Allegra McEvedy is the sort of person who has always been famous; doubtless, at nursery other kids used to trail after her, hoping for crumbs of attention. I'm sure she dispensed them. She's a generous soul, Allegra.
Guardian readers who follow her weekly columns, and those who have taken part in her regular cookery workshops on our Word of Mouth food blog, will already have a sense of her: encouraging, jolly, noisy and, above all, enthusiastic. In person, she is all these things, and tactile to boot. At a party she will always be at the head of her own little herd, identified by the gales of rude throaty laughter.
In short, McEvedy won't bloody shut up, and nor, thank God, will her food. When she cooks, it's always big-fisted stuff. It's the enemy of prissiness, friend to flavour. Sure, she's done her time at the pass in fancy restaurants; she once led the kitchens at Robert De Niro's Tribeca Grill in New York. She has done stints at the Groucho club - from which she was sacked for being found in the shower with a friend and a bottle - and the famed River Cafe. But it is the role she has now, as the food queen for the nine-strong, quality, seasonal fast-food chain Leon, that suits her best. Its slogan - "food which tastes good and does you good" - speaks to the woman's instinctive need to nurture.
The recipes brought together in the new Leon cookbook, which we begin serialising today, make it obvious that this is a whole lot more than bald, corporate sloganeering. Allegra and her team at Leon mean it. There really is no arguing with her recipes for butterbean and chorizo stew or her butternut and bacon chowder, her chilli con carne made with braised hunks of chuck steak rather than crumbly mince, or her Moroccan chicken tagine, which has been a Leon bestseller for years. And for good reason. It's fantastic, gutsy, Technicolor stuff. Sure, none of her dishes is exactly elegant. Allegra doesn't do elegant, or at least not in the classical sense. (No one who has seen her in her trademark tweed trilby would argue.) But most of the time that's not what we want from dinner. We just need sustenance, stuff that tastes great and makes us feel good about both ourselves, and the fields that supplied the ingredients that fed us. All of that is what McEvedy does best. Enjoy.
Moroccan meatballs
When you meet a Leon regular, especially blokes, and ask them what they usually have there, more often than not the answer is "Meatballs!" This recipe was the subject of much hot debate and flowery language, but time has proved it was all worth it - not only because they're still on the menu in exactly the same recipe, but because they are always in our top five year-round best sellers.
Handsome supper for six
The meatballs
1½ wholemeal flatbreads (the smaller size, roughly 20cm in diameter) or pitta
120ml milk
1kg minced lamb
A small bunch of parsley, finely chopped
A small handful of mint, finely chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
The sauce
30ml olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 x 800g tins of chopped tomatoes
1½ tbsp harissa
A handful of basil, leaves picked and chopped
A handful of parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper
Rip the flatbread into pieces and soak in the milk for 10 minutes. Then put the bread into a mixing bowl, add the mince and stir in the parsley, mint, oregano, garlic and some seasoning.
Mix well, then roll the mixture into walnut-sized balls (about 20g each).
Either on a griddle pan (best) or under a very hot grill, brown the balls quickly - it's all about colouring them and not cooking them through ... five minutes total cooking time with about three turns on the griddle.
To make the sauce, heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and gently fry the crushed garlic. Tip in the chopped tomatoes and harissa and simmer for 25-30 minutes, until the sauce has reduced. Put in the meatballs and continue to simmer for a further 20 minutes with a lid on until the sauce looks about right.
Lastly, stir in the herbs and have a final seasoning check.
Chicken (or salmon) superfood salad
This is a perfectly balanced lunch. We have some wonderful regulars who have been eating this three times a week for years.
Serves two
2 tbsp quinoa
½ head of broccoli
300g free-range chicken thighs, each cut into 4 pieces and marinated overnight, or 4 x 70g slices of salmon fillet
2 handfuls of rocket
2 handfuls of baby spinach
2 vine-ripened tomatoes, roughly chopped
120g frozen peas (if using fresh, use 500g unshelled pods)
1 lemon
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
A light sprinkling of alfalfa sprouts
3 tbsp aïoli
2 tbsp toasted seeds
A hefty sprinkling of chopped mint and parsley
Salt and pepper
Put 80ml of water into a small pan and bring to the boil. Stir in the quinoa and boil fast for five minutes, then turn the heat down and simmer for five minutes more. Turn the heat off, fluff with a fork, and leave until cooled.
Preheat your grill to very hot, or get your griddle pan smoking.
Cut the broccoli into small florets and slice the stalks into 1cm thick circles. Drop into a pan of rapidly boiling salted water for three minutes, then drain and run under the tap until cold.
Season your protein. Then for chicken, grill for five minutes, turn it over, then five minutes more; a scant three minutes each side for the salmon slices.
