Food from afar: Bomboloni

Bomboloni: delightful to say, even more delightful to eat. And possibly even onomatopoeic, if you attempt to exclaim "bloomin' lovely!" while you're eating them! Doughnuts fulfil a basic human craving the world over and countless countries have their own spin on them - there's the French beignet, the Turkish tulumba and the Israeli sufganiya to name but a fraction. Bomboloni are the Tuscan contribution to the planet's exhaustive list of things to do with sweet, deep-fried dough and, dare we say, one of the best.

Read more about these delicious little mouthfuls of delight in April's issue of The Simple Things - buy now or look through.

And if you feel like making your own, this recipe looks tempting.

Recipe: Brioche hot cross buns

Get everyone's favourites on the table with our laid-back Easter brunch, featuring a new take on an old classic: brioche hot cross buns Not quite breakfast, not quite lunch, but elegantly supplanting both at once, brunch is about as efficient and fun as domestic catering gets.

Easter brunch is unbeatably relaxed and satisfying, but the best thing? It practically forces you to wake up late and do it in your PJs.

The brunch menu featured in the April issue of The Simple Things:

Spinach & bacon baked eggs

Smoked salmon caesar salad on toast

Hash browns

Custard tartlets

Brioche hot cross buns

Green smoothie

Brioche hot cross buns - makes 12

Ingredients:

375g plain flour 3 eggs 100g unsalted butter, melted 45g sugar 1 pinch salt 100ml milk, lukewarm 45g sultanas 1 tsp grated nutmeg 1 tsp grated cinnamon 1 packet (7g) dry yeast

For the glaze:

1 egg yolk 1 tbsp milk

For the icing:

100g icing sugar 1 tbsp water

Method:

1. In a large bowl mix together flour, salt, sugar and spices. Sprinkle yeast over milk and allow it to prove for 5-10 minutes. Pour milk, yeast, melted butter and eggs into flour and stir well.

2. Transfer the dough onto a work surface and knead for 10 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with cling film for an hour or until it doubles in size. Pinch back the dough on a work surface and lightly knead for a minute. Add the sultanas.

3. Divide the dough into 12 equal parts. Place balls of dough 1cm apart from each other on a baking tray lined with baking paper and let them prove for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 190C (170C fan), 375F, gas 5. Just before baking, brush buns with egg yolk and milk mixture.

4. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until nicely golden. Remove from oven and let them cool completely on a wire rack.

5. Prepare icing by mixing sugar with water. The icing should have the consistency of a smooth paste. Spoon it into a piping bag or use a ziplock bag with a small hole cut in a corner. Pipe and draw a cross on top of each cooled bun. Allow icing to set before serving.

Turn to page 28 for the rest of the recipes.

Buy The Simple Things now, or have a look through the digital sampler for a taste of the April issue

Recipe: Dark chocolate and raspberry tarts

With four cake and biscuit recipes to choose from, April's issue of The Simple Things is a baker's dream come true. Want more? These dark chocolate and raspberry tarts are pastry perfection Already baked the Lemon & Blueberry Cake, Courgette & Lime Cake, Giant Empire Biscuits, and Raspberry & Coconut Cake featured in the April issue of The Simple Things? Here's another sumptuous recipe from Three Sisters Bake by Gillian, Nichola and Linsey Reith.

As Gillian says, 'We love food which looks as good as it tastes, and these dainty tarts certainly qualify in this category. They are so pretty, in fact, that we served them at an Alice in Wonderland-themed party we hosted at the café. Needless to say they went down a treat.'

Dark Chocolate and Raspberry Tarts (makes eight)

For the pastry:

235g (8 oz/scant 2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour, plus extra for dusting 50g (2 oz/1/4 cup) caster (superfine) sugar 150g (5 oz) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed 1 large egg, at room temperature

For the dark chocolate and raspberry filling:

150 g (5 oz) good-quality dark chocolate, (50–60% cocoa solids) 100 g (3. oz) unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing 1 large whole egg and 1 large egg yolk 30 g (1 oz/1⁄6 cup) caster (superfine) sugar 12 tablespoons homemade or good-quality raspberry jam Cocoa powder/icing (confectioners') sugar, for dusting 8 fresh raspberries, to decorate

Equipment:

12-hole muffin tin Baking beans

Method:

To make the pastry, place the flour and sugar in a food processor and pulse briefly to mix. Add the butter bit by bit and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg and pulse until the pastry starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. Shape it into a ball, wrap in cling film, then chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180°c (350°f/Gas 4) and grease the muffin tin.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is about 5 mm (¼ in) thick. Cut out 8 circles with a 9cm (3 1/2") round cookie cutter, and gently press the pastry circles into the greased muffin tin. Line each tart case with greaseproof (wax) paper, fill with baking beans and 'blind' bake for 15–20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.

