A comforting, affordable, winter warmer – and very versatile depending on what you fancy and what is in the fridge.

Full of fruit to give it wonderful sweetness, it is best served with salty butter liberally spread on a thick slice. The best thing is keep it in the oven long enough to make the top slightly crusty so you have a bit of texture to it too. My sister makes this every time we have a family event or picnic and it’s all I can do not to mug her for it as soon as she walks in the door. 

The term cocktail originated in the seventeenth century. The tail feather of the family rooster would be plucked and dipped into alcoholic bitters to dab on sore tonsils. A long history of the creative use of alcohol to help what ails us.

Koulourakia are light, buttery biscuits and a staple snack in Greek households, usually eaten in the morning or as an afternoon pick-me-up with a strong Greek coffee

I’ve been married for 20 years. The only advice I’ll impart is to have a trick up your sleeve that is your sure-fire way out of the penalty box. For me, atonement through food seems to work. Cooking Teevan, a traditional Sindhi curry, is my proof of ‘I love you’ when the words are so worn, they no longer resonate.

Melomakarona are thought to have derived from the ancient delicacy, makaria, which were eaten during funerals. Changes to the recipe and the addition of dipping them in honey inspired the name melomakarona, made up of the Greek word for honey “meli” and “makaria”.

I use an instant pot and just throw everything in and pressure cook for ten minutes. If using a pressure cooker, add half a cup of stock or a splash of wine for extra liquid to prevent the pot burning. For added heartiness, add a pack of slightly overcooked chopped sausages, or some chopped up feta cubes.

I don’t bake savoury food all that often but when I do, it just HAS to be warm cheese scones with lashings of garlic butter.

One for the plant lovers…

I have such fond memories of my yiayia (grandmother) making us her famous yemista. My sister and I would be enlisted to help out with the glamorous task of hollowing out the vegetables.

Lemon and ginger is what most people think of when you’re feeling rubbish in winter and have a sore throat, but I present to you this zesty, crunchy lemon pie that is the perfect summer dessert.

The hedgerows are whitening with hawthorn, cow parsley is eye high and generous flower heads are dripping off the elders, filling the air with fragrance and pollen. Time to make elderflower cordial.

Avgolemono is traditionally served to those who are ill and those who have been travelling – it is thought the nourishment it contains is all a person needs. Its creamy, silky consistency is comforting and the lemony tang makes it unique.

These guys are next-level of decadence to gluten-free cinnamon buns but these managed to hit the mark. They are maple and butter pecan cinnamon buns just in time for the yearly sugaring off and they are quite frankly the best gluten-free dessert I have ever had. Quite the decadent treat; fluffy, sticky, and oh so ooey-gooey.

Mackerel is loaded with goodness - protein, omega 3, selenium, vitamins… and it is also one of the most sustainable fishes you can eat (North Atlantic is the best), makes you really brainy and it is a very reasonable in price.

I have spent years of my life trying pancake recipes and I truly feel I’ve found perfection here, it makes the right amount for 2 people- very handily only uses one egg, and is the perfect mix of thick, but light and fluffy!

Amba is a quick tasty mango sauce traditionally eaten in Israel and parts of the Middle East, and it can be used as a condiment, dip or spread. Perfect with falafel!

In the last few weeks, TikTok had gone mad for the feta/ tomato pasta - one woman claiming when she shared it that Finland ‘ran out of feta!’ because everyone wanted to try it. Being the true foodie here that I am, I have sacrificially tried and tested this recipe for you, and I’m here with my review.

Spring is in the air. Finally. So here is a recipe to really celebrate the brilliant variety of vegetables springtime has to offer - sub in any vegetables you have in the fridge like asparagus, broccoli, fennel, you name it.

Full of chocolate and biscuits and ready to eat in less than an hour! You can thank me later…

I am a Parisian. I was brought up in Paris from a French father and an Algerian mother. I ate lots of Algerian food growing up, either cooked by my mother, my grandmother, or one of my numerous aunts. This type of mixed Arabic/French background is very common in France, which is one of the reasons why more and more Arabic influenced dishes are appearing in French cuisine.

Zhug (Hebrew: סְחוּג ‎, romanized: s'ḥug), sahawiq (Yemeni Arabic: سَحاوِق) or bisbas (بسباس) is a hot sauce originating in Yemeni cuisine. In other countries of the Arabian Peninsula it is also called mabboj (Arabic: معبوج ‎). - another mixed up Middle Eastern recipe, although it seems clear it did originate in Yemen.

Baked and poached egg dishes are made everywhere in the world and shakshuka is similar to huevos rancheros (Mexican), huevos a la flamenca (Spanish), cilbir (Turkish) and even our own simple baked or coddled eggs.

Growing up in the North East, more specifically in the Teeside area, there’s one thing that we take very seriously, and that’s the Chicken Parmo.

