Eleven quick and easy summer weekday dinners, from pasta to Maggi goreng – recipes

(Pictured above)Rukmini Iyer’s recipe contains a microwave method for cooking rice, but I’ve successfully made basmati in a rice cooker countless times – just pop the whole garlic clove in with the rice grains. After that, it’s only a matter of stir-frying the cashews, broccoli and tofu. If you need more convincing, Iyer says this recipe was “an absolute hit with my children”. My own children happily mainline tofu and rice, and can be persuaded to have broccoli if I tell them they’re actually eating mini Christmas trees, so I believe her.There are many ways to level up your instant noodles, and this recipe follows a familiar formula: add greens for health and a fried egg for protein

January tips if you’re cooking for one | Kitchen aide

I really struggle with cooking for one, so what can I make in January that’s interesting but easy and, most importantly, warming?Jane, via email “There’s an art to the perfect solo meal,” says Bonnie Chung, author of Miso: From Japanese Classics to Everyday Umami, “and that’s balancing decadence with ease.” For Chung, that means good-quality ingredients (“tinned anchovies, jarred beans”), a dish that can be cooked in one pan (“a night alone must be maximised with minimal washing-up”) and eaten with a single piece of cutlery, “preferably in front of the telly and out of a bowl nestling in your lap”. Happily, she says, all of those requirements are met by miso udon carbonara: “It has all the rich and creamy nirvana of a cheesy pasta, but with a delicious, mochi-like chew that is incredibly satisfying.” Not only that, but you can knock it up in less than 10 minutes. “Melt cheese, milk and miso in a pan to make the sauce base, then add frozen udon that have been soaked in hot water

Cheesy celeriac souffle and citrus salad: Thomasina Miers’ recipes to brighten a dark winter’s day

There is a skill in not wasting food and it’s all about good, old-fashioned housekeeping. If you learn how to store ingredients properly (cool, dark places are handy for spuds, for example) and keep tabs on what’s in your fridge/freezer, you can use everything up before it goes off – and make delicious things in the process. This golden, cheese-crusted souffle uses up the celeriac and spuds left after the festive season, plus any odds and ends of cheeses. It is spectacularly good, especially paired with a sparkling citrus salad.Sweet onions, soft roots and lots of cheese rise into a light, golden souffle with none of the fuss of making a bechamel

Georgina Hayden’s quick and easy recipe for antipasti beans on toast | Quick and easy

Perhaps you still have some cheeseboard odds and sods in the fridge from Christmas? I know I still have a few to get through, but, other than that, my fridge and cupboards are looking pretty bare. Beans on toast has always been my go-to meal in times such as these, and when I need comfort, familiarity and ease. What used to involve opening a tin and reheating the contents, however, has now become something slightly more elaborate. But only slightly: these beans are incredibly simple and quick to make, with store-bought antipasti adding real depth.I like to use about one third pitted olives to a mix of sun-dried tomatoes and artichokes, but use whichever ratio and vegetables you have to hand

West African sunshine dishes: Toyo Odetunde’s chicken yassa pot pie and stuffed plantain boats – recipes

If there’s anything that can assuage my winter blues, it’s a soul-soothing chicken pie. I’ve long enjoyed innovating fusions between west African and other cuisines, and today’s marriage of a deeply flavourful Senegalese chicken yassa-inspired filling in buttery, flaky puff pastry is one of my all-time favourites. But, first, my take on hearty Nigerian stewed beans – ewa riro – using tinned beans for added convenience. Typically paired with ripe plantain, I use the rich beans to fill canoas (plantain boats) in a playful, Latin American-inspired twist.Dried prawns and west African red palm oil, which are integral to our cooking (and the latter is not to be confused with those industrial palm oils that are driving mass deforestation), give this dish its signature umami and uniquely earthy and subtly sweet flavour

How to make penne all’arrabbiata – recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass

Pasta all’arrabbiata is the perfect dish for January. Not only is it quick, vegan and made from ingredients you might conceivably have in the cupboard already, but the name, which means angry, could be said to suit my mood now that the last of the Christmas festivities are over. Happily, a big plate of rich, tomatoey pasta can always be relied upon to lift the spirits.Prep 5 min Cook 25 min Serves 22 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little more to finish1 tsp chilli flakes 2 garlic cloves 400g good tinned tomatoes, or passata 200g penne (see step 1)Salt and black pepper ¼ tsp red-wine vinegar 1 handful basil leaves, or flat-leaf parsleyThis dish is traditionally made with penne, but any shape that traps chunky pieces of sauce will give maximum enjoyment. Caz Hildebrand and Jacob Kenedy’s book The Geometry of Pasta suggests no fewer than 14 alternatives, including farfalle, pappardelle and tagliatelle, while I’d recommend rigatoni, fusilli, conchiglie or, indeed, anything that looks vaguely like them