Having been unable to go to my favourite music festival since 2019 it was more than exciting to set up camp in an Oxfordshire field a few weeks ago. Except that there was another heatwave so no open flames were allowed. Disaster! How would I be able to cook my (famous) camp breakfasts for everyone?! Fortunately my sister has a camper van with a small but efficient gas stove so I braved the heat and jumped in. The cramped space forced me to be a bit creative but I was really pleased with the results. Basically I made a one pan egg thing, which my friend graciously called a frittata. I wasn’t going to argue.

Firstly I parboiled some potatoes (chopped into small pieces), sautéd mushrooms and onions and put them to one side. I then sautéd the potatoes for a few minutes, put the mushrooms and onions back into the pan, and added some small pieces of chorizo (the secret ingredient!) before cracking about 8 eggs into the mixture and popping the lid on. Oh, I also added plenty of seasoning and a whole lot of paprika. (This is no ordinary camping…) I was a bit worried about the bottom cooking (burning) more than the top so I segmented the whole thing and flipped each piece in turn. In my head that was a really good idea but of course it didn’t turn out quite as neatly as I’d hoped. Still, it worked! And I had a circle of happy campers to show for it.

Last weekend I made a smaller version, using spring onions instead of ordinary white ones and adding some baby spinach leaves to the pan just before covering. I ate it with some avocado and cherry tomatoes on the side; a hot/cold/umami taste sensation! Because the mixture filled the pan I also had two portions left over for lunches which was nice too. It’s lovely hot or cold.

Talking of chorizo, Mike West sent in this fabulous recipe for a chorizo and salmon bake. He says: The Chorizo releases its flavour into the cannellini beans, and baked cherry tomatoes always add their distinctive taste.. At the end of the 25 minutes cooking time you add the juice and zest of 1 lemon which sounds a lot but this lifts the dish to a new level. Served with fresh bread and green salad it’s now one of my favourites. It’s simple to make and great to eat. This is definitely going on my To Cook List.

Nigel Slater does it again: a perfect umami dish which can be incorporated into a larger meal, popped on toast or simply enjoyed by itself. Tomatoes, shallots, halloumi and basil… A pretty sublime combination! Although I appreciate that many who experience Parosmia may need to avoid the shallots. This is for two servings (or one greedy one…!)

We’re all getting increasingly worried about food and energy price rises so I thought you might find this article on microwave cooking useful. There are some great tips included – my personal faves are vacuum packed veggies and noodle pho but there are many others in there. I must admit, I wasn’t aware that microwaves were so much more efficient than ovens but I suppose it makes sense – you only need to power them up for a few minutes at a time, after all. So go ahead and get zapping!