21.12.08: White bnz with chorizo and rocket

She stirred some butterbnz and rocket into some sizzling chorizo, served it atop some brown/red/wild rice, and shored up the leftover cucumber salad with some watercress.

HE SAYS: I thought the butterbnz were as creamy as usual and the chorizo managed to up the yum factor as it can't help but do. The second installment of cuke salad improved with the extra marinating time, too.

SHE SAYS: Both as tasty as ever. Chorizo is cheatin', but who cares? The sage, oregano and thyme didn't hurt, either. The rocket gave it the bnz a mildly bitter snap, providing a welcome contrast to the deep savouriness. Salad was perky: sharp and crisp, none the worse for its sleepover in the fridge.

10.11.08: Nigella's chickpeas with pomegranate and avo salad

After a while away, a week of classic meals was in order to get back on track. Thus, she cooked up the chickpea staple, adding the ho-made harissa for good measure. A spinach, avo and pomegranate salad nudged into frame.

SHE SAYS: Now I'm feelin' it - that evening pleasure that only the classics can deliver. Velvety soft chickpeas with cumin-seed fragrance got the necessary garlic and coriander spice kick from the harissa, and the salad was just what I'd been missing from our travels: a cool, fresh, tart counterpoint to savoury bliss.

HE SAYS: As good a batch as ever, the chickpeas still silky and flavorsome with the harissa propelling it skywards in taste and yuminess. The salad was sproused up with the pomegranate seeds, which added a certain fruity, tangy and peppery touch that only pomegranate seeds can deliver.

16.10.08: Chickpeas with cumin and sherry

He took down the wok and gave a quick fave a stir: Nigella's chickpeas are lookin' mighty fine with the addition of a soft-boiled egg, some ho-made harissa (missed ya!), and some wild/brown rice. A tomato, fresh mozzarella and spinach/watercress salad sat quietly ready for its star turn.

HE SAYS: This was a simple and quick one tonight, though not short on taste either. Once again, I found these regular chickpeas to be more velvety and soft and better value then their organic counterparts. This dish also gave us a great reason to bring out the harissa from the fridge, It didn't disappoint. Its salty and hot lushness brought exotic flava to the bowl and adding an egg to the top created a little bit of gooey, squidgy yumminess. As for the salad, a more pared down variety this time with the mozz and tomatoes. As tradition dictates, I chose to drizzle on some olive oil, a pinch of salt and black pepper, and a drop of balsamic vinegar to intensify the deliciousness.

SHE SAYS: Mmm, nice and velvety, and the intense cumin fragrance and flava were battling for dominance with the salty, garlicky harissa. That's my kinda fightin'. The subtle salad made for a creamy, mildly acidic treat, and a welcome break from the beetroot repetition.

09.10.08: Pea, pesto and mushroom risotto

He gathered up the ingredients and proceeded to create this infamous risotto consisting of peas, pesto and mushrooms paired with a salad of rocket, mixed leafs, radishes and figs. All dressed up with a dressing of Her design, consisting of Colman's mustard, a splash of white wine vinegar, Tasmanian leatherwood tree honey ('with a lychee flavour', how innaresting), a pinch salt and pepper.

HE SAYS: Having prepared the risotto earlier in the day it had time for its flavours to mature and strengthen. Was happy with the outcome and enjoyed the severe savouriness of the dish. The parmesan supplied a salty edge, and the basil, a nice freshness to the taste. Her salad dressing was also great and added a hot and sweet mix to the surrounding greenery.

SHE SAYS: It was my nite to cook, but He handily put this together and had it in the fridge for warming when I came home, bless 'im. And it was a fine batch, too, one of the best. The fragrant pesto and intense parmesan (a truly excellent and well-priced Tesco variety) mixed with the mild, humble peas and plain yet meaty mushrooms to play on every tastebud I've got. In a word, yummilicious. My new salad dressing is no wasabi-lime, but the Colman's is almost as nose-wrinkling as the green goodness, and the honey gave it all a gorgeous floral note.

16.09.08: Butterbnz with chorizo and rocket

She was determined to have a nice dinner after so many recent disappointments, and so went with the can't-miss butterbnz stirred up with chicken stock, sage, oregano, chorizo and rocket. A virtuous attempt to re-introduce veggie roughage and some enzymes resulted in a plain carrot and radish salad.

SHE SAYS: Aaaah....finally, a comforting, tasty dish I can eat with joy, not just need. No extra seasoning or touch-ups needed, this was velvety and savoury, with satisfyingly intense bit of chorizo upping the treat factor. For balance in health and colour, the salad proved a winner; even after a few months of introducing it, I'm still finding the texture and sweetness of professionally shredded carrot ridiculously pleasant.