While all this is going on, build your salad: toss the leaves, tomatoes, broccoli and peas in the juice of half a lemon and the olive oil. Lift on to one big serving dish or individuals, scatter on the cooled quinoa and alfalfa. The next layer is the protein (try feta if you're veggie). Top with the aïoli, seeds and herbs, with the other half lemon, wedged, on the side.
Sweet potato falafel
We wanted falafel on the menu, but couldn't make the normal ones because we chose not to have any deep-fat fryers and baking them made them dry and crumbly. Benny had a stroke of genius about basing them on roasted sweet potatoes, then binding the mix with chickpea flour, giving them their falafelly credentials. Back flavours of spices, punched up with fresh herbage, make these a year-round winner and our most popular veggie dish to date. As a mezze, we serve these with chopped tomatoes and pickles and aïoli.
Makes around 18 falafel - enough for four
2 medium sweet potatoes (orange inside), around 700g in total
1½ tsp ground cumin
2 small cloves of garlic, chopped
1½ tsp ground coriander
2 big handfuls of fresh coriander, chopped (about 30g)
Juice of half a lemon
120g gram flour
A splash of olive oil
A sprinkling of sesame seeds
Salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 220C/425F and roast the sweet potatoes whole until just tender (45 minutes to 1 hour). Turn off oven, leave the potatoes to cool, then peel.
Put the sweet potatoes, cumin, garlic, ground and fresh coriander, lemon juice and gram flour into a large bowl. Season well, and mash until smooth with no large chunks. Stick in the fridge to firm up for an hour, or the freezer for 20-30 minutes. When you take it out, your mix should be sticky rather than really wet. You can add a tablespoon or so more of gram flour if necessary (the water content of sweet potatoes varies enormously).
Reheat the oven to 200C/400F. Using a couple of soup spoons (put a well-heaped spoonful of mix in one spoon and use the concave side of the other to shape the sides) or a falafel scoop if you have one, make the mixture into falafelly looking things and put them on an oiled tray. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top and bake in the oven for around 15 minutes, until the bases are golden brown.
Magic mackerel
These days you have to choose your fish carefully. Mackerel ticks all our boxes: tastes great, full of good oils that make you think better, from the seas around here and not endangered.
Serves four for a light lunch
200g couscous
2½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 juicy lemons
½ head of broccoli, cut into florets
5 fillets of undyed smoked mackerel
80g hazelnuts, toasted and very roughly chopped
75g dried apricots, chopped
2 tbsp toasted seeds
2 tbsp dill, finely chopped
2 big handfuls of rocket, roughly chopped
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
Put the couscous into a large bowl and stir in the oil, cumin and a hefty pinch of salt, plus the zest and juice of half a lemon, making sure each granule is well coated. Pour 300ml of boiling water over the couscous, stirring well to ensure there are no dry areas left. Cover with clingfilm and leave for 10 minutes somewhere warm.
Blanch the broccoli for three minutes in boiling salted water, then run under the tap until cold.
Once the couscous has done its thing, break it up by gently rubbing it between the palms of your hands. Take the skin off one of the mackerel fillets and flake it through the couscous in small pieces that you can't really see. Mix in the nuts, apricots, broccoli, seeds, dill and lastly the rocket (be gentle). Adjust the seasoning and dress with lemon juice (about ½-1 lemon - use the rest as wedges) and extra virgin olive oil. Gently break each of the remaining fillets into two or three pieces and sit atop the couscous.
Butternut & bacon chowder
Chowders are associated with clams, summertime and New England, but this is a slightly heartier recipe that gently slides into autumnal eating.
Serves four
3 tbsp butter
200g streaky bacon, diced small
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 large onion, diced
1 small butternut squash (about 650g), peeled and cut into 2cm dice
2 medium floury potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 2cm dice
500ml chicken stock
100ml double cream
500ml full-fat milk
3 big handfuls of flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and roughly chopped
1 tbsp thyme, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper
Over a medium heat melt the butter in a big heavy-bottomed pan. When it's just about going nutty brown, scatter in the bacon in separate pieces, not a clump. Keep cooking on a medium heat until the bacon starts to crisp and takes on a nicely golden brown appearance. Then stir in the garlic and cook for a further few minutes to release the flavours.
Add the onion and some salt and cook gently for a further 10-ish minutes with a lid on the pan until the onion is very soft but not browning. Splosh in a couple of tablespoons of water to get the colour and any sticky bits off the bottom of the pan.
Once the onions are super-soft, add the squash and spuds, turn the heat down a tad and continue to cook and stir occasionally for a further 10 minutes. When they are all well-coated, whack the heat up a bit and pour in the chicken stock and cream. Simmer the soup for 15-20 minutes, until the squash and spuds are soft but not collapsing.
