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Seeds
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In European cookery seeds are most often used in baking, to add taste and texture to bread and biscuits. Other cuisines incorporate seeds in stews and stir-fries.
Sesame seeds, which are little blonde disc shapes, have the most dramatic warm, aromatic flavour; sunflower seeds taste like they are good for you (and they are) and work well in bread; pumpkin seeds have a bit more bite than sunflower and tiny poppy seeds give a fragile graininess that is good in sponge or Madeira cake.
Makes four 1 lb (350 ml capacity) jarsSmoky Tomato Chutney
Adding pimenton to a plain tomato chutney is an inspired move and makes it unbeatable with barbecued meats, sausages and cheeses. A great way of using up a glut in the garden!
Serves 6Shiitake Broth with Sesame Toast
Low-fat recipes often need quite assertive ingredients in order to give you plenty of taste and flavour: this lovely Japanese-inspired soup is a great example, with shiitake mushrooms adding punch and meaty depth.
Serves 10Four Star Slaw
The four 'stars' in this case are celeriac, carrot, cabbage and spring onion. The result is a very crunchy fresh-tasting salad that can be made the day before, if you cover it with clingfilm and keep it in the refrigerator until needed.
Serves 4 as a light lunch or 6 as a starterThai Crab Salad with Mango
This is a low-fat variation of Thai Grilled Beef Salad with Grapes. In Thailand they serve it with pomelo, which is very similar to grapefruit.
Makes 1 small loafCornmeal and Mixed-seed Bread
This is a very quick and easy loaf, but with lots of varying textures. And don't worry if the sunflower seeds turn green during baking – it actually looks very attractive.
