a friend recommended the black pudding and apple sausages which waitrose sell on their deli counters. i picked up four earlier in the week and adapted the jamie oliver bloke’s pasta recipe to create a super-delish supper.

the sausages don’t have a high black pudding content but you can definitely taste its presence. i didn’t notice the apple. i added cavolo nero and cherry tomatoes for extra vegetable oomph. i also added a glug of cream as the chilli i used was hotter than i expected, which added an extra layer of richness which balanced really well with the freshness of the lemon and parsley.

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i’m loving the new autumnal vegetables that are appearing everywhere at the moment. one of my absolute favourites from last year was cavolo nero and i’ve been eating lots of it over the past few weeks. as well as having it as a side vegetable so something like sausages baked with fennel and cherry tomato, i’ve added it to risottos and pasta.

last year it was all about jamie oliver’s blokes sausage pasta, which i added the cavolo nero to. this year it’s pancetta that is the shining co-star with my black kale.

this was a very simple supper – while the spaghetti cooked i fried, in a little butter, some pancetta pieces, chilli flakes and garlic slices. cavolo nero leaves were stripped of their chewy central vein and shredded before being added to the pan with a glug of wine. the leaves quickly wilted down and i added a few sunblush tomatoes along with the cooked pasta. very quick, very simple and utterly delicious. the same flavours work well in a risotto.

i'm sharing this with ruth who is hosting this week's presto pasta nights!

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sausages and pasta is a combination which i’ve grown to love. the addition of fennel – a bulb or seeds, preferably both – usually guarantees that i’ll try a recipe and that it will be a hit with both david and i. as a result there are lots of fennelly sausage pasta recipes on here (have a look), and here’s another! 

this was quickly pulled together from a very empty fridge – mushrooms were the only fresh vegetables we had in but thankfully there was a handful of sun-blushed tomatoes to lift things.

this is my contribution to presto pasta nights which, this week, is being hosted by me!

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as for many people, january is a time of year when i think about healthy eating. often i use this month to detox, cutting out booze, caffeine and junk, however, this year i know that i haven’t got the willpower so i’m sticking to the simple aim of trying to boost my fruit and vegetable intake.

spinach is an absolute life-saver when it comes to this, as there are very few dishes which can’t cope with having a handful or two of spinach wilted in (unless, of course, you’re a member of the great spinach-hating clan who liken its cooked texture and flavour to wet socks!).

this dish ticks the hearty meaty meal box but has the added advantage of including several portions of vegetables which will ease any new year guilt that you might be feeling about what you are eating.

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