• karen_b0jywu on February 06, 2026

  Made the focaccia, the recipe was really easy to follow, it rose beautifully, baked like dream and tasted divine.

• SashaJackson on April 07, 2017

  Very good book indeed, this and Veg Everyday are my favourite River Cottage books. Inspirational when stuck for ideas.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Rhubarb and orange smoothie

  • Zosia on April 09, 2016

    I don't know that I would poach rhubarb specifically for this recipe again but the flavour combination was very nice, tart and not too sweet.

  • Rutabaga on May 08, 2016

    I made about 1.5x the recipe as written, using a mix two blood oranges and one cara cara orange. It is more work than usual for a smoothie, but comes together quickly when you cook the rhubarb the night before. It didn't make as much as I was hoping for, however, so I added about a cup of strawberries. This was just the right amount for my husband, four-year-old, and I to share, and I loved the additional sweetness the strawberries brought, while still letting the rhubarb be the star.

• Strawberry and mint smoothie

  • TrishaCP on June 17, 2019

    I really liked the mint here. The yield is off though- it only made enough for one smoothie.

• Peach Melba smoothie

  • eeeve on July 07, 2015

    Nice smoothie but didn't taste very peachy - the canned peaches I used were probably the culprit. Does surprisingly need the honey - otherwise a bit sharp.

  • Rutabaga on October 21, 2015

    I used frozen peaches, which made the smoothie more of a frozen desert (albeit a healthful one). Since my ratio of berries to peaches was high, the raspberry flavor was dominant. Raspberries can be a little seedy in smoothies, although this wasn't bad. All in all, it's a delicious smoothie for any time of day.

  • hbakke on April 09, 2022

    Nice smoothie. I used a couple small peeled oranges in place of the orange juice. The flavor is almost entirely raspberry with the orange and peach nearly undetectable.

• Banana and oat thickie

  • Rutabaga on April 25, 2015

    This is a good use for overripe bananas. It was the thickness of really heavy cream, not spoonable like many smoothies. I submitted a little of the milk with yogurt; using only yogurt might lead to a more smoothie-like consistency. As is, it's a filling and satisfying breakfast drink that takes only minutes to make.

  • eeeve on June 19, 2015

    Made this with coconut milk; it wasn't very thick, in fact rather on the thin side. Might be thicker when only yoghurt is used, and maybe with even more oats than stated in the recipe. But it's certainly a good way to use up overripe bananas.

• Honey-baked rhubarb

  • Hannaha100 on January 19, 2017

    Ever since I read the words "rhubarb compote" earlier today, I couldn't get it out of my head and in the end went and bought some rhubarb. I'll admit I used agave instead of honey but I still think this was disappointing and I've concluded I don't really like the combination of rhubarb and orange - a bit tart. Out of curiosity I looked it up and Nike Segnit isn't a fan in the flavour thesaurus either. I thought a pinch of cinnamon and brown sugar improved it but I don't think I'll make again.

  • Zosia on April 17, 2017

    I like the bright tasting combination of rhubarb and orange so I enjoyed this compote. It was particularly good with yogurt and my morning oatmeal.

  • eeeve on April 18, 2017

    A quick and easy way to prepare rhubarb; we also like the combo with orange. Our rhubarb stalks were squidgy and soft but held their shape nicely. The end result wasn't very sweet but stayed refreshingly tart.

• Honey and peanut butter booster bars

  • Zosia on April 09, 2016

    The author makes no claims that these are a healthy treat, just that they're better than most store-bought varieties, and they're easy to customize. I replaced the butter with coconut oil, used only half the brown sugar and added raisins, cranberries, flax, pumpkin and sunflower seeds. Still a little on the sweet side for me but family loved them. They were a little loose and sticky at room temperature the day they were baked but firmed up nicely the next day.

  • Rutabaga on March 11, 2018

    These are tasty, but rather sticky and gooey, even though I baked them 15 minutes longer than the recommended time. Perhaps adding extra oats would help firm them up a bit. I would definitely cut the sugar in half next time - while still enjoyable, they were much sweeter than necessary, especially since I used only apricots for the dried fruit. For seeds I used about half pumpkin and half sunflower. But they're quite easy, a good take-along snack for hiking, and something both kids seemed to enjoy, so worth making again.

• Banana booster bars

  • eeeve on February 23, 2015

    These are very nice and made for a very happy husband - but don't be fooled, they're not exactly healthy, what with the amount of butter and sugar that went in. But - we know what's in them and they are so much better than bought cereal bars. Oh, and definitely wait for it to have cooled down before attempting to cut into bars...

• Wholemeal drop scones

  • Hana.Sundet on January 23, 2023

    Not sure who added it, but the image given to this recipe is from the US version of this book, which seems to contain pancake recipes on the UK version's scone pages.

• Perfect pancakes

  • eeeve on February 21, 2023

    These ARE perfect crepe pancakes! Even worked without the 30 minutes resting period (due to hungry family). I find I need to turn up the heat a bit more than just to medium on my induction hob.

• Baked breakfast cheesecake

  • Yildiz100 on August 08, 2013

    This tasted like nothing but sweetened baked quark. The oatmeal didn't really bring it together, maybe the semolina would have worked better? It didn't seem particularly breakfast-y either. Also, it took nearly double the stated time to set up.

• Eggy bread with apples

  • Hannaha100 on May 20, 2017

    This was a lovely variant on eggy bread. Perfect for easy weekend breakfast. To repeat!

