Mid Week Supper

On the whole, vegetables take centre stage on our daily table, we eat meat occasionally and absolutely love fish. I feel meat is the most precious of foods and whenever we eat it, it's really very special. Since moving to London, fish has become one of my greatest loves. When fresh and cooked sensitively, there is nothing more sublime. This meal is probably quite typical of what we'll eat on most nights, something light and lovely. I think every meal should have the right colour balance as well as flavour and texture. I can't bear eating a meal that's all beige. 

Savoury rice dishes can be the star of the show, this one with mushrooms is earthy, robust and meaty. Sauteed onion and garlic provide the base. Mushrooms give fantastic texture and depth, and flat leaf parsley for lift are all added to cooked short grain brown rice. You can also use a combination of wild rices and or brown basmati. A good olive oil, some freshly ground black pepper and sea salt is all this needs for seasoning. 

There is always a salad of some form on the table. Sometimes it is eaten as its own course and sometimes as part of the meal as a whole. This one was to share its space. Emerald greens, crisp white and elegant black adorned the plate. A salad of tender lambs lettuce, topped with thinly sliced and grilled aubergine and courgettes. Finished off with feta, capers and nigella seeds. Always great with a mustard dressing for a little pepperiness or a salsa verde. For a crunchier salad, use gem or cos lettuce instead.

I could have left it there but definitely wanted more colour and a soft buttery texture to compliment the rest. Red sweet potatoes cut into wedges and roasted with fennel seeds were just the thing. Leaving the skin on helps them keep their shape and it's full of all the good stuff. Allow them to caramelise well. Roasted butternut could have worked well here too.