Serves 2-4

Ingredients

• 1 vine tomato (or any fresh or sun-dried tomatoes)
• 3 large garlic cloves 
• 5g fresh oregano Thyme, parsley or basil
• 1 lemon 
• 2 whole fennel bulbs 
• 3 anchovy fillets (or 1 tbsp capers, caperberries or pitted olives)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (or any oil)
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar, white wine vinegar or cider vinegar)
• Parmesan, to serve (optional, or any hard Italian cheese)
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C.

Thinly slice the tomato, then peel and thinly slice the garlic. Remove the oregano leaves from the stalks and cut the lemon into wedges.

Stand a fennel bulb upright, so it’s sitting on its base, then cut a cross down into its heart, without cutting all the way through. Repeat with the second bulb and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Keep the fennel upright and then stuff with the prepared tomato slices, anchovies (use whole or tear up to spread them out), garlic and oregano. Generously fill the crevices of the fennel bulbs, both the ones made with the knife and the naturally occurring ones as the layers separate towards the tip of the bulbs – this doesn’t need to be done neatly!

Drizzle a good glug of olive oil over the stuffed fennel, along with the vinegar and a squeeze of lemon juice too. Season well, then lay the stuffed bulbs on their side, making sure you add the lemon wedges to the tray. Give them one final drizzle of oil over the top, too.

Place on the top shelf of the preheated oven and roast for 45 minutes, until caramelized, tender and smelling divine, but not quite ready. Baste the fennel with the pan juices, then return to the oven for another 45 minutes. Keep an eye on them in the oven and if you’re worried about burning, cover them, although I like the charred bits so I rarely do.

Once ready, serve the baked fennel sprinkled with a little Parmesan, if you like.

Goes well with:
Barbecued meat or fish. I don’t think you need much else for a great weekend feast.

Leftovers:
Slice up and make into a delicious pasta sauce, with some extra tomatoes and a generous spoonful of mascarpone or crème fraîche. 

From Fridge Raid by Megan Davies (Ryland Peters & Small, £18.99), out now

Aaron says: “Caponata is a Sicilian dish, but for me it is a reminder of Israel. It is exactly the kind of thing I put together when cooking with my friends Lior and Ayala in Jerusalem. Like me, they are interested in bringing different flavours together and in making the most of whatever is in season. We often go to the market just before the beginning of Shabbat to pick up whatever has not sold. It is a great test of culinary ingenuity! You can make this versatile dish with fresh vegetables if you have them, or preserved if you don’t, and serve it as a vegetarian main course with some good bread, for lunch with an egg on top or as a side dish to accompany any roasted or grilled (broiled) meat or fish.”

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp rapeseed oil 
• 1⁄2 onion, finely chopped
• 4 globe artichokes (or 200 g/7 oz prepared artichoke hearts in olive oil, drained) 
• lemon juice, to prevent discolouration (if using fresh artichokes)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 spring onions, chopped 
• 1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 1 aubergine, peeled using a vegetable peeler, then cut into 1.5-cm dice
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 4 tbsp canned chopped tomatoes
• 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons capers, drained and rinsed
• 2 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds
• 1 tbsp finely chopped basil
• 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 tbsp finely chopped lemon thyme
• salt and pepper toasted bread, to serve

Method

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, cover and leave for 10 minutes to sweat down, stirring every so often.

Meanwhile, prepare the globe artichokes, if using. Remove the leaves until only the innermost leaves and hearts remain. (You can keep the outer leaves to steam and then eat with vinaigrette or aioli – delicious.) Trim the stems and hard leaf remnants around the bottoms, and use a vegetable peeler to peel the stems, removing the tough exterior. Chop the hearts in half and use a spoon to remove the hairy chokes. Cut in half again so you are left with quarters of artichoke heart.

If you are not using them immediately, rub with a little lemon juice to stop discolouration.

Add the garlic, spring onions (scallions), fennel, aubergine (eggplant), tomatoes (fresh and canned), artichoke hearts, vinegar, capers and pumpkin seeds to the frying pan with the onion, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, or until all the vegetables are tender but not too soft.

Add the herbs and cook, uncovered, for another five minutes

to allow the flavours to combine. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm or at room temperature, spooned over toasted bread

From Grow Fruit and Vegetables in Pots by Aaron Bertelsen (Phaidon, £29.95), out now

Aaron says: “I love this salad because it brings together some of my favourite ingredients, with a little unexpected twist from the almonds, which bring welcome crunch and a deep toasted flavour. The recipe comes to me from a friend, Isabelle, who is training to be a chef. This dish makes a wonderful light lunch, but you could also serve it as a starter (appetizer), or make it part of a larger spread by adding another couple of salads and some warm bread.”

