115g/ 4oz brown rice 1 small red pepper 3tbsp sultanas 225g/ 8oz can pineapple chunks in juice 15ml/ 1tbsp light soy sauce 1tbsp flour 1tbsp sunflower or olive oil 115g/ 4oz halloumi salt and black pepper Cook the rice in boiling water until soft.
Drain and cool.
Meanwhile, deseed and chop the red pepper.
Mix it with the sultanas. Drain the pineapple chunks, reserving the juice.
Add the
chunks to the pepper and sultanas.
Mix the pineapple juice with the soy sauce and season well.
Add the rice and dressing to the bowl and combine.
Place flour on a plate and season. Cut the halloumi into slices and coat with the flour. Heat the oil in a shallow pan and fry halloumi on both sides
until golden. Drain on kitchen roll.
Today's meal is for Richard Beckinsale, best known for being in two of the most iconic of British TV sitcoms back in the 1970s.
He played the amiable, out of place Lennie Godber in Porridge and naive medical student Alan Moore in Rising Damp. He died suddenly at only 31 in 1979.
Beckinsale was born in 1947 in Nottinghamshire. It seems right, therefore, for Zelda to make him something using Stilton cheese which can only made in this county (and - yes, OK - Leicestershire and Derbyshire, too).
LEEK AND STILTON PASTRY SLICES
Serves 3 1 sheet ready made puff pastry 1 leek, washed and chopped 1 medium potato, peeled and chopped into small chunks
25g butter 1 egg, beaten 50g stilton salt and black pepper
Place potato in a small pan of boiling water and cook until almost soft.
Meanwhile, heat butter in a separate pan and fry the leeks until translucent.
Place both in a bowl. Crumble in most of the cheese. Mix and season well.
Cut pastry into thirds lengthways. Mark the half-way point of each piece.
Place the leek mixture on one half, leaving a border all around. Top with the extra cheese.
Brush border with some of the egg. Fold the other half over the top and crimp the edges to seal. Place on a baking tray. Gently slash the top.
Brush all over with the rest of the egg. Cook at Gas 7/ 220˚C 425˚F for about 20 minutes.
A great way to use up leftover veg – mix and match as required Serves 2
3 vegetarian sausages, defrosted if frozen and sliced on the diagonal 2 leeks, washed and chopped 3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks (or leftover roast potatoes) 5-6 broccoli florets 25g butter 1tbsp olive oil 2 free range eggs 1tsp chilli flakes 1tbsp mango chutney (I use this in preference to horseradish sauce)
If not using leftover roast potatoes, put potato chunks in a pan of hot water, bring to the boil and simmer.
After about 5 minutes, add the broccoli.
Cook for a further 5 minutes until both are almost soft. Then drain. Heat butter and oil in a large pan. Add leeks, sausages, potatoes and broccoli.
Keep stirring so that the leeks soften and the other items become slightly crisp and brown. Make two holes and crack an egg into each one.
Sprinkle the chilli flakes over the top. Cook until the whites are cooked and the yolks are still fairly soft.
4 crumpets (I used tree-shaped ones for Christmas) 2 eggs splash of milk ½ onion, chopped finely ½ red pepper, chopped finely ½tsp ground cumin ½tsp chilli powder ½tsp turmeric handful fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped 25g butter 1tbsp olive oil 50g cheese, grated
Beat the eggs in a large, flat bowl and add the milk, onion, pepper, spices and half the coriander leaves.
Toast the crumpets on both sides (in a toaster is fine).
Place the crumpets, face down in the egg mixture. Squash down to allow them to soak up as much as possible.
Heat the oil and butter together.
When it bubbles, cook the coated side of the crumpets.
Carefully, using tongs or a slice, place them back in the egg mixture to coat the other side. Return to the pan and top with any remaining mixture. When bottom is cooked, turn again to allow all the topping to cook. Place the right way up on a baking tray.
Cover with the cheese and grill until the cheese is bubbly.
Sprinkle with the remaining coriander and serve with a dollop of ketchup.
Patricia Highsmith knew how to create a psychopathic playboy, These days, her Mr Ripley is probably the best known, but in 1951 Alfred Hitchcock made Strangers on a Train into the ultimate film thriller.
The premise is so simple: two people share a few hours of a train journey together. They both have a personal dilemma and they joke about how they could solve each other's problem (criss-cross).
But then it becomes much more sinister. Charles Anthony Bruno takes it upon himself to deliver his half of the hypothetical deal and then demands an awful lot in return of the reluctant Guy Haines.
So, how great would it be to have Charles to dinner?
CRISS-CROSS TART
Serves 2 – 3
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks 1 small onion. chopped 1 sheet ready rolled puff pastry 1 egg 2tbsp sour cream handful of fresh coriander (leaves and stalks) 2tbsp olive oil salt and black pepper
Toss the sweet potato in most of the olive oil.
Roast in a baking tray at 200˚C/ Gas 6 for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove from the oven and, if soft, allow to cool.
Heat the rest of the oil in a pan and gently fry the onion.
Put in a food processor with the onion and sour cream.
Blitz to make a thick paste, then add the coriander.
Blitz again.
Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Beat the egg with a little water to make a wash.
Unroll the pastry sheet and cut into two.
Cut a 1cm border from one half (like a picture frame) and place it on top of the other, sticking them together with some of the beaten egg. Prick the base with a fork.
Cook in the oven for about 5 minutes.
Then, spread the sweet potato mixture over the base, leaving the border clear.
Use the remaining pastry to make a lattice over the top. Brush with the remaining egg wash.
