step 1 Tip the bread into a bowl and pour over 350ml water. Leave to soak for 10 mins. step 2 Blend the ingredients together with 350ml water and 1 tsp salt. step 3 Let the soup cool in the fridge for 1 hr or so, then serve with a drizzle of oil and some black pepper.
Put the oil, onions, celery, carrots, potatoes and bay leaves in a big casserole dish, or two saucepans. Fry gently until the onions are softened – about 10-15 mins. Fill the kettle and boil it. Stir in the tomato purée, sugar, vinegar, chopped tomatoes and passata, then crumble in the stock cubes. Add 1 litre boiling water and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 15 mins until the potato is tender, then remove the bay leaves. Purée with a stick blender (or ladle into a blender in batches) until very smooth. Season to taste and add a pinch more sugar if it needs it. The soup can now be cooled and chilled for up to 2 days, or frozen for up to 3 months. To serve, reheat the soup, stirring in the milk – try not to let it boil. Serve in small bowls with cheesy sausage rolls.
Heat the rapeseed oil in a large saucepan and then add the onions. Cook on a medium heat until soft. Add a splash of water if the onions start to catch. Add the celery, leek, potato and a knob of butter. Stir until melted, then cover with a lid. Allow to sweat for 5 minutes. Remove the lid. Pour in the stock and add any chunky bits of broccoli stalk. Cook for 10 – 15 minutes until all the vegetables are soft. Add the rest of the broccoli and cook for a further 5 minutes. Carefully transfer to a blender and blitz until smooth. Stir in the stilton, allowing a few lumps to remain. Season with black pepper and serve.
Crust: make a dough from 250g flour (I like mixing different flours like plain and wholegrain spelt flour), 125g butter, 1 egg and a pinch of salt, press it into a tart form and place it in the fridge. Filling: stir 300g cream cheese and 100ml milk until smooth, add in 3 eggs, 100g grated parmesan cheese and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Take the crust out of the fridge and prick the bottom with a fork. Pour in the filling and bake at 175 degrees C for about 25 minutes. Cover the tart with some aluminium foil after half the time. In the mean time, slice about 350g mini tomatoes. In a small pan heat 3tbsp olive oil, 3tbsp white vinegar, 1 tbsp honey, salt and pepper and combine well. Pour over the tomato slices and mix well. With a spoon, place the tomato slices on the tart, avoiding too much liquid on it. Decorate with basil leaves and enjoy
Rinse the clams in several changes of cold water and drain well. Tip the clams into a large pan with 500ml of water. Cover, bring to the boil and simmer for 2 mins until the clams have just opened. Tip the contents of the pan into a colander over a bowl to catch the clam stock. When cool enough to handle, remove the clams from their shells – reserving a handful of empty shells for presentation if you want. Strain the clam stock into a jug, leaving any grit in the bottom of the bowl. You should have around 800ml stock. Heat the butter in the same pan and sizzle the bacon for 3-4 mins until it starts to brown. Stir in the onion, thyme and bay and cook everything gently for 10 mins until the onion is soft and golden. Scatter over the flour and stir in to make a sandy paste, cook for 2 mins more, then gradually stir in the clam stock then the milk and the cream. Throw in the potatoes, bring everything to a simmer and leave to bubble away gently for 10 mins or until the potatoes are cooked. Use a fork to crush a few of the potato chunks against the side of the pan to help thicken – you still want lots of defined chunks though. Stir through the clam meat and the few clam shells, if you've gone down that route, and simmer for a minute to reheat. Season with plenty of black pepper and a little salt, if needed, then stir through the parsley just before ladling into bowls or hollowed-out crusty rolls.
step 1 In a blender (or with a stick blender), whizz together the passata, red pepper, chilli, garlic, sherry vinegar and lime juice until smooth. Season to taste, then serve with ice cubes