Remove the tin from the oven, take out the greaseproof paper and baking beans, and set aside to cool. Turn the oven temperature down to 170°c (335°f/Gas 3).

Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water (making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water). Stir occasionally until the butter and chocolate have melted. Remove the bowl from the pan and set aside to cool slightly.

Using an electric hand mixer, whisk the egg, egg yolk and sugar in a large bowl until glossy, then fold the whisked egg mixture into the melted chocolate and butter mixture.

Put a tablespoon of jam into each baked tart case. Pour the chocolate mixture into the cases, right up to the top and bake in the oven for 5 minutes.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool, decorating with fresh raspberries before the chocolate has fully set, then dust with either cocoa or icing sugar.

For the rest of the mouth-watering cakes and biscuits from the very talented trio behind Three Sisters Bake, turn to page 37 of The Simple Things issue 22.

Buy now, or have a look through the digital sampler:

Recipe: Make Madeleines for Mother's Day

Make your mother's day with a batch of madeleines, fresh from the oven, with our recipe  Few cakes say family and memory as strongly as these little baked beauties. Make Mother's Day special with our recipe for freshly baked madeleines - the way to any mum's heart.

These sponge shells get their shape from a moulded madeleine tray but taste just as good made in a muffin tin.

Madeleines (makes about 24)

Ingredients:

130g unsalted butter 3 eggs, at room temperature 1 egg yolk 120g granulated sugar Pinch of sea salt 175g flour, plus extra for dusting 1 tsp baking powder Zest of 2 medium oranges

Method:

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan on medium heat until it just starts to turn golden brown. Be careful not to overheat. Set aside to cool.

2. Using a pastry brush, generously grease the madeleine tin with a little of the melted butter. Dust with flour and place the tins in the fridge to set.

3. With a stand mixer, whisk the eggs, egg yolk, sugar and slat until the batter starts to thicken, about 5 minutes.

4. Sift the flour and baking powder and use a spatula to fold the flour into the batter mixture. Add the orange zest to the cooled butter, then slowly drizzle the butter into the batter until you've incorporated all of the butter in the mixture.

5. Cover the bowl and place int he refrigerator for at least 1 1/2 hours.

6. Preheat the oven to 22oC (200C fan), 425F, gas mark 7. Drop the batter in the middle of each mould until about three-quarters full without spreading it. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes in the upper third of your oven until slightly brown and set to the touch.

For the full Mother's Day menu - Coq au vin blanc; Citrus salad with beetroot, fennel & radishes; Apple tart; Madeleines - turn to page 28 of The Simple Things issue 21.

Buy now, or have a look through the digital sampler:

Have hot chocolate, will travel..

There's no better place to enjoy hot chocolate than in the great outdoors

If you're heading out for a walk this weekend, make sure you take a flask of something hot and yummy. We'll be making this delicious hot chocolate recipe from River Cottage chef, Gillon Meller. Best cooked on an open fire.

Real hot chocolate

Serves 6-8 1ltr whole milk 200g 75% good quality chocolate 2-3 tbsp sugar

1. Pour the milk into a suitable pan and set it over the embers to warm. Break the chocolate into small pieces and add it along with the sugar. Allow the hot chocolate to come just to the simmer. The chocolate will take time to dissolve properly so keep stirring. 2. Remove the hot chocolate from the heat and allow to sit for 5 mins before giving it a final stir and serving.

Read how a moonlit stroll can restore and revitalise you in Moon Walk, Issue 21 of The Simple Things, out now.

Friday night food

Try Koshari, Egypt's favourite street food - just add a beer and a good film.