• Big mushrooms on toast

  • eeeve on January 27, 2015

    Really nice, love how the garlicky butter seeps into the mushrooms, but probably won't be making this too often, as it's slightly too indulgent for breakfast!

  • eliza on March 16, 2021

    Absolutely loved this dish! I used about 1/3 of the butter and it was still good, and used large portobello mushrooms. Took a little longer to cook the large mushrooms. We had these on my sourdough seedy rolls with buttermilk cheese sauce and salad. Definitely a repeat.

• Scrambled eggs with smoked pollack/haddock

  • Rutabaga on October 16, 2015

    This recipe is quite basic, but for me it really hits the spot at breakfast. I slow cook the eggs so they are creamy and soft, and use smoked trout for the fish.

• Six-seed soda bread

  • Melanie on August 08, 2011

    Recipe uses buttermilk (missing from ingredient list). Tastes so good!

  • Rutabaga on February 25, 2016

    The seed mix in this recipe is quite good, but I ran into the same problem I did with Heidi Swanson's rye soda bread recipe: the dough was too dry, and the loaf turned out heavy. This time, I did add more buttermilk, but the dough still was dryer and rougher than it probably should have been. In future, I think I need to incorporate an additional 1/3 cup of buttermilk right off the bat, then add a little more liquid or flour as needed.

  • Rutabaga on October 21, 2016

    I made this again and used a full two cups of buttermilk. Perfect! This was the soda bread I was hoping for, tender and not too heavy. Three of us polished off almost half of the loaf at dinner, and even the baby enjoyed some crumbs.

  • eliza on July 05, 2025

    Having read the notes from Rutabaga posted below, I had 2 cups buttermilk ready, and I added a splash of extra milk to bring it together. Baked 400 F convection for 45 min. Final loaf was very good and rose well. My only change next time would be to add a little extra salt. I used Flourist sifted red fife and all purpose flour in this. Will def repeat this as its extremely easy.

• Parsnip and thyme bread

  • Zosia on April 09, 2016

    This was a very dense loaf but had the really lovely complementary flavours of parsnip, thyme and Parmesan cheese to make up for that. Of course the texture was probably due in part to having replaced self-raising flour with regular all-purpose and the amount of baking powder I thought should go in.

  • johanna_lib7dz on April 13, 2026

    Plenty of sea salt on top before you cook

• Cornbread

  • e_ballad on November 07, 2017

    A great basic cornbread recipe, with a light crumb.

  • eliza on February 20, 2021

    Good basic cornbread. I used the brown sugar option, replaced some of the white flour with spelt and used sunflower oil instead of melted butter. Very quick and easy. Went well with west African peanut soup from the Moosewood collective.

• Focaccia

  • Rutabaga on January 04, 2017

    I mixed up this dough before work with a little chopped rosemary, let it rise for an hour, then pressed it out onto the pan and popped it in the fridge. When I returned in the evening, we were able to enjoy fresh baked bread for dinner without having to wait out the longer baking time required of larger loaves. The entire family loved it. As I used a half sheet pan, next time I need to be careful not to press the dough out too thinly. For the ideal height, one batch shouldn't be stretched beyond half of the pan.

  • sarahj22 on January 12, 2018

    I don't bake much bread but this is my go-to recipe when I do. The instructions are clear and it always seems to turn out beautifully. The directions state to 'lightly' coat the baking tray with oil but be careful not to scrimp too much, as this is what gives the focaccia its distinctive yellowish crust. But even when I used too little oil it was still absolutely delicious. I like serving this with dipping oil and balsamic, pesto, olives, charcuterie, etc.

• Bill's Rona oatcakes

  • Rutabaga on May 17, 2015

    I'm not entirely sure what to make of these oatcakes. Perhaps because I was so excited to make them, I couldn't help but be let down when they turned out differently from what I had expected. While this should have been obvious for a recipe with no sugar and only neutral oil, I was still surprised to find them bland and dry on their own - in contrast with a type of oatcake my grandmother makes that is enriched with milk, butter, and sugar. But as Fearnley-Whittingstall rhapsodizes over eating them with marmalade and cheese, I decided to do likewise, and found they were quite tasty when topped with Norwegian snofrisk (creamy goat cheese) and berry jam. The dough was pretty difficult to work with, requiring a lot of flour to keep it from sticking to the work surface, which I hope didn't toughen them.

• Sardine Niçoise lunch(box)

  • Hana.Sundet on June 15, 2022

    Quick, savory meal from my pantry staples! Since I don't have green beans, yet, I grabbed some mustard greens from the garden. The whole family loved it, so it's a keeper!

• Chicken with couscous, honey and cinnamon

  • Crumbles on October 08, 2023

    Hugh F/Whitt continues to delight me. This simple recipe was a triumph. The flavours came together perfectly. This is going on my precious 'healthy regular repeats' list.

• Spinach, bacon and goat's cheese frittata

  • Zosia on May 23, 2017

    Easy and very tasty. I used pancetta and pre-cooked fiddleheads in place of the bacon and spinach respectively.

  • Rutabaga on November 22, 2017

    This frittata was delicious, and pretty easy to pull together. I cooked mine just slightly longer than would have been ideal (at least in my opinion); you'll want to keep a close eye on it when in the oven. The kids weren't big fans, the the adults enjoyed it.

