Now, my ethos with cooking is that it has to be simple and it doesn’t matter if you haven’t got all the ingredients. In fact, improvisation could be my middle name as it’s amazing what left overs I can chuck in an stew/omelette/soup/gravy/sandwich/curry, you name it. I will try and convey this in my recipes, so you can pick up this relaxed approach with your own cooking and find out for yourself what works and doesn’t work. Each week, I will build up some store cupboard items that will feature regularly, most of which you may well already have.

I’m going to start with a one pot meal I cooked in advance last Saturday morning to have for a quick tea in the evening..

BEEF STEW AND DUMPLINGS

(Quantities below make 4 generous servings so vary accordingly).

Store cupboard items: Extra virgin rapeseed oil, organic plain and self-raising flour, dried mixed herbs (as a back up), pearl barley (optional), shredded suet, beef stock cubes

Other ingredients: 1.5lb braising steak, 2 medium onions, 2 medium potatoes, your choice of  6-8 oz  of 2 0r 3 of the following:  leeks, carrots, parsnip, swede, turnip, (in fact whatever veggies you like, really!), fresh parsley if you’ve got it.

Cut the steak into largish cubes and coat in well seasoned flour, (I just bung a tablespoon of plain flour in a biggish bowl with salt and freshly ground pepper and swill the meat round in it). Heat a generous dose of oil in a casserole until really hot and brown the meat quickly in two or three lots, then keep it to one side while you fry the roughly chopped onion for 3 or 4 minutes on a lowish heat. (Add a drop more oil if you need to). Then put the meat back in the pan with all your cubed vegetables. Give it all a good stir, add enough beef stock to just about cover the lot and then sprinkle on a couple of ounces of pearl barley, which adds extra substance. Bung a lid on the casserole, bring to simmering point and then either cook on the hob on a very low heat or put in the oven at 150C for 2 hours or so.

The dumplings are dead simple. It took me 2 minutes to add these to the pot when I came back after my day out. Mix 4oz selfraising flour with 2 oz shredded suet, some salt and pepper and a good sprinkle of mixed herbs or better still, a tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley. Slowly add enough cold water to make a stiff, but sort of elastic, dough that encorporates all the flour in the bowl. (If it all gets a bit sticky, just add a bit more flour, no worries!). Use your hands to roll 8 dumplings out of the mixture. Check on the stew: stir and add a bit more liquid or seasoning if necessary, then pop on the dumplings. With the lid back on, cook for a further 20 mins and then finish in a hotter oven (190/200C ish) with the lid off just to brown the top of the dumplings.

Serve and enjoy!