Anna Jones - A Modern Way to Eat

If curry leaves aren’t easy to get, you can just leave them out. However, curry leaves are wonderful, and if you haven’t come across them before, try to get your hands on some. They have a curious but delicious flavour, and add depth in a way that is difficult to explain, much like a truffle does. I buy a few packets whenever I see them – a lot of supermarkets stock them these days. Store them in a sandwich bag in the freezer and tumble a few out as you need them. They are addictive and also very good for you. They can be mixed with lime and a pinch of sugar in hot water to aid digestion.

SERVES 4

FOR THE POTATO CAKES

olive or coconut oil

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

1 tablespoon black mustard seeds

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

10 curry leaves

4 large potatoes, boiled, drained and coarsely mashed, or 4 big spoons of leftover mash

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE AVOCADO

2 ripe avocados, halved and destoned

juice of ½ a lemon

FOR THE QUICK CUCUMBER PICKLE

½ a cucumber, halved and thinly sliced

1 teaspoon coriander seeds, bashed in a pestle and mortar

a pinch of sugar or a squeeze of agave syrup

grated zest and juice of ½ an unwaxed lemon

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Heat a splash of oil in a frying pan on a medium heat and fry the onion for about 5 minutes, until soft and sweet. Add the mustard seeds and stand back while they pop. Scoop out a heaped tablespoon of the onion mixture and put to one side to cool.

With the pan still on the heat, add the turmeric and curry leaves and fry for another minute or so, then put the whole lot into a bowl to cool slightly.

Add the mashed potato to the onions, then season and mix well. Divide the mixture into 4 portions and shape them into 4 potato cakes. Put them into the fridge to chill while you do a couple of other little jobs.

In another bowl, mash the avocados with the lemon juice (you can use a potato masher here), then stir in the tablespoon of the onion you set aside. Mix, then season well.

To make your pickle, put the sliced cucumber into a bowl and add all the other pickle ingredients. Using your hands, scrunch the cucumber slices to get the flavours going.

Now put your frying pan back on the heat. Take the potato cakes out of the fridge and fry them gently and carefully in a little oil for about 2–3 minutes on each side, until warmed through and crispy brown.

Serve each dosa cake piled with the mustard seed, onion and mashed avocado and with a sprightly spoonful of pickle on the side.

Other ways to use your cucumber pickle:

· Sandwiched inside a veggie burger.

· Next to a bowl of dhal and rice.

· In a bagel with some cream cheese and grated lemon zest.

· In a cheese sandwich.

· Next to any curry.

· To make the best ever cucumber sandwiches.

Wholegrain Sunday brunch

Sometimes a fortifying breakfast or brunch is needed but I have never been on board with heavy, greasy food to start off the day. For me breakfast is the mark of how I want my day to be. I eat this breakfast after a night out or before a day of the same – I guess you could say this is my full English. In autumn and winter, when tomatoes are not at their best, use a few sun-dried tomatoes added at the end instead.

You can make this in the time it takes someone else to go and buy the paper and to brew a decent cup of coffee. I encourage you to try grains rather than toast for breakfast. I find them so much more sustaining than bread and they work perfectly here. If you like, though, a good slice of bread works wonderfully in place of the farro. Sometimes for a really filling brunch I sizzle up a couple of the chestnut bangers here too, or pan-fry a couple of slices of tofu, in place of the egg.

Sage is not perhaps the most obvious choice for a breakfast herb but it works brilliantly here. I love sage – the word, the taste, the bolstering flavour it brings – there is something ancient about it that I adore. In fact it’s a member of the mint family and you can taste the relationship. I love to fry sage leaves in hot oil till perfectly crisp and sprinkle them on fried eggs or roasted squash.

SERVES 2, THOUGH THIS CAN BE EASILY SCALED UP FOR A BIG FRIENDLY BRUNCH

¼ of a butternut squash or similar, deseeded and cut into 1cm slices

2 big field mushrooms

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive or rapeseed oil

100g farro or quinoa

2 healthy vines of cherry tomatoes

a small handful (50g) of almonds

a few sprigs of fresh sage (about 20 leaves)

1 lemon

2 organic or free-range eggs, for poaching (more if you are hungry)

Preheat your oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.

Place the squash and mushrooms on a tray, season, and drizzle with a little oil. Pop it into the oven for 15 minutes.

Next, get your grain on the go. Rinse it under cold water, then put it into a pan of boiling, salted water and cook the farro for 20–25 minutes, until tender, or the quinoa for 10 minutes, making sure to top up with more water as needed.

Once the squash has had 20 minutes, take the tray out of the oven and add the tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle with oil and put back into the oven for another 20 minutes.

To make the sage and almond pesto, toast the almonds in a pan until fragrant and just browning, then remove from the heat. In a pestle and mortar, bash the sage leaves with a pinch of salt. Add the almonds and bash until you have a chunky paste, then pour in 4 tablespoons of oil, squeeze in the juice of a quarter of the lemon and bash again until it’s smoothish. Season with salt and pepper, tasting and balancing to your liking. This can be done in a food processor too.

Finally, get a pan of boiling water on to poach your eggs (I use a frying pan). Turn the heat down until the water is barely blipping, then crack in the eggs and leave to cook for 3–4 minutes. Scoop out with a slotted spoon on to some kitchen paper.

Spoon the grain on to plates, pile on the sticky roasted veg, top with an egg, then drizzle generously with the pesto and enjoy at a slow pace.

food for filling a gap

If you’re going to snack, you might as well do it properly in every sense. Topping up between meals with something that is delicious, thought out and healthy stops me reaching for a chocolate biscuit. Whether it’s a simple slick of almond butter on a rice cake, or a handful of kale chips, or some homemade spicy caramel popcorn, a considered snack keeps me happy, fulfilled and full of energy. All these recipes are perfect for a crowd too – just double them up as needed to fuel a party.

Charred sweet potato quesadillas · sweet and salty crispy kale chips · the best egg sandwich you’ll ever eat · deep smoky salsa · miso-spiked hummus · jewel-coloured Middle Eastern dip · doorstep sandwiches · spiced salted caramel popcorn · maple peanut California wraps

Speedy sweet potato quesadillas

Quesadillas are an anytime meal. They take just 5 minutes to make, and everyone adores them. You can snack on them at a party, they make a late-home-from-work dinner, and they even work at breakfast with an egg inside.

These quesadillas are a bit different – the regular, white flour, cheese-loaded version doesn’t do it for me. So instead these are filled with a super-quick sweet potato and white bean mash. You will never look back.