• sarahj22 on March 06, 2025

  Hangover Pasta: This was really nice but maybe not more than the sum of its parts. I chose it because it sounded like a beautifully decadent treat meal (using both chorizo and mascarpone). It was rich and tasty, but I think there are other creamy pasta dishes that I prefer. If making again I'd probably choose basil over parsley as the finishing herb and ramp up the chilli flakes. I'd expected my three year old to love this but she wasn't a fan. Paired with balsamic-dressed salad and garlic bread.

• sarahj22 on March 02, 2025

  Harissa Red Pepper Soup with Halloumi Croutons: Easy and delicious. I had intended to make both the parsley oil and the croutons but ended up making neither, so I was prepared for the soup to be a bit bland, but it was very tasty. A lovely comforting bowl. I'm looking forward to making it again with the extras. My three year old ate this (with some persuasion) and my mum requested the recipe.

• sarahj22 on February 24, 2025

  Sausage, squash and taleggio traybake: This was lovely - beautiful autumnal flavours with piquancy from the parsley, lemon and cornichon salsa. Also very easy to throw together. I'd mainly chosen it to use up some kitchen bits that had been lingering (freezer sausages, a squash, half a pack of parsley, seeded bread outsiders instead of sourdough, half a pack of feta instead of taleggio) but it's a definite repeat. I wasn't sure I would enjoy kale but roasted in this way is lovely. I've borrowed this book from the library, but if other recipes are as enjoyable as this I'll definitely be investing in a copy.

• Happykikkers on September 23, 2024

  21/08/24 - Chipotle Tomatoes with White Beans and Feta (p57). This was really nice and we barely had leftovers (which was a nice lunch the next day!). Did not use coriander and I think I used more feta. Supermarket was out of chipotle paste so subbed for chipotle sauce and added extra.

• Happykikkers on September 23, 2024

  21/08/24 - Curried Chicken Legs With Cheesy Polenta (p129). I liked it, but my husband didn’t fancy the polenta due to its texture. It was my first time cooking polenta, so I might just need some more practice. The chicken was a hit.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Coconut and chilli beef shin pie

  • erinjane on August 19, 2025

    I think this recipe is missing ‘water’. After one hour in the oven on low all liquid had evaporated and it had started to char and stick to the pot - was meant to be in there for four hours. Ended up like a dry rendang.

• Cauliflower shawarma bowls

  • erinjane on May 04, 2025

    Good but needs more seasoning, lemon, olive oil, etc.

• Spinachy lentils with sticky tamarind paneer

  • petrinapascoe on July 11, 2025

    I think there is an error in this recipe! It said add the spinach and extra water to the lentil pan which resulted in an epic fail! I think it should have been added to the onion pan as later it said blitz half the spinach-onion mix. Maybe if I'd done that it would have worked but it didn't and had to be thrown out! On a plus though the sticky paneer was great and I would make that again.

• Sausage, squash and Taleggio traybake

  • sarahj22 on October 28, 2025

    This was lovely - beautiful autumnal flavours with piquancy from the parsley, lemon and cornichon salsa. Also very easy to throw together. I'd mainly chosen it to use up some kitchen bits that had been lingering (freezer sausages, a squash, half a pack of parsley, seeded bread outsiders instead of sourdough, half a pack of feta instead of taleggio) but it's a definite repeat. I wasn't sure I would enjoy kale but roasted in this way is lovely.

• Hangover pasta

  • Emily Hope on February 26, 2026

    We liked this pasta quite a bit -- filled with flavor, comforting, on the rich side. I scaled back the pasta itself to about 12 ounces dried, and kept the other quantities the same. Only other change was to add a good squeeze of lemon to the sauce at the end, because it needed some acidity. Served w/a salad of sliced mini peppers, balsamic, and basil.

• Smoked almond and confit tomato Mafaldine

  • Emily Hope on March 13, 2026

    This was fine, but I don't think I'd make again -- I used a vitamix to blend the sauce and it ended up quite thick and a bit claggy; even after thinning out with some water it felt that way. I also kept thinking that I'd prefer it as a soup, and realized that the flavor/texture was quite close to a tomato-cashew soup in one of the food52 genius recipe books. Perhaps with a regular blender or just less blending it would be closer to her intention, though I don't think I'd love the little bits of almond in that scenario.