Now add the milk and bring to a simmer; as soon as this has happened, turn the heat off: do not let it boil or the milk will split.
Using a slotted spoon, take out about half the veggies, letting the liquid drain back into the pan. Blend the veg to a smooth purée and add back to the soup. Check the seasoning, stir in the chopped parsley and sprinkle with thyme just before serving.
Leon gobi
At Leon we give the veggies who eat with us quite a lot of TLC, and this curry took a long time to get spot on before it went on the menu: it's all about the balance of spices, sweetness and making sure you time the veg right so it doesn't all fall apart. The Gobi refers to the cauliflower. It's the addition of ground almonds that provides the wonderful consistency.
Gobi good for six
1 medium onion, halved and thickly sliced
1 carrot, thickly sliced
2 tbsp sunflower or peanut oil
1 red chilli (go for a bird's-eye if you like it hot - some do)
2 thumb-sized pieces of root ginger, washed but not peeled
5 cloves garlic, peeled
1 large tsp Madras curry powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp black onion seeds
1 medium sweet potato, washed and cut into 2.5cm dice
4 heaped tbsp ground almonds
A good handful of sultanas
½ a small cauliflower, broken into florets
1 x 400ml tin of coconut milk
150g frozen peas
Juice of ½ a lemon
A really big handful of coriander, roughly chopped
Salt
2 heaped tbsp desiccated coconut, to serve
In a large saucepan, cook the onion and carrot over a medium to low heat in the oil for 15-20 minutes with the lid on, stirring occasionally. Season with salt.
Blitz the chilli, ginger and garlic to a paste in a food processor. Stir the paste into the onions once they have begun to soften, along with the spices (including the onion seeds). After another five minutes, season with salt, add the sweet potato chunks and the almonds and mix well so that everything is well coated.
Turn the heat up a bit and stir in 500ml of water and the sultanas. Bring to a simmer and leave it to bubble gently for 10-15 minutes with the lid off, stirring occasionally.
Add the cauliflower florets and the coconut milk and simmer for a further 10-15 minutes, covered. Check that the sweet potato and cauliflower are both cooked, turn the heat off and stir in the peas.
It will need more salt, plus the lemon juice and chopped coriander to finish it off right. We serve it with a sprinkling of dried coconut on top.
The Leon better brownie
This is the lovely Emma's recipe, which she's been making for us down in Dorset since day one and which has won many admirers. As you can tell, she is a bit particular about the way it's done, but all power to her - it's the best brownie in the world.
Makes 12 big 'uns
The melting
180g unsalted butter
200g dark chocolate (Belgian 54% cocoa solids)
2 tsp espresso at room temperature, or other very strong coffee
The mixing
1 tsp organic cold-pressed sweet orange oil or finely grated zest of 1 orange
80g sweet Spanish almonds (skin on), toasted and chopped
4 free-range eggs
100g ground sweet Spanish almonds
160g dark chocolate chunks (Belgian 54% cocoa solids)
160g very dark chocolate chunks (Belgian 72% cocoa solids)
150g fructose
Pinch of sea salt
3-4 drops of Madagascan bourbon vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
Melt the butter on full power in a microwave for 1 minute (this can also be done in a small pan on the hob) and separately melt the dark chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water on the stove. Stir the chocolate well, ensure it is completely melted, and be careful not to burn it.
Once the butter is melted and allowed to cool slightly, add the coffee and stir well, then add whichever orange bits you are using (if you add anything too hot or too cold to the mix it can cause it to shrink - have your ingredients at room temperature and not straight from the fridge).
Roughly chop and toast the skin-on almonds for 10 minutes and leave to cool.
(When it comes to this next bit take special care to place the ingredients into the mixing bowl in the order stated - this ensures a nice even mix of all ingredients and the eggs don't come into contact with the warmed butter.)
Put the eggs in first, then all the ground almonds, then the dark choc and very dark choc chunks, and lastly the fructose. Stir in the salt and vanilla, followed by the butter mixture. Mix well until creamy and thickened but be careful not to over-mix - too much air will cause the brownie to crumble when baked.
Spoon the mix into a well-buttered baking tray 30 x 30cm, or something with similar volume.
Take extreme care not to over-bake. The brownie is ready when the edges are slightly crusty and the middle is still soft. The middle should be very moist but should have a firmish feel to it - about 20-25 minutes. Remember that fructose goes much darker when baked than sugar. The brownie also develops a glossy sheen and does not look baked when it is. I'll say it again - you need to be very careful not to over-bake.
Extracted from Leon: Ingredients and Recipes, by Allegra McEvedy, published by Conran Octopus on October 13, price £20. To order a copy of for £18 with free UK p&p, go to guardian.co.uk/bookshop, or call 0870 836 0875. Tomorrow: Seasonal cooking
