Stuffed Zucchini or Pumpkin Flowers

I made these just before I left for a trip to the US, abandoning my veggie garden just as it was bursting into flower. Fortunately there were far more pumpkin flowers than we could ever keep alive to turn into pumpkins, and making these was surprisingly simple. I have no idea where you would get them in Australia if you're not growing them yourself. If you do have a vegetable garden, it's worth growing a pumpkin vine just for the flowers. They're incredibly hardy vines with surprisingly good tolerance for heat, and will happily produce flowers from late spring all the way to early autumn. I've had less success with courgettes, although their flowers do work a tiny bit better for this, because the base of the flower (where it joins the stem) is less likely to be bitter.

Ingredients:

• 12 courgette or pumpkin flowers, picked just before they split and open
• 100-200g ricotta
• generous handfuls of basil
• zest of 1/3rd a lemon
• salt and pepper
• an egg, lightly beaten
• a couple of slices of bread, blitzed to breadcrumbs
• olive oil

Clean the flowers of any insects and dirt. Finely shred the basil and combine with the ricotta, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Combine the basil and lemon zest with the ricotta. Make a small hole in each flower, usually wherever they are about to split lengthwise first. Stuff each flower with ricotta, then press the flower petals back together. Dip in egg, then breadcrumbs to coat. Either bake for 12-15 minutes at 200C or deep fry for 2-3 minutes (in batches), depending on how decadent you're feeling.

Yasai Cha Han

This weekend was chore-tastic but also really hot, so I wanted something nourishing but not too heavy. I'm still working my way through the vegetarian section of the Wagamama cookbook, and this recipe called for things I mostly already had in the fridge. A quick cycle to the local grocer (and a quick swim when we got back to cool down) and I was able to pick up the rest of the ingredients. It was super-fast to prepare; easily a new weekday meal for me. You'll want really good fresh ingredients for this, as there are no other flavourings beyond soy sauce, so the vegetables need to speak for themselves. The rice instructions and the sheer amount of salt were both a shock to me, but I followed the recipe and they did work out.

Ingredients

• A ladleful of Thai fragrant rice
• Four ladlefuls of boiling water
• two king oyster mushrooms, cubed
• 250g firm tofu, cubed
• 8-10 baby sweetcorn
• 15-20 sugarsnap peas
• 4 spring onions, trimmed and cut into 4cm pieces
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 eggs

Cook the rice in the boiling water on a medium heat for 4-5 minutes, until softened but not done. Drain and refresh under cold running water; set aside. If you have wobbly tofu (which I usually do), fry the tofu in a little oil in a hot wok, turning carefully and occasionally until lightly seared on a few sides. Scoop out and set aside.

Turn the heat up, add a little more oil, and stir-fry the mushrooms for five minutes, until golden and bouncy. Throw in the vegetables, rice, salt, and soy sauce, and stir fry for a further 2-3 minutes, until the rice is cooked and the vegetables are bright. Add the egss and stir fry until they are just cooked. Divide between two bowls and serve with miso soup on the side.

Pasta with Mushrooms, Asparagus and Walnuts

One of those spontaneous flavour combinations that occurred to me, and, minutes later, was confirmed as a perfect balance of warm and nutty, rich and earthy, and green and grassy.

Ingredients

• pasta for two (200-300g)
• a generous handful of walnuts
• two king oyster mushrooms (or 10 chestnut mushrooms)
• a bunch of asparagus (about 8-10 stalks)
• a few stalks of curly parsley
• 4 tbsp sour cream
• 1/4 tsp mustard

Cook the pasta according to its packet instructions. Dry-toast the walnuts in a small frying pan until crisp and golden; remove and set aside. Cube the mushrooms and fry until golden; cut the asparagus into inch-long lengths and add to the pan; stir-fry until cooked. Finely chop the parsley and combine, turning the heat off. Drain the pasta, mix well with the sour cream and mustard, then tip in the fried vegetables and give a last toss about. Season to taste and serve.

Asparagus Shiraae

Asparagus is in season, and I have a Japanese food craving. Irreconcilable? I do not think this word means what you think it means! I went out on a limb and tried the most unusual (to me) recipe from The Guardian's Top Ten Asparagus Recipes. This definitely isn't for everyone... I can imagine the texture would really be off-putting for people who don't like jelly. But if you know you like soft tofu and sesame, give this a try. The recipe said serves four... well, that was total nonsense. Served two of us, with plain boiled rice and nasu dengaku to go with.

Ingredients

• 300g soft/silken tofu
• 200g asparagus
• 4 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted and ground
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• ½ tsp miso
• Salt

Drain the tofu from the packet, wrap it in plenty of kitchen paper, put it on a plate and place a weight on top of it to squeeze the water out. Leave the tofu for 30 minutes, until it weighs around 180g. Remove the woody part of the asparagus, then cut each spear diagonally into thirds.Bring some water to the boil in a saucepan, then add a little salt and lightly cook the asparagus for a few minutes. It should still be firm when drained. Cool the spears under cold running water and pat them dry.

