What are your fastest meals, ladies? I've been thinking about this, particularly with regard to lunchtimes, as we don't tend to cook much during the day.

Some bread and cheese served with chopped carrots or cucumber or celery (or all three) tend to be the quickest thing we can manage, and in fact often get flung into a tub to be eaten al fresco. I used to be very scathing about BabyBels before I had a child but now we seem to get through rather a lot of them... in fact, I've even been known to buy those little packs of fruit (be careful with the whole grapes) or veggies from Boots when we are out and about.

Also, Babybear loves tuna mayonnaise in pitta breads, and her love affair with the carrot/cumin/cheese mixture stuffed into half pittas and toasted remains undimmed. I do wish she liked hummous a bit, though, as I think it might be Very Helpful Indeed.Her father and I are trying to go a wee bit lower on the GI so we are very virtuous and have these toppings in leaves of Little Gem lettuce or down the spine of a celery stick. It's actually nice, I promise.

What else? Salad we're still not so good with, much as she always tries to eat lettuce I think that the ruminant ability to grind down leafy plant material is still absent, along with her molars, at 20 months old.

Oh, those magical little Steam Fresh bags from Birds Eye are great for a quick burst of veggies and with some cheese and pesto and maybe even a handful of leftover pasta constitute a meal in my book.

And frozen peas, god knows what I'd do without frozen peas. Last night she was having some difficulty with an (admittedly rather stringy) bit of mangetout but a wee bowl of peas straight from the freezer were greeted with delight.

I know I said  it's not about the cooking at lunchtime but I'm still counting omelette and french toast as a fast food as well if that's okay? I mean it's just three minutes in the frying pan, isn't it? Anything else?

PS. Sweetcorn... I can't believe I forgot sweetcorn... we've eaten nothing else for the past fortnight. Chop the cob up into four pieces, put a spash of water into a pyrex dish, lid on and microwave for about three to four mins. Rinse and leave to cool for about five mins (the centre stays preternaturally hot) and hand over to small child. Or chop off the corns if they can't wait for it to cool and are keen to exercise their pincer grip.

Come on ladies. What are the meals that mean you know, just know, that your child is ill if they don't throw themselves at the plate without hesitation.

I'd have to say that ours is still the ever-reliable pasta, pesto and peas. In fact, rather pleasingly, the first time Babybear put words together a few months ago was to request 'pasta e peas' in a pleasingly semi-Italian style.

Apart from that, it's roast chicken all the way. And oatcakes, which are simply known as 'biscuits' in our house and thus cover a multitude of snacky sins. The day will come when someone will give her a Jaffa Cake and the scales will fall from her eyes.

Seriously chaps, we have a lot to be grateful to Kate for here. Very decent of her to trawl through her best and most delicious recipes for us, don't you think?

Pesto Rice Cake

               

Serves 4 (adults)

 

25g/1oz butter

175g/6oz/1 large leek finely chopped

350g/12oz risotto rice

1lire/1 ¾ pints veg stock

100g/4oz green pesto

2 eggs, beaten

150g ball mozzarella, thinly sliced

Tomato sauce to serve

 

Melt the butter in a frying pan and fry the leek until soft (5mins)

Stir in the rice. Pour in a ladleful of stock and simmer until almost all has been absorbed. Continue to add stock and simmer, stirring continuously, for 20 mins or until the rice is creamy.

 

Stir in the pesto and eggs. Spoon half of the mix into a 9” nonstick frying pan. Put the sliced cheese on top then cover with the 2nd half of the rice. Cook over a medium heat for 4 mins. Put a plate over the top and invert the rice cake, then slide it back into the pan. Press down to reshape it and cook for a further 4 mins until golden. Serve with the tomato sauce.

Makes 12

1lb potatoes

1 ½ oz butter

½ med onion thinly sliced

4oz peeled carrots

4oz courgettes

melt ½oz butter in a pan and soften the onion over a low heat

Blanch the potatoes for 10 mins, then drain and peel

Coarsely grate the carrots and courgettes trying to get long shreds. Squeeze out the excess liquid then press dry on kitchen paper. Coarsely grate the potato then mix with the carrot, courgette and onion in a bowl. Melt the remaining butter and add to the bowl. Mix well. Take heaped tbsps of the mix and press firmly into cakes about 6cm/2 ½ inches across. Put on an oiled baking tray. Bake at 200C Gas 6 for 15 mins then turn over and cook for a further 10 mins.

 

"This is a favourite in our house

 

1 onion

2 carrots

2 celery sticks

1 red pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

150ml/ ¼ pint veg stock or red wine

400g can chopped tomatoes

3 tbsp red pesto

spaghetti and parmesan to serve

 

Whizz the veg until finely chopped (like mince)

Heat oil in a large pan. Cook the veg for 5-7 mins until the onion has softened. Add the wine/stock and tomatoes and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for 15 mins until the veg is tender. Stir in the red pesto.

