welcome.

PHOTOGRAPHS: PAUL MITCHELL, ANDREW HAYES-WATKINS It’s strange when

If you make one thing…

The croque madame crosses the border into Spain for a moment of indulgence... Manchego and chorizo toasties are slathered with a smoky paprika and garlic bechamel sauce, then topped with an oozy fried egg

APPETISERS

Inspiration, bite -size news, reviews & great stuff to do

WHAT’S ON THE MENU?

Food editor Tom Shingler mixes and matches this month’s recipes

HOT LIST

What’s new, what’s great, what we rate – for Easter, Mothering Sunday and more

The booklist

Award -winning food writer and cook Mark Diacono recommends the best of the latest cookbooks, from reflections on Korean home cooking to a celebration of Friday night suppers

A glass of riesling with Ed Gamble

He’s a man who loves food and making people laugh – and Ed Gamble’s projects combine his passions. The comedian is back on TV as a Great British Menu judge and, ahead of Red Nose Day (17 March), talks to Kerr y Fowler about what Comic Relief means to him, not letting type 1 diabetes steal his food joy – and the cleansing power of hardcore punk

“Grandad’s yorkshires represent happy times around the table”

Proud northerner Simon Greenwood - Haigh has a day job developing food brands, but the sometime food writer’s top passed - down recipe is a national favourite that needs no promotion – with an unlikely-but-it-works added ingredient

Breaking bread together

Mouna Easter loaf RECIPE DEBORA ROBERTSON PHOTOGR APH

Get ready to FEAST

Looking for a knockout main for your weekend dinner table or over Easter ? Award -winning food writer Melissa Thompson shares five delightful dishes, from glorious slow- cooked roast mutton ( punchier than lamb and more seasonal) to a mountain of ar tichokes, sizzling aromatic bream and make -ahead crab and chard quiche – ever y one a winner

Rockin’ rolls

Ever had a lamb sausage roll? Prepare to have your mind blown by these hefty beauties, complete with a dunkable beer-infused sauce – they’ll make you sing with joy

The POWER couples

Curried caulifower soup + spiced egg mayo PHOTOGRAPHS

Double whammy UMAMI

Using mushrooms – in their dried and fresh form – gives this lasagne twice the depth of savoury flavour normally provided by meat. To try it is to love it

PUDDING gets the star treatment

Easter doesn’t have to be all about chocolate. MasterChef: The Professionals judge Marcus Wareing, former judge Monica Galetti and 2021 Bake Off winner Giuseppe Dell’Anno each share a recipe destined to be an ah - moment

The hot new HOMEMADE GIFT

Move over rock y road – the new treat in town is chocolate bark, studded with riches from stroopwafels to pistachios. It’s a cinch to create, a much more personal present than an Easter egg, and you can take inspo from around the world in your ingredient choice. By our count that’s THREE wins

Going for GOLD

Thick and treacly with notes of butter y caramel, golden syrup is synonymous with stick y fingers, fruity flapjacks and childhood pancake days. Often found hiding at the back of the kitchen cupboard, the amber nectar adds its distinctive flavour to a whole range of treats. And, while it’s still heavenly spooned straight out of the tin when no one’s looking (no judgement here!), it really shines when paired with dates, apples and more in these cosy recipes…

Quirky Easter traditions from around the world

Chocolate eggs, hot cross buns, simnel cake… All treats we associate with Easter, some universal, others peculiar to our home turf. Neil Davey wonders if it could be time to enrich the celebrations by adding a few more celebratory quirks to our rituals

Be a better cook .

Spring is the season for new beginnings and transformations, so refresh your kitchen skills this month with bright and bold twists, tips and challenges. Put on your favourite playlist, roll up those sleeves and let’s get into it!

Show your best SIDES

“Steamed broccoli, roast carrots, boiled cauli… Sound a bit humdrum, don’t they ? But with an arsenal of marinades, dressings and crumbs to massage, drizzle and scatter, it’s simple to add sparkle to vegetables on the side. They might even steal the show…”

TAHDIG (aka crispy Persian rice)

With Nor wuz – Persian New Year – looming on 20 March, there’s no better time to get to grips with one of the most famous dishes in Persian cooking. Despite tahdig’s seeming simplicity, achieving the per fect crispy- chew y saffron rice requires keen senses, patience and know-how. Chef Yuma Hashemi of The Drunken Butler in London is here to guide you

