Slow-roasted lamb shoulder meets sweet, oven-baked caponata in this comforting dish. Preheat the oven to 140°C, brush the lamb with Dijon mustard, season well, and roast over a bed of carrots and fennel for rich, tender results.

Place 12 cabbage leaves on the clean surface (table) and slice the rest of the cabbage thinly and set aside. In a bowl using your hand, mix beef mince, lamb mince, diced bacon, crushed garlic, Vegeta, paprika, rice, parsley, 10ml olive oil, ground pepper and one beaten egg.

Place the flour and sugar into a large bowl and mix well. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time, rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

In a large pot cover the bacon hocks with cold water then bring to boil, drain the water and discard and then cover with cold water again. Add all of the remaining ingredients and bring to boil.

Heat grill to high. Grate the zest from half the lemon and squeeze the juice from both halves. Split the pork fillet down the centre, cutting almost all the way through, and open out like a book.

Cut two small melons into halves and remove seeds. Using a fruit baller make melon balls for decoration and leave it on the side. Scoop gently and not too deep the rest of the melon into a bowl and crush it with a fork. Leave the shell of the melon in original shape with some melon flesh in it and intact.

Enjoy this flavorful combination of crispy fritters with a tangy, spiced chutney!

Heat your BBQ or oven to 180°C and cook the corn whole, in the husk for 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and stand for 20 minutes. Slice the corn off the cob and place in a bowl. Remove the seeds and dice the capsicum.

When we are planning to exclude certain food groups for a long period of time, especially if these foods are nutrient dense, it is important to know if our body is thriving on the new diet or if certain nutrients are missing. In the case of vegan, and to some extent vegetarian diets, there are certain health checks and blood tests that we should do more frequently, just in case.

While weight gain during menopause is considered normal, what many women don’t know is that we begin to lose muscle in our 30s. While our weight might still be the same, we are replacing muscle with additional fat. This process accelerates as we reach our 50s.

Fonio Pilaf is a light summer dish with splendid flavors and plenty of taste even for the most hardcore spice-lovers.

Stuffed pork tenderloin, with cheese and thyme, wrapped in streaky bacon, is a meal that has a fantastic taste, is easy to make and it looks fantastic on the plate.