 

Serve with pasta and parmesan"

Serves 6-8

 

600g/1lb 6oz chicken breasts

50g/2oz plain flour

2 eggs beaten

100g/4oz breadcrumbs

50g/2oz grated parmesan

3tbsp sunflower oil

 

Preheat oven to 200C Gas 6 – put a tray in the oven to preheat too.

Slice chicken into finger sized pieces. Mix breadcrumbs and cheese together in a dish.

Toss chicken pieces in flour

Dip in the egg

Then toss into the breadcrumb/cheese mix.

 

Drizzle preheated tray with oil, lay the chicken on the tray and bake for about 12-18 mins, turning halfway through. Alternatively, shallow fry the chicken until golden and cooked through.

You know, I've also seen this done with tapenade and a french loaf, but you wrap it in clingfilm and then flatten the bejeesus out of it. It tastes brilliant, so I'm delighted to be reminded of its existence. Although who knew it was called a muffleta..?



"I thought this might make a nice picnic instead of boring sandwiches

 

1 round loaf about 20cm in diameter

2 tbsps basil pesto mixed with 1 tbsp olive oil

 

then choose your fillings..

 

roasted red onions

parma ham

roasted peppers

cheese

salami

rocket/salad leaves

sun dried tomatoes

(any roasted veg would be ok)

 

Cut the top of the loaf, scoop out most of the bread from inside the loaf and put to one side.

 

Spread the pesto around the inside of the loaf and the inside of the lid. Then layer all the fillings in. Press down gently so you can fit everything in. It needs to be very full or it will fall apart when you cut it. When full put the lid on, wrap in cling film and put in the fridge. Put a plate on the top with some jars on to squash it down. Leave for 3 hrs to a day then cut into wedges."

I think we call these pancakes where I come from...

Drop Scones

 

100g/4oz self raising flour

1tsp baking powder

25g/1oz caster sugar

pinch of salt

1 egg

125ml/4fl oz milk

sunflower oil for greasing

 

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, add the sugar and salt. Make a well in the middle, crack in the egg. Whisk, gradually drawing the the flour from the edges, add the milk slowly while whisking to form a smooth batter.

 

Heat a lightly greased frying pan over a moderate heat. Drop 3 tbsps of batter into the pan keeping them well apart. Cook for 2 mins until  bubbles appear on the surface and they are golden underneath, then turn over and cook until golden on the other side. Should make 12.

Oh come on... who doesn't want to know a pancake mix recipe that doesn't require scales? It's the sort of thing my mother can do Just By Looking while I just stand there flapping around like the Sorcerer's Apprentice waiting to muck it all up the minute her back is turned.

Cheats Pancake Mix

This recipe is easy to remember and you don't need scales! It can be made using a jug, scales, a half pint and a pint glass or even a milk bottle with markers down the side!

 

For each pint (which I find is great for me and Tink to have as a snack) measure out half a pint of milk, add an egg and gradually top up to one pint with plain flour.

 

You need to use your judgement with the flour to make it as thick as you like it, use splashes of milk and spoonfuls of flour to get the right balance.

 

If you are using scales, note how much half a pint weighs, double it and that is how much you need to make it to in flour. I sometimes use glasses, measure the milk in a half pint glass and transfer it to a pint glass.

 

Enough possessives for ya?  I'm just not sure if Tink's mum wishes me to reveal her name, that's all, and discretion is the better part of valour I've found. Also, the tomato puree thing is interesting as I had expected it to be very high in salt but according to the pack I've got here, it isn't (well, it's 1 per cent so make of that what you will). Do we think it counts as a vegetable, though? Controversial.

Quick Pasta

This is great when you haven't got much time, Tink loves this one!

• Prepare your pasta as normal.
• Add in squidges of tomato puree and grated cheese, mix well.
• You can vary it by adding in garlic puree, bacon, sandwich meat etc.

 

Not in a tricksy way, oh no, because that would be naughty and deceitful and Not The Way we do things round here. But since I've rediscovered my Microplane grater thingy I've discovered that so many things simply taste nicer, sweeter, moister and lighter with the addition of our orangey pal. And yes I am aware that moister is not a word.

I may have mentioned before that a carrot and cheese and a spot of cumin toasted in a pita pocket is very tasty, but I've since branched out and started adding them to any and every burger-style recipe on this blog. A carrot and a half into the harissa burgers? Lovely. Likewise the chickpea burgers (were they Moomin's?), a very finely grated carrot seems to help with the dryness.

So think on, ladies, remember the carrot is our friend.

Next week: My adventures in the Land of Quinoa.