This rarebit mac n' cheese, is as oozy as it is delicious. It is an honest display of love on a plate – comfort food at it’s finest, with the help of some serious cheese and truffle action, it's hard not to be.

This salad might help you think it is because it’s so light, fresh and zingy and packs a real health punch.

This is where making things like Christmas pudding can help put back some of the delicious festive anticipation and joy. I grew up in a massive family where we made one every year, all the children having to stir it and throw in sixpences. But I never ate it.

Makes enough for two big bowls - serve with lovely crusty bread.

This recipe will warm your cockles, give your tastebuds a holiday, be a tonic for your eyes, boost your immune system and make your pee pink.

This month I bring to you a classic French patisserie with a modern Irish twist! Madeleines are the lightest and probably most joyous bite sized cakes you could ever wish to eat - sorry to all you cupcake lovers, but I’m about to convert you.

I do sympathise with those who ardently hate on the small plate. It’s easy to feel conned when a £14 dish arrives on a plate the size of a coffee coaster, and you realise you could easily devour the morsel in a singular bite. Or - a small plates favourite - when you dutifully order the recommended ‘2-3 plates per person’, wind up £50 lighter - and still leave the restaurant hungry. This modern phenomenon of small plates is an extremely fine line to balance, and let's be honest, some restaurants aren't quite getting it right.

Cardiff’s City Road might not strike you at first as a place buzzing with Gen-Z hangouts. But take a stroll down the street a hundred yards and you’ll find a café-shop that might persuade you otherwise. Heralded as a hidden gem amongst plant fanatics, Eartha attracts green-fingered students by day and hungry foodies by night.

Now, it may be cliche to admit that from the very first course of the mezze feast I knew we were in for a treat, but cliches exist for a reason and, in the case of this particular feast, it was true.

Cooking can cause all sorts of anxiety, stress and some embarrassment not because you can’t cook but perhaps, you feel like others will judge you. Maybe you have a favourite snack which is just combo mad, perhaps you’ve never even heard of hummus or don’t know how to use a microwave!

Christmas is just around the corner and with recent trends showing a consistent rise in plant-based eating. Statistically speaking a recent survey shows that 19.6% of Brits are expected to choose vegetarian or vegan food this Christmas and in 2021 82% of people who tried Veganuary had drastically cut meat intake, according to a 6-month survey carried out by Veganuary.

According to the ONS, one in eight adults were left unable to buy essential goods in their local supermarket in October due to the shortages we’ve seen in recent months. Politicians have spoken about a potential “winter of discontent”, with rising energy bills, increasing prices and a critical shortage of workers resulting in significant food and fuel shortages due to supply constraints.

It is Ruby Tandoh’s Eat Up: a small, green sliver of magic that encourages us to eat for joy, and the recipes that are sprinkled throughout were the first time I felt seen when faced with cooking.

Our leading biodiversity experts predict there will be more pandemics in the future unless we stop the senseless destruction of the natural world. If you have ever considered changing to a plant-based diet specifically to save the planet, you have to do it now.

On a planet with finite resources and entering the not-so-humble beginnings of an irreversible climate crisis, the way that we are currently producing, manufacturing, and consuming our food is unsustainable and inexcusable.

Knowledge and wine appreciation are two completely different things. It’s easy to feel intimidated out of appreciating wine by not having a comprehensive understanding of what it is and what differentiates wines.

We have a systemic problem with the way we interact with food in this country. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) released a report last year that explains in blunt reality just how much food the UK has wantonly disposed of in the last few years, how it has been wasted, and by whom. It quickly reveals that in 2018 we as a nation wasted 6.65 million tonnes of food.

There is no hot drink as pleasurable to sip than a cup of tea at its perfect drinking temperature, but getting tea at its best needs a certain degree of patience. It can be lip scaldingly hot at first, so timing is crucial here. Wait too long and it will be disappointingly cool, but there is a perfect temperature for each of us. For me, it is 57.3C precisely. I know this because I am a sad tea anorak and have measured it.

I woke up to my complacency, maybe even entitlement when queuing outside Sainsbury’s in March 2019. Overnight, shelves were stripped of old faithful fusilli, and passive-aggressive loo roll disputes broke out. Before Christmas, freight out of the UK was blocked by European countries after the emergence of the super spreader Covid-19 strain, triggering concerns over fresh food shortages.

It is an inconceivable privilege that in some parts of the UK we can sample Ethiopian injera one week and Georgian khachapuri the next.

Nothing brings back those nostalgic memories quite like dumplings. Specifically, Slovak pirohy. Stodgy, potato-y, fatty dumplings that hug me from the inside and make me feel like everything’s going to be okay.

If there was a book called The Coolest Things You Can Do To Help the Planet and You, it would say the latest thinking is to start eating more plant-based foods.

