RED EMPEROR, POTATO CAKE AND BASIL PESTO

Here's an interesting way to do potatoes. Boil whole unskinned Dutch cream or Bintje potatoes until tender. Place a ring mould on a flat surface and use a flat-bottomed jar slightly smaller in diameter than the ring to flatten each potato into a cake. Heat some ghee or butter in a pan. Slide a spatula under the potato and ring and place in the pan. Use the jar to hold the potato down while you slide the ring off. Cook the potato cake about ten minutes, then carefully turn and cook the other side. I cooked these in the same very large sautée pan in which I did the fish - also in butter.

RED EMPEROR, POTATO CAKE AND BASIL PESTO

CHICKEN AND SNAKE BEANS WITH BLACK SOY AND GINGER

With so many vegetables and fruits available all year, it's reassuring that there are still some that, for whatever reason, can't be manipulated, suspended, gassed, modified or frozen. Apart from vegetables always tasting better when they are naturally in season, there's an excitement about waiting for the first mangoes to announce summer, the first peaches and nectarines, broad beans, cherries, artichokes, celeriac and Jerusalem artichokes. It's weird that we can get green beans all year, but snake beans and wing beans have a limited season. I don't pretend to understand it. I just notice it. Simple ingredients: peanut oil, black soy sauce, light soy sauce, crab paste, chilli paste, fresh Thai chillies, fish sauce, garlic, ginger and lime juice.

CHICKEN AND SNAKE BEANS WITH BLACK SOY AND GINGER

ROASTED VEGETABLES WITH GOAT CHEESE & CARAMELISED TOMATO BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

Dutch cream potatoes from the markets, choko from the neighbours' farm, organic tomatoes from the markets, Willowbrae goat cheese and a warm vinaigrette made with Ribbonvale's great caramelised tomato balsamic vinegar.

ROASTED VEGETABLES WITH GOAT CHEESE & CARAMELISED TOMATO BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

KING PRAWN CURRY

Of all the world's curries, I have to say Thai curries are my favourites. Generally speaking. Overall. All things considered. On a good day. When I'm in the right mood. I've had some brilliant curries of Indian origin. And Sri Lankan. And Malay, Fijian, Pakistani and Mauritian. Home made paste, really fresh prawns, Thai basil from the garden ... this is the best Thai curry I've eaten. Today.

KING PRAWN CURRY

SALAD WITH FIGS AND GOAT CHEESE

I've never been able to look at figs in quite the same innocent way since reading D. H. Lawrence's erotic description of figs - I think in either Women In Love or Sons And Lovers - many years ago. One of the stallholders at the weekly markets was selling super ripe black Genovese figs that looked really promising. I wasn't disappointed by the flavour. These were the sweetest, figgiest figs I have eaten. The tang of crumbled fresh goat curd was a perfect foil for fleshy ripeness of the figs.

SALAD WITH FIGS AND GOAT CHEESE

BRAISED ARTICHOKES WITH POLENTA

No meat here - but lots of very rich chicken stock. Some in the polenta, along with butter, parmesan and milk. More with the artichokes: slowly braised in stock with garlic and lemon juice.

BRAISED ARTICHOKES WITH POLENTA

TAJINE OF LAMB AND CHICKPEAS

Not much to report here. Lamb shoulder with chickpeas, grated onion, grated tomatoes, white wine, garlic, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, ginger, saffron and salt slow cooked, with fresh coriander added before plating up.

TAJINE OF LAMB AND CHICKPEAS

RICE NOODLES WITH SCHOOL PRAWNS

I love the sexy slipperiness of fresh rice noodles. I like the way they whip provocatively between plate and mouth. I like the fleshy texture. I like the way they embrace whatever ingredients they meet in the wok. Is it love? Perhaps.

RICE NOODLES WITH SCHOOL PRAWNS

SRI LANKAN FISH CURRY AND DRY-FRIED SNAKE BEANS

I've never been to Sri Lanka, but those who have rave about it - the beaches, the colonial architecture, the food, the cheap prices. Would a Sri Lankan recognise this curry? I don't know. It shares some flavours with the Malabar coast of India. And there are things in here that remind me of the Mauritian food cooked by our friend Sophie. Some wonderfully fresh snake beans from the markets seemed an ideal accompaniment - simply wok-tossed with chilli oil and a great crispy prawn chilli paste that's sold in most Asian grocery stores.

