I love this zucchini, potato and feta soup but I have to admit the first recipe I tried wasn’t that inspiring—basically throw everything in the pot and simmer. Instead, here I’ve taken the basic ingredients and changed the cooking process to get as much flavour out of them as possible.

This is just brilliant for lunch and freezes really well. It’s got a really fresh, leafy flavour from all the herbs, with tangy flavour from the yoghurt and feta.

Ingredients

2 tbs olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbs thyme, roughly chopped
1L chicken stock (I use Massel because it’s meat, gluten and lactose free), plus ½ cup water
3 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1.5cm cubes, and rinsed
4 large zucchini, cut into 1cm slices
½ cup flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
½ cup basil, roughly chopped
¼ cup natural yoghurt
100g feta, crumbled
Freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan. With the lid slightly ajar, sweat the onions on low heat for five minutes. Add the garlic and thyme, stir and cook for one minute.

Turn the heat up to medium and add the potato cubes. Cover and allow to cook for around eight minutes, stirring frequently so they don’t burn or stick. You want to get the potatoes a little golden and flaky on the outside.

Add the zucchini and cook for two minutes. Add the stock and water, and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer with the lid off till the potato is cooked through and soft.

Stir in the parsley, basil and yoghurt. With a stick blender (or you could use a food processor), blend the soup mixture until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Add the crumbled feta and stir through.

Serve immediately. Alternatively, allow the soup to cool in the saucepan and dish into freezer containers.

Makes approximately six serves.

One of our regular dishes is thyme and lemon lamb with zucchini and chickpea salad. I can’t take credit for the idea. It is based on a recipe in the CSIRO Healthy Heart Program cookbook but we’ve changed the cut of meat and recipe to suit our own tastes.

This is one of those dishes that is packed with flavour—it’s really surprising given the overall simplicity of the ingredients and the way you prepare them. Not only that, it’s good for you too…

Ingredients

400g lamb back strap
Filling
100g ricotta
1–2 tbs basil, finely chopped
1 tbs thyme (or lemon thyme), finely chopped
2 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
zest of 1 lemon
Salad
3 zucchini, thinly sliced lengthways (2–3mm thick)
olive oil
16 pitted kalamata olives, halved
1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
1–2 small fennel bulbs, finely sliced
2–3 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbs basil, roughly chopped
1 tbs thyme (or lemon thyme), roughly chopped
3 tbs parsley, roughly chopped

Method

In a bowl, combine the ricotta, basil, thyme, lemon zest and olive oil. Season with freshly ground black pepper (you can add salt to taste).

Remove any sinew from the lamb back strap and tenderise with a meat mallet until 5mm thick. Spread the ricotta mixture across the flattened meat and roll up. Use toothpicks to secure the roll, if required.

Heat some olive oil in an oven-proof frypan and sear the lamb roll for 2 minutes on each side for colour. Place in a moderate oven 180°C for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cooked to your liking. Remove from the oven and rest the meat for half the total cooking time.

Meanwhile to make the salad, toss the zucchini and fennel in a small amount of olive oil to lightly coat. Place on an oven tray and cook for approximately 8 minutes, until softened.

Transfer to a bowl and mix with the remaining salad ingredients. Cover with cling film and set aside until the lamb is ready.

Cut the lamb into chunky slices (about 2cm thick) and serve with the chickpea salad. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice over the top. Serves 4.

We try to eat fish at least once a week and one dish that is simple to make but absolutely delicious is fish with charred Mediterranean vegetables. This is ideal if you want something yummy with only about half an hour to prepare and cook.

1 red capsicum, thickly sliced
2 zucchini, sliced lengthways
1 Spanish onion, cut into wedges
2 tbs olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Kalamata olives
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tbs parsley, roughly chopped
½ cup basil, roughly chopped
Juice of ½ a lemon
400g swordfish or red emperor (you want a fleshy fish rather than a flaky one)

Preheat the grill to high. Place capsicum, zucchini and onion in a bowl with half the oil and toss to coat. Cook on the grill plate for three minutes on each side, or until charred and slightly wilted. Return vegetables to the bowl. Add garlic, olives, balsamic vinegar, parsley, basil, lemon juice and remaining oil, and toss. Cover with cling wrap and set aside. (By covering the vegetables, you allow them to soften.)