Koshari is the closest thing that Egypt has to a national dish. Cheap, filling and convenient, it not only uses up all your leftovers but, also, delightfully, defies all modern-day nutritional wisdom, insisting as it does that you can have rice and pasta and noodles all at once. As well as those three carby pillars (the latter two in the form of macaroni and vermicelli), it also deploys classic store-cupboard staples lentils and chickpeas. And stick some fried onions on the top, why don't you? Then smother with spicy tomato sauce. Sounds like an unusual combo - until you try it. The perfect TV dinner.  Click here for the full recipe.

From Issue 21 of The Simple Things, on sale now. Each month The Simple Things features a different national dish in Food From Afar.  

Herbal remedy

Use fragrant winter herbs to liven up your soups and salads

In this month's Seed To Stove Lia Leendertz is making mouthwatering meals with her favourite trio of winter herbs, chervil, parsley and coriander. Try this Middle Eastern-style salad packed with punchy flavours - the perfect weekend lunch. Serve with fluffy homemade pitta (super easy and once you've made your own you'll never go back!)

Winter herb salad

Serves 4

1 large bunch flat-leaved parsley

1 large bunch coriander

5 cauliflower florets

A handful of radishes

5 spring onions

For the dressing:

Zest and juice of half a lemon

30ml extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

1. Roughly chop the herbs and radishes and slice the spring onions, and put them together in a large bowl. Take the central stems out of the cauliflowers to break them up into tiny florets. Add to the salad.

2. Put all of the dressing ingredients into a jar and shake them together, then pour over the salad and mix well.

From Issue 21 of The Simple Things, on sale Friday 28th February. See the magazine for the perfect accompaniments including a deliciously creamy Chervil soup with Ricotta & Herb Dumplings and easy-peasy Homemade Pitta.

For a special offer on Otter Farm chervil, coriander and parsley seeds click here.

Zingy sorrel soup

Sorrel is one of those herbs that’s not as well known as it should be. It’s easy to grow, will come back year after year and tastes utterly delicious - a sort of zingy, lemon flavour that works just as well in savoury dishes as it does in sweet. If you don’t grow it yourself, (and you should) keep an eye out for wild sorrel in fields and hedgerows, anytime from now onwards. Cinead McTernan, gardening editor shows us how to use sorrel to flavour a soup. Thanks to my brother-in-law, Chef Paul Collins, over the years I’ve picked up some clever tips about using sorrel in soups. I always use the larger, more mature leaves to make soup, leaving the young, tender leaves for salads. I make a simple potato and onion base and add three handfuls of shredded leaves (having removed any tough stalks) at the last moment, blanching them quickly before buzzing up in the liquidiser. All you need is 3-4 potatoes, 2 medium onions - both peeled and diced; 1.5 pints of vegetable stock (or chicken), plenty of seasoning and, of course, sorrel leaves. Using a heavy saucepan, sweat the onion and potato in butter over a gentle heat. Add the stock to the potatoes and onions once they are soft, but not browned, and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add the sorrel leaves and let them wilt, season well and pour into a food processor. Buzz up until it's a nice smooth consistency and serve with fresh crusty bread.

It has to be said that sorrel does loose its fresh, green colour once it's cooked - I don't mind this as it's so tasty, but if you’re looking to try and keep as much colour in your soup as possible, Paul suggests using young leaves, simply adding them in the liquidiser just as you’re about to blend your soup. They’re so tender the heat of the soup-liquor will be enough to ‘cook’ them.

He also recommends using a handful or two of spinach along with the sorrel leaves to help boost the colour. Don't be tempted to use too much as it will overpower that deliciously fresh, lemony sorrel flavour.

Queen of herbs, Jekka McVicar, has an amazing recipe for sorrel soup in her ‘Herb Cookbook’. It was her grandmother, Ruth Lowinsky’s recipe, who was also a cookery book writer, and was included in her book ‘Food for Pleasure’ published in 1950. The recipe calls for 3 large handfuls of sorrel, a knob of butter (the size of an egg), seasoning and 300ml of chicken stock. I love the additional touch of 2 egg yolks and a tablespoon of milk that’s mixed into the broth just before serving and thinly sliced bread, toasted and broken into ‘crutons’.

Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s Lentil and Sorrel soup is another favourite winter warmer and well worth a try.

Where is your favourite tea room?

In issue 20 of The Simple Things we share 'the 10 tea rooms we like a lot'! Find out how to add your favourites to the list.