SRI LANKAN FISH CURRY AND DRY-FRIED SNAKE BEANS

BEEF CHEEK, CELERIAC MASH AND ROASTED CHOKOS

I don't know about you, but chokos have always been one of those 'please explain' vegetables. I never got them. They are watery and flavourless on their own and need the help of masses of butter and salt and pepper or a sauce to make them remotely interesting. The fact that they grow as weeds over fences and sheds didn't add to my appreciation. (When living in Sydney, I remember some growing untended in a park near the Dawn Fraser Pool in Birchgrove.) Our neighbours keep us in bananas from their plantation, as well as pumpkins and passionfruit. Lately they have been giving us chokos. I recall when we were living in Mexico that the locals eat chokos and so I thought I'd see if I could make something tasty out of this bland vegetable. Well I found a recipe that is as much Italian as Mexican. The chokos are marinated in olive oil, garlic and oregano, then roasted at 180C - one hour covered, 15 minutes uncovered. The end result just about changed my opinion on chokos. I still wouldn't pay for them in fruit shops, but when someone picks some off a wild vine, I now know what to do with them.

BEEF CHEEK, CELERIAC MASH AND ROASTED CHOKOS

REEF COD, BORLOTTI, CHERRY TOMATOES, CARAMELISED TOMATO BALSAMIC & PESTO

There's a local tomato farmer at our weekly markets. At the height of the season, he sells all sorts of wonderful heirloom varieties. Now, halfway through autumn, the variety is reduced but the flavour remains. These little cherry tomatoes remind me that tomatoes are fruit, not vegetable. They are so sweet that I love just popping one as a snack. I slow roasted these with sugar, salt and extra virgin olive oil. I slowly braised these fresh borlotti beans (also from the market) in EVOO, water and garlic until the small amount of water evaporated and the beans slightly caramelised. I also bought a huge bunch of basil at the market and whipped up some pesto. The caramelised tomato balsamic is made by Ribbonvale in Victoria and is delicious.

REEF COD, BORLOTTI, CHERRY TOMATOES, CARAMELISED TOMATO BALSAMIC & PESTO

SIX HOUR LAMB WITH POLENTA AND SNAKE BEANS

Six hour lamb is called six hour lamb because:
A. That's the age of the sheep
B. That's how long it cooks
C. A hovercraft is not a horse
D. It is a better name than Algernon
The answer is D of course. Algernon is a ridiculous name. For anything. But especially for cooked lamb.

SIX HOUR LAMB WITH POLENTA AND SNAKE BEANS

MAHI MAHI WITH CHILLI PRAWN & COCONUT CREAM SAUCE & BABY BOK CHOY

Twice a year, the mahi mahi swim past our part of the Australian coastline. These spectacular iridescent green/gold fish are delicious. Here I simply seared fillets and served them on a bed of reduced coconut cream, fish sauce, crispy prawn chilli and chilli paste - all purchased at the local Asian grocery store. I also bought a big bunch of bright crisp baby bok choy, which was wokked (if there isn't a verb for wok-cooking, there is now) with Thai soy sauce and peanut oil.

MAHI MAHI WITH CHILLI PRAWN & COCONUT CREAM SAUCE & BABY BOK CHOY

BREAST OF CHICKEN WITH BABY GINGER AND GAI LAN

If you're not eating good quality free-range chicken WITH skin on and WITH bone in, you'd be better off eating boiled rice. Cage-raised chicken stripped of its skin and off the bone has as little flavour as plain rice. Very simple dish. The chicken was brushed with olive oil infused with roasted chillies and baked. The gai lan was cooked in a wok with peanut oil, soy sauce, ginger and garlic. That's it.

BREAST OF CHICKEN WITH BABY GINGER AND GAI LAN

PULLED PORK, JALAPENOS EN ESCABECHE, ROCKET SALAD

I don't know the history of pulled pork, but I suspect it originated in Spain and came to the US via Mexico. Popular in the south, it's possible to get pulled pork up north. I had a great one at a place called Virgil's Real BBQ in New York a few years back. It's still difficult to buy serrano chillies in Australia, but very easy to get fresh jalapeños from major supermarkets. I buy them in bulk and pickle them using a classic Mexican recipe.

PULLED PORK, JALAPENOS EN ESCABECHE, ROCKET SALAD

BRINED LEG OF CHICKEN, BRUSSELS SPROUTS & HAZELNUTS, SEBAGO MASH

A very poor photo of a very tasty dish. The succulent saltiness of the Alstonville chicken, the fluffy buttery comfort of the mash and the harmonious combination of sautéed Brussels sprouts, roasted hazelnuts and hazelnut oil.

BRINED LEG OF CHICKEN, BRUSSELS SPROUTS & HAZELNUTS, SEBAGO MASH

FISH CAKES, AVOCADO & BLACK BEAN SALAD, SALSA

Sunday nights when I was a kid were a time for simple dinners watching Disneyland. We often had a roast for lunch - and usually lamb - so we weren't much in the mood for anything fancy. I imagine that if we'd lived in Mexico when I was growing up, we might have eaten something like these fish cakes while watching Tomorrowland or Fantasyland.

