This stunner of a recipe is a great make-ahead showstopper, a real celebration of summer that would be ideal for Platinum Jubilee parties. 

With just five ingredients, it’s also really simple, but with a brilliant surprise in store!

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

1.5 kg mixed summer berries (we used raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and redcurrants)

200 g caster sugar

150 g white chocolate

300 ml double cream

1 loaf Vogel’s bread, crusts removed

Method:

1. Reserve a few berries for decoration and put the rest in a large saucepan with the sugar and 3 tbsp water. Cover and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Give the pan a gentle stir, then simmer uncovered for 2 minutes. Pour into a sieve set over a bowl to catch the juice and leave to cool.
2. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave or a bain marie.
3. Whip the cream until it thickens, but stop before it fully holds its shape. Fold a big spoonful of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate, then scrape the chocolate mixture into the cream bowl and whisk it in. Stop whisking when the cream holds its shape.
4. Dip the bread slices in the berry juice and use them to line an oiled bundt tin, ensuring there are no gaps. Top with a third of the berries. Pipe or spoon a layer of white chocolate mousse into the tin, then top with the rest of the berries. Dip the rest of the bread in the berry juice and use to enclose the filling completely. Chill any remaining berry juice for later.
5. Cover the pudding with clingfilm, then weigh it down with a plate and a few cans or books. Refrigerate overnight.
6. Turn out the pudding onto a serving plate and brush with a little extra berry juice. Decorate with the reserved berries and serve the rest of the berry juice in a jug on the side.

Is there anything better than a warm toasted sandwich for lunch?

The secret to a great homemade reuben toasted sandwich is to butter the outside of the bread and mix your own dressing.

Makes 2

Ingredients:

4 slices Vogel’s bread

2 tbsp butter, softened

150 g Emmental, sliced

100 g salt beef or pastrami, sliced

4 tbsp sauerkraut, well drained

2 dill pickles

crudites, to serve

for the dressing:

4 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp ketchup

1 shallot, finely grated

2 tsp American mustard

1 tsp horseradish sauce

¼ tsp smoked paprika

a few drops Worcester sauce

Method:

1. Spread one side of each slice of bread with butter (this will be the outside of the sandwich).
2. Mix all of the dressing ingredients together, then spread some on the other side of the bread. Top all four pieces of bread with cheese.
3. Top two of the slices with salt beef and sauerkraut, then arrange the other two slices on top and press down firmly.
4. Set a large frying pan over a medium heat and toast the sandwiches for 2-3 minutes while pressing down with a spatula. When they’re golden and crisp on the underside, flip them over and cook the other side until golden and crisp. They’re ready when the cheese has melted completely.
5. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve with dill pickles, crudites and the rest of thedressing.

Apple brown betty is a popular pudding in the US, which can also be eaten for breakfast! Like crumble, with a lemony zing, it’s lighter and less stodgy.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

100 g butter, melted 

3 large or 4 small Bramley apples

1 lemon, juiced and zest finely grated

150 g light muscovado sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

200 g Vogel’s bread

vanilla ice cream, to serve

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (180° fan) | 400F | gas 6 and butter a baking dish with a little of the melted butter.
2. Peel, core and thinly slice the apples, then toss them with the lemon juice, zest and sugar. Leave to macerate while you make the crumbs.
3. Tear the bread into pieces and whiz to crumbs in a food processor. Toss the breadcrumbs with the butter, cinnamon and nutmeg.
4. Use a slotted spoon to layer half the apples in the baking dish, leaving the syrupy juices in the bowl. Top with half of the crumbs, then repeat with the remaining apples and crumbs. Drizzle the syrup from the apple bowl evenly over the top of the crumbs.
5. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for a further 20 minutes or until the topping is golden brown and the apples are tender all the way to the middle. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

We all know that hummus is a tasty, healthy choice – but did you know that cannellini beans make a super smooth and light hummus variation, and they’re lower in carbs and calories than chickpeas, as well as a little bit higher in fibre?

In this recipe we’ve added tomatoes – slow-roasting them intensifies their sweetness and sourness and allows our bodies to absorb more of their lycopene, an antioxidant thought to improve heart health.

