One list, five meals

Pizza with Peppers and Pesto Chicken

Serves 4

2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite size pieces

a dash of olive oil

½ a red pepper, deseeded and sliced

½ a yellow pepper, deseeded and sliced

¼ a jar of tomato passata

2 pizza bases

2 balls of mozzarella cheese, sliced

2 tbs of basil pesto

Fry the chicken pieces in a little oil and season with salt and pepper. Set them aside. Add the sliced peppers to the same pan and fry for about three minutes until they have softened slightly.

Spread the tomato sauce onto both pizza bases, sprinkle the peppers and chicken on top. Lay the mozzarella over and drizzle the lot with the pesto.

Place in a very hot oven for about 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the base has browned.

Butternut Squash and Pine Nut Pasta

serves 4

1 butternut squash — peeled, deseeded and cut into bite-size cubes

2 tbsp honey

4 tbsp of olive oil

a small bunch of rosemary

4 cloves of garlic — roughly chopped

Pasta for four

1 large handful of pine nuts

4 handfuls of rocket

Toss the prepared butternut squash with the chopped rosemary, honey, olive oil and garlic and roast in a medium oven. It will take about 30 minutes to soften depending on the freshness of your squash.

Boil the pasta in lightly salted water until it is al dente.

Just before the squash is about to soften add the pine nuts to the roasting tin and season with black pepper and salt, continue to roast for another five minutes.

Stir the contents of the roasting tin through your drained pasta and place some of the rocket on top.

Asparagus Risotto

Serves 4

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

200g arborio rice

200ml white wine

500ml vegetable stock

6 asparagus spears, blanched, chopped

Zest of 2 lemons

75g Parmesan, grated

Heat the oil in a frying pan and gently fry the onion and garlic until translucent.

Add the rice and fry for about a minute, stirring frequently, until it is coated in the oil.

Add the wine slowly and simmer until absorbed by the rice. Then add the vegetable stock a ladle at a time, stirring between each addition to allow the liquid to be completely absorbed. Continue until the rice is cooked and all the stock has been absorbed.

Boil the asparagus in a small pot of water for about one minute, remove and drain.

Add the asparagus, lemon zest and Parmesan to the risotto, stir well and season to taste.

Beans and Rice

Serves 4

Rice for four

1 small onion, finely chopped

A dash of olive oil

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 rashers, sliced

1 small red chilli, finely chopped

1 tbsp wine vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

¾ jar of tomato passata

1 tin of pinto beans, drained and rinsed

Small bunch coriander, finely chopped

Fry the onion in the heated oil until it is starting to become translucent, add garlic, chopped rashers and chilli and cook for another minute.

Add vinegar and sugar and cook until everything in the pan is nice and sticky.

Stir in the passata and simmer for about five minutes until it is beginning to thicken, then add the beans and leave to simmer for another five minutes.

Season to taste. Stir through coriander and serve with the rice on the side.

A nice blob of sour cream is lovely served with this dish.

A Simple Salad Niçoise

Serves 4

6 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp mustard

2 tbsp wine vinegar

zest of 1 lemon

Crunchy salad leaves for 4

2 tins of tuna in oil, drained and flaked

100g of French beans, lightly boiled in salted water

4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered

4 tomatoes, each cut into 8 pieces

10 small new potatoes, boiled and cut into quarters

A handful black olives, de stoned

crunchy bread

Blitz the olive oil, mustard vinegar and lemon zest and season to taste.

Mix the tuna, beans, tomatoes, eggs, potatoes and olives gently in a bowl. Add the salad leaves and toss everything in the dressing.

Serve with crunchy bread.