• Chicken and leek pasties

  • Zosia on February 06, 2016

    Since I was making this to use up leftover chicken and time was limited, I skipped the pastry and used frozen puff pastry. The mustard added great flavour to the filling, which was moist but not runny, just what you're looking for in a hand pie.

• Leftover stew pasties

  • eliza on April 24, 2019

    These worked well, although I used a different pastry that I had in the fridge. The quality of this dish depends on how good your leftover stew is...I added some peas to mine and really liked them in the finished product. I froze the leftovers and I'm pretty sure they will reheat well.

• Lentil and squash pasties

  • Zosia on April 23, 2017

    I would never have thought of using cooked lentils as a hand pie filling but they worked quite well. The sweetness of the squash was balanced by the mustard and vinegar and their sharpness cut the richness of the pastry. I used frozen puff instead of home made.

• Tabula kisir

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    The dressing was the highlight of this herby bulgur salad. Flavoured with tomato, paprika, chile and cumin, it would be delicious with most grains.

• Very lemony hummus

  • JFM on June 26, 2013

    Firm favourite.

• Beetroot and walnut hummus

  • eliza on July 23, 2015

    Really good! I made this after seeing the program. It's easy to make and freezes well, tastes quite strongly of cumin so some may want to reduce the amount.

  • Grumbletum on March 16, 2026

    I reduced the cumin as per readers recommendation. The recipe worked well. Was tasty used as a pizza sauce. Makes a large quantity which can be a bit monotonous to get through. Recommend for jazzing up with other flavours

• Parsley and pumpkin seed pesto

  • Zosia on April 17, 2017

    So simple yet so good. It wasn't as rich or strongly flavoured as a traditional pine nut-basil pesto but the nuttiness of the pumpkin seeds came through.

  • Rutabaga on December 11, 2017

    I really liked this pesto. It's a good option when basil isn't at its peak, and the flavor of the pumpkin seeds really shines and is a good match for the parsley. We stirred it into the potato and fennel soup, also found in River Cottage Every Day. When making the pesto in the blender, I followed the blending instructions as listed in the recipe (imagine that!) and found it came together much more easily than had I thrown everything together simultaneously.

• Fried fish fillets with roasted tomato sauce

  • JLDuck on March 27, 2017

    Reasonable recipe. Found that the effort and time to make that sauce did not significantly add to the dish.

• Fried fish fillets with herbs and lemon

  • treay on November 14, 2024

    This is a recipe that I have made several times using different types of fish, depending of what it is available, and it is simple, fast & delicious. The sauce is made with fresh herbs such as parsley, basil or mint, capers, garlic, lemon rind and lemon. Just put all ingredients in a small food processor and it's ready. Last night I cooked fillets of flake and served them with some boiled potatoes and steamed green beans with just a bit of olive oil. A real example of simple but delicious food.

• Roast fish fillets with roast potatoes

  • consortiumlibrary on April 25, 2016

    The potato roasting technique is terrific. The resulting potatoes are crisp on the outside and creamy on the inside; in other words, perfect. I wasn't a fan of cooking fish in the potato pan. Fishy juices compromised the crisp potato crust, plus, pan-fried fish just tastes way better. On the pro side, cooking fish in the potato pan is easier than pan-frying. Bottom line: I'll use the potato technique often and stick with pan-frying my fish.

• Foil-baked fish fillets with fennel, ginger and chilli

  • GardenerKaren on March 13, 2013

    I didn't have a fresh chilli so used a generous teaspoon of crushed chilli instead - it was maybe a bit too hot/overpowering!

  • GardenerKaren on March 13, 2013

    Our fennel was pretty big/mature so I used just half a bulb - plenty. It would have benefitted from cooking longer to start with.

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    I used grouper which worked beautifully with the Asian flavours and the sauce that was generated was delicious tossed with some noodles.

• Roasted slashed fish with aromatic paste

  • Zosia on May 29, 2017

    I made the herby paste variation using parsley, dill, chives, garlic and lemon. Slashing the fish makes serving a little trickier but ensures the flavours are in every bite. Simple and delicious.

  • JLDuck on November 26, 2018

    Truly delicious. The flavourings sound intense but the result was lightly flavoured flesh.

• Shin of beef with ginger and soy

  • saladdays on December 10, 2011

    This is an excellent way to cook shin of beef. The combination of flavours, soy, ginger, redcurrant and apple makes a very tasty sauce for the meat. It is worth cooking slowly and like all casseroles benefits from cooking earlier and then reheating.

  • kaylib on March 03, 2026

    This is one of our repeat family favourites. Really delicious.

• Leftover pork with fennel and new potatoes

  • saladdays on April 24, 2012

    Had the pork and the potatoes but no fennel, found pak choi in the fridge and used that instead. A quick and easy recipe that made a very comforting supper. Will try it with the fennel next time !

  • eliza on May 01, 2016

    Such an easy and adaptable recipe with leftover meat and potatoes and added fennel. I've made with deli corned beef, pork, and ham and all were delicious; the fennel goes really well with the meat. I usually omit the mint. This can also be made as a vegetarian dish by omitting the meat as the potatoes and fennel work so well together.

• Apple and almond pudding cake

  • Cheri on November 04, 2012

    This was REALLY good. Increased batter qty's by 50% because I had a 10 inch pan - not 8 inch. Result was thin but adequate cake with the apples. Used 5-6 med fuji apples, which were fine. Warm from the oven - outstanding! Baked one hour.

