If you're wondering about the lack of posts this year, January was a write-off in my calendar and brain due to the (somewhat traumatic) arrival of my third child. Then, just as I was starting to feel vaguely human again, she was struck by the RSV virus, landing us in isolation for the last week in our nearby neonatal unit. Most older kids and adults can escape hospitalisation for what's really just a bad cold, resorting to little more than a box of Kleenex and a hot toddy. It

One of the best things to come out of Scotland in my opinion (after my husband, naturally), is smoked haddock, so I was super excited to find it in Marks & Spencer here and be able to make one of my favourite dishes and the ultimate comfort food, kedgeree. Having previously failed on some attempts, including one occasion where I was little too liberal with the cayenne and produced a "haddock madras", this week's was a personal best so I thought I would share the recipe... Wha

This is possibly one of my favourite seasonal soups (gluten-free) which takes under 10 minutes to make assuming you have chicken stock and peeled chestnuts on hand. It's an Asian adaptation of the chestnut, kale and bacon soup from the River Cottage cookbook by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (my secret crush). Chestnuts are available in the wet markets or you can pay 10 times the price for vacuum packed ones in the supermarkets. That said, the price differential is lower than th

This a very quick version of a recipe I saw on Loula Natural, soaking chicken pieces in coconut milk, dipping them in coconut flour before frying them in butter. She takes it one step further with turmeric and dessicated coconut, but I was short of time! The lunchbox is from Skip Hop and available at Bumps to Babes, Toys"R"Us and Rainbow Care in Hong Kong What you need: 1 chicken breast cut into goujons 150ml coconut milk 1/2 cup coconut flour 75g butter or more... Method: S

This is quick pudding you can make when you think there is literally nothing in the fridge. One reader tells me she is a baked apple purist, rubbing the skin with a little coconut oil and baking them with nothing but a cinnamon stick inside the core. These are slightly more decadent using butter, coconut sugar, dried fruit and spices. Delicious served with ice-cream, cream or yoghurt and leftovers work well with y0ghurt for breakfast. What you need: 4 apples 80g butter 2 tbls

It actually pains me to write up this recipe as I am currently fasting (well, for a few hours anyway - I consider any period longer than an hour without food to be a fast), for the annoying blood glucose test that is being forced upon me to due to my doctor's diplomatic classification of my pregnancy as "AMA" (advanced maternal age). Anyway.... eggplant miso is one of my favourite dishes which I used to order at Tsunami restaurant when I lived in Clapham. I have tried it a fe

This uses up last night's Peking Duck following a meal at Dragon Court in Jumbo Floating restaurant. What you need: 200g duck breast 2 spring onions/scallions 150g of baby spinach leaves 200g brown rice noodles 2 tablespoons of peanuts, crushed 1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into strips Handful of raw mange tout or sugar snap peas Dressing: 4 tablespoons of lime juice 4 tablespoons rice vinegar 4 tablespoons of fish sauce 3 tablespoons of coconut sugar 1 red birdseye chilli fin

Here is a chewy, fruity bar with hints of chocolate from the cacao nibs. However, the key to a really successful is granola bar is to use the grains, seeds, fruits and nuts that you like, so do feel free to vary them. For example, you can substitute the dates for raisins, opt for sunbutter (sunflower seed spread) rather peanut butter if your school is nut-free, or use agave rather than maple syrup. You don’t need to cook them if you like them really gooey, alternatively bake

These are simple to prepare, nutritious and incredibly moreish. I soaked my almonds first but you could just use roasted almonds and bake for a shorter time. The balsamic vinegar gives them a nice sweetness, but for a lower sugar or gluten-free alternative, use apple cider vinegar. What you need: 1 cup soaked raw almonds 1 tablespoon Balsamic vinegar or apple cider vinegar 1/2 teaspoon high mineral salt Method: Soak your almonds overnight in drinking water. Read why we soak n

This is a super quick family pudding using fresh bananas and a homemade chocolate sauce which contains just three ingredients: cacao powder, coconut oil and maple syrup. Is it therefore dairy-free and refined sugar free. You could sprinkle some dessicated coconut on top or shavings of frozen coconut cream, for a dairy-free ice-cream effect. Simply pop a carton of coconut cream in the freezer... If you do apply this chocolate sauce to ice-cream or anything frozen, it will hard