We’re a nation of tea rooms: there’s not a market town, beauty spot or city without its little gem. In issue 20 of the magazine we've compiled a list of our favourites in the following hugely scientific categories:

• For retro indulgence
• For cream teas with a conscience
• For being pretty as a picture
• For coffee drinkers
• For heavenly smells
• For a huge slice of cake
• For the best cuppa in Britain
• For the sea views
• For the treacle tart
• For the English tea

Post your favourites on our Facebook page and share the love! As a little taster here's our favourite retro haunt.

FOR RETRO INDULGENCE... Blackbird Tea Rooms, Brighton, East Sussex In a townhouse just behind the Brighton seafront, they know how to do vintage. Potted palms, broderie anglaise tablecloths, wooden dressers laden with antique jars and tins; even the waitresses sport victory rolls to match their red lips and neat black uniforms. The wobbly cakes on their reclaimed glass stands taste as irresistible as they look, dusted with icing sugar, topped with berries and petals and served on fine bone china – what else. www.blackbirdtearooms.com

Find all 10 of our favourites in issue 20 of The Simple Things. 

Photographs: Decades of Elegance

The best rich chocolate tart

Try our rich chocolate tart with a hint of cardamom and cinnamon and you'll be smitten. It's the perfect finale to a romantic supper or a weekend indulgence with friends. Divine.

Few desserts make a dinner guest’s eyes light up like a rich chocolate tart. Serve in lavish quantities.

RICH CHOCOLATE TART Cloves, cardamom and cinnamon make for a grown-up take on a gooey pud.

• 375ml double cream
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 3 tsp cinnamon powder
• 3 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 150g dark chocolate, chopped
• 150g milk chocolate, chopped
• A few whole cherries with stems for garnish

1. Prepare and bake a pastry case in a 25cm tart tin. To make life a little easier, you could buy a ready-made pastry case as the base for your tart. We promise we won’t tell…

2. Take a small saucepan, add the double cream and spices and place over a medium heat.

3. Bring to the boil and then immediately remove and set aside. Leave for about 30 mins.

4. Place chopped chocolate in a mixing bowl and set aside.

5. Place saucepan back on the heat and bring to the boil. Remove immediately and then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until the mixture is lovely and glossy.

6. Pour the chocolate mix into the prepared pastry case. Transfer to the fridge and leave to set for approximately 2 hours.

7. Serve tart at room temperature topped with the whole cherries.

Photography: MINDI COOKE Recipes & styling: LYNDEL MILLER

Find the recipes for a complete Valentine's Day Supper including Mushroom Soup, Herbed Buttered Oysters and Pomegranate Mignonette Oysters in issue 20 of The Simple Things. 

Bliss in a bite

Impress your friends by offering up these delectable macarons.  

Macarons (makes about 30)

175g ground almonds

175g icing sugar

50g (1-2 eggs) egg whites

100g egg whites (about 3 egg whites)

200g caster sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For different flavourings: Pistachio macarons (replace ground almonds with ground pistachios), Coffee (add 2 tsp instant coffee),  Raspberry (add 1 tbsp freeze-dried raspberry powder) and Mango (1 tbsp freeze-dried mango powder).

Cookie cutter (about 4cm), large piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle, baking sheets lined with greaseproof paper.

1. Take the cookie cutter and a sheet of paper or card. Draw around the cutter to make rows of circles on the paper, leaving a bit of space inbetween. This is your  template.

2. Put the ground almonds and icing sugar in a food processor and process to a fine powder. Transfer to a mixing bowl with the 50g egg whites and beat together with a spatula until paste-like. Set aside.

3. Put the 100g egg whites in a separate, heatproof bowl and whisk with an electric whisk until soft peaks form. Get a saucepan ready on the heat with a shallow depth of simmering water. Set the bowl on top of the saucepan making sure the bottom doesn't touch. Add the sugar to the egg whites and whisk until it starts to increase in volume.

4. Remove the bowl from the heat and continue to whisk until thick, glossy and cool. Add the vanilla, gently fold in the almond mixture being careful not to over-mix. Add flavourings if using and a couple of dots of food colouring paste to boost the colour if you like.

5. Slip your template between the prepared paper and baking sheet. Fill a piping bag with mixture and pipe rounds onto the paper, gently pulling the template out after you've finished. Set aside for 30-60 minutes to firm up and form a slight skin. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 160C (325F) Gas 3.