  • eeeve on October 13, 2014

    Hugh calls this a "criminally good" cake - and it's true! It's great warm or cold, works with apples, pears, plums; have also tried ground walnuts instead of almonds, and it always tastes fantastic. One of my go-to cake recipes.

  • eliza on July 11, 2021

    Fantastic cake, and so easy to make. I have made it with apples and pears. So good, made it for guests and birthdays at work, everyone seems to love this cake, and it’s my most requested cake (and I make a lot of cakes).

  • eeeve on October 02, 2017

    Recipe available here: https://www.cooked.com/uk/Hugh-Fearnley-Whittingstall/Bloomsbury-Publishing-Plc/River-Cottage-Every-Day/Treats/Apple-and-almond-pudding-cake-recipe

  • eeeve on June 22, 2019

    What a fantastically versatile recipe - made this with gooseberries from the garden which came out fab! Increased the batter quantities by 50% and used just under 500g of gooseberries which I'd mixed with 25g of sugar. Increased baking time by about 15 minutes. Delicious.

  • CourtneyT on October 04, 2025

    I followed the recipe as written and am completely underwhelmed. I found this a bit too sweet and rather insipid. There are much better apple cake recipes available! Will not revisit.

  • treay on November 10, 2024

    Delicious and simple to make. You can have it warm or cold. We had it cold and it is beautiful with some yoghurt on the side.

• Leeks with greens

  • Cheri on November 04, 2012

    Very good. Served with Chicken and Mushroom cassarole with cider (same book). Leeks added nice flavor to mixed sauted greens.

  • eliza on November 11, 2019

    This is a very simple and tasty dish. I usually use curly kale or black kale since I have a good supply of those from the garden. I like the contrast of the soft buttery leeks with the sturdy greens. I usually add a few drops of lemon juice at the end. This would go with any meat/protein dish. We find this dish very good and make it often.

  • Bloominanglophile on April 09, 2025

    This was a delicious side-dish made with simple ingredients--leeks and, in my case, green cabbage.

  • Rutabaga on March 23, 2019

    This isn't a particularly exciting dish, but it's a good, solid side to serve that would go with just about any meal.

• Chicken and mushroom casserole with cider

  • Cheri on November 04, 2012

    Very good and tasty. Unfortunately, had to substitute dijon mustard for the english (all I had), which probably would spice this up, a bit, but was a good match for the cider. Baked chicken covered at 350 deg for 1 hr., then uncovered for 12 more minutes (short on time...). Removed chicken and mushroom from cassarole, and finished sauce on the stovetop in the same pan. Returned chicken to the pot. Served over buttered egg noodles to sop up this delicious sauce. Accompanied by leeks with greens from the same book. Nice combination. I will definately make this again.

  • mjes on September 03, 2021

    I assumed hard cider; I only had dry English mustard so I improvised making English mustard on the spot; I used a mix of mushrooms simply because I felt like it; I practiced breaking down a whole chicken just to have more boney pieces to impart flavor. I was pleased with the result and was glad to have fingerling potatoes to sop up the gravy.

• Cauliflower cheese

  • Cheri on November 06, 2012

    This was good, but not a weeknight endeavor -- too time consuming. Added some broccoli as I did not have enough cauliflower. This worked well. Very rich and filling. Substituted swiss/gruyere mix for chedder cheese which worked well. Served with grilled chicken sausages, nice combination.

• French beans with tomatoes

  • saladdays on September 04, 2013

    A good way to use mature French beans that need extra cooking, add some water to the tomato mixture so that it does not stick to the pan.

• Lamb chops with garlic, thyme and capers

  • LisaR12 on October 13, 2013

    wow, i'm not a fan of lamb, but this dish has possibly converted me. very easy to cook. Meat came out lovely and tender and the sauce is very flavoursome.

• Chorizo carbonara

  • bhasenstab on October 26, 2013

    This was truly delicious! The sauce is a moderately spicy, creamy, deconstructed carbonara -- almost like an alfredo. The crispy bits of Mexican chorizo are delicious, and the suggested proportions ensure you get some meat in almost every bite. Use a spaghetti rigati and you can't miss. This dish strikes me as a great autumn dinner, and I can promise you, we will be making it again soon.

  • SashaJackson on April 07, 2017

    Very good recipe, now in my regular recipe rotation. It is best made using the homemade tupperware chorizo rather than buying ready made. Delicious, clean plates guaranteed!

• Roast breast of lamb with lemon and apricots

  • jammydodger on July 21, 2014

    Really good. Great way to use a budget cut of meat without it being too fatty. The fennel and onions were lovely too. Perfect with couscous and a side of Savoy cabbage mixed with a bit of mint sauce.

• Roast plum sorbet with chocolate brownies

  • Christine on August 12, 2014

    Made the sorbet only which was very delicious. I've made and really enjoyed the 'Wild plum sherbet' from Chez Panisse Desserts, but thought I'd try this one because it doesn't call for making a sugar syrup. This version couldn't be easier since all the ingredients (plums, sugar, water) get roasted in the oven together and there's not much more to it. After the mixture cooled a bit, I ran it through my food mill instead of rubbing it through a sieve -- it makes the task much easier if you have this tool available. I chilled the mixture overnight before churning it. The recipe didn't specify a yield, but it definitely made more than a quart because it started to overflow my machine a bit. By the time that happened though, it was already mostly frozen, so I just scooped two servings off the top for my husband & I to eat fresh and let the rest churn a few more minutes. Next time I would leave a portion of the mixture on the side to churn later or scale the recipe back (3/4 probably).