Put the tofu in a bowl and add the ground sesame seeds, sugar, light soy sauce and miso and mix thoroughly. Add the asparagus to the bowl and mix into the dressing, seasoning with extra salt if required. Serve!

Banana Pancakes

This is my new favourite weekend morning breakfast! The only problem is, I have to patiently wait all week for a couple of bananas to overripen: rare in our house. I used this recipe but substituting homemade buttermilk (milk with some lemon juice left for a few minutes); I reckon real buttermilk would give an even fluffier result. I halved this recipe to make enough for two.

Ingredients

• 200g (1 1/3 cups) plain flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 55g (1/4 cup) sugar
• 2 eggs
• 250g mashed banana
• 330ml (1 1/3 cups) buttermilk
• 40g butter, melted

Combine all of the ingredients together, stirring until the flour is no longer visible. Fry in dollops until golden brown (about a minute) and then flip for another minute. Serve with sour cream, maple syrup, and strawberries.

Caponata (Aubergine and Tomato Stew)

The title is totally unprepossessing, and I'm sure memories of poorly-cooked ratatouilles are sending you scrolling away from this screaming. HOWEVER! I implore you to stay. Try this recipe! Particularly in summer, when aubergines and tomatoes are in plentiful supply. The capers and olives make a fantastic contrast with the fresh vegetables, and it's amazingly filling as well. Yes, it's Jamie Oliver. Yes, olive oil must be glugged. But you won't be disappointed with a new away to jazz up those med veg.

Ingredients

• 2 large aubergines, cut into large chunks
• 1 heaped tsp dried oregano
• 1 small red onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
• 1 small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and stalks finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons salted capers, rinsed, soaked and drained
• 1 handful green olives, stones removed
• 2-3 tablespoons best-quality herb (or at least wine) vinegar
• 5 large ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds, lightly toasted, optional

Fry the aubergine and oregano in olive oil on a  high heat for around 4 or 5 minutes, giving the pan a shake every now and then. (Depending on the size of your pan you may need to cook the aubergine in batches.) When the aubergines are nice and golden on each side, add the onion, garlic and parsley stalks and continue cooking for another couple of minutes. Feel free to add a little more oil to the pan if you feel it's getting too dry.

Throw in the drained capers and the olives and drizzle over the herb vinegar. When all the vinegar has evaporated, add the tomatoes and simmer for around 15 minutes or until tender. Taste before serving and season if you need to with salt, pepper and a little more vinegar. Drizzle with some good olive oil and serve sprinkled with the chopped parsley leaves and the almonds if you like.

Mega Veggie Breakfast: Hash Browns

I prefer to shop once a week, since I just don't have much time in the evenings, and the challenge of extending the same shop through the week often prompts me to try different meals in order to use up the food while it's at its best. However, I also like starting my weekend with a proper cooked breakfast, rather than the bowls of cereal we have through the week. Sometimes it's toast, often it's pancakes or waffles, but every so often I want a proper English breakfast.

This week, I had the craving, but hadn't really done anything to justify pigging out on... well, pig. Also, the fridge was at Peak Bareness. So, I put together this Mega Veggie Breakfast :) The dregs of buttermilk were enough for pancakes from The Joy of Cooking, beans came from a tin, avocados I'd left ripening on the counter all week finally got sliced, there were leftover fried mushrooms from dinner, I poached eggs in the microwave (only one explosion), and made my first home-made hash browns. I used this recipe, modifying it for the two golf-ball size potatoes I had left in the fridge. Despite the tiny amount of potato, it made four hash browns - enough for two people as part of this breakfast. So you'll really make loads if you follow their instructions and use six medium potatoes!

Ingredients

• 6 medium (about 1.2kg) desiree potatoes, peeled
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1 egg, lightly whisked
• Pinch of salt
• Vegetable oil, to shallow-fry
• Select all ingredients

Coarsely grate the potatoes into a colander. Use your hands to squeeze out as much excess liquid as possible -- this is really, really important, so give it some welly!

In a large mixing bowl, combine the grated potato, flour, egg and salt, and stir until well-combined. Make flattened cakes with the potato mixture -- the thinner you make them, the faster they will cook, and the less oil you will use.

If you're feeling fancy, use a deep fryer to cook the hash browns. If you're feeling like you want to live a few days longer, use as much oil as it takes to cover the bottom third of the hash browns, and flip them once the underside is golden brown. Drain on kitchen towel and serve as quickly as possible, dusted with a little more salt.