The cooked tomatoes aren’t the only thing in this recipe that could reduce your risk of heart disease; raw garlic, beans, olive oil and sesame are thought to, too.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

12 medium tomatoes, halved

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

4 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp za’atar

toasted Vogel’s, to serve

For the white bean hummus:

2 x 400 g tins cannellini beans, drained, but liquid reserved

2 cloves garlic; crushed

3 tbsp tahini paste

3 tbsp olive oil

1 ½ lemons, juiced and zest finely grated

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 140°C (120° fan) | 275F | gas 1.
2. Cut the tomatoes in half and arrange cut-side-up in a baking dish. Stir the garlic and thyme into the oil and spoon it over the tomatoes, then season with salt and pepper.
3. Roast the tomatoes for 2 hours or until sweetly caramelised at the edges.
4. To make the hummus, put the lemon juice, zest, garlic, tahini and olive oil in a small bowl with 2 tbsp of the bean canning liquid and a big pinch of salt. Stir until smoothly combined.
5. Put the drained beans in a food processor with the tahini mixture, then blend for 10 seconds. Scrape down the sides and add a little more liquid if needed. Blend for 2 minutes or until really creamy.
6. Spoon the hummus onto a serving plate and swirl with the back of the spoon. Spoon over some of the tomatoes and the infused oil they’ve cooked in, then sprinkle with za’atar.
7. Serve with warm toast for scooping.

Surf n’ turf, anyone? This summery crab sarnie adds crispy bacon for a new level of flavour and texture. So recreate the flavour of seaside holidays and make sure you get brown as well as white meat – it is higher in Omega-3 than white and adds a lovely rich flavour to the mix.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

4 rashers smoked streaky bacon

4 slices Vogel’s bread

2 tbsp butter

100 g crab meat (ideally a mix of white and brown)

2 tbsp mayonnaise

a squeeze of lemon

4 lettuce leaves

Method:

1. Fry or grill the bacon until crisp.
2. Spread the bread with butter.
3. Mix the crab with the mayonnaise and lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Top two of the slices of bread with lettuce, then spoon over the crab. Lay the bacon on top before closing the sandwiches with the other two slices of bread.

Bread and butter pudding is surprisingly versatile – and we’ve given it a Middle Eastern makeover thanks to custard sweetened with honey and scented with cardamom, dried apricots for pops of sweetness and pistachios for crunch.

Not only that, but we’ve replaced the butter in our bread and butter pudding with pistachio butter for an extra layer of flavour.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 whole eggs, plus 4 extra egg yolks

300 ml whole milk

300 ml double cream

90 g honey

¼ tsp ground cardamom

10 slices Vogel’s bread, crusts removed

100 g pistachio butter

100 g dried apricots, chopped

2 tbsp apricot jam, melted

25 g pistachio nuts, chopped

pouring cream, to serve

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C (130° fan) / 300F / gas 2.
2. Whisk the eggs and extra egg yolks with the milk, cream, honey and ground cardamom until smooth.
3. Spread the bread with pistachio butter and layer up in a buttered baking dish with the chopped apricots. Pour over half the custard mixture and leave to soak in for 5 minutes before pouring over the rest.
4. Put the baking dish in a deep roasting tin and pour enough boiling water into the tin to come 5 cm / 2 inches up the side of the dish.
5. Bake for 45 minutes or until only just set in the centre (internal temperature 71C / 160F).
6. Brush the pudding with warm apricot jam and sprinkle with pistachio nuts. Serve warm with lashings of cream.

Spice up your lunch by making yourself some at home tapas. Simple and delicious with only a few ingredients.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

2 slices Vogel’s bread

½ garlic clove

1 ripe tomato, halved

1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

100 g padron peppers

20 g Iberico ham

3 slices Manchego

a few olives

Method:

1. Toast the bread, then rub it all over with the cut side of the garlic clove. Squash the tomato on top and rub all over the surface. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with sea salt, then cut into fingers.
2. Heat the oil in a small frying pan and fry the padron peppers until golden and blistered all over. Season generously with sea salt.
3. Serve the tomato toast and padrons with the ham, Manchego and olives.