• Rabbit stew with tomato

  • eeeve on October 21, 2014

    Easy recipe for a rabbit first-timer. Didn't have bacon, so left it out, which didn't seem to be missing as the rabbit's already got such a strong taste. Thought the stew could do with just a few more veg in it, and increased the oven temperature to 160C after an hour (I like to see a stew bubbling when I take it out of the oven!), but apart from that it was quite nice.

• Roast Jerusalem artichoke, hazelnut and goat's cheese salad

  • Rutabaga on April 20, 2015

    Delicious! We loved the combination of hazelnuts, Jerusalem artichokes, and goat cheese (I used goat cheddar). I had only about a half pound of Jerusalem artichokes, so downsized the recipe and added extra arugula. It's a very easy salad to make, but you have to allow about 35 minutes for the artichokes to roast.

• Lemon sponge pudding

  • JLDuck on June 07, 2015

    Recommended for people who love a very tart lemon taste. Fresh cream as an accompaniment is highly advised.

• Lemony courgettes on toast

  • eeeve on June 18, 2015

    Quick, simple, thrifty, tasty!

  • Hannaha100 on January 19, 2017

    This was one of the most simple yet delicious things I've eaten in a while. The only element that let it down was the bread and that was my bad for not buying better bread. I had half with lemony hummus which was also nice, but I think I preferred the simple version. If my husband didn't hate courgettes so much I would be making this again and again.

  • eliza on November 09, 2021

    Very easy to make and uses those many zucchini from the garden. Very quick to put together too.

• Fried halloumi salad

  • Rutabaga on August 25, 2015

    This is a nice, healthful salad, made a little decadent with the addition of fried cheese. I felt it was lacking something - then realized it was because I forgot to add the onion! So, I would definitely include the onion for a nice little bite. The salad provides a good combination of crunchy, salty, herby, and sweet (with the tomatoes).

• Easy rich chocolate cake

  • ithyt on September 27, 2015

    9.13 Great dessert cake.

  • eliza on March 21, 2019

    This is a lovely cake and so easy to make. I love the addition of ground almonds with the chocolate. I made a half recipe and baked in a smaller tin at 350 convection for 25 minutes. It doesn't rise a lot; the final texture is more brownie like and less like a fluffy cake. Will definitely make this again and again. (This recipe is available on epicurious, however the final 2 ingredients seem off to me. In the original recipe both flour and ground almond are at 50 g; I would stick with those amounts.) One of our favourite easy cakes.

  • etcjm on June 05, 2020

    Very good dessert cake. So many chocolate cakes are so similar in ingredients and I cook chocolate cloud cake and brownies often. This with the small amount of ground almonds and (in my case gluten free) plain flour just changes the texture slightly. Eaten with extra thick double cream. Very rich and tasty. Hope it's as nice cold tomorrow. Will be done again.

• Warm leek and white bean salad with mustard dressing

  • Rutabaga on November 13, 2015

    The combination of white beans, sauteed leeks, and mustard vinaigrette blends together perfectly. I served it over arugula as an accompaniment to a pasta dish, but it would also be great as a simple lunch served on hearty toast.

  • eliza on May 06, 2026

    I used this as inspiration for my own dish…sautéed leeks with green onions and baby bok choy. I added herbes salé and my own garlic salt and sprinkled with sumac. I used my own cooked chickpeas for the beans. This was piled onto a split homemade roll and topped with a small amount of sharp cheddar and grilled. Made a delicious lunch, will make again.

  • eeeve on September 26, 2022

    We like this too, it comes together quickly which is a bonus in our house. We usually just add the mustards and honey straight to the pan, not bothering with vinegar etc, and serve it with rice or grains.

  • treay on November 14, 2024

    Another favourite recipe from his book. It's the perfect recipe to make when you do not have much time to cook dinner. It is very tasty, especially if you serve it with some halloumi cheese. A fantastic vegetarian dish. I like to use two types of beans, tinned cannellini and butter beans. You just fry two finely sliced leeks in a bit of olive oil, and then add the beans and warm them. You add the mustard dressing while they are still in the pan and serve on top of salad leaves. Delicious!

• Seedy spinach salad

  • Rutabaga on December 10, 2015

    This is a perfect fast salad to make in the winter using mostly pantry ingredients. If you buy pre-washed baby spinach, it can be on the table in only 5-10 minutes. Dates would be a nice, pantry friendly addition, too.

  • eeeve on December 11, 2015

    Agreed - a speedy seedy salad! As suggested in the ingredients list, I substituted poppy for hemp seeds and used the olive/rapeseed oil combo for the dressing. I liked how the tiny seeds were clinging to the spinach leaves.

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    Amazing how the addition of some seeds could transform what is essentially a very simple salad of spinach dressed with oil and lemon juice. I particularly liked the pumpkin seeds with the greens.

• Lentil soup with caraway and minted yoghurt

  • Zosia on April 09, 2016

    The caraway really overwhelmed the other flavours in the soup and I didn't quite see the point of adding a cooling yogurt element to a soup that had no heat. I added some lemon juice for another layer of flavour and followed the suggestion of serving it with hot chilli oil. I won't be making this one again.

