Delia Smith Glazed Bacon-wrapped Pork Sausages with Crispy Cheese Potato Skins

It's been ages since I did a Delia - by that I mean make one of her recipes, not have a 'letsbehavinyou' moment - so I turned to her website for inspiration for a Friday night tea and found this. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the 'frozen American-style potato skins' required so had to bake a few potatoes of my own to create the skins. This wasn't difficult though so I wouldn't be put off if you can't find the frozen things either. I also ignored the instruction to coat the tomatoes in the mustard mix as I thought there was quite enough on the sausages already and I substituted the parmesan on the potatoes for plain old chedder. These were a real hit and definitely something I will make again - they would be ideal as a side for a Mexican-themed meal. The glaze was also good and could certainly be used to liven up pigs in blankets on the Christmas dinner table.

Jamie Oliver Spaghetti Con Gamberetti e Rucola (Spaghetti with Prawns and Rocket)

From Jamie's Italy, this is a dish that looks like it takes a lot more effort to prepare than it actually does. If you keep pasta, garlic and chilli in supply, you'll need very few additional ingredients to complete this meal - just prawns, wine, sun-dried tomatoes or puree, a lemon and some rocket. I used linguine rather than the prescribed spaghetti and semi-dried cherry tomatoes blitzed in the blender rather than sun-dried variety for a slightly sweeter flavour.

I didn't think Kasper would go for prawns so I made him pasta, stirred through with garlic and herb soft cheese, ready cooked salmon (my food nemesis) and broccoli.

James did the pictures for me tonight and managed to snap this one which he said proved the sun really does shine out of my, well, you know.

Domino's Pizza

It's a scandal really as we had more than enough left over beef stroganoff in the fridge for tonight but when our cyclist friend said he had decided to ditch two wheels for four and arrived in the safety and comfort of his car for a last minute visit, we were left with little choice than to call on Domino's. James swung by the Beverley Road branch on his way home from work to pick up the order I made on their scrupulously efficient website. We went for two large pizzas which were on a buy one get one free offer and a Kickers Combo side - chicken coated in a crispy spicy seasoning and potato wedges served with dips. The pizzas were 'half-and'half' which meant we could cram four different toppings on to the two servings.

As you can see, we had all already dived in before I remembered to take some pictures. This is because I had vacuumed, wiped round the bathroom, recycled, tidied the kitchen, lit the fire (it really is that cold), fed the boy (stroganoff), ironed sheets, changed the spare bed, then bathed the young 'un before I got to eat so was ravenous.

Beef Stroganoff

As Kasper has been feeling a little under the weather, I decided to do one of his favourite meals, beef stroganoff, following an easy recipe from the BBC Good Food website. I already had some rump steak in the freezer which I got from my trip to William's Farm Kitchen in Hornsea last week and almost all the other ingredients were from the store cupboard.

I didn't have any shallots so made do with an ordinary onion which was fine. I'm going to invest in some frozen ones from the Waitrose Cooks' Ingredients range next time I'm there which will make this already minimally taxing recipe even easier.

I had been a bit doubtful the first time I made it about whether or not Kasper would eat it purely because it contains mustard. The flavour is actually mild though and it has given him a liking for mushrooms too.

I added asparagus to the plate for James and me which I'd cooked quickly in the oven with some balsamic vinegar. Like the pesto in one of the dinners last week, it was lovely authentic Italian stuff from James's competition prize hamper courtesy of Peroni.

We don't normally bother with a pudding during the week but I spotted some English strawberries in Marks and Spencer - grown in Yorkshire no less - and couldn't resist. They were absolutely lovely, super sweet and perfect with a dollop of creme fraiche left over from making the stroganoff.

Fish and Chips (Stuart's of Driffield)

After spending the day at my mum's again, we arrived back to Beverley at about 6pm. Facing an empty fridge, we made a detour to Stuart's of Driffield's fish and chip shop on Norwood. Kasper, full of cold, fell asleep in the car and went straight to bed so it was just James and me for tea. It's a good chippy, not my favourite, (which is Sullivans), but excellent in its own right.

Best of all, we still had some coke leftover from FA Cup night - it tastes so much better out of these old fashioned bottles and really looks the part on the table too. James had a bottle of not so old fashioned Budweiser.

Mother Focaccia

We all headed over to my mum's on Sunday again en masse. Plagued with the usual 'what's for tea?' questions from all us (we must have asked her this every night when we were kids) she downplayed what would be on offer, muttering something about bread and quiche. What arrived on the table was hardly done justice by the build-up. She had made a incredible loaf of rosemary and sea salt infused focaccia and a wonderful loaf of plain white which were the anchor to a buffet style meal with cheese, salads and dips.

The focaccia was far to superior to anything you would be fleeced for about £10 for in an artisan bakery and the white bread had a lovely crust that had bite but wasn't at all dry like the supermarket kind can be. It was also superb toasted and eaten with fresh coffee for elevenses (a neglected meal opportunity which we enjoyed thanks to the luxury of a long bank holiday weekend).

The recipes were both Mary Berry and were, according to mum, typically simple and easy to follow. They proved that if you have something of real quality on the table, even the most straightforward of meals can be really quite special.

FA Cup Final Burgers and Hot Dogs

2012 is set to be the summer of sport what with t'lympics and the Euros and with it will come the joy of mass catering as we all get together to watch and celebrate with our chums. The FA Cup final brought the chance for an early such gathering with my sister, her fella and my brother joining us three for the match. I'd been preparing throughout the week having visited William's Farm Kitchen in Hornsea to get the meat for the burgers and hotdogs before dropping into the town's new Tesco for the buns, beer and baps. The real pleasure in meals like this is producing a table full of great stuff that everyone can tuck into at will and I take particular pride in the selection of condiments and extra fillings on offer.

We had jalapenos, ketchup, mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, salsa and 'plastic' cheese - by that I mean processed cheese slices. Of course, 'real' cheese is also magnificent on burgers, especially something strong like a blue variety, but you really can't beat slices when you're cooking for a crowd. I also did some fried onions, another essential for the full burger and hot dog experience.

The burgers were brilliant - just the right size for the sesame buns - and the sausages, which were hickory smoked, were meaty, tasty and lean.

McCain frozen fries were another side which went down well - much better to have these thin cut delights than wedges when you're having anything with bread. I doubt there was better on offer in even the most expensive Wembley seats and everyone seemed happy.

Sticking to the American theme, I couldn't resist trying a trio of new USA-style desserts when I saw them in Tesco. They had more value in the fun packaging and crazy names which suited the occasion than in actual taste. Each was pleasant enough but too forgettable in taste terms become a favourite. I know this because when faced with the choice of three, my guests and I decided to give each a try - all in the same calorific bowl.