Meat-eaters and vegans alike will enjoy this budget-friendly take on tacos. A handful of surprisingly simple ingredients lends big flavours and ‘meaty’ textures to the smoky lentil and broccoli stem taco filling. 

Serves 4 

When wild mushrooms come out to play, I’m a sucker for them. My boyfriend Paul laughs at how over the top I am about them, but to me they are always worth the wait for their short-lived season. Served with a medium spiced harissa and a simple grain, here are the mushrooms do all the talking. 

Serves 2–3 

Kookoo is Persian frittata; a posh, fat omelette full of flavour – herbs, spices, nuts. They can be sweet or savoury, made into individual patties or cooked like a cake to be cut in the pan. They can be used in sandwiches, as a snack on their own, as part of a mezze spread, or for breaking fast. But they are, of course, normally made with eggs. We finally plucked up the courage to make vegan kookoo a little while ago after one of our Iranian vegan customers reported success with aquafaba. 

This salad also works well with quinoa or any other crunchy cruciferous veg – broccoli or kale are both great. 

I have a vivid childhood memory of my nan and grandad loving soup. Whether this was true or not, it’s a thought I simply don’t want to party with. Perhaps it’s because we’d often go for a Sunday roast when we lived in Devon, and a soup for starters was always the favoured choice. 

Weeknight cooking doesn’t get much easier than a tray bake. You whack everything in a roasting tin and then let the oven do the job for you! This colourful dish is great served in the middle of the table if you have friends over too. Don’t skip the herby yoghurt sauce; it’s bright, fresh and cooling, and balances the earthy, smoky, spicy flavours of the veg. 

Serves 6 

As the nights draw in and nature settles for her slumber, we begin to crave sustenance and comfort. This dish ticks all the boxes: easy to make, nutritionally dense and unctuous to the palate. It’s one to snuggle under a blanket with as the wind swirls the confetti of leaves outside. 

Who doesn’t love a noodle slurp? These noodles are smothered in a zingy, unctuous dressing that leaves the perfect splatter on your chin. Laden with winter green vegetables, it’s verdant and fresh for the cooler months. It’s easy to make and even easier to eat. 

Serves 4 

Potato salad is forever the crowd pleaser. But all too often it’s reduced to a sad, sloppy, mayonnaise-laden mush, devoid of flavour and nutritional value. This recipe holds the joy of a potato salad at its core but takes a lighter approach with a soy lemon yoghurt. The tofu scramble adds a textural element, in addition to much-needed protein. Pink pickled onions are the perfect tangy foil to the creamy dressing.