Technical bake Meringue 101

There’s more to this seemingly simple desser t component than whipped egg whites and sugar. Dig deeper into the subject and you’ll find there are Swiss, Italian and French methods giving crisp, chew y or creamy textures. Master the meringue with our guide and your puddings will hit a purple patch – the highlight of which will be our magnificent cover-recipe tower

DON’T BIN IT! Eggs

delicious. is on a mission to help you

Feelgood (do good) choolate

In the UK we consume an average of 11kg of the dark stuff each per year, but if you want to buy ethically, how can you tell which claims on labels are true and which are sweet nothings? With the shops full of chocolate eggs, it’s a good time to consider which brands to buy, so we’ve asked Dr Lily Kelting to help you do just that... Then turn the page to find Emily Gussin’s cracking recipes for Easter (or any time)

Fish of the month

The Spanish adore hake, a cousin of cod and haddock, for its creamy white flesh. Though it’s abundant in UK waters, we’re not eating nearly enough of it... Make a star t with this wonder ful recipe

Speedy risotto? Just add pressure

Risotto requires constant stirring to create its trademark creamy texture, yes? That’s the technique we’re all familiar with but – remarkably – apressure cooker can do the job just as well. This version is rich with dried and fresh mushrooms, white wine and swiss cheese – and it cooks more rapidly, saving time and energy, too

Win! A two-night gourmet escape in Hampshire

WORTH £1,200 * It’s a quintessential English getaway

A SUMMER TOUR OF FINE ENGLISH GARDENS

Meet inspirational cook and garden designer Sarah Raven and enjoy lunch from her kitchen garden on your route through the gardens of Kent and Sussex

PUZZLES PAGE

JUMBO CROSSWORD

THE FOOD QUIZ

1 Which Italian sweet treat was supposedly created

Drinks

Best wines for Easter feasting , beers for desserts and a posh coffee

Susy’s best buys

Spring is coming (at last) and drinks editor Susy Atkins has all the recommendations you need for brunch, roasts, fish, steak, chocolate – whatever it is you’re feasting on over the coming Easter weekend – plus an intriguing new made -in - England rum

Beer school Pints for puds

Move over dessert wine – pour a dessert beer instead. Expert Mark Dredge gives his blessing to a trio of sweet partnerships

Make it every day.

How to hit refresh on your recipe repertoire, Sabrina Gidda’s home-cooked favourites and savoury danish pastries – all quick and easy

Get fresh!

In a recipe rut? Nailed-on classics such as toad-inthe- hole, bubble and squeak, a juicy steak and more get an injection of delicious. innovation to prompt “mmms”, “oohs” and “aahs” at your weeknight table

The food I cook at home by Sabrina Gidda

Food with sensational flavours that doesn’t need elaborate prep? Sounds good to us! That’s how chef Sabrina loves to cook when she’s not in the restaurant kitchen. Here she shares recipes inspired by her Punjabi heritage, by her time growing up in Wolverhampton and by her day job. The result? Dishes simple enough for a weeknight – or any time

The danish goes savoury

Magic up a batch of these rich golden pastries, topped with juicy mushrooms and sprinkled with parmesan, fresh tarragon and plenty of black pepper. It’s the simple route to brunch heaven

Are you a secret Pooh bear?

A little honey each day could lower blood

HEALTH - BOOST COOKBOOK

PHOTOGRAPHS: ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES Masterchef winner and NHS gastroenterologist

Health NEWS

News, nuggets of knowledge and advice you can trust

SALT AND STRESS

Could a diet high in salt make you

The nutritional POWER HOUSE in your veg box

Eat your greens! It’s a mantra drilled into us since childhood in the belief that green vegetables will make us grow up big and strong. But are they any better than other veg? And, if so, what makes them reign supreme in the veg world? Sue Quinn leafs through the evidence

discoveries

Our best new finds from producers big and small, recommended for you with our seal of approval

SPRING INTO APRIL ... ...with the next issue of delicious.

ON SALE Fri 31 Mar • Nathan Outlaw’s

“Food fosters equality – and that includes children”

They say necessity is the mother of invention: Sadia Ahmed put this proverb into action with her baby-food business, which aims to introduce little ones to a wider world of flavour

The Med ’s new food hotspot

Turkey needs visitors this year more than ever, and a world away from recent events, Urla is where food lovers should head. With its olive groves, wine country and hip food scene, says Susan Low, it’s like a Turkish Tuscany

The joy of real shopping

Buying online is all very well, says writer Polly Glass, but there’s nothing like choosing things for yourself – and it doesn’t have to be at a fancy farmers’ market...