MARMALADE HOT CROSS BUNS

Hot cross buns are a joy to make. They dress you in a pinny, cover you in flour, and make you instantly loved by everybody. Bring out a towering plate of warm sticky buns on Easter morning and you're anyone's.

Cut in half, spread through a little (or a lot of) salted butter and melt into marmalade goodness.

MARMALADE HOT CROSS BUNS

makes about 16

ingredients

700g strong white bread flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp mixed spice or a combination of ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon.

100g sugar

zest of 1 large orange

7g easy bake/fast-action yeast

1 duck egg (or 1 large hen egg), beaten

300ml milk, warm

1 tbsp flour

1 tbsp water

2 tbsps thin cut marmalade for glazing

Sieve the flour, salt, and spices into a large bowl. Make a well for the sugar, and add the zest and yeast. Pour in the egg and the tepid milk and mix, leaving to sit for a few minutes to activate the yeast.

Now, using your hands or a wooden spoon, fold the flour into the wet well, mixing to make a soft dough. If too wet and sticky add a little flour; if too dry add tepid milk a little at a time. Knead for roughly 5 minutes, pulling the dough away from you and pushing it with your palms and knuckles.

Oil and lightly flour the bowl. Sit the dough in the bowl, cover with a tea towel and place in a warm spot for an hour to prove.

Set the oven to the hottest it will go (roughly 240C).

Knock the air out of the dough on a floured surface, knead briefly, and set aside again to prove for 30 minutes or so.

Then, divide the dough into equal amounts (a small handful) and shape into balls. Lay into lines in a large roasting tin, leaving a three-finger sized gap between each bit of dough. Rest for 20 minutes, covered.

Mix 1 tbsp flour with 1 tbsp water. It should stretch nicely over the buns to form a cross. Do this after the dough has rested and place in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes until brown.

Remove onto a wire rack and glaze with the marmalade whilst still warm. Cut in half, toast again and smother with good butter. You may weep.

Get BAKING.

LAMB NECK with SALSA VERDE

It seems to be all about lamb this week and next with Easter around the corner. It's the best time of year for lovely Spring lamb, butterflied, if we're lucky, on a big, burning barbecue.

Lamb doesn't come cheap though - in fact it's getting pricier every year. If there's just a few to feed for your Easter lunch, buying a shoulder won't leave you much change for the spuds.

Using the neck of a lamb can be a fantastically cheap alternative. Find it at the Waitrose counter or at your butcher's, and get it cut to the size you need; I'd give at least 250g per person. Marinate it for a morning in oil, herbs, and spices, and flash it in the pan for a perfectly pink, perfectly tasty bit of meat, which won't cost you a shoulder and a leg.

LAMB NECK with SALSA VERDE

serves 2

ingredients

500g lamb neck (will cost about £3), boned, trimmed of sinew and excess fat
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 red chilli, finely chopped
2 tbsps olive oil
salt and pepper

SALSA VERDE
1 handful parsley leaves
1 handful mint leaves
1 handful basil leaves
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp capers/ 2 cornichons
6 anchovies
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsps mild olive oil
salt and pepper

Rub the lamb with the garlic, chilli and olive oil, and season. Cover and set aside at room temperature for a few hours, or overnight in the fridge, removed a couple of hours before cooking.

Throw the salsa verde ingredients into a food processor or pulse with a hand blender until wet and smooth. Add more mustard, salt or olive oil to taste.

Place a clean, dry frying pan over a medium heat. (You can do this on the barbie too). When sizzling hot, add the lamb. Cook, on each side for 2 minutes. Repeat this process once or twice. This should leave you with a perfectly pink, juicy middle and a crispy outer. Set aside to rest for 30 minutes to tenderise the meat, lightly covered with a tea towel.

Cut widthways into 1cm slices and serve hot or cold with the salsa verde, new potatoes, crusty bread and soft buffalo mozzarella for a deliciously thrifty Easter feast.