Beetroot, lentil and nut salad - Vegan, DF and GF.

There's a bit of time involved here but not a lot of active engagement for all that time : the beetroot and red onion wedges roast, the lentils simmer, walnuts toast... The honey and red wine vinegar dressing with a hint of dijon mustard sets this off nicely!

Summer veg stirfry with coconut rice - Vegan, DF and GF

Sometimes you just want the clear-cut flavours of summer veg! This has a little chilli paste in with the courgette, tomato, corn and chilli; also some lemongrass paste and coconut milk in the rice. It'll take you about half an hour at most from start to munch...

Za'atar scrolls - Vegan, DF

These scrolls are soft and fluffy, there's a bit of heat from a small sprinkle of chilli flakes in with the za'atar. I ran out of time to bake them for dinner so left them getting fluffier and baked them later for today's lunch. The bottoms go crispy in the olive oil-greased baking tin, is a good time...

Courgette Tortillas - Vegetarian, GF

Yesterday was Pancake Tuesday, and these would almost count... They're so tasty i'd be prepared to bend rules a little! There's grated cheese in here so not dairy free (although you could use vegan cheese...) and they're made with almond meal and grated courgette - also an egg. These don't roll, but they do fold convincingly!

Bacon and corn chowder - DF and GF

There are also pieces of chicken simmered in the chowder as it cooks, super tender little bites!  There are a lot of veg in here including all of the colours (tomato, broccoli, corn, potato, onion and garlic, and bacon which is of course an honorary vegetable) and it will only take about half an hour to pull together. Yum.

Butterflied chicken with paprika and lemon - DF and GF

Flatpack chicken is much quicker to cook while still delivering full flavour and tenderness. It's easy to do: you get a pair of kitchen shears and chop out the spine of a whole chicken, then flatten it. You can of course buy them pre-flattened, but they often come pre-flavoured also. This is a simple roasted chicken with onions and apples chopped and underneath to provide on-going moisture as it cooks, as well as smoked paprika and lemon for great flavour. All up it will take at most an hour, but much of that time is yours to fill while the bird cooks... The apple and onions mash into the cooking juices to make an ad hoc gravy...