Warm chorizo and rocket salad

This substantial salad is ready in the time it takes to boil the potatoes - about 10 minutes - and is perfect for a cooler summer evening when you don't want hot food but still want something more filling than simply a plate of salad leaves.

What you need:
6-7 smallish new or salad potatoes
1/3rd of a loop of cooking chorizo
A handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
A large handful of rocket
Juice of half a small lemon
A dessert spoon of walnut oil
A crushed clove of garlic
Black pepper

What to do:
Put the rocket and cherry tomatoes in a bowl or on a plate. Cut the potatoes in half or quarters, so they are bite-sized, and boil until tender but firm - about 10 minutes. Slice the chorizo into rounds and fry over a medium heat until it just crisps. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. While everything's on the hob, make a dressing with the oil, lemon juice, garlic and black pepper. Toss everything together and eat.

Cook's tips:
Don't add all the lemon juice - start with half, taste and add more if needed. You don't want to overpower the flavour of the walnut oil.

If you're very hungry, add a few shavings of parmesan or a quartered hard-boiled egg.

Watercress is a great substitute for the rocket in this dish.

A brunchy supper of black pudding on wilted rocket

The last couple of weeks I've had the decorators in - not a euphemism - as I'm moving house shortly. An ex of mine - Leeds Lad - did the necessaries with tins of paint by day, then crashed on my sofa at night. This meant I was cooking for two rather than one most nights - a great opportunity to roast vast slabs of pork and lamb, make huge pots of soup and even a giant lasagne (half of which ended up in my freezer in portions). We also succumbed to takeaway curries and a trip to an Italian restaurant.

Normal life has resumed now and I'm back to pottering in my galley kitchen, juggling small portions for me alone. My "Sunday roast for one" plans fell apart when I realised I wasn't very hungry. I roasted the chicken drumsticks I'd left marinating all day in a pineapple and chilli sauce purchased from my local foodie market and ate them on their own in front of the TV - sticky, spicy and the perfect accompaniment to Downton Abbey.

Still short on appetite, Monday supper was always going to be brunchy in style. And with the move looming I'm also trying to use up things in the fridge. I have a borderline obsession with black pudding, so this formed the centrepiece of my TV dinner. I also made some French-style sautéed potatoes and grilled a tomato to accompany.

What you need:
2 big slices of black pudding
A bag of rocket, rinsed and well drained
A handful of new or salad potatoes, scrubbed and cut into chunks
1 big clove of garlic
Duck fat
A large tomato

What to do:
Heat half a dessert spoonful of duck fat in a sauteuse and when it starts to just smoke, toss in the potatoes, stir them around so they are completely coated in the duck fat and turn the heat down to moderate. Let them fry gently until they start to take on a golden colour and crisp up around the edges (if you have leftover boiled potatoes, these work well too). This takes about 20 minutes.

After 10 mins put a dry frying pan on the stove and get it hot. Fry the black pudding about 4-5 minutes each side. It shouldn't need any fat as black pudding usually has plenty of its own. Heat the grill, halve the tomato and pop it under. Peel and crush the garlic clove and add to the potatoes a few minutes before they are ready. Season with salt and pepper.

When the potatoes are done, scoop them out of the sauteuse with a slotted slice and pile on the side of the plate. Leave the pan on the heat and toss the rocket in the leftover duck fat for a minute until it's wilted.

Make a bed of the rocket in the middle of the plate, put the black pudding slices on top and pop a grilled tomato on each side.

Cook's tips:
Can't find rocket? Use spinach instead, which is the traditional brasserie accompaniment to black pudding served brunch-style.

If you're extra hungry, top the black pudding with a poached or fried egg.

Duck fat is hard to find, unless you have a good family butcher near to you - most supermarkets sell goose fat, though, which is just as good. Both are excellent for sautéeing or roasting potatoes. I save the duck fat every time I cook a breast or roast a pair of legs, to keep my jar topped up - it keeps almost indefinitely in the fridge. Another good source is tins of confit de canard, which you can find in good delis or pretty much any supermarket if you're on a day trip to France.

10-minute tortelloni with smoked salmon and rocket

I don't eat a lot of pasta but I do buy fresh tortelloni and ravioli. They are the only sort worth buying fresh because, frankly, it's not worth making your own stuffed pasta when there's only one of you and fresh tagliatelle etc go from raw to mush very quickly during cooking and it's hard to catch them at the al dente stage. I keep dried lasagne sheets and fusilli in my larder and that's the lot. Stuffed fresh pasta also freezes very well. Sainsbury's is also the only supermarket that does one-person portions of stuffed pasta in both meat and veggie varieties - yay! Whenever I do an online grocery shop, I always order two or three packs.

So, I cheat on the pasta but I always make my own sauces. For tomato-based sauces, I cook a big panful then freeze portions - more on that another time. Tonight, I made a very simple sauce that also used up lots of leftovers in my fridge.

What you need: 
Pack of tortelloni
Half a bag of rocket (or two fistfuls if you bought it loose)
About 70g smoked salmon, cut into strips
Crème fraîche
Black pepper, to taste

What to do:
Put a big pan of water on to boil, add a pinch of sea salt then when the water reaches a vigorous rolling boil, throw in your tortelloni - mine was stuffed with spinach and ricotta. Boil for around 5 minutes, then drain and return to the hot pan. Add a very generous tablespoonful of half-fat crème fraîche, the rocket and the smoked salmon. Grind some black pepper over it then stir everything through gently. The rocket should wilt in the heat to about a half its volume. Tip into a bowl and eat. I had a small salad on the side too, which meant I had three, possibly even four, of my five a day in one meal and barely noticed it.

Fridge staples: 
Crème fraîche: I always keep a pot of this in my fridge as it's so useful. The full-fat variety is calorie-laden but half-fat crème fraîche still gives the flavour and mouth feel. It's a great standby for lots of recipes that require cream of some sort. If you don't want to use crème fraîche then try 0%-fat Greek yoghurt (Total does a really good one), which still has a good, thick, creamy texture.

Rocket: I buy the ready-washed bags but I recommend giving it a quick rinse in a colander anyway. You can use it as a salad, for the green stuff in a sandwich or in hot dishes as an extra veg portion.

Smoked salmon: I love smoked salmon but it can be expensive. It's less of a pricey treat if you look out for 3-for-2 or 3 for £10 offers in the supermarkets - it freezes well so you can chuck the extra packs straight in the freezer and defrost in the fridge when you need (or want) them. A 120g pack of supermarket own brand normally costs around £4 so three for a tenner is good value. Half the pack is enough for this pasta recipe. Use the rest for a lunchtime sandwich or for a Sunday brunch with scrambled eggs (once the pack is opened it will keep for up to a week if you seal it carefully).