There are plenty of ways to liven up breakfast time with these coconut based wraps from Green Vitamin. These are raw, paleo, gluten-free, soy-free, low calorie, vegan and low-carb! Now breathe... Above you can see the cacao coconut wraps with sunflower seed butter, yoghurt, granola, pitted black cherries, dates, cacao nibs and almonds. Litter your table with every fresh/dried fruit, seed and nut that you own along with yoghurt, granola and sticky spreads o help glue the wrap

Summery weather calls for drinks & dips, and pico de gallo (tomato salsa) is something I could eat with a spoon, never mind the tortilla chips (although clearly I ate a whole packet while shooting this). What you need: 6 large tomatoes, skinned & deseeded 1/2 red onion finely chopped 1/2 cup freshly chopped coriander 1 clove of garlic minced 1 red chilli 1 green chilli (for colour, or just use 2 red ones) 1 tablespoon coconut sugar 1 tablespoon of your finest olive oil Juice

This is a super quick and easy week night dinner, whereby you marinate chicken pieces in coconut milk and Thai spices for a few hours/all day then fry it at the last minute. Can't go wrong unless you overcook your chicken. So my amateur advice is to cook your chicken in large pieces to begin with and cut open one when you think it's done. If not, return to pan and repeat cutting activity until the pink colour has JUST gone, no longer, else it will be overcooked. What you need

I had once, in HK, the privilege of a private dinner cooked in my neighbour's flat by Francois Latapie, Director of Operations for NYC's Bistro Bagatelle. He prepared a simple yet flawless and unforgettable dinner including steak au poivre. The next day most of those present rushed out to hunt down the elusive green peppercorn, the key ingredient in any self-respecting pepper sauce. While I can't claim to have matched his finesse, I have had about 7 stabs at it since then and

This is (one of my) current guilty pleasures and could not be simpler. Apart from being very moreish, there are many health benefits of eating miso which is made from fermented soya beans. It contains all the amino acids so is a complete protein, aids digestion, is a powerful probiotic, rich source of B12 and has been reported to reduce risks for breast and other cancers. Since this is white miso, my kids didn't even notice it mixed into butter and certainly didn't complain

In my previous corporate job, my erstwhile colleague, Fella, would often do a cake run when we hit our sugar lows, at about 4pm most days. However, for the times when we couldn't leave our desks, we had no option other than to hit the secret stash in her bottom drawer: a packet of digestive biscuits, a jar of Nutella and a knife. It certainly hit the spot. This is my slightly healthier version containing just 4 ingredients. Like Nutella, it is chocolatey and hazelnutty, but a

Kedgeree has long been comfort food to me. As a child, we would make it simply with rice, smoked haddock, eggs and peas, always with ketchup on the side. Having tasted it at The Ivy restaurant in London, I am now inclined to spice it up a bit. This one has a mild curry flavour that you can moderate according to your kids' preferences. Whether or not use you have recourse to tomato sauce, we will never know... What you need: 4 cups of brown rice 200g smoked haddock 4 cups of w

Or ideal as a mid-afternoon snack which meant I had to make excuses come supper time as to why I wasn't so hungry.... The layers are: 1 Fresh, pitted cherries. 2. Granola from Bob's Red Mill. 3. Raw dairy-free coconut yoghurt from Green Vitamin - possibly best yoghurt on this planet 4. Flaked almonds and cacao nibs. Read more healthy AND interesting breakfast ideas here... #blackforest #breakfastparfait #dairyfree #vegan #gf #glutenfree #granola #greenvitamin #bobsredmi

This is a type of "hidden" sauce, hiding a carrot and some dried apricots in a classic tomato & onion pasta sauce. You can't taste the dried apricots but they sweeten the sauce (and far better to use these than white sugar like I used to...) plus they are high in iron. To boost the protein content of the meal, we used a penne pasta made entirely from organic red lentils, produced by Tolerant Foods and sold at SpiceBox Organics in HK. This pasta also suitable for those follow

Takes just 20 minutes to make, so a super easy dinner for the whole family. I picked the sage from my balcony and bought the Parmesan and special aged (aka expensive but I assure you it was worth it!) Acquerello risotto rice from GCX at the bottom of One Island South, Aberdeen. This is a not just a pizzeria but also an Italian deli selling olive oil, Italian cheese (incl. burrata) and cold cuts. What you need: 1/2 cup of dried porcini mushrooms 25g butter 1/2 large brown onio