• Jerusalem artichoke and nettle gratin

  • Rutabaga on April 13, 2016

    This gratin brings together a really interesting blend of flavors and textures. Since nettles can be rather strong, spinach would probably be a good substitution if you want a dish that's not as assertive. The instructions (at least in the U.S. edition) seem to have an error, as they instruct you to slice the Jerusalem artichokes into one inch thick rounds. I don't see how such thick pieces could possibly cook in the time allotted, so sliced mine thinly, much like what you see in the photo accompanying the recipe. That worked perfectly; in fact, they were still slightly crunchy after 25 minutes in the oven. Also, my gratin was on the dry side, whether because I used mostly creme fraiche in place of the cream, reduced the cream further, had more artichokes than called for, or let the gratin sit out for a couple of hours prior to baking, I don't know. But I loved it regardless, and will make it again when Jerusalem artichokes are back in season.

  • Sloveloc on March 20, 2025

    The UK edition says to cut the Jerusalem artichokes into 3mm thick rounds. I’ve made this several times with leeks instead of nettles (added with the onion at the start) and it’s delicious.

• Roast carrots with butter, cumin and orange

  • Rutabaga on April 16, 2016

    The sweet orange and savory cumin really compliment these delicious roasted carrots. This dish is very easy to put together, but takes about an hour to roast, so plan accordingly.

• My herby barbecued chicken

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    This is a very good, basic recipe for marinade that added lots of flavour to some skinless, boneless chicken breasts,

• Carrot, orange and chervil salad

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    A very fresh and bright salad with lots of texture that's particularly good with spicy food.

• Tupperware Mexican chorizo (meatballs)

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    This is a great mixture to have in the freezer whenever a recipe calls for spicy sausage meat. I used lean ground pork and made meatballs with most of the mixture - delicious - and fried the remainder until very crisp to add to the book's Seedy Spinach salad.

  • SashaJackson on April 07, 2017

    Excellent flavour, I use free range pork mince and store batches in the freezer. It is very good used in the carbonara recipe.

  • FJT on June 12, 2017

    When I first made this and fried a little bit to check the seasoning, I was tempted to add more paprika. However I decided to leave it for a few days and see how the flavours developed and I'm glad I did. It tastes really nice as is. I've used this to stuff a pot roast (boliche mechado) and for a sweet potato - chorizo hash so far and the rest is destined to become pork chorizo burgers (from Dinner). I will be making this regularly as it is easy and tasty.

• Rhubarb clafoutis

  • Zosia on April 27, 2016

    I used the first of the season's rhubarb which is roasted first with orange and cinnamon to make this delicious dessert. Though the liquid generated isn't used in the clafoutis, those flavours were present in the rhubarb. Mine took a little longer to bake than the time stipulated. I served it with fresh strawberries and a drizzle of the rhubarb roasting liquid.

• Macerated strawberries

  • Melanie on July 28, 2016

    I used regular balsamic vinegar and only left the mixture for an hour. I ate it by itself but I imagine it would go really well with vanilla ice cream.

• Raspberry and honey cranachan

  • Rutabaga on August 20, 2016

    Fresh raspberries are always a treat, and this is lovely way to dress them up, especially on a hot summer day - no cooking required, beyond a quick toasting of the oats. The oats add a little texture to what is essentially a raspberry fool, and the whisky, along with the fact that it is only lightly sweetened, give the dessert a bit of an adult edge.

• Spiced lamb burgers

  • Frogcake on November 05, 2016

    We really enjoyed these lamb burgers, which I served on pita. I doubled the spice blend for the burgs to save on time, and added a tablespoon of the blend to one cup of yogurt. No regrets, tasted great!

  • Zosia on April 23, 2017

    Most of the spices were of the non-hot variety and they helped produce a really flavourful burger. The minty yogurt was a great condiment but I realized too late that I was supposed to toast and grind extra spices for it; I used pre-ground and they added nothing so I think I'll just omit them from the yogurt next time.

  • TrishaCP on June 06, 2024

    Very flavorful burgers.

  • sarahj22 on July 04, 2025

    Completely delicious. Probably my favourite burger recipe. The lamb goes beautifully with the spices and the yogurt sets it off beautifully. The yogurt uses a lot of the same spices as the burger, but if I've been in a rush I sometimes sub the listed recipe for some plain yogurt mixed with garlic, lemon juice and plenty of salt and pepper.

  • anna_66imxn on March 07, 2026

    So good with naked slaw (dressed with vinegar) cucumber lettuce and tomatoes Didn't make the spiced yogurt and had garlic mayo instead Had a kebab vibe but in the best way

• Chocolate and beetroot brownies

  • e_ballad on November 12, 2016

    Had a taste test of several beetroot brownies to find a favourite. This was great, but still not my favorite. The cooking time was at the latter end of the scale with our oven & was still very gooey (a good thing!).

  • eliza on August 16, 2020

    These are good brownies, very moist and rich. I love beetroot and they worked well in these. Mine also took a little longer to bake.

• Roast beetroot with balsamic, rosemary and garlic

  • e_ballad on November 13, 2016

    This was ok, but would suggest erring on the lower end of the cooking time as the garlic was burnt to charcoal. I used 2x very large beetroot (just shy of 1kg total), cut into 12ths - would recommend 8ths into the future as the beetroot was also overcooked.

• Devilled lamb's hearts

  • eeeve on March 18, 2017

    This dish tastes nice, with a hot and spicy sauce. The hearts came out a bit tough; either the temperature was too high or they needed a bit longer than the recipe stated. Our main grumble would be the amount of preparation time for what is essentially a snack (it took a long time to trim the hearts plus 2 hours cooking plus the devilling stage plus quite a lot of washing up). Would recommend doing the option with lentils to make it more into a main meal. Leftovers very nice with scrambled eggs for breakfast!