HE SAYS: Back in NYC and dinner with family which included a pork loin roast with roast potatoes and green beans, and a yummy orange infused gravy (not pictured). The pork was great, nicely cooked, moist and not dry at all. The potatoes were crunchy, and the green bnz added a little freshness to the plate. The orange sauce or gravy was especially nice and I had seconds and thirds of the whole shebang. A fruit salad medley including raspberries finished things off nicely.

03.09.08: Black bream with chermoula, kale, and panfried potatoes

Not your average fish 'n' chips: He slashed and stuffed some whole black bream with herbs, baked it with lemon, and whizzed up some decidedly sexy chermoula, all at the suggestion of Ramsay's Fast Food. Kale boiled with onion and a dab of liquid smoke, plus the ever-popular panfried potatoes added plenty in the way of substance, while salad of pear, avo, rocket and tomato rounded off the menu.

HE SAYS: Very yummy even if I do say so myself. This has been "try new recipes week" and I believe this one is maybe the best yet. The bream really didn't need much fussy dressing to shine but the chermoula brilliantly added an intense counterpoint to the mild yet fulfilling texture and taste of this fish.

We are suckers for citrus-infused dishes, it seems, and what with the sliced lemons and added juice, this recipe resembled our fav lemon chicken dish, but of the sea, see? It was tempting to add more liquid smoke to the greens but I held back, using only a few drops of the stuff, and glad I did as the true flava of the onions and kale were not overpowered by an artificial smoke taste. The potatoes took a long time to get crispy but perhaps I should have used peanut oil instead of olive? Nonetheless, with a few added sprigs of rosemary to the pan it was worth the wait.

I'm really enjoying the pears' run in this week's salad offerings. This time the pear was paired with avo and tomato, so it seems there's no veg it's met and hasn't got along with.

SHE SAYS: This would have been such a treat to sit down to on any evening, but it was esp effective to take the edge off an annoying day. The chermoula had an intensely zingy effect that only heightened the cumin and paprika notes. But even without the sassy sauce, the bream would have made me pause and give thanks for its delicate texture and clean, lemon-inflected taste. Crispy potatoes quickly disappeared from my plate, and the greens did their mild duty as virtuous veg quietly and well. Salad filled any little corner I had left - I think pears in salad will always be a fork magnet for me.

20.08.08: Quorn with fresh veg and tomato sauce

Despite at least one previous protest against making fresh tomato sauce, She did it again, adding a green pepper and aubergine for filler and finishing with shavings of parmesan reggiano. (It didn't seem such a task this time, not sure why.) Crisp quorn patties and a salad of carrot, fresh 'healthy living' mozz, physalis, and rocket didn't exacty play second filler either.

SHE SAYS: I enjoyed this probably more than I should - it was merely good, with contrasting crisp quorn coating and rather mushy veg, but the sweetness of the tomatoes and the treat of my fave fake chicken hit a little-kid note of appreciation in me. The 'healthy' mozz had surprisingly good stringy, pull-apart texture and mild milky flavour - better than I expected and a good foil for the tangy physalis.

HE SAYS: The homemade sauce once again delivered: I thought the aubergine was nish and tender, the tomatoes not too shweet and the green peeper still a little crunchy. Maybe I would've added a wee bit of vino into the mix but it still turned out tickling ma tastebuds good and plenty. The salad was another crunch fest, what with the carrot making a return after a short break. The moz was happy to see its new pal again but missed Ms Beetroot rotten.

16.08.08: Out to Andrew Edmunds

Just when you thought the birthday was over...We gathered His family up for an intrepid evening of bowling, followed by fine dining at Andrew Edmunds in Soho.

She started with the buffalo mozz, serrano ham, rocket and herb salad, and He ordered the
carrot-orange soup.

Feeling like something hearty was in order, she had the raviolini filled with scamorza, accompanied by rocket and a tomato-herb-butter sauce. He opted for the swordfish...


SHE SAYS: I was a little apprehensive when our first waiter proved ridiculously standoffish ('no, we don't have soft drinks here, they don't complement the food,' he sniffed at my bro-in-law), but fotunately he was replaced with a much cheerier model by the time starters arrived. Though you can't tell by the photo, mine was generous in its light yet creamy mozz, and I tried to spoon the tiny green herby-grainy mounds dotting the plate into each bite. I had no idea what scamorza was, but quickly divined it was a v. smoky cheese of some kind. My main was v rich and tender, if not at all subtle. Not sure what made my ravioli qualify as 'ini' as they were all quite large, but I'm not complaining.

HE SAYS: I enjoyed the soup very much, not too sweet, not too thick, but just right. The swordfish was a big ole one, fresh and delicate tasting. Underneath the chunk o' fish were some stewed veggies and some toasted bread to mop up the juice. Mine also came with an herb butter which I proceeded to slather over all surfaces to great taste effect. Overall a very nish night out, ending the birthday festival off nicely.

