Penne all'Arriabbiata

A simple, quick, and tasty dinner. The trick to this sauce is to cook the chillies whole in the sauce as it imparts both heat and a lovely flavour of chilli. You can then either remove them once the spice has reached your desired level or - if you want it even spicier - you can remove from the sauce and slice before adding back to the sauce. I used regular medium chillies from the supermarket and it wasn't spicey enough for me, but you might want to keep an eye on the sauce if using other hotter chillies e.g. birds eye. I also made this sauce for two portions and it was very sauce-y, so you could always use this amount for four portions (for example).

Courgette (Zucchini) and Basil Risotto

It's been a long time since I've cooked a proper risotto, as I never buy risotto rice and usually substitute for normal rice (which gives a very different consistency). I came across this recipe in one of my many vegetarian cookbooks and felt like giving it a try. I was worried about the difficulty of making risotto and of having to stir it constantly for 20 minutes, but I found this wasn't necessary and I simply stirred it every few minutes whilst doing other things in the kitchen, and the consistency turned out lovely and creamy. The recipe itself called for dry vermouth, but I didn't have any vermouth or dry white wine (which you could substitute for) so I used half the amount in gin and it turned out well.

Chilli Broccoli Pasta

A recipe from one of my more underused vegetarian cookbooks (I have so many you see, that I tend to forget about some from time to time!) called 'The Vegetarian Bible'. It's a great little cookbook that has  some interesting recipes. I used frozen broccoli in this rather than fresh, as it's more convenient. I also added cheese but this is not necessary at all if you want to watch the calories or are vegan.

Pumpkin, Asparagus and Leek Quiche

Another sunny weekend, another quiche recipe. This was one I threw together based on what vegetables I found for sale in my local shops and what I felt would go well together. It was lovely. I found the pumpkin in an Asian food store on the campus where I work, and I believe it is known as 'Japanese Pumpkin' or Kabocha. You can substitute for any type of pumpkin or squash (or sweet potato if you like). I also put some mustard into the egg filling for a change, though this is optional.