• Lemon curd marble muffins

  • CBH on March 22, 2017

    I used blueberries. Lovely and moist

  • Laurel21 on October 10, 2022

    The mixture is enough for a 6" cake

• Sausage and root vegetable stew

  • SashaJackson on April 07, 2017

    Very tasty comfort food. It is an adaptable recipe; I use whatever root veg I have on hand and have also found bulb fennel a good addition, I use all cider instead of topping up with water as this gives a better flavour. Using great quality sausages is essential and some wholgrain mustard on the side is rather good too.

  • Gallsally on December 12, 2020

    This dish acted something like a salvation tonight - I've been a bit ill, and this is the first meal I've really enjoyed all week. We used good quality pork and mustard sausages, diluted cider vinegar instead of cider, added a garlic clove in with the leeks and onions, used swede instead of celariac, and added a spoonful of my homemade stock (from anja dunk's recipe - based on celariac). No other salt, but a good grinding of pepper. Absolutely delicious, full of flavour and goodness.

  • e_ballad on August 25, 2017

    A good hearty winter feed. Very easy to prepare & on the table 1 hour later. As there's not any competing flavours to disguise the ingredients, I'd agree with SashaJackson that this recipe will only yield a great result if really good ingredients are used.

• Baked chicken curry

  • okcook on July 09, 2024

    Very tasty. It is a mild curry. I had to add more chili. The only problem for us was there was way too much sauce. I am going to freeze some portions of the sauce and use it with more chicken.

  • scarlettclm on May 11, 2026

    Delicious and relatively hands off - a great weeknight meal if you can get some prep done earlier.

• Salad of baby peas, ricotta and spring onions

  • eliza on July 05, 2021

    I made this salad because I had onions, peas, and thyme from the garden, and it was delicious. I did use goat cheese instead of the ricotta, and added lots of pepper to the dressing. My onions were red onions from the garden instead of spring onions. Definitely more than the sum of its parts, I will repeat this.

• Apple and walnut crumble

  • eliza on November 13, 2019

    A very nice crumble and easy to make. I used the optional ground almonds and I don't think they added anything. Ultimately I like my Mum's apple crisp recipe better so I will continue to make that one.

  • Hannaha100 on June 09, 2019

    Made apple crumble minus walnuts using independent crumble. Apples took a little more preparation than the rhubarb compote version (peeling, coring and slicing apples) but very easy overall. Enjoyed by whole family, would repeat. I used 3 Bramley apples for an approximate half portion (4 servings).

• Curried fish pie

  • eeeve on January 02, 2018

    We love this fish pie, the curry taste is great, and the béchamel sauce is creamy and rich (> not exactly a healthy dish, but never mind). It's a bit of a faff to make, but as it's the only fish pie recipe we've ever made, we haven't got a comparison. The one thing I'd note is to put enough curry powder in so it doesn't come out bland.

• Celeriac soup

  • eeeve on March 08, 2021

    I had some leeks, half a celeriac and a few potatoes to use up, so this recipe fitted the bill, even though the quantities weren't quite right. I had more leeks than celeriac, so the soup definitely had more of a leek vibe to it. But it tasted nice, and it did remind me to use that under-rated vegetable celeriac more. I also added a tin of cannellini beans for some protein (inspired by Anna Jones' use of a tin of butter beans in her leek/celeriac soup). Pretty easy dish, would make again.

• Gill's poached leek and Dorset Blue Vinny tart

  • Rinshin on September 10, 2021

    This sounded so good with blue cheese and leek, but it turned out to be quite a wasteful recipe. Should have used a prepared pie plate or made it into a savory pie because it made way too much custard filling and short dough for a home kitchen tart pan. Frustrating with some cookbook baking recipes as I feel some are not tested in home kitchen. Don’t have this problem with CI or Milk Street recipes. Timing is off on baking too. Instead of 25 min baking, it came out to be over 45 min and it was still not as browned as book photo. It did jiggle in the middle as recipe stated when done so I took it out. Tastes good, but next time use a pie plate and make it into a quiche like recipe. Photo added.

• Honey wholemeal cake

  • Zosia on April 23, 2017

    Very soft and moist with a wonderful nutty caramel flavour. I used whole wheat pastry flour and 1 tsp baking powder in place of the wholemeal self-rising flour and it worked well.

• Roasted tomato sauce

  • dyanarose on August 26, 2023

    This was a great way to use a lot of tomatoes. Went very well with plaice and roasted summer vegetables.

• Butternut and nut butter soup

  • Jojobuch on May 06, 2019

    Very pleasant surprise! The peanut butter made it very creamy, even though I only ended up using half the amount specified in the recipe - I simply mixed it in with my immersion blender at the same time as purreeing the squash.

  • Pimlicocook on November 05, 2024

    Really enjoyed this! Made a single portion in my pressure cooker (5 minutes) and used about the right amount of peanut butter - I was a little worried it would overwhelm the soup, but not at all! It added wonderful warmth and depth. Yogurt and toasted pumpkin seeds on top. Perfect autumn soup - will make again.

  • CourtneyT on November 19, 2025

    Rich and delicious! I used the full amount of peanut butter which seems like a lot when you weigh it out but it really works. I used a food processor to make a fine mix of the onion, garlic, chili and ginger. My squash fell apart beautifully so I didn’t bother with blending as the small chunks are welcomed in this house. Recommended!

