The British chef behind S&oacute;ller's beloved Patiki Beach finds inspiration in Mallorca&rsquo;s bountiful, beautiful local produce.

I live in the hills of Mallorca, deep in a valley of all things citrus. I spend my days cooking at our family restaurant <a href="https://www.patikibeach.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Patiki Beach</a> in the port of S&oacute;ller, or from my home, where I deliver to private clients. The land here is so richly baked in sunshine and its produce is so full of nature&rsquo;s wisdom and nurture. My food is really a way of showcasing the raw beauty of these ingredients, doing as little to them as I can to bring out their innate brilliance. At this time of year, as the sun rises later and sets earlier and the mulchy, wintry scents rise from the earth, I find myself drawn to the kinds of steaming, soupy, one-pot wonders that warm the belly and soul at the same time. Here are three nourishing, nurturing dishes that are simple to throw together and will see you through the early weeks of the new year.

SLOPPY TOMATOES, WHITE BEANS AND WILTED WILD GREENS

Sloppy tomatoes, white beans and wilted wild greens
This is a super quick warming supper, ideal to use up overripe tomatoes that have passed their salad heyday. We have a field of wild chard - or bleda - next to our house, which I love. The field is also home to a lot of dandelion leaves whose bitter flavour I have often added to this dish. The Balearics are covered in bleda at this time of year, so if you&rsquo;re lucky enough to find some this recipe is your gal!
Recipe:&nbsp;
5 overripe beef/ Iberico tomatoes
&frac12; cup of good extra virgin olive oil
&frac12; tsp fennel seeds
4 strips of lemon rind
5 garlic cloves crushed with the side of your knife to flatten them
&frac12; tsp chilli flakes
&frac12; tsp sea salt
1 handful of fresh sage
black pepper
1 handful of panssides olives or any wrinkly, dark-skinned olive
Plenty of baby spinach leaves, bleda or baby dandelion leaves
1 x 400g jar of white beans
Method:&nbsp;
Cut your tomatoes into rough chunks and put them in a heavy based pan with the olive oil, salt, few grinds of pepper, the garlic, herbs, chilli, fennel seeds and lemon rind. Place on a high heat until it sizzles, then turn down and cook together with the lid on until you have a sloppy mess and the tomatoes have lost all their form.
If you would like a deep flavour, at this stage you can add a splash of white wine and let it sizzle off until you can no longer smell the alcohol.&nbsp;
Stir in your olives and your spinach or dandelion leaves until everything has wilted together.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Pour in your jar of white beans. I like to rinse half of them and keep the other half with the goop as it gently thickens your sauce.&nbsp;
Spoon onto your plate, cover in finely grated parmesan and a squeeze of lemon, black pepper and a little sea salt. This is delicious as a side or as a big sharing platter with roast sausages. You could also top with crumbly feta the next day and eat it cold or with a fried egg on top as an emergency lunch.&nbsp;

Mixed pea soup

Mixed pea soup
If you&rsquo;re yet to cook with these peas that&rsquo;s great news, as they are delicious and might be a new friend. This soup is really hearty and keeps for days so you can add different toppings each time and feel the comfort day after day.&nbsp;
Recipe:&nbsp;
300g mixed dried peas (I use &lsquo;All the Peas&rsquo; from the amazing <a href="https://hodmedods.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hodmedods</a>)
2 roscoff or white onions
2 fat leeks
4 garlic cloves
1 handful of sage
2 bay leaves
1 spring of thyme
1 pinch of chilli flakes
&frac12; cup of good olive oil
1 fennel bulb
1 tbs sweet miso paste
1 tbs bone broth concentrate or vegetable bouillon
Method:
Soak the peas in plenty of water for 24 hours
Thinly slice the onion and leek and place in a heavy bottomed pan and fry softly in olive oil, salt and aromatics until they have started to wilt. You don&rsquo;t want the mixture to brown, so fry low and slow and stay close to the pan.&nbsp;
Thinly slice the fennel and garlic and add to the pan. Once everything is floppy and translucent add the miso, bone broth concentrate, peas and enough water to sit 4/5 cm above them (roughly 2 litres).
Bring to a boil then add a lid and turn down to simmer slowly for about three hours. You may need to check towards the end and add water if the peas are still a little hard. You are looking for the point where the peas and the stock are no longer separate but one goopy, creamy soup. If in doubt keep cooking -&nbsp; the peas will become soft and starchy in time.
I love to eat this with wilted greens and lots of extra olive oil on top, although 10 tons of cheese is always banging. If you have a hot sauce habit, this is a great place to exercise it too.

Brussel sprout, savoy cabbgae and parmesan soup
This is a really soothing soup for when you just want a few days of comforting vegetables after heavy indulgence (so all of January, in fact!), and a perfect example of the importance of hanging on to old parmesan rinds to use in soups and stews just like this! The parmesan infuses the stock with a rich umami flavour that makes it very hard to stop eating.&nbsp;
NB, this is much, much better the day after cooking
Recipe:&nbsp;
1 Roscoff or white onion
2 leeks
4 bashed garlic cloves
1 sprig of thyme
1 bunch of parsley&nbsp;
1 pinch of sea salt
1 pinch of chilli flakes
3 bay leaves
&frac12; cup of good olive oil
1 splash of wine or sherry
15 brussel sprouts
&frac12; a small savoy cabbage
2 sticks of celery
1 largish piece of parmesan rind (5 x 5cm ish)&nbsp;
1 litre chicken stock although you could use water and vegetable bouillon
1 jar of cooked white beans
Slab of soft gorgonzola
Method:
Thinly slice the onion, leeks, parsley stalks and celery, add to a heavy bottomed pan with the herbs, garlic, salt and chilli and fry slowly till all is floppy but not browned. Add a splash of white wine or sherry and let it cook off (it needs to sizzle).
Slice the sprouts and cabbage as finely as you can and add to the pan. Let them cook slowly until wilted. Add the parmesan rind and enough chicken stock to cover the veggies. Bring to a boil then turn down to very slow simmer with the lid on for 40 minutes.&nbsp;
Add a jar of cooked white beans (and all the goop that surrounds them) and a handful of parsley and stir it all up. Ladle into your bowl with a squeeze of lemon juice, a splash of nutty olive oil and a good slab of gorgonzola.

Grace Berrow’s wintry, one-pot wonder recipes

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