Heat some oil in a pan and fry the fish for a couple of minutes on each side, or until cooked. Rest the fish, covered with foil, for approximately half the cooking time.

Serve with the charred vegetables and lemon wedges.

I’ve come up with a recipe that satisfies both our food needs. Like all good lasagne, it takes a bit of time and effort to make but you end up with ample delicious leftovers.

First, make the tomato sauce:

1 tbs olive oil
2 x 400g canned tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbs rosemary, chopped
¼ cup basil, chopped
1 tbs oregano, chopped
1 bay leaf
Splash of red wine

Fry the garlic in oil until transparent. Deglaze the pan with red wine. Add the other ingredients and simmer gently for 45 minutes to thicken.

While that’s simmering away, start preparing the filling for the layers.

200g pumpkin
½ sweet potato
1 eggplant
2 zucchinis
12 mushrooms, sliced
fresh spinach or silver beet, roughly chopped
250g ricotta
350g mozzarella, grated
50g parmesan, grated
Lasagne sheets

Cut the pumpkin and sweet potato into 5mm slices and parboil. Set aside.

Slice the zucchinis and eggplant lengthways and grill for five minutes on each side. Set aside.

When the tomato sauce is ready, take off the heat, remove the bay leaf and set aside.

In a large ovenproof dish, cover the bottom with layer of tomato sauce and place lasagne sheets on top, covering it to the edges. Cover with a layer of eggplant, then mushrooms, then spinach. Dollop some of the ricotta around and sprinkle with some of the mozzarella.

Place another layer of lasagne sheets in the dish and cover with tomato sauce. Cover with a mixture of pumpkin and sweet potato, then add a layer of zucchini. Dollop with some more of the ricotta around and sprinkle with some more of the mozzarella.

Place another layer of lasagne sheets and cover with tomato sauce and another layer of mushrooms. Dollop the remaining ricotta and sprinkle with a thick layer of mozzarella and the parmesan cheese.

Bake at 140­­-160°C for an hour until cheese is golden with crunchy bits on top.

The days are getting shorter, the light is paler and there’s a definite chill in the air. Winter is coming and that means perfect weather for soup.

Proper, hearty (and healthy) soup made from fresh vegetables and simmered gently on the stove top, filling the house with a gorgeous aroma that makes you salivate the minute you walk through the door. Mmmmm, so good you can hardly wait to eat it with a few slices of crusty bread.

We make a lot of soup in winter but the all-time favourite would have to be minestrone. It’s a delicious way to dish up a big serve of vegetables. The leftovers are even better the next day and it also keeps well in the freezer.

We can’t take full credit for it. It’s based on a Jamie Oliver recipe but, over time, we’ve adjusted the quantities to suit our taste.

1 tbs olive oil
6 slices rindless shortcut bacon, chopped
1 Spanish onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
1 bulb fennel, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ a bunch basil, leaves and green stalks chopped
800g canned Roma tomatoes
175ml red wine
2 zucchinis, chopped
3 to 4 leaves silverbeet, roughly chopped stalks and all
400g canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed thoroughly
500ml chicken stock
2 handfuls of short pasta
Parmesan cheese to serve

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan and add the chopped bacon. Fry gently for a minute then add onion, carrots, celery, fennel, garlic and basil. On a very low heat and with the lid slightly ajar, allow the bacon and vegetables to sweat for around 20 minutes until soft. The heat should be low enough that nothing browns.

Add the zucchini, tomatoes and wine, and simmer gently until it thickens slightly. Add the silverbeet, chicken stock, cannellini beans and pasta. Simmer until the pasta is cooked.

When ready, season with salt and pepper and sprinkle freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top.