Ice Ice Baby

Borage, also known as Starflower, is in full bloom in my garden at the moment. I have both the original bright blue as well as a white flower cultivar. This old fashioned herb, thought to bring cheerfulness, comfort of the heart and merriment, is completely edible and can be used in salads, drinks and as cake decorations. It has a cucumber-like flavour and is therefore a good addition to Pimms and G&Ts.

Today I have picked the flowers and placed them in ice cube trays. They will make a fabulous addition to summer drinks.

Easter Feaster

Hope you've all had a lovely Easter. High temperatures over the Bank Holiday Weekend in the UK feasting on hot cross buns, Easter baking and chocolate eggs.

Eggstremely tasty!

Ratatouille

Twenty-nine years ago, when I first became vegetarian, ratatouille was my staple dish. I don't recall following a recipe but just threw a bunch of ingredients into a pan and stirred. Jokes abounded amongst my meat eating friends; "is that one rat or two?" My husband used to peer into the pan and say "having mush again?"

Well he was probably right. My version of this French Provençal stew consisted of soggy courgettes and tinned tomatoes with a few 'erbs thrown in.

Since those days I have tried cooking Delia's method (no need to salt, weight and drain the courgettes and aubergines these days) as well as Jaimie's, both successfully. Ratatouille can be served on its own, as a side dish, stirred through pasta or as a filling for lasagne. This week I did the Green Roasting Tin version which meant roasting all the ingredients before topping with breadcrumbs and vegan Parmesan. Easy, delicious and a complete meal with not a trace of rodent.

If you want your kids to eat more veggies, get them to watch the Disney film Ratatouille and then YouTube the recipe and cook it together.

Tray Bon

Following on from last week's excitement on receiving a new cook book, The Green Roasting Tin, I'm here to see if the proof was, so to speak, in the pudding.

The recipe I tried out was the Lux Warm Winter Salad, consisting of roasted Maris piper potatoes and celeriac with Parmesan, watercress, walnuts and soft boiled eggs with a dressing containing indulgent truffle oil.

Peeling the potatoes and celeriac was as tough as it got. Once done, it was a case of throwing them into a shallow tray with garlic cloves, oil and seasoning and roasting for 45 minutes. I soft boiled some eggs, whisked up a dressing and added the Parmesan, walnuts and watercress. 

This dish made a very tasty, substantial meal. A smaller portion would have made a nutritious lunch and an even smaller plate, a starter.

I would definitely make it again although there are 74 more recipes to try!