EACH WEEK, WE ask a home cook about the dishes they’ve been whipping up of late. The kind of food you don’t need a recipe for, from quick snacks to empty-the-fridge dinners.
This week, mum-of-two Emma Guinan (@treaclefoodblog) shared the five recipes that work for her whole family.
“I need little excuse to try out a new recipe, but everyday life has a tendency to take over too. So recipes and meals have to work for us as a family – be that a bit of morning prep and putting everything into the slow cooker, or something quick and tasty that’s done in half an hour.
I do try to vary the meals I make a good bit though, otherwise I’d get bored eating the same thing all the time.
From a go-to pasta dish to serving toast as a canapé, below are five of Emma’s most-loved recipes…
1. Cheesy artichoke dip: This is one of my favourite things to make for friends calling over or even for my husband and I to have with drinks on a Friday evening. It is so moreish and welcomes all forms of carbs, bread crackers and vegetables for dipping. It’s just perfect with wine. It is ready so fast and very forgiving if your guests are late. It is the recipe I have been asked for the most and it is probably one of the simplest.
To make it, blend a drained tin of artichokes, one cup of mayonnaise, two cloves of garlic and season with pepper. Add some Parmesan and blitz again before topping with more cheese and baking in the oven at 170 degrees for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
2. Pasta with chicken tarragon and sun-dried tomato: This has been a go-to pasta dish for a long time in this house. It comes together in minutes with virtually store cupboard ingredients. It has a different flavour profile from the usual tomato sauce. Follow the recipe here.
3. Flavour combinations on toast: While not a recipe, these ideas marry flavours I like with what’s in my fridge and turn the blandest Monday lunch or quick supper into something to be enjoyed.
I will even serve mini toasts as canapés with drinks as it allows me to try to use up what I have. My son loves leftover frittata on toast for breakfast. Peaches and ricotta or cream cheese on toasted sourdough are just the delicious epitome of summer, or this roasted veggie feta-loaded mushroom concoction was a real favourite.
4. Speedy satay sauce: In terms of a kitchen arsenal, there are a few things that you can have in the larder to make meals brighter and more appealing. One of the main things I like to show is how easy it is to take a so-called ‘chef idea’ or something ostensibly fancy from a cookbook and adapt it for the everyday home cook. You can add spices or fresh herbs or use a sauce to liven up the basic parts of a quick family meal.
This sauce is the latter. It works on chicken skewers, stir fried vegetables or rice and even as a dip for crudités.
5. All-season pavlova: I love a good pavlova – who doesn’t?! It is so versatile and works throughout the year – berries in the summer and roasted apples or pears and nuts in the autumn and winter months. I love to mix cream and Greek yoghurt for the topping. Roasted peaches or apples with hazelnuts are a lovely combination too.
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