6. Sprinkle any chosen decorations on top but not too much otherwise they won't rise. Bake the macarons with the oven door slightly ajar for 10-12 minutes, keeping an eye on them in case they brown too quickly. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Fill with creme patisserie, (loosened with a mixture of whipping and double cream)  a flavoured ganache (see below) or just jam.

Recipe taken from Patisserie at Home by Will Torrent, Photography Jonathan Gregson (Ryland, Peters and Small, £19.99). For details on how to make raspberry, pistachio, coffee and mango ganache see page 108 of the book. 

Read our mouth-watering interview with king of patisserie, Will Torrent, in Issue 20 of The Simple Things, on sale 31st January. 

Make your own simple spit

    In the new issue (on sale 30 January), our adventurous River Cottage chef Gill Meller wraps up warm and prepares fire-roast leg of lamb. But first you need your fire – and something to roast it on. Gill used an old estate railing he found but for those of us not so lucky, click here for instructions to make your own. And if that's too much trouble, you can buy one here. How to light the fire? You're on your own there.

Just fondue it

You don't need to live in the Alps - or, indeed the 1970s - to enjoy the fun of a fondue. Our gathering this month have reinvented this unfairly ridiculed dish into a pretty classy looking supper party. Fancy having a go yourself? John Lewis has a cast iron fondue set. And here's the recipe for a classic version:

Cheese fondue (for 4)

800 g cheese (Gruyère, Comté, Appenzeller, Beaufort)

250 ml white wine

1⁄2 garlic clove, peeled and halved

1 teaspoon cornflour

1. Cut the skin off the cheese and grate it.

2. Using the cut side of the garlic clove, rub the bottom and side of the fondue pot. Pour the wine into the fondue pot and warm over a medium heat until the wine starts to simmer.

3. Turn down the heat and add the cheese step by step, stirring constantly (drawing an eight pattern)*. When all the cheese has melted and the texture is smooth, mix the cornflour to a paste with a little water and then add to the pot. Stir well. Remove from the heat and place the fondue pot on top of the burner on the table. Serve with cubes of good quality bread.

* If your cheese starts to curdle just add extra warm white wine.

Etsy Christmas table

Want to make your own christmas table a little more creative this year? Seek out handcrafted products from Etsy and let your imagination fly.

Christmas Table curated by The Simple Things

Online marketplace Etsy asked us to be one of the first UK partners to curate our finds through Etsy Pages. Click on any of the images above and it will take you straight to The Simple Things Christmas Table Page, packed with inspiring ideas for a festive top table.

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Get some bangers and bread in for British Sausage Week

Celebrate British Sausage Week (4-10th November) by whipping up this traditional pork sausage sarnie recipe from TV chef, Simon Rimmer. Breakfast perfection...

FANCY PASTRIES AND ELABORATE MUESLIS are all very well, but sometimes all you want is a good-quality, tasty sausage between two doorsteps of freshly baked white bread. So follow the lead of chef, restaurateur and British Sausage week ambassador Simon Rimmer and celebrate the beloved British banger. The British Sausage week campaign, now in its 17th year, will take place from 4-10th November 2013 – and includes new recipes and a competition to find the greatest sausages in the land. As for the humble sarnie? Choose the best banger your butcher has to offer, add fried onions and dollops of mustard and ketchup, and you’re in breakfast heaven.

TRADITIONAL PORK SAUSAGE SARNIE

SERVES 2

4 lean pork sausages

10ml wholegrain mustard

4 large slices of bread or 2 bread buns

For the relish:

1 tsp oil

1 onion

2 tbsp tomato ketchup

1 tsp wholegrain mustard

1. Preheat the grill or barbecue and cook the pork sausages for 10-12 mins, turning once.

2. One minute before the end of cooking time spread wholegrain mustard over the bread or buns and lightly toast.

3. Meanwhile, make the relish. In a small saucepan heat oil and fry the onion, thinly sliced, for 3-4 mins or until soft. Add tomato ketchup and wholegrain mustard. Heat through.

4. Make two sandwiches, topping the sausages with the relish.

During the year to July 2013, the nation consumed 188,270 tonnes of sausages at home. That’s a lot of sarnies... Find this and more facts at www.lovepork.co.uk/pork-products-cuts/sausages/sausage-week.