• Five-root soup with bacon

  • ksg518 on November 16, 2020

    Very nice soup. I used pancetta. I also used turnips instead of the rutabaga and when I realized I didn't have any celery root, I added some extra turnips and potatoes. This is a nice way to use up bits of root vegetables you may have since it calls for a cup of each cut into small cubes.

• Smoked fish and spinach omelette

  • Rutabaga on June 02, 2017

    I've made similar omelettes in the past, and this version is particularly good. Adding greens and browning it under the broiler help it to stand out. I used smoked trout and, in place of the spinach, arugula. To accommodate my children's tastes, I also only topped half of the omelette with arugula, and they happily ate the greens-free version. It makes a lovely simple supper.

• Potato and fennel soup

  • Rutabaga on December 11, 2017

    This is a lovely fragrant soup, and very easy to put together. Because my husband prefers chunky soups, I didn't puree it. I had only one and half fennel bulbs, so the fennel flavor was fairly light, but I think that was probably just right for us, and it would probably still appeal to those who don't favor fennel. We served it with the pumpkin seed parsley pesto from the same book, which was a really good pairing. The soup is good on its own, too, but the pesto made it feel more substantial.

• Parsley potatoes

  • Rutabaga on March 14, 2018

    These were delicious - no doubt all the butter contributed to that. I didn't have new potatoes, but cut Yukon Golds into roughly two-inch pieces and boiled them until tender. While the interior was only just cooked through, the exterior of the potatoes became very mushy when mixed with the butter. But as Hugh himself notes, they actually taste pretty good when they get a little fuzzy.

• Bloody Mary burgers with horseradish dressing

  • Rutabaga on April 02, 2018

    In the U.S. version of this cookbook, there seem to be some errors. Firstly, the recipe calls for three pounds of beef - far too much for four burgers. I instead used about a pound and a half of ground turkey, which I formed into six patties. I also added extra Worcestershire sauce. The burger sauce recipe, on the other hand, seems to make too little; it would be just enough for one or two burgers. I used the sauce recipe as a base, but made it with mayonnaise instead of creme fraiche, and also increased the amounts. Unfortunately, I didn't have any fresh horseradish, so used only bottled. All in all, this added some nice flavor to the burgers, and it's a very easy alternative to plain burgers. Even though I included a few tablespoons of horseradish in with the meat, the patties were still mild enough for the kids to enjoy.

  • e_ballad on April 03, 2018

    In response to Rutabaga’s note regarding the error in the US version of this recipe, UK version calls for 600-750g = 1.3-1.5 lb.

• PSB with chorizo and soft-hard-boiled eggs

  • JLDuck on February 10, 2018

    Used a variety of green vegetables (broccoli, Choi sum etc) and worked a treat.

• Rhubarb compote

  • Hannaha100 on June 09, 2019

    Very quick and easy - made for crumble. -Should have thought to use orange juice from carton as a shortcut. Enjoyed by daughter, will repeat.

• Stewed venison with juniper and bay

  • e_ballad on July 06, 2019

    Unfortunately, we were quite underwhelmed by this stew. We couldn’t detect the juniper flavour & despite attempting to reduce the ‘gravy’, it was simply concentrated stock.

• Roast chicken with pearl barley or spelt

  • e_ballad on August 08, 2019

    An ok roast chook. The stuffing held enough interest from a flavour perspective, but any that was exposed from the cavity was rock-hard & inedible. Roughly half of the quantity of stuffing was able to fit within the cavity.

• French beans with seeds and almonds

  • treay on November 14, 2024

    The crunchy nut and seeds over the beans was beautiful.

• Stuffed butternut squash

  • treay on February 13, 2026

    It's lovely when the weather starts to get a bit colder to have some baked vegetables. This butternut pumpkin is real comfort food. It is so easy to make and it tastes so good!! And there are so many stuffing variations you can also make. Have cooked it plenty of times.

• Independent crumble

  • Hannaha100 on June 09, 2019

    Made this week (minus the almonds) and used 1/3 with the rhubarb compote for crumble and the rest for apple crumble a few days later. Great concept to make and keep the crumble for an easy dessert - will repeat in the future.

• Chocolate marble muffins

  • elliot_7xvuk1 on February 06, 2026

    Crunchy tops, texture inside the muffin was just ok.

• Ten-minute chocolate chip cookies

  • elliot_7xvuk1 on February 06, 2026

    Makes a crisp, dry, very sweet cookie. If that’s your type of cookie you will like this.

  • anna_66imxn on March 31, 2026

    This contains one egg omitted from the list

  • anna_66imxn on March 31, 2026

    Made before as written and one of the best cookie recipes I've come across. Used an egg replacement for dietary reasons and came out more like rock cakes

• Plain chocolate brownies

  • alexis_br9l7i on May 11, 2026

    Delicious and decadent brownie with the right fudgy-ness to it. I cooked it in my ninja multicooker which may be why it needed longer to cook through at a lower temperature. Recommend.

• Cheddar, chilli, sweetcorn and spring onion cornbread

  • e_ballad on November 07, 2017

    This is fantastic. In previous outings, I’ve increased the corn up to 250g without any detrimental effects & used sweet chilli sauce instead of the chillies. So incredibly quick to get to the table too.

• Kitchn

  I would love to cook my way through this book one delicious meal at a time. The range of recipes...makes it a great book for new cooks, but there's also plenty here for seasoned cooks, too.

  Full review