Mrs Cornic's stuffed tomatoes

This recipe for tomates farcies works equally well for courgettes. Many thanks to Mael Cornic for passing on his mother's recipe. We use a lot of ras el hanout - you get a lot of stuffing from this mixture, so up to four tablespoonfuls of ras el hanout is not too much if it's a mildish mix. I know it sounds like too much. I think lamb mince would be a good substitute for the beef/sausage mixture if you didn't want to use pork.

Anyway:

You'll need biggish tomatoes. Cut the top (side opposed to that of the stem) and delicately empty the tomato using a spoon. Keep the flesh. Sprinkle the inside of the tom with salt turn over and leave to rest on a tray. You can also do the same with courgettes and peppers, if you want more variety (I must say the stuffed courgettes are my fave).

For the stuffing for ~8 stuffed veggies you'll need:

- 400g minced beef

- 400g sausagemeat

- 1 big onion, chopped finely

- 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely

- 1 small can of tomato puree

- a bunch of parsley, chopped finely

- 1 egg

- salt, pepper, ras el hanout if you have otherwise cumin powder

- breadcrumbs

- vegetable stock

Fry all the meat separately (in butter, yum). In another pan, fry the garlic and onion gently - let to sweat properly. Then add the reserved tomato (and courgette) flesh that you've kept and let reduce. Add the cooked meat. Adjust the tomatoness with tomato puree. Finally crack an egg on top and mix rapidly - that'll bind the stuffing. Adjust seasoning and spice (ras el hanout ideally, cumin otherwise ; go easy on the cumin) and throw in the chopped bunch of parsley. Don't be afraid to turn your stuffing green.

Finally stuff your tomatoes (or other veggies) with that lot, leaving a little mound at the top. Sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs. Do not cover the tops with the sliced off tomato top but simply lay them aside in the dish. Lay in an oven proof dish ; moisten the bottom of the dish with vegetable stock. Bung in a hot oven for 35-40 minutes (check that the stock is not drying up ; top up if necessary).

To serve, top the toms or other veggies with their sliced off tops over the breadcrumby bit which should have gone crunchy.

Chorizo and lentil stew

This recipe is very much adapted from the Casa Moro cookery book. A large solid stew for cold weather, for a large number of people, which can be as simple or as elaborate as you like.

Basics: green or black lentils, onion, garlic, cooking chorizo (not the dried sort), chilli.

Chorizo comes in different varieties - I like picante, the spicy one, but dulce (more mildly spiced) is also good.
Lentilles de Puy are nice, but the cheaper brown/green Turkish lentils are also fine. Anything except the split sort, and they'd probably do at a push but change the nature of the dish.
I favour Turkish chilli flakes, which have a slightly salty, smoky flavour and are quite mild (sometimes also known as Aleppo pepper). You could also try a little chopped fresh chilli, Spanish powdered chilli, or paprika depending what's available. To be authentically Spanish apparently the spicing should be quite mild - I probably spice it out of all recognition.
Red pepper paste comes in sweet or hot varieties from Turkish supermarkets.

Useful additions: celery, carrot, morcilla (Spanish black pudding), tomato or red pepper paste, bay leaf, chopped parsley or coriander to finish.

Other additions which would also work: red pepper, a glass of red wine or cider

Quantities: depends on how many people you have to feed and how much money you have to spend on chorizo - you could make this very lentil-heavy, very meaty, or with lots of additional vegetables, depending on your taste and budget.

Best place to buy chorizo and morcilla in London: Brindisa at Borough Market

Chop onions and garlic finely (and any other vegetables you're using) and saute gently. When they've softened, add chopped chorizo (it's easiest to chop it with scissors, as it's squashy and surprisingly hard to slice) and saute until it starts going brown and the red oil is seeping out. If you want to add tomato or pepper paste, add a tablespooonful or so now and stir for a couple of minutes. After this, add a glass of wine or cider if you like, and simmer briskly until the liquid is well reduced.

Then add lentils, black pepper (and bay leaf if you have one), cover with water, put the lid on and leave to simmer until the lentils are almost done and the liquid is absorbed. You don't need salt, as the chorizo is quite salty. At this point, poach the morcilla on top of the stew - they're quite fragile so turn them over gently until they're cooked on all sides. When you put it in the serving dish or on people's plates, add a sprinkle of chopped parsley or coriander if you like. You can also thicken this with bulghur or rice if you like at an earlier stage.

Good with plain boiled rice or bread, and greens or salad.