Find this and lots of other tempting recipes in Issue 16 of The Simple Things magazine. To buy or subscribe visit http://www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/TSTW1B/

Top 5 ways with pumpkins

Don't waste your Halloween pumpkins! More than just a scary face, these big and beautiful winter squashes can be cooked in all sorts of ways for a delicious supper.

5 ways with pumpkin

1. Pumpkin Pilaf Heat 2 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp butter in a saucepan with lid. Add 1 onion, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tbsp each of cumin, fennel and black onion seeds, and cook for 3 mins. Add 400g basmati rice, cook for 2 mins. Add 400g diced pumpkin and 800ml chicken stock, bring to boil, then simmer. Cook without stirring for 10 mins until liquid is absorbed, turn off heat, stand for 5 mins.

2. Broccoli, pumpkin & pine nut tart Mix 700g sliced pumpkin, 1 sliced red onion, 2 sprigs thyme and 2 tbsp olive oil in a roasting tin. Roast for 15 mins at 200°C. Add 200g Tenderstem broccoli (in 4cm pieces) and garlic to tin, mix and roast for 5 mins. Roll out puff pastry, place on baking tray. Place cooked mixture on top, sprinkle with pine nuts and dot with crème fraîche. Bake for 20 mins.

3. Shallot, red pepper and pumpkin soup Place 4 quartered, deseeded red peppers skin side up on a baking sheet and roast at 200°C for 25 mins, until the skins char. Cool, peel off skins, reserve flesh. In a pan melt 30g butter with 1 tbsp rapeseed oil. Add 6 shallots, 750g diced pumpkin and 1 red chilli, season, then sweat vegetables for 5-10 mins. Add 4 garlic cloves, sprig of thyme, 1.2l veg stock and simmer for 15 mins. Add red peppers and simmer for 5 mins. Blend.

4. Pennoni regati, butternut squash and pumpkin seeds Peel and dice a small squash. Season and sauté for 5 mins in 1 tbsp olive oil. Peel and add 20 small shallots. Cook and drain 300g pasta. Toast 50g pumpkin seeds. Mix a quarter of the cooked squash with 1 chilli and 6 tbsp water. Cook until it just starts to break down. Add a knob of butter, sprig of chopped rosemary and remaining squash and shallots. Mix in pasta. Add Parmesan to serve.

5. Baked pumpkin with a rosemary, chilli and orange topping Roast 12 shallots in olive oil and butter at 200°C for 15 mins. Add 1kg diced pumpkin, roast another 15 mins. Heat 4 tbsp olive oil with 3 cloves of garlic. Add 1 red chilli, 1 tbsp rosemary, 2 tbsp parsley and zest of 1 orange, stirring. Add 120g breadcrumbs, cook for 1 min. Spread breadcrumb mix over the squash and shallots mixture and return to the oven at 180°C for 30 mins.

Courtesy of www.ukshallot.com, www.loveradish.co.uk and www.tenderstem.co.uk.

Save £20 at Gousto!

It’s 6.30pm, you’re on the bus, and dreaming of getting home to a healthy dinner. Trouble is, a detour to buy fresh parsley/tahini/black eyed beans is out of the question. Wouldn’t it be great if all the ingredients could be magically waiting at home for you? 

Friends James Carter and Timo Schmidt thought so — which is why they set up Gousto for people committed to home-cooking, but lacking the time to shop for ingredients.

It’s a temptingly simple solution. Go online, choose from a ‘Couple Box’ and a ‘Family Box’, select the recipes that appeal to you, and they’ll deliver (for free) the necessary portions of the local, fresh, organic ingredients you need — along with easy-to-follow recipe cards.

Gousto’s recipes are developed by a team of professional chefs, cover all cuisines and styles, and are tested by friends and families first. Every week, the selection is updated to make sure there’re plenty of new recipes for you — recent dishes include chicken in mascarpone/chilli/lemon zest sauce and rice, and honey-roasted beetroot with warm bulgar wheat and beans. And, since the assumption is you’re busy, most dishes take no more than half an hour to prepare and cook.

Fancy giving it a go?

How to redeem your £20 coupon

1. Visit www.gousto.co.uk
2. Select your box
3. Enter your code SIMPLE20 at checkout to save £20
4. Select your recipes

Get into whisky

Alwynne Gwilt aka ‘Miss Whisky’ has a simple goal – to turn the ‘armchair & slippers’ image of whisky on its head.  