Looking for some fresh and lighter lunch inspiration to kick off the year with? How about trying our muhammara with melba toast and fattoush recipe?

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

3 red peppers

6 slices Vogel’s bread

50 g walnuts, chopped, plus extra to serve

2 tbsp pomegranate molasses

1 large garlic clove, crushed

2 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground

1 tbsp sundried tomatoes

1 tbsp Aleppo chilli flakes

a squeeze of lemon

3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to serve

For the Fattoush:

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tsp sumac

1 lemon, juiced

3 tbsp olive oil

1 cucumber, halved, seeded and sliced

12 radishes, quartered

250 g cherry tomatoes, quartered

3 spring onions, sliced

3 tbsp pomegranate seeds

a handful flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

a few sprigs mint, leaves roughly chopped

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 240°C (220° fan) | 475F | gas 9 and line a roasting tin with foil.
2. Roast the peppers for 30 minutes, turning occasionally, until the skins are blackened and blistered all over. Transfer the peppers to a bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave for 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the grill. Toast the bread, then cut off and reserve the crusts. Cut the bread into triangles, then separate each triangle into two layers with a sharp bread knife. Grill the untoasted side of the triangles until golden brown and starting to curl at the edges. Leave to cool.
4. Peel the peppers, then tear in half and discard the stalks, seeds and white membrane.
5. Put the flesh of the peppers in a food processor with the walnuts, pomegranate molasses, garlic, cumin, sundried tomatoes, Aleppo flakes, lemon juice, olive oil and 50 g of the bread crusts. Process until finely ground, pausing to scrape down the sides if necessary. Season to taste with salt.
6. Transfer the muhammara to a serving plate or bowl, sprinkle with a few more chopped walnuts and drizzle with oil.
7. To make the Fattoush, whisk the garlic, sumac, lemon juice and olive oil with a big pinch of salt in a salad bowl. Add the rest of the salad ingredients and toss well.
8. Break a few of the melba toasts into shards and add to the salad and serve the rest on the side for scooping up the muhammara.

What’s better on a cold winter’s day than a warming soup made with hearty roasted veg, creamy topping and tasty garlic croutons? Make this recipe for your next lunch time pick me up, you wont be dissapointed.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 small butternut squash, cut into wedges, seeds removed

4 banana shallots, halved lengthways

1 garlic bulb, separated into unpeeled cloves

a few sprigs thyme

4 tbsp olive oil

1 litre vegetable stock

For the croutons:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 garlic clove, squashed

4 slices bread, cubed with crusts removed

Vegetarian topping – harissa and feta:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp rose harissa

100 g feta cheese

1 handful coriander leaves, chopped

Vegan topping – tahini sauce, fresh chilli + coriander:

1 garlic clove, crushed

½ lemon, juiced

4 tbsp tahini paste

2-3 tbsp cold water

1 long red chilli, thinly sliced

1 handful coriander leaves, chopped

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (180° fan) | 400F | gas 6.
2. Put the butternut, shallots, garlic and thyme in a large roasting tin. Drizzle with olive oil and toss until well coated, then season with salt and pepper.
3. Roast the vegetables for 45 minutes, or until tender and caramelised at the edges, turning occasionally.
4. Bring the vegetable stock to the boil in a large saucepan. When the vegetables are ready, remove the skin from the butternut and shallots, roughly chop the flesh and add it to the pan. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves from their skins into the pan.
5. Simmer for 5 minutes, then blend until smooth in a liquidiser or with an immersion blender. Season to taste with salt and pepper before ladling into bowls.
6. To make the croutons, heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the garlic for a couple of minutes to flavour the oil. Remove from the pan, then add the bread cubes. Fry until golden brown and crisp on each side.
7. To make the vegetarian topping, stir the oil into the harissa and drizzle on top of the soup. Crumble over the feta and sprinkle with chopped coriander and croutons.
8. To make the vegan topping, whisk the garlic, lemon juice and tahini together, adding just enough cold water to make a pouring consistency. Drizzle the sauce on top of the soup and garnish with chilli, coriander and croutons.