A great choice of theme, which led to a huge range of options for lots of us, who knew there were so many chefs beginning with J! Also great to have a full house.

Starters

Karen – Spinach and pea soup from Katie and Giancarlo Caldesi 30 minute diabetes cook book

This included nutmeg with the spinach and peas, and felt very nourishing and good for us. I forgot to take a good photo, and had to scrabble for one, sorry!

Janet – Portobello mushroom with goats cheese & beetroot and walnut salsa from James Tanner (Ready Steady Cook)

This was described as a main course, but worked very well as a starter.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/grilledmushroomswith_85581

Mains

Debrah – Meatballs by Donna Hay

This involved lamb, bulgur wheat, the ubiquitous PWM pomegranate molasses and lots of spices with harissa. Although there are various people who don’t normally enjoy lamb, everyone liked it.

https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/s/baked-lamb-and-oregano-meatballs

Tracey – Sweet potato and halloumi curry by Matt Tebbutt

The veg was roasted and then the curry sauce was made separately with some additional apple. Really tasty.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/sweet_potato_and_08653

Sides

Jane – East meets West greens with kimchi by Jill Dupleix

This was super easy, but very effective with the kimchi and the sesame seeds.

http://delicious.com.au/recipes/east-meets-west-greens-kimchi/b4ba888c-8a67-4c9c-942b-013f2e4a1a95?current_section=recipes&r=recipes/collections/jilldupleixrecipecollection&c=1bb9ca41-8452-4c7b-aaeb-9db381791289/jill dupleix recipe collection

Sue – Fattoush by Saskia Sidey (double S!)

This chef is a ‘conceptual food stylist’ who trained at Leith school. The Fattoush was very fresh and tasty.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chickpea_fattoush_38833

Puddings

Julie – Tiramisu roulade by John Torode

Emmeline helped with the dipping of the sponge fingers. Julie thought that there was too much cream and not enough coffee. She also thought it would be simple, but it was more difficult than expected.

https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/tiramisu-roulade/

Justine – Apricot sherbet by Julia Child

This was apricots, egg white and sugar, frozen and then whipped up. Really refreshing for the end of a meal. The issue with the recipe was that it involved cups, as it was American, which can be tricky for British cooks.