One Sunday In January

A cup of tea to wake me up…


...then a mushroom omelette to start my day...



…grapes for vitamin C…

...time for a little snack...

...a chicken in a pot…

…then feet up with a glass of champagne and trashy TV.

Tuna Steak with Chilli Lemon Rice and Balsamic Rocket

Lemon and chilli are great flavours with tuna and this dish is zingy and fresh.

Chop up a red onion and a pepper and fry them in chilli olive oil (or a chopped chilli in plain olive oil) for a few minutes. Stir in however much rice you want and the juice of about half a lemon, ensuring the rice is coated well. Add enough water for your amount of rice (usually twice the amount of water to rice), bring to the boil then put on a lid and simmer for about 10 minutes until the rice is cooked through. Drain the rice then add more lemon juice to taste and some chopped parsley.

Pan fry the tuna steak for a few minutes each side (depending on the size of your steak). It won't take long to cook at all and be careful not to over cook it - keep it still pink in the middle.

Serve with rocket drizzled with a little balsamic vinegar.

Mmm....Marmite

Good old British Marmite. According to the marketing campaign people fall into one of two categories; they either love it or they hate it. There is no in between. And I think that’s absolutely right. This is not the sort of taste you sit on the fence about. There is nothing subtle about this dark, sticky spread made from yeast extract; it’s strong and full of punch and it will produce an equally strong reaction when it hits the taste buds.

Personally I love Marmite, but one way and one way only - spread not too thickly on hot, generously buttered toast. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. THAT’S the way to start the day, along with a mug of steaming tea or coffee. Perfect.

Leek and Potato Soup

Chop 3 or 4 leeks and roughly the same amount in weight of potatoes. Purists use only the white part of the leek but I’m not fussy about using it all, unless perhaps I’m hosting a dinner party.

Put a knob of butter in a pan on a low heat. Add the leeks and potatoes and sauté for a few minutes. Add about a litre of vegetable stock, or just enough to cover the leeks and potatoes. Bring this to the boil and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Season and blend.

If you want a richer soup add some cream just before you blend.