What tips can you give us about buying whisky for friends in the run-up to Christmas?

All the whisky outlets will be doing tastings, so go along and try some. At the Scotch Malt Whisky Society in London, Edinburgh and Leith you can buy tickets to events where you can sample interesting single cask whisky. Don’t assume that just because it’s old it’s good – it comes down to what you personally enjoy. And when buying for friends, think about what they already drink. If they enjoy red wine, sherry or port, they’ll probably prefer a whisky that’s had a sherry maturation. If they already drink bourbon, then they might like to try a Scotch whisky which has been finished in a bourbon cask. Just go into a specialist shop and have a chat. There are no ‘wrong’ questions!

You can read the rest of our interview with Alwynne in issue 16 of The Simple Things, which is on sale now.

Diwali dinner idea: pumpkin coconut curry

Pumpkin coconut curry with split peas, chickpeas & leek This light, sunshine-hued curry promises not to make your eyes water – just your mouth…

Serves 4-6 2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

1 leek, roughly chopped

1 litre vegetable stock

1 can coconut milk

230g kabocha squash/pumpkin

65g yellow split peas

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2¹/₂ tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin seeds

¹/₈ tsp allspice

¹/₈ tsp nutmeg, freshly grated

¹/₈ tsp red pepper flakes

65g kale, chopped small

1. Add onion, garlic, leek and olive oil to a frying pan over medium heat.  Sauté for 5-10 mins or until it starts to brown. Add vegetable stock, kabocha or pumpkin, split peas and salt. Bring mixture to a boil, then simmer and cover for 20-25 mins.

2. Once pumpkin and split peas are tender, add chickpeas, all spices and kale. Stew for 10-15 mins until well combined and tasty. Top with shredded coconut or natural yoghurt.

Find more yummy ideas in issue 16 of The Simple Things, which is on sale now.

Seed to Stove: Autumn roots

Introducing… Seed 2 Stove: Autumn roots.

In the first of a new series for the magazine, keen allotmenteer Lia Leendertz cooks up her colourful autumn crop.

"My allotment sits at the top of a hill in north Bristol. Much of the time my two kids are climbing the apple trees and demanding drinks or snacks, but not now. Autumn is a gentle, quiet time to be here. They’re in school and the mad tsunami of summer bounty is behind me. My autumn crops sit and wait until I’m ready for them. What a change. I can think and tend and decide what to cook, rather than the allotment dictating.

It’s a time for reordering summer growth and chaos. Grass edges that have crept into beds can be sliced into satisfying sharpness with a spade, and new areas of the plot must be conquered, the white couch grass roots slowly disentangled from the earth and thrown straight onto a little smoky fire. Some things will need planting soon too: new fruit bushes must be ordered, as well as garlic and broad beans – promises of flavours to come."

In season this month "Beetroots and carrots are pretty malleable and dependable crops. I sow direct into the soil every few weeks from early summer to late summer, picking the babies earlier in the year but leaving some to get big for autumnal roasts and pickles. You can, of course, sow carrots and beetroots that look just like the ones in the shops, but where’s the fun in that? It’s precisely as easy to sow and grow white and yellow beetroots, candy striped ones, yellow, black and white carrots as it is the usual suspects, and this year I really went for it. They make for a pleasingly colourful and unusual autumn crop.

At this stage of the game they’ve toughened up a little, so we’re not really in salad territory here. These roots are best when slowly cooked and dressed with spices to bring out their inherent sweetness and complexity. Suits me."

Try something new There’s a world of unusual colours and varieties to try. The future is not necessarily orange for the humble carrot.

1. White Belgian "I’ll let you into a secret – these huge, heavy fellows were once commonly grown on small farms to be used as animal feed. But don’t let that put you off! They’re deliciously tender and mild, and look great pickled in jars with their orange friends."

2. Spanish Black "This year I also sowed some of these striking black carrots. They were around long before the orange sort, and are popular across Asia and the Middle East. Roast, don’t boil them as you’ll lose the colour (and taste)."

3. Jaune Obtuse du Doubs "A French heirloom. That makes these carrots sound almost too special to eat, but eat them you must as they’ve got a great, strong, sweet taste and look brilliant grated in a salad."

Join Lia Leendertz and photographer Kirstie Young every other month for seasonal recipes and growing tips in The Simple Things magazine.