Lunches are my least favourite meal of the day. By that I don’t mean to eat, but to prepare. With the current situation I find that my days are structured somewhat around providing my ever-hungry houseful with three meals a day. Lunch can be intrusive, abruptly punctuating a productive morning and ruining any flow that may have got going since the morning exercise, home schooling and general sorting of ‘stuff’ got underway. But we have to eat and we all need a break, right?

The best days, without doubt, are when leftovers can be found in the fridge or something made on a previous day can just be heated up. This was the case for both of these recipes. Although they just happened to be leftovers from completely different meals, they went together so very well. Going forward I may well make them a purposeful partnership. The soup is a Nigel Slater recipe and the spinach and parmesan balls are a much made recipe from an old Antonio Carluccio cookbook that’s been on my kitchen shelf for as long as I can remember.

ROAST BUTTERNUT SOUP WITH MUSHROOMS + GINGER

Serves 6

1 kg butternut squash
6 medium shallots
5 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp hot smoked paprika
1 litre vegetable stock

For the mushrooms:
200g chestnut mushrooms {although I’ve use mixed varieties in the past}
3 tbsp olive oil
10g ginger
150g soured cream

Set the oven at 200C/gas mark 6. Peel the butternut, halve it lengthways and discard the seeds and fibres. Cut the flesh into large chunks, then place in a single layer on a baking sheet or roasting tin. Peel the shallots, halve them, then tuck them among the squash.

Mix the olive oil and the paprikas then spoon over the squash, slide the dish into the oven and bake for about an hour or until the squash is patchily browned but thoroughly soft and tender.

Warm the vegetable stock in a large saucepan. Add the squash to the stock, place over a moderate heat {use a few spoonfuls of the stock to deglaze the roasting tin if there are any interesting bits of roasted squash and shallot left}, then season with salt and a little pepper and bring to the boil. Partially cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes until the squash is falling to pieces. Crush a few pieces of the squash into the liquid with a fork to thicken it slightly.

Slice the mushrooms thinly, then fry them in the olive oil in a shallow pan until golden. Peel the ginger and shred it into very fine matchsticks then add it to the mushrooms and continue cooking for a minute or two. When all is golden and sizzling, remove from the heat.

Ladle the soup into deep soup bowls then spoon over the soured cream and the mushroom and ginger.

SPINACH + PARMESAN BALLS

Serves 4

500g spinach leaves, washed thoroughly, tough stalks removed
2 eggs, beaten
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1 garlic clove, blended to a purée with ½ tsp water
110g fresh white breadcrumbs
50g parmesan, or similar vegetarian hard cheese, freshly grated
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 tbsp olive oil

Blanch the spinach leaves in a pan of salted, boiling water for 1-2 minutes, then drain well and refresh in cold water. Using your hands, squeeze out as much water from the blanched spinach leaves as possible, then finely chop the spinach.

Transfer the blanched, drained spinach to a bowl, then stir in the beaten eggs, nutmeg, garlic purée, breadcrumbs and parmesan. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix well until the mixture binds together, adding more breadcrumbs or more water, as necessary, to bind the mixture.

Roll the spinach mixture into walnut-sized balls and place onto a baking tray. Cover the base of a frying pan in a thin film of olive oil. Heat gently over a low to medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the spinach balls, in batches if necessary, and fry for 4-5 minutes on each side, or until crisp and golden-brown all over.

Remove from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside to drain on kitchen paper. Keep warm. Repeat the process with the remaining spinach balls.