FISH CAKES, AVOCADO & BLACK BEAN SALAD, SALSA

POLENTA & EPAZOTE CRUSTED SNAPPER WITH CHARRED TOMATO SALSA

Five years ago I was quite excited to find a local herb growing with epazote seedlings. An important herb in Mexican cuisine, I hadn't seen it here in Australia until that day. I planted the seedlings in a couple of pots and a few months later I had some very large and leafy plants. I dried what leaves I couldn't use fresh. And at the end of the season, I collected the seeds - thousands of them. I needn't have bothered. The following spring, plants started popping up in and around the original pots - and between pavers, sometimes many metres from the original plants. It really does grow like a weed. I added some ground leaves to the polenta and dusted these fillets of gold band snapper with this mixture. The flavours of this dish are classically Mexican, even if the recipe isn't.

POLENTA & EPAZOTE CRUSTED SNAPPER WITH CHARRED TOMATO SALSA

KING PRAWN SALAD

The problem when describing a salad is deciding how much description is enough ... or too much. To call it prawn salad leaves it open to interpretation, or misinterpretation. However, the option is to list every single ingredient - in which case it becomes a recipe. So, prawn salad it remains. If you look closely, you can pretty much guess the ingredients - rocket, avocado, fetta, tomato, capsicum, salmon roe and prawns.

KING PRAWN SALAD

SEARED TUNA, TACHOGOBI, BALSAMIC CAPSICUM AND PUY LENTILS

Tachogobi sounds like an Asian word. Then again, many of the languages spoken in Oaxaca and the hills of Veracruz also sound Asian. This intensely hot sauce comes from Lake Catemaco, east of Tuxtla in Veracruz. I love it. It is made with chiltepín chillies (fiery balls the size of baby peas, garlic, home made pork lard, salt and intensely sweet currant or grape tomatoes). The strips of deeply ripe red capsicum were sautéed in olive oil until soft, then I added smoked La Vera paprika, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar.

SEARED TUNA, TACHOGOBI, BALSAMIC CAPSICUM AND PUY LENTILS

CHIPOTLE & CUMIN RUBBED TUNA, BLACK BEAN SALSA AND GOAT CURD

Tuna is fish for meat eaters. Apart from the deep red colour, it has a robustness when charred that a carnivore would appreciate. The addition on ground chipotle chillies and organic cumin seeds and the searing in a pan over high heat just add to that meatiness. A dollop of fresh Willowbrae goat curd and salsa of black beans, jalapeño, tomato and avocado - and a squeeze of lime - to complete. A simple mesclun salad made for a disconcertingly healthy dinner.

CHIPOTLE & CUMIN RUBBED TUNA, BLACK BEAN SALSA AND GOAT CURD

THAI PORK SAUSAGE, PURPLE JASMINE RICE, PICKLED CUCUMBER & CHILLI JAM

I'd never heard of purple jasmine rice until I saw some on the shelves of Santos health foods in Byron Bay. Always a sucker for something unfamiliar, I had to buy some. Not as fragrant as white jasmine rice, but the colour makes amends. These great sausages came from Lucky Foods in Campbell Street, Sydney - a mini Thaitown on the edge of Sydney's Chinatown. The cucumber was macerated in coconut vinegar, sugar and chilli. My sister Barb made the chilli jam. I am addicted.

THAI PORK SAUSAGE, PURPLE JASMINE RICE, PICKLED CUCUMBER & CHILLI JAM

STUFFED SQUID, SQUID INK SAUCE, SMOKED KINGFISH RILLETTE AND SALMON ROE

Except for the roe, a dramatic monochromatic meal. I love squid ink for the black-hole-depth of its colour. The sauce is a simple reduction of chicken stock and squid ink. The local squid is stuffed with fresh tomato flesh, jalapeño chillies, roasted pine nuts, hijiki and the grilled tentacles from the squid.

STUFFED SQUID, SQUID INK SAUCE, SMOKED KINGFISH RILLETTE AND SALMON ROE

WHITING WITH PURPLE CONGO MASH, HARICOTS AND ROASTED CHERRY TOMATOES

The world needs more purple food. Purple Congo potatoes are closer in texture to yam than potato. Their intense purple colour is lost if cut before boiling. But boiled whole and mashed with butter, the deep, deep colour remains. The fluffiness of these contrasted nicely with the haricots, the soft intense sweetness of slow-roasted tomatoes and panko-crumbed whiting.

WHITING WITH PURPLE CONGO MASH, HARICOTS AND ROASTED CHERRY TOMATOES