Entertaining at Home. Rachel Allen

tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

      2 tbsp chopped coriander

      Salt and ground black pepper

      Juice of ½ lime or lemon

      1 Place the avocado flesh in a large bowl, add the garlic, olive oil and coriander and mash together, seasoning to taste with salt, pepper and lime juice.

      2 Cover the bowl with cling film to stop the mixture going brown and set aside until it is needed.

      Tomato salsa

      SERVES 8 AS A SIDE DISH VEGETARIAN

      4 ripe tomatoes, cut into 1cm (½in) cubes

      1 tbsp chopped red onion

      1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed or finely grated

      ½–1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

      2 tbsp chopped coriander

      Juice of ½ lime

      Salt and ground black pepper

      Pinch of sugar

      1 Mix all the ingredients together, seasoning with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar.

       Fish tacos with pepper and spring onion salsa

       The first bite into a fish taco immediately transports me to the white sands of Puerto Escondido in Mexico. The flavours here are all so evocative: crunchy taco shells enveloping a crisp, refreshing salsa, a smooth and creamy guacamole and delicate flakes of fish. I can practically smell the sea!

      SERVES 8

      750g (1lb 10oz) filleted round white fish, such as haddock, whiting, hake or cod, in small fillets or one big piece

      2 tbsp olive oil

      Salt and ground black pepper

       To serve

      16 taco shells

      1 quantity of guacamole

      1 quantity of pepper and spring onion salsa (see below)

      250g (9oz) crème fraîche

      1 Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas mark 4.

      2 Put the fish in a roasting tin, drizzle with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and cook for 10–20 minutes, depending on the size of the fish piece or pieces, until the flesh is opaque all the way through.

      3 A few minutes before the fish are cooked, place the tacos in the oven to warm through, then bring to the table with bowls of the guacamole, salsa and crème fraîche. Cut or break up the fish into bite-sized chunks and place in a warmed serving bowl on the table. People can help themselves: just spoon a little from each bowl to fill the tacos, and eat!

      Pepper and spring onion salsa

      SERVES 8 AS A SIDE DISH VEGETARIAN

      2 yellow peppers (or 1 red and 1 yellow), very finely sliced

      8 spring onions, trimmed and sliced

      8 radishes or ⅓ cucumber, left unpeeled and cut into thin strips

      ½–1 red chilli, deseeded and finely diced

      Juice of 2 limes

      2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

      2 ripe tomatoes, finely diced

      2 tbsp chopped coriander

      Salt and ground black pepper

      1 Mix all the ingredients together in another bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.

       Fusilli with beans, smoked salmon and olives

       This dish is perfect for any form of casual entertaining. If made in advance, it can be chilled and brought back up to room temperature.

      SERVES 8–10

      300g (11oz) smoked salmon

      500g (1lb 2oz) dried fusilli

      4 tbsp olive oil