The average spud is about 100 calories and highly nutritious as they contain vitamins B and C, potassium, iron, protein, fibre and are 99.9% fat-free. They are reckoned to be the food of choice, should you suddenly decide you only eat one type of food.

I christened the different stages of lockdown ‘chapters’, a way of differentiating between those bewildering phases of eternal time. Nestled somewhere between the Loving Furlough Chapter and Missing The Colleagues you Hated Chapter - there was a national movement. We rushed to support independent producers.

If the government haven’t written into law that they must ensure all food coming into the country is produced to the same standards as our food is, then realistically, will they do it?

I am a chef. I have difficulty saying that. I'm already picturing you thinking about me working long hours for no money in a grubby basement kitchen, unable to string a sentence together without punctuating every other word with fuck.

It is not fundamentally expensive to be vegan; if you think of it in its most basic form, the husbandry, slaughter, preparation, preservation and cooking of meats is far more of a task than growing fruits, vegetables and cereals on your land. So why do I say that veganism is not cheap?

One thing that also increased over August, apart from customers and the layers of hand sanitizer on my hands, was the amount of catcalling myself and fellow waitresses faced.

Turns out that much of what we depend on to live today would not be possible if it were not for yeast. I kid you not. Without it, there would be no bread, no biofuels, no insulin and perhaps more shockingly, no beer or wine. In fact, no alcohol at all. So, what would a world without yeast be like? In a word, sober. Probably sadder, too.

Coffee is a big part of our lives and a delicious alternative to us hating each other every morning. As well as percolating its way into our hearts, coffee has ground its way into the heart of our homes, too. How many drinks can you think of that have an item of furniture named after them? The coffee table was first mentioned in 1938 but has been a must-have item of furniture since the 1950s.

Expressing one's dissent towards what doesn't work within the society is a fundamental right of every citizen. Hence, when the masses take to the streets demanding justice and equality over racism and police brutality, pressure on politics increases and governments perceive it as a threat to the status quo.

Bristol's food scene is full of truly awesome places. Every corner of this city is home to incredible restaurants, cafes, bars and vibrant street-food markets. There are countless choices to pick from, but some of them are an absolute must - and I had the pleasure to talk to one of the most iconic of them. Here is my interview with Zak Hitchman, Head Chef at the Michelin-star restaurant, and true gem of Bristol, Casamia

My name is James Stuart and I'm both a buyer in the Fine Foods department of Arthur David, a local wholesaler for the hospitality industry, as well as a ramen chef for my company Tomo no Ramen.

As the author of the fabulous Pulse, a recipe book all about, you guessed it, pulses, Jenny became The United Nations FAO European Ambassador for the International Year of Pulses and was asked to speak all around the world.

Farming has a pretty murky rep when it comes to climate change, and consumers want more traceability than ever when it comes to food. So we spoke to several young farmers about how they’re driving sustainable change — and how you can support them.

Mel went on to build her own fantastic business called Gopals Curry Shack which became very successful. However, like most small food businesses it was very hand to mouth and as covid loomed it took a hit and Mel had to make a choice to stay or leave.

I first met Ginny when I ran the Folk House Café on Park Street in Bristol. The Folk House is a haven in this (normally) bustling world, a place of adult education just for its pleasure, live music, and good food. Ginny was one of the many students who frequented the cafe, and it was always lovely to chat with her. Still, it wasn’t until I began working at the Stockwood Food Club where Ginny volunteers that I really started to know her and learn more about her incredible life and her huge and generous spirit.

Yumello is a Bristol-based company that strives to produce healthy and sustainable peanut butter. They bring us the ancient knowledge and tradition of Berber people, supporting a cooperative of 300 women and, therefore, helping us spread some love on our lonely toast.

Kate is the author of Aperitif: A Spirited Guide to the Drinks, History and Culture of the Aperitif, a fascinating and hilarious book packed with delicious recipes for all sorts of aperitifs and cocktails, including the perfect Negroni, my all-time favourite.

“We need to bring back the interest in agriculture. We need to show what’s actually happening because a lot of media attention on farming has been negative for recent years”

One of my favourite desserts is cheesecake, which is why this month I was particularly excited to interview the lovely Cheesecake Lady NE; my favourite Instagram foodie account and all-round amazing girl-boss.

The problem with wine in the UK is that for many, wine (beyond the supermarket aisle) is still seen to be the preserve of stuffy, pretentious show-offs who wrap it up in pontification, ‘bourgeois bollocks’ and expert opinion.

Bristol Food Union is a project that comes straight from the heart of the city of Bristol. This initiative originates within the industry that perhaps has been hit most by the Covid-19 crisis: the Food and Hospitality sector. I had the pleasure to talk with Tessa Lidstone, from BOX-E, who has been overseeing the provision for vulnerable young people.