“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…” There’s no other ingredient half as evocative of Christmas than the humble chestnut. You can buy fresh chestnuts and cook them yourself, or buy ready cooked.

To roast, pierce each nut and roast the nuts on a tray at 200˚C for 15 mins.

To boil, cover with cold water and bring to the boil, and simmer for 3 mins. Scoop a few out and peel off the shell. They become harder to peel as they cool, so keep them in hot water until you’re ready.

Chestnut, bacon + parsnip soup

Courtesty of BBC Good Food Magazine

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

4 chopped rashers smoked streaky bacon

6 parsnips, peeled and chopped

200g cooked, chopped chestnuts

Drizzle of olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 chicken stock cube

600ml milk

Fresh thyme (4 sprigs)

METHOD

Fry the bacon in the oil until crisp. Remove half the bacon and set aside until later. Add the onion and garlic to the pan, stirring until tender, then add the parsnips. Cook for another 5 mins, then crumble in the chicken stock cube.

Add the milk, 600ml water, the thyme and chestnuts. Cover and simmer for 30 mins until the parsnip is tender.

Blitz with a hand blender, then season to taste. Ladle into bowls and top with the reserved bacon.

Banana Pancakes!

Ingredients Approx 1 tsp Coconut oil, 2 eggs, banana, plain yogurt (or plain soya yogurt/coconut yogurt), apple and cinnamon Method Heat oil in a frying pan Meanwhile mash the banana and add to the eggs, beat together Pour into the frying pan. You can make a big pancake or small ones like drop scones. I must admit making a big one doesn't always turn out to be a perfect pancake...it often falls apart but still tastes yummy! Once you have cooked the batter in the frying pan on both sides, tip onto a plate and put the yogurt, apple and a sprinkle of cinnamon on the top Enjoy! This takes about two minutes to make so no time excuses please!!!

Apple crumble – and the smell of it cooking – is one of the most wonderful things about October. This healthy version uses dessert apples rather than tart cooking apples, meaning no sugar is needed for the filling to taste sweet.

Healthy apple crumble

Serves 4 INGREDIENTS For the topping 75g oats 30g wholewheat flour, gluten free flour, or millet flour (do not use coconut flour) 25g chopped pecans 1 tsp ground cinnamon 2 tbsp pure maple syrup 25g unsalted butter, melted   For the filling 750g chopped red apple* 2 tbsp cornflour 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg METHOD Preheat the oven to 180˚C, and grease an 8”-square pan. To make the topping, combine the oats, pecans, flour, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the maple syrup and melted butter. Stir until fully incorporated. For the filling, mix the apples with the cornstarch, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl until completely coated. Transfer the filling to the prepared pan, and gently press down with a spatula. Sprinkle evenly with the topping. (The topping tends to clump, so try to break it up into fairly small pieces.) Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the apple pieces are tender. The juices will start to thicken as the crumble cools. * Fuji’s are ideal but Gala and Braeburn apples would work as well.