Dad's Cuisine

Chestnut, bacon and cranberry loaf Sweet and savoury come together in this chestnut, bacon and cranberry loaf. A delicious, seasonal cake that's perfect for those chilly autumn days. Chestnut, bacon and cranberry loaf Autumn has crept up on us. It's hard to explain why we are constantly surprised by the changing of the seasons, but every year we exclaim and complain how chilly and dark it's getting, as if this is the first time it's happened and the universe is pranking us.  But this year, we aren't complaining. In a time where everything is uncertain and we're all having to adapt to a new way of living, it can be comforting to honour the season's rituals and welcome a change that is familiar.  In our family, autumn heralds a period of long walks and foraging in the forest for mushrooms and chestnuts.  After all, eating seasonal foods is good for your health and great for your wallet.  Now, I'm not overly confident when it comes to mushrooms; I can't...

No matter how much your family claims to hate cauliflower and broccoli, they'll be eating great florets of the stuff with this easy recipe for cauliflower and broccoli cheese Cauliflower cheese Cauliflower cheese - also known as cauliflower gratin - is possibly the most comforting dish known to mankind. I exaggerate, perhaps. But there's something so homely and reassuring about cauliflower cheese. It's a wonderful winter warmer, is great a side dish to a roast dinner and is a tasty choice for a quick lunch.  I don't know many (any)  people who would stand up and  claim cauliflower as their favourite vegetable. Yet, as the main ingredient in this dish, it's a winner. I've combined it here with broccoli because you can never have too much leafy veg, and I think the splash of green is appealing and breaks up the visual b landness of an otherwise monochrome dish. Cauliflower and broccoli cheese   And as they say, the secret is in the sauce. This easy recipe for c...

Cheese and asparagus pastry pockets Spring is in the air. Celebrate the changing of the seasons with these cheese and asparagus pastry pockets. Cheese and asparagus pastry pockets April heralds the beginning of asparagus season, which is one of my favourite vegetables. I usually just roast them in the oven with some olive oil, salt and pepper, but lately I've had to get a bit more creative in the kitchen. Like most of you, I've been staying indoors over the past few weeks, keeping myself and my family as safe as I can. It means I can't see Dad, which is difficult for all of us, but we're keeping in touch every day and I send him some home-cooked meals a couple of times a week, much to his delight.  Spending all this time with my husband and kids (while working remotely full time and homeschooling two very energetic boys) has, beyond all expectations, been a real treat. But having to prepare three meals a day for four hungry mouths means that I hav...

ROASTED SWEET POTATO AND COURGETTE IN LIME, GINGER AND BASIL DRESSING Add a bit of the exotic to your midweek supper with this roasted sweet potato and courgette in lime, ginger and basil dressing!  Roasted sweet potato and courgette in lime, ginger and basil dressing I can very clearly remember the first time I heard of a sweet potato. I was 11 years old and chatting to my schoolfriend Lizzy, who hailed from Kenya. We were both boarders at our all girls' school in south-East England.  On a cold and dreary Sunday that didn't seem to end, we began lamenting about what we missed most from home, and the conversation inevitably turned to food (it usually does with me). We both desperately missed our Mums' cooking, of course. But then Lizzy mentioned how much she missed sweet potatoes. Now, I loved potatoes in all forms - mash, chips, crisps, wedges: you name it, I'd eat it - but I had never heard of sweet potatoes. "What do they taste like?" I aske...

LENTIL DHAL WITH SPINACH  A mild Indian vegetarian dish filled with aromatic spices that's healthy, tasty and easy to make. Lentil dhal with spinach There are so many variations on recipes for dhal, an Indian staple and one of the few vegetarian meals that Dad actually requests when he goes to an Indian restaurant. I know that Dad misses decent Indian cuisine.  He spent his childhood in Burma and India, so his definition of comfort food is curry , curry and more curry.  When Mum and Dad met, he let her know pretty quickly that the way to his heart was through rock n' roll and food. Mum worked in the music industry and took him along to the best nightclubs and parties to rub shoulders with the stars of the sixties music scene, so the rock n' roll part was covered. And as for curries; Mum - a Welshwoman who grew up in London - rolled up her sleeves and got to work mastering the art of making the perfect curry, learning alongside an Indian woman she met when t...

Baked sweet potato stuffed with spinach and omelette Loaded with protein and fibre, this low-fat baked sweet potato stuffed with spinach omelette is an all-in-one meal that will keep you going for hours!  When I was a student, I can't say that cooking was my strong point. Away from Mum's healthy, varied diet, I survived on burgers, fries and pizza. When I did 'cook', I wasn't very adventurous: it was pasta or baked potatoes on rotation  I'd bake them in the microwave, load them with cheese and far too much butter, scoff them up in minutes and run out the door. Ah, those halcyon days when exercise consisted of dancing in clubs and running to lectures (or the pub), and I laughed in the face of carbs. I ate so many baked potatoes that I didn't go near them for years after I left University. So I decided to revisit this kitchen classic from my student days with this baked sweet potato stuffed with spinach omelette . It's a little more exci...

BAKED FALAFEL Packed with tasty herbs and spices, falafel is the ultimate vegetarian finger food that'll have you reaching for more!  I distinctly remember the first time I had a falafel . I would love to tell you it was in a tiny Lebanese eatery tucked away in a hidden backstreet, but it was in the food court of a brightly-lit shopping mall a few miles out of the city. I must have been about 11, and Mum and I were having a girls' day out shopping. (I loved shopping with my Mum. Even if we were just doing a supermarket shop, we always had a great time pointing little things out to each other and people watching.)  As lunchtime approached, we found ourselves uninspired by the usual offerings of Chinese and Italian cuisine, so Mum suggested I try some Lebanese food at a little stand, insisting I would enjoy it. At 11, I knew what I liked and I liked what I knew, so I wasn't thrilled at the idea of trying something different. But I was hungry and tired, so we took ...

YELLOW RICE To the surprise of us all, it turns out that Dad does have a few tricks up his sleeve when it comes to cooking. I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, but I have never mastered the art of cooking rice. I know most people wouldn't consider rice cooking an art per se, but it's something that has always eluded me (and I'm not the only one ). It may be because I don't particularly like rice. I'll eat it if there's no bread to mop up a particularly tasty sauce, but I have always found rice boring and bland.  Until last week. Dad and I have got into a nice routine: once a week, he comes round to visit us. He plays with his grandsons, gets them far too over-excited before bed, and we cook together. Last week, when I informed him we were making a courgette based dish, he  insisted on making some yellow rice, assuming he wouldn't be eating very many courgettes (an assumption that proved to be entirely correct).  I'll be honest: I wa...