Food & Drink

I MADE POP TARTS! Makes 6-8, mine are bigger and thicker than the originals, but still reckon on two per person 😉 . Obviously these aren’t an everyday breakfast, but they’re a ‘what the hell why not’ breakfast… Ingredients (makes 6-8). 200g flour, 9p 100g butter, 52p 5 tbsp cold water 6 tbsp jam, 6p…

I make a lot of pizza for the kids as a treat – and don’t feel at all guilty about sneaking wholemeal flour into the base and vegetables on top. I thought I’d go the whole hog with this one, and dollop kale pesto on top, a whole year after the ‘kale pesto’ row with…

Chorizo is one of those ingredients that I buy rarely, but a little goes a long way. For a cheaper or vegetarian burger, you can omit it completely and just add the garlic and paprika for a similar smoky, spicy taste. Ingredients (makes 4 generous burgers): 3 tbsp oil 1 onion, finely chopped 2 cloves…

Brussels sprouts: you either love them or you hate them, but if your only experience of them is as an accompaniment to your Christmas dinner, you should definitely give these a go. Sliced and pan-fried with cabbage and butter: this is how I smuggle them into the toddlers . . . Serves 4 as a…

First published in the Guardian and G2 magazine: Jack Monroe’s budget Christmas. As always, all prices based on Sainsburys and Sainsburys Basics range where available. Similar products available at most leading supermarkets. Jack Monroe. Twitter: @MsJackMonroe Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/agirlcalledjack

Serves 4 700g assorted onions – I managed to use up half a red one, a large white one, six straggly spring ones and a contender for the worlds smallest shallot, but any old onions will do, even dried up stragglers and bits and pieces… 4 fat cloves of garlic 2 tbsp oil (or butter…

Sort-of-Paella, from A Girl Called Jack, photographed by Susan Bell. The star of the show in this paella is the simple coloured rice, cooked al dente, accentuated with bright red tomatoes and little green peas. This recipe is delicious on its own, or can be used as a base. Feel free to add chopped peppers,…

Bear with me folks, because this baby sounds a lot posher and more complicated than it actually was. You can make it go further by blitzing a slice of bread in the blender or grating it, and mixing it with the mince to pad it out. There’s a scarce amount of onion and garlic in…

‘Come into my world of soft, sloppy comfort’, it whispers… ‘I am mac n cheese in a mug. I am five minutes of sitting on the worktop, eating with spoon and licking fingers. I am a little piece of peace and quiet. I am only yours…’ <3 Friends will know that my Marmite obsession is…

One of my most clicked-on, photographed, and tweeted-about recipes is ‘the 9p burger’, a carrot, cumin and kidney bean burger born of a toddler nagging for burgers and an empty storecupboard and a handful of change. Mashed and shallow fried, they looked like burgers, and he wasn’t any the wiser – though I’m sure he…