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 75 g whole almonds, with skins on
• grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 2 apples, cored and diced
• 1 tbsp capers, coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch dill, coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
• 175g smoked mackerel fillets

For the vinaigrette:

• 1 tablespoon (apple) cider vinegar
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1–2 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1⁄4 teaspoon sugar
• salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.

Put the almonds into a small roasting pan with the lemon zest and juice. Place in the oven and roast until the nuts are browned, about 10 minutes. Let cool, then coarsely chop.

Make the vinaigrette. Whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, oil and sugar in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper, and add a little more lemon juice or mustard, to taste.

Put the chopped almonds, fennel, apples, capers, dill and parsley into a bowl. Break up the mackerel fillets into chunks and add to the salad. Pour over the vinaigrette, toss gently and serve. 

From Grow Fruit and Vegetables in Pots by Aaron Bertelsen (Phaidon, £29.95), out now

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 onion, peeled and finely sliced
• 2 heads of fennel (about 250g), finely sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 350g spaghetti
• 75g grated Parmesan (or vegan alternative), plus extra to serve
• 8 tbsp finely sliced mint
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• sea salt and freshly ground black
• pepper

Method

Heat the oil in your wide shallow pot. Add the sliced onion and fennel to the pot and cook over a medium heat for five to six minutes until just starting to soften. Add the garlic and cook for two more minutes, turning so that everything cooks evenly. Add 1.1 litres cold water, two tsp salt and a generous grind of black pepper and give everything a good stir. 

Now add the spaghetti, turn the heat up and bring to the boil. Initially the pasta will only just fit in the middle of the pot – it will soon soften up.

Using tongs, regularly move the pasta around to ensure the pieces don’t stick together. Once boiling, turn the heat down slightly but allow it to continue boiling enthusiastically. At this stage, you’re trying to evaporate some of the water while allowing the pasta to absorb much of the remaining liquid and to cook through. Boil for around 10 minutes, until the pasta is al dente, regularly mixing and turning to ensure even cooking and prevent clumping.

After 10 minutes the liquid will have reduced and the pasta will be cooked. Turn the heat off and allow it to sit for two minutes. Now stir in the grated Parmesan (or vegan alternative), the mint and the lemon zest and juice to produce a creamy sauce that clings to the pasta. Toss through some more black pepper and taste for seasoning, adding more salt if you feel it needs it. 

Serve with more Parmesan, freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Tip
The sauce will thicken up the longer you leave it, so don’t leave it for too long once you’re ready to serve.

From Foolproof One-Pot by Alan Rosenthal (Quadrille, £12.99), out now

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp light olive oil
• 25g unsalted butter
• 8 pork sausages
• 80g smoked lardons
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, lightly crushed
• 1 onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1 large carrot, finely diced
• 1 fennel bulb, finely diced
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 large sprig of thyme
• 3 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 tbsp tomato purée (paste)
• 150ml dry vermouth or white wine
• 750ml hot chicken stock
• 250g puy lentils, rinsed and drained
• 2 tbsp crème fraîche
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 3 tbsp finely chopped parsley
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Heat the oil and butter in your wide shallow pot over a medium heat.

Add the sausages and cook for six to seven minutes, until browned on a couple of sides, turning them once during this time. Using tongs, transfer the browned sausages to a plate and set aside.

Add the lardons and fennel seeds to the pot and cook for two minutes until beginning to brown. Add the onion, carrot and fennel along with the bay leaves and thyme. Cook for around seven minutes until the onion is softening. Stir regularly, scraping up any caramelized bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot, allowing them to melt into the vegetables.

Add the garlic and tomato purée and cook for another two minutes. Add the vermouth, or white wine, and cook until it is almost all evaporated. Now add the stock followed by the lentils, one tsp salt and some black pepper.

Bring to the boil and then place the sausages evenly on top with some of the meat sitting above the surface level of the liquid, like sausage icebergs!

Place the pot, uncovered, in the preheated oven and cook, undisturbed, for 40 minutes, by which time the lentils will be cooked, the liquid reduced and the sausages and some of the vegetables browned on top.

Meanwhile, mix the crème fraîche with the mustard in a small bowl. Remove the stew from the oven, dot with the blended crème fraîche and mustard and sprinkle the chopped parsley all over. Serve.

From Foolproof One-Pot by Alan Rosenthal (Quadrille, £12.99), out now