This dish is simple and delicious. The spices are complex and sophisticated but not too punchy to put you off your cuppa. I serve the curried mussels on sourdough toast – perfect for soaking up the sauce and maximising the enjoyment.

I use rope-grown mussels from the River Deben here in Suffolk. They are farmed all year round, but my preference is still to enjoy them in their natural season, which is during the months with ‘r’ in the name, when the water is colder and the taste of the mussels is naturally sweeter (then leave them alone during the summer when the water is warmer).

Always make sure you clean fresh mussels thoroughly, removing the beards and giving them a good scrub, as there is nothing more disappointing than gritty mussels.

This recipe was the first time I made Chinese pancakes and I loved them. Most impressively, it’s the quickest and most enjoyable recipe I think I have ever done with only three ingredients. Once you have made these pancakes, you will never buy them again. Please trust me on this recipe and follow the steps word for word; it does take a few moments to work it all out, but once mastered, it’s plain sailing.

The rhubarb ketchup is great fun too and the recipe makes plenty (see Chef’s Note). It will not go to waste and can be served with plenty of other dishes such as venison burgers or partridge kebabs.

The salt-baked parsnips are great. I have done other ingredients in the same crust before, such as sea trout, salmon, mackerel, celeriac and beetroot, and it’s a great cooking method as the salt crust steam-roasts the contents inside and the seasoning penetrates the food, resulting in a tasty, succulent and well seasoned dish inside (you can’t eat the salt crust). It’s definitely worth the effort.

I pickle almost anything I can find, so the pickled parsnips here add a lovely, interesting texture and taste element to this wonderful dish.

This is a classic recipe that should not be messed about with too much, but I have added one of my favourite ingredients to make it extra fun, that is the pumpkin, of course.

We serve these bhajis at the restaurant with a bowl of Madras Spiced Pumpkin Soup. They make a delicious starter or they can also be served as a snack at a drinks party. Make the madras spice mix up to 1 month in advance and keep in an airtight container in a cool, dry cupboard until needed.

This season I have enjoyed many delicious and superb-tasting peaches, and a few peach recipes have made their appearance because I am passionate about making the most of when they are in season.

The key to success for this recipe is to use the ripest peaches possible, as these will deliver the best flavour. This recipe is easy to make and can be prepared in advance. It is delicious served warm or chilled as a starter for a special dinner, or as a light lunch with buttered sourdough bread, or as a side dish alongside grilled pork chops. Alternatively, you can toss the whole lot into a bowl and serve it family-style on the table for everyone to tuck in and help themselves.

I prefer the simplicity of the salad as it is, but if you wanted to make it a bit more substantial, then thin slivers of air-dried ham would work a treat.

I add a touch of creamed horseradish to this recipe, which I use as a seasoning to accentuate the freshness of the cucumber. If you have fresh horseradish to hand, then use double the amount for a good flavour.

I absolutely adore fresh herbs and they are such integral and important ingredients in my cooking. The use of herbs can change the taste of a dish instantly and in this recipe the combination of oregano, tarragon and dill is wonderful.

I used one of my favourite kitchen gadgets to make the cucumber spaghetti garnish for this soup. This Japanese Vegetable Spiralizer is great fun to have in your kitchen cupboard as the results are stunning and your friends will think you have gone to a lot of trouble and effort to make something rather special. I would definitely recommend giving it a go!

I think this soup should be made in bucket loads; it should be on tap in the fridge and be served at least twice a day! It’s not only packed with natural goodness, it’s filling, thirst-quenching and tasty, and simply just good for the soul.

This recipe shouts holiday in the sun to me. Sun-ripened tomatoes (especially the heirloom ones that come in all colours) and fresh buffalo mozzarella both contribute to this wonderful recipe, but the true stars are the sautéed red peppers. The sautéing brings out their sweetness and provides real depth of flavour to an otherwise potentially boring old gazpacho recipe.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

The ricotta that we buy here in the UK is not quite the same, but it’s perfectly delicious and is good enough for me to bring back many happy memories. I recommend not buying half-fat or low-fat ricotta because the taste is just not the same. If you are going to eat and enjoy it, it is best to buy full-fat ricotta and only eat half the amount.

This recipe is ideal for a starter or light lunch, served with fresh crusty bread.

We buy kilos of smoked prawns each week that are served as part of a large sharing platter. We peel the prawns and then turn the smoked prawns into a delicious prawn cocktail, so we are usually left with a heap of shells. The shells are then used to make this delicious bisque that could either be served as a soup for a starter or light lunch, or reduced and served as a sauce to go with a delicious piece of pan-fried hake.

Either way it’s proven to hit the spot with the British Larder customers and is hugely popular. The smoky taste is not overpowering and it’s quite subtle, but the smokiness gives the bisque a rounded and more in-depth flavour, with a rather mysterious deliciousness to it.

As asparagus is plentiful and in season, I simply garnish this bisque with tempura asparagus and whole prawns, which are easy to prepare and give the dish an interesting texture.

I had been harping on for weeks before that I would like to have a go at making salami and cured meats. Well, one thing led to another, and Richard brought this book for me to read, pointing out that he had spotted bresaola in the book and did I fancy giving it a go. Before reading the recipes, I ordered the meat and then after reading both bresaola recipes, I realised that I did not have the cure #2 to hand and had to resort to the wet cure recipe.

It was delicious and I was very happy with the recipe, but the nagging thing in my mind was that I should try the dry cure version too. My results for the first recipe were great, actually both recipes were superb, but from a flavour point of view I prefer the wet cure, and from an aesthetic colour point of view I prefer the dry cure. So, I made up my own version very much based on Diana’s dry cure with the addition of a few extra spices and the orange – I thoroughly enjoyed the taste of the orange in the wet cure and for that reason I then incorporated it into the dry cure recipe.

The ideal temperature to hang the bresaola is at between 10–15°C (with relative humidity at 70–80% – see Cook’s Notes); at this temperature they should be hung for 3 weeks. A cool, dark, well-ventilated shed or room is ideal, but I don’t trust any of my sheds, and the outside temperature fluctuates so much that I decided to use a normal domestic fridge at around 5°C; it’s a bit cooler than the desired temperature and for that reason I hang the bresaola for a week longer (4 weeks in total). I have also left the spices quite rough and big, which not only looks great but also creates an interesting eat. That true home-made experience.

The salt-baked parsnips are simply wonderful. I have had plenty of salt-baked celeriac at various restaurants in the past and this triggered and inspired me to try parsnips. These are a triumph in their own right – they have the perfect texture and unique earthy taste to complement the bresaola.

This is the kind of recipe you should plan to make when you have a weekend of guests, such as family and friends, coming to stay. Plonk the ‘meat’ in the middle of the table with a carving knife and fork and plenty of freshly baked soda bread and home-made butter, plus a bowlful of warm salt-baked parsnips and parsnip remoulade – OK, so it’s a bit extravagant, but it’s heaven! Do not forget the Gewürztraminer or Barolo, whichever takes your fancy – both if it’s me. I think Diana Henry would approve of this kind of fare too.