Elly Pear's Let's Eat: Simple, delicious food for everyone, every day

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Return the dish or tin to the oven and set a timer for 15 minutes. When the time is up, stir the contents to make sure all sides of the aubergine cubes are roasting. Set the timer again for another 15 minutes and return to the oven. Like most vegetables, aubergine can be fried, grilled, roasted, steamed or even boiled. It’s also happily stuffed, or, blitzed – there are SO many ways to make this bulbous vegetable sing. Most commonly, it is fried or roasted, though we’ve included recipes which see them boiled below (Thai green curry we love you). Aubergine can also be cooked directly on a flame, and then peeled and mashed up to create the delightfully smoky dip baba ghanoush, or in South Asia, the baingan bharta – a heavenly spicy mashed aubergine side dish.

Elly is a Columnist for Waitrose Weekend, where her recipe column appears monthly. She has also contributed to a wide range of publications both online and in print, including Waitrose Food Magazine, Olive Magazine, Stella Magazine, Sunday Times Magazine, Delicious, Sainsbury’s Magazine, Good Housekeeping, Root and Bone and The Pool and was the food columnist for Instyle Magazine for over a year. She has also contributed recipes to both Cook For Syria charity books and produced two e-books, Let’s Eat: Elly Pear’s Home Fridge Deli and Elly Pear’s Fast Days and Feast Days: Tips and recipes to reset your diet for the New Year. Recipes to prep at the weekend for the week ahead – again, a really practical approach based on how we really live our busy lives.We meandered all over the part of Devon that sits to the south and southeast of Dartmoor National Park, spending time in towns, villages and on beaches, in woodland and coves, travelling on foot, by car and even steam train. It was the perfect mini break and I want to share some of my favourite finds with you… Restaurants Emilia, Ashburton Which variety You can use any of the globe varieties of aubergine in this recipe, but the large round aubergines sometimes found in Chinese supermarkets (almost identical to the round Italian variety but with a paler skin) offer an ideal creaminess here. Alternatively the thinner and paler Chinese variety are another great option. Add the carrot, smoked paprika and button mushrooms. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. When you’re ready to bake the tofu, preheat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7. Lay the tofu cubes out carefully on a baking tray lined with parchment or foil. Spoon over half the marinade, then place in the oven. After 15 minutes, turn all the pieces over, and bake for another 10 minutes.

Earth Food Love in Totnes was the UK’s first organic zero waste shop. Buying exactly and only what you need avoids waste at all times but is especially important when self-catering. She has appeared as a judge on numerous panels, including Veggie Magazine Awards, Great British Food Awards (alongside Raymond Blanc, Michael Roux, Nathan Outlaw, Mark Hix, Rosemary Shrager and more) and appeared on the highly regarded Great Taste Awards head judges panel for the last two years. Heat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7. Pour the olive oil into a large ovenproof dish or roasting tin and heat in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Carefully add the aubergine cubes to the hot oil. Season well with salt and pepper, add the diluted rose harissa and toss everything together.Which variety? Try globe aubergines here – round fat aubergines are too large to cook through over the flame, and anything skinnier will be too fiddly to peel. Elly says: “If you’re already a veggie or vegan, I’m going to show you lots of things you may not have tried – new ingredients, different ways of doing things or fresh approaches to cooking. If you’re currently a meat-eater, my aim is to prove a meal with no meat can still be satisfying, exciting and delicious”. What I thought: Like everyone else I know, I struggle to keep coming up with simple but tasty midweek meal ideas, so I was instantly drawn to the Weekday section of Elly Pear’s book. I love the concept of her Freezer Food recipes. You make one base dish in a quantity big enough to allow you to freeze some of it. Then there are various ways to use that base dish to whip up enticing but incredibly easy meals when you get home from work and don’t have the time or energy to cook something complicated. I love this approach as it fits perfectly with our busy family schedule. Who’s the author? Elly Curshen – also known as Elly Pear – is the the author of best-selling cookbook, Fast Days & Feast Days, cookery tutor and authority on all things delicious. Recently named one of the UK’s top 20 Veggie Heroes, Elly Pear champions cooking from scratch and greener ways of eating. What I thought: As someone who loves cooking, but routinely finds herself cooking variations on the same few dishes, it is always thrilling to find something I know has instantly become a new staple favourite.