Hope springs

Daffodils punctuate the grassy strip between the motorway, their bright little heads swishing violently as the bus whirs by. The sky is still grey mostly but sun peeks out some afternoons and my ankles dare to bare themselves to the breeze. Sunglasses can be spotted on some all-too-ready-for-shady-glam mums on the school run and I have made salads instead of steamed veg to balance childrens' meals of pizza. The trampoline has been cleared of puddles and decaying leaves, my daughter's head up and down, smiling at me as I wave from the kitchen, the door ajar. Spring! (Nearly)

Here's some food from a shoot I did with Andy Goodfellow at Powerhouse Photography in Leeds - a great team of super chilled but talented people who I hope to do much more work with in the future in their exciting new venture dedicated wholly to food photography. Watch this space...

chocolate and sour cream bundt cake

meatballs with fennel, cumin, lemon and almonds

sweet potato, hazelnut and orange cakes

chocolate and cherry cheesecake

endaname beans with lilly mushrooms and zesty soy dressing

chilli soba noodle with black sesame

Meatballs with fennel, cumin , lemon and almonds

(meatballs can be made with a variety of herbs and spices, depending on your pantry, mood or the cuisine you are referencing: if making your own simply mix around 400g of minced beef (or lamb) with a finely chopped onion, a handful of breadcrumbs and an egg then flavour as you wish: parsley, ground cumin and cinnamon are nice flavours for this dish. Roll the mix (wet hands are a help) into golf-ball sized balls and put in the fridge for a an hour or so to get firm. HOWEVER  I often cheat and buy pre-made meatballs from the supermarket - basically because I am a sucker and tend to cook two to three different meals a night to suit a: my daughter's fledgling status as an inquisitive gourmet (she is getting very sophisticated but still finds a lot of the food I want to eat too spiced) b: my son's outright fussiness and need for simple food and c: my cravings that must be satiated - therefore, little cheats like pre-made meatballs give me one less job)



approx 15-20 meatballs

2 tabs olive oil

1 bulb of fennel

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp fennel seeds

500ml vegetable stock

zest of 1 lemon

3 tbsp chopped parsley

3 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted

Method:

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan (that has a lid - or else use a large casserole) and cook the meatballs on a medium heat, turning to brown on all sides then remove and place on a plate while you cook the fennel with the garlic, turmeric, cumin and fennel seeds.

Stir for a few minutes on med-high and then add the vegetable stock, turn to high and bring to a bubbling boil for a minute, then reduce the heat to low and put the lid on.

Check from time to time that the sauce isn't drying out - add a little more stock if needed - after about 20 mins remove the lid and bring to boil again to reduce and slightly thicken the sauce. Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve topped with the lemon zest, chopped parsley and toasted almonds and a side of cous cous and yoghurt seasoned with paprika and olive oil.