. You want it to look glossy. You can add a pinch of cinnamon if you like as well. I find you don’t want too much cardamon as it is quite a powerful spice.

Allow the granola to cool and then serve the pears with their juices either warm or cold, with the granola alongside. Scatter some very finely grated orange rind over the whole thing. Also it is lovely to put some cinnamon and orange rind over the yoghurt, as well as some chopped mint if you have any to hand.