A SLICE OF MY LIFE SOPHIE FALDO

The INSPIRATION ISSUE

Do you remember the first time something you tasted

EAT WELL FOR LIFE

NO FADS, NO UNREALISTIC HEALTH CLAIMS… JUST 20 INSPIRING PAGES OF HONEST, NUTRITIOUS, GOOD -FOR-YOU RECIPES, INFO AND IDEAS

FRESH FROM THE FREEZER

Stashing away a few shortcut ingredients in the freezer makes light – yet still flavourful – work of weeknight cooking

THE BUDGET RECIPE

Jazz up a thrifty pack of chicken drumsticks with a tangy storecupboard marinade

THE QUICK-FIX MEAL FOR ONE

Don’t be tempted to reach for the ready-meal – this spicy, wholesome bowlful is ready in no time

THE 5:2 RECIPE

Feel nourished on a fasting or lighter-eating day with this cheering bowlful

THE BATCH-COOK RECIPE

Make a big pot of this satisfying dhal and enjoy half now, then freeze the rest ready to make a veggie curry later

TAKE A PACK OF CREAM CHEESE

Keep this versatile ingredient in your fridge to create exciting weekday meals

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE BALANCE

A low-carb diet shouldn’t mean a no-carb diet, says Annie Bell. You just need to tweak things to achieve a better balance – and these glorious meat-free recipes do that in style

NEW TAKE ON A CLASSIC

Our less calorific, fibre-packed version is simple to make and just as comforting as the original

April FIVE GOOD THINGS TO DO

…tickets to see The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel

Our top choices this month…

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FROM OUR INBOX…

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FOR STARTERS

NEWS, NIBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE AND GOOD THINGS TO DO RIGHT NOW

WISH LIST

“These pages are about us doing the hard work so you

“Smoked haddock the way it used to be”

Severn & Wye Smokery won a delicious. Produce Award for its outstanding, sustainable oak-smoked haddock. Susan Low travels to Gloucestershire to discover how a traditional British ingredient has reclaimed its place as a breakfast of champions

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT…

She’s not one to suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, but this month, columnist Kay Plunkett-Hogge can feel her sap rising

The new DINNER PARTY RULES

The days when a dinner party meant black ties, best silver cutlery and passing the port are long gone. These days gatherings around the table are a lot more laid-back. That doesn’t mean anything goes, though, says food writer and veteran dinner party-thrower Debora Robertson. Here’s how to avoid a contemporary faux pas

CHEERS!

Susy Atkins rounds up best buys and premium gins

Do artificial sweeteners cause weight gain?

It’s the holy grail of the food industry: a low-calorie, safe alternative to sugar that tastes just as good. With mounting concerns that sugar is fuelling the global obesity epidemic, the range of alternative sweeteners is growing. But, asks Sue Quinn, are sugar substitutes all sweetness and light – or do they come with a bitter aftertaste?

Delicious TEST REPORT

THE COURSE Spanish Tapas Temptations, £85 for one-day

CULINARY PILGRIMAGES Dishes worth travelling for

‘It’s not the destination but the journey that counts’ – or so the saying goes. But for the highly food-motivated, it’s what’s waiting on your plate at journey’s end that is most important. Here, chefs and food writers Russell Norman, Tim Anderson and Nuno Mendes share the destinations and dishes that have inspired them most

Whatley Manor: luxury in the Cotswolds

WHY IT’S GREAT First impressions count, they say, and

I’m very sorry I tried to eat at your restaurant

The new raft of no-bookings restaurants are annoying enough without the additional irritation of power-tripping door staff, says writer and food lover Lauren Bravo

ALWAYS A WINNER Risotto

It has an undeserved reputation as a tricky dish but risotto is easily put together from storecupboard items: rice, stock, butter and parmesan. Here, we push the boat out with a creamy goat’s cheese number, an all-in-one crowdpleaser made with chicken and bacon – and our cover star, a vibrant celebration of spring

THE ULTIMATE ROAST CHICKEN

“Simon Hopkinson’s Roast Chicken and Other Stories*

SECRET HISTORIES

Some famous people are immortalised by a statue or blue plaque on a building. But, in our book at least, the real winners ensure their fame echoes down the ages by having a dish named after them. Rebecca Woollard discovers the stories behind some of our best-loved dishes – and gives these classics a new twist while she’s at it

Memories ARE MADE OF THIS

It’s uncanny how a particular smell can, in a split second, trigger recollections of times gone by. Or how a much loved cooking utensil can come to symbolise a part of your history you never want to let go of. Here, the delicious. team share the objects that spark edible memories for them – with recipes to go alongside

The recipe hall of fame MACAROONS

British cookery expert Debbie Major turns her hand to traditional macaroons, tweaking the recipe until she finds the definitive version with a sweet crunch and a soft, yielding centre. Then, over the page, she whips up a hazelnut version sandwiched with indulgent chocolate ganache

STAR OF THE SEASON PURPLE SPROUTING BROCCOLI

“With its elegant stems and heather-like tops, this

Gill Meller A COOK’S YEAR

He’s made an art of celebrating the fruits of land and sea and, as group head chef at River Cottage, he’s well attuned to eating with the seasons. This month Gill turns his attentions to wood pigeon, a truly wild meat that works well with a variety of spices and flavours

The object of my confection…

Ravinder Bhogal launches her two-month residency with recipes based on magical, golden, bubbling caramel. They’re glamorous, gorgeous and, like the film that inspired them, just a little bittersweet

“I’ve fallen for so many places through food that it sometimes feels as if my life has been a series of affairs”

The joys of ripe Mediterranean fruit are just one of the things food writer Diana Henry reminisces about in her new book of menus and memories, How to Eat a Peach. The eagerly awaited work combines her love of food and lust for travel, twin passions nurtured from her earliest days. The menu she shares here is inspired by her many journeys to France, where she lost her heart as a teenager and which lays claim to it still

THE DIG-IN FRIDAY NIGHT SUPPER

When James Martin headed Stateside for his new book and TV series, he set out to show us all how great the country’s food is – and the good ol’ US of A didn’t disappoint. This larger-than-life Texan recipe is the pinnacle of crowdpleasers – an ideal end-of-week treat

“Food was a way to remember home and culture”

Inspired by her father’s kitchen tales of decades past and drawn to far-flung family members, journalist Kemi Bamgbose traces the trail of her dad’s much-loved dishes – from London to their roots in West Africa and Brazil

FREE! How to Eat a Peach By Diana Henry

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NOMINATE AND WIN!

It’s your chance to make a difference, and nomination is quick and easy. Go online and tell us about your favourite local food hero for a chance to win a cooker worth £1,300

WIN a knife set worth £576

Cook any recipe from the magazine this month and send

LOOSE ENDS

Don’t let this month’s special ingredients linger in your kitchen. Instead make the most of them with these smart and easy ideas

WIN! A gourmet trip for two to the Caribbean

Experience seven nights of all-inclusive luxury, with fine dining and wines, at Sandals Grenada Resort & Spa, one of the top hotels on the lush island

COMING NEXT MONTH INÉ delicious

• Three celebration cakes – just in time for a certain

FOOD LOVER’S CROSSWORD

See how much you really know about the world of food

BE A BETTER COOK

8 PAGES OF TIPS AND KNOW-HOW TO GET YOU COOKING SMARTER, FASTER AND WITH GREATER CONFIDENCE

THIS MONTH IN THE delicious. KITCHEN…

While the delicious. team are testing recipes, they’re

CHEF’S STEP BY STEP CHICKEN KATSU CURRY from Yamagoya

“Katsu curry, a crunchy, breadcrumbed-and-fried fillet