EASY SUNDAY
Recipes to to celebrate that Sunday feeling
SUNDAY IS ABOUT
sharing, feasting with friends, brunches and leisurely long lunches. It’s the one day of the week when mealtimes are flexible.
Sophie Gordon’s new book Sundays is a collection of fresh, modern recipes to celebrate that Sunday feeling . . . all day.
Whatever your Sunday mood, you will find the perfect recipe right here.
PRUNE STICKY TOFFEE PIE
This recipe came about by accident; I didn’t have any dates, so I swapped them out for prunes instead. The result was better than the original. Baking in a loaf tin then slicing and reheating in sauce gives the best sauce-to-sponge ratio; shout-out to my girl Ells for this revelation.
Ingredients
75g salted butter, plus a little extra for greasing
175g prunes (de-stoned weight)
150ml boiling water
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
150g soft light brown sugar 2 medium eggs
2 Tbsp black treacle
150g self-raising flour icecream, cream or custard, to serve fine sea salt
For the sauce
170g salted butter
170g soft light brown sugar 2 heaped Tbsp black treacle 300ml double (heavy) cream 1 tsp vanilla extract
Method
Preheat your oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 900g loaf tin.
De-stone the prunes, then blitz in a food processor to a rough paste, or chop by hand. Add to a bowl, then pour in the boiling water and the bicarb. Stir, then set aside.
Measure the butter and sugar into a large bowl. Whisk together (a hand whisk is fine) until well combined, then crack in the eggs and whisk again. Add the treacle, followed by the flour and a big pinch of salt. Whisk until you have a smooth batter, then add the prunes, along with their soaking liquid, and whisk again.
Scrape the batter into the tin. Bake for 40-45 minutes until a skewer, or piece of spaghetti, poked into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely in the tin.
Meanwhile, make the sauce. Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over a medium heat. Bubble away for 3-5 minutes until fully amalgamated into a luscious toffee sauce. Season with salt to taste for proper salted caramel vibes. Turn off the heat.
Just before serving, preheat your oven to 180C/160C fan/ 350F/gas mark 4. Line a large roasting tray with foil.
Cut the sticky toffee loaf into 8 thick slices. Dollop a large spoonful of toffee sauce on top of each slice, pop on the tray then cover the tray with foil. Heat for 8-10 minutes until bubbling. Meanwhile, reheat any remaining toffee sauce in a pan to pour over. Serve each slice covered in sauce, with icecream, cream or custard: your choice.
Tip: This sticky toffee loaf will taste even better the next day (it keeps for a week). Once baked and cooled, wrap it tightly in clingfilm and keep at room temperature. The sauce can be made in advance and kept in the fridge. It will harden once cold, but will come back together once reheated.
— Serves 8
ROASTED CAULIFLOWER & POTATO CURRY
I love a vegan curry, especially one that is heavy on spice, giving you little pops of flavour as you’re eating. To bring things up a notch, I’ve roasted the veg and added a crispy garlic-andcoriander-naan crouton situation. Banging.
Ingredients
500g new potatoes
1 large cauliflower
6 Tbsp rapeseed or other neutral oil
3 Tbsp curry powder
1 onion large thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger
1 green or red chilli
7 garlic cloves handful of coriander
4 Tbsp whole spices (I like a mix of cumin, coriander, mustard and fennel seeds)
2 x 400g tins coconut milk 100g baby spinach leaves 2 naans (check the ingredients if you’re vegan) juice of 1 lime cooked rice, to serve sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Preheat your oven to 220C/200C fan/gas mark 7.
Leaving their skins on, slice the potatoes into 1cm (1⁄2 inch) rounds, then chop the cauliflower (stalk and all) into medium-sized pieces. Toss the potato and cauliflower on a large baking tray with 4 tablespoons of the oil and 2 tablespoons of the curry powder. Season, then spread into a single layer so they roast evenly. Roast for 25-30 minutes, tossing halfway.
Meanwhile, roughly chop the onion, ginger, chilli and 3 of the garlic cloves. Put into a blender or small food processor. Add the coriander stalks (keep the leaves for later), along with the remaining curry powder and 5 tablespoons water. Blitz to form a curry paste.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring regularly, for 5 minutes until the water has evaporated.
Add 2 tablespoons of the whole spices, cook for 1 minute more, then pour in the coconut milk. Quarter-fill one of the tins with water and pour into the pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and leave the sauce to bubble away until the veg has finished roasting.
Add the roasted veg to the curry sauce and set aside the tray (don’t wash it!). Stir carefully.
Dump in the spinach, then leave over a low heat to wilt.
For the naan croutons, finely grate the remaining 4 garlic cloves into a bowl and stir in the remaining oil.
Tear the naan into croutonsized pieces, then place on the reserved tray in a single layer. Drizzle with the garlic oil and season. Roast for 5 minutes, then add the remaining whole spices, toss to coat and roast for another 2-3 minutes until the croutons are evenly golden and crisp. Stir the lime juice into the curry and season to taste.
Top with the coriander leaves and garlic naan croutons. Serve with rice at the
table. —