01.08.08: Omelet and panfried potatoes

She felt just ambitious enough to add panfried mini new potatoes with chili flakes to the Friday nite omelet option, which featured rocket in place of the usual spinach along with mature cheddar slices and lots of fresh dill. Supercrunch salad packed in the rest of the leftover celery as well as radishes, plus lime-zesty beetroot and avo.

SHE SAYS: Our favourite pan is stil turning out golden omelets, but must say rocket doesn't mix in nearly as nicely as spinach, despite tasty cloaks of cheddar and dill. The less shouty spinach would actually add more in terms of flavour. Can't really go wrong with fried potatoes, though these did not crisp up as much as I thought they had. But the salad took over in the crunch department, and I thought the lime beetroot a nice tangy change from the Sweetfire variety.

HE SAYS: This omelet was not too dry and not too runny and the dill added the authentic French bistro feel. Agree with Her that the 'taters were not as crunchy as they could've been but tasty nonetheless. Salad without beetroot? Oh no missus, not likely.

30.07.08: Quorn, fresh tomato-olive sauce, pesto gnocchi and snap peas

Bit of a mish-mash tonite: She was taking it easy with 2-minute gnocchi rolled in her freezer stash of ho-made pasto, a quick flip of lemon-pepper quorn escalopes in the pan, and snap peas zapped in the m-wave...but the thought of a dry quorn cutlet sticking in the throat sent Her to the store for some tomatoes and raiding the fridge for remaining garlic-stuffed olives (not to mention tipping in a little red wine) to make a fairly quick sauce. Salad of mango, beetroot and moz balls nestled in rocket leaves nearby.

HE SAYS: The gnocchi was tasty because of the yummy pesto but succeeded in putting me on the bloat boat bound for Stodge City and consequently I temporarily sport a more rotund profile. I enjoyed the special tamater sauciness over the top of the chi-qourn cutlets best, and the snap peas offered another fresh and crisp escape from the starchy gnocchi. The salad also was a fruitilicious and zingy addition to this food cruise.

SHE SAYS: Figured I'd use up that second pack of gnocchi we froze, but I'm not tempted to get it again - it becomes mush within a minute, and I thought it might disintegrate as I stirred in my pesto. V. filling but not v. nice, tho' the pesto was tangy and savoury enough. The 2-minute snap zap is highly recommended - the peapods emerge crispety-juicy and bright green. And how I do luv the quorn, esp with this sooper-easy sauce - no choppin' and not so much stirrin'. Salad was sweet and spicy, but I ws already experiencing the great potato expansion and couldn't finish.

13.07.08: Butterbnz with chorizo plus carrot-pumpkinseed salad

Sunday comfort food: butterbnz with chorizo and rocket, plus a salad of young mustard leaves, carrots prepared with the KTOTY, roasted pumpkinseeds, and an improvised dressing
of apple juice, lime juice, fresh basil, grated ginger and olive oil.

SHE SAYS: The butterbnz with chorizo never fail to fill me up right, all savoury and creamy, with a virtuous crunch of sorts from the rocket. I say this every time we have chorizo, so I might as well immortalise it here: I can't believe when I tried chorizo for the first time (2005), I hated it. And I know now it was v. good chorizo, too - thin slices not overly smoky or spice-hot, just salty and fatty. Yum! If I could turn back time...but anyway, the salad was excellent, this is such a great way to eat your carrots, but the dresssing (inspired by Mildred's) was only so-so. prob'ly needed more ginger, and maybe some cider vinegar.

HE SAYS: I luved the butter beans, even without the chorizo this dish would be a winner. Although traditionally a winter warmer, with the summer we are having you could eat it every day if you felt like it. With an intense gravy and herby stew-like consistency this one fills you up but don't bloat you out. The salad with the thin crunchy carrots and the fruity dressing made a fitting side dish and companion to the more umami packed bowl o' beans. More please.

14.02.08: Valentine Chickpeas

She decided to put a serendipitous discovery to the test and give Nigella's chickpeas with rocket and sherry a little Valentine's colour by way of pomegranate seeds. Faithful salad of mixed leaves, beetroot and cucumber was standing by.

SHE SAYS: I'm always impressed by how v. tasty this recipe is for something so simple - no chopping! The pomegranate seeds proved themselves fully up to the chickpea challenge when liberally sprinkled on top: juicy and tart, they made a delicious counterpoint to the soft, dry chickpeas and slightly bitter rocket leaves.

HE SAYS: Chickpeas were nice and tender and delicious. Thought the pomegranate seeds added a nice crunch and a little bit of Crystal made it perfect.