One of the reasons I still buy a newspaper, the FT if you’re wondering, is because the food writers in it, or at least their recipes, are always inspiring. What’s more, since there is only one recipe per week in the pink paper, it’s not too much of a stretch/faff to a) rip them out and store them and b) choose what to make.

In recent years their magazine has toggled back and forth between ideas from Rowley Leigh and the Honey & Co team, and every one that I have tried has gone onto the repeat list. In fact, in the last few months, I have made three, all excellent. Here’s the first, a simple combination of homemade meatballs, chard and a yogurt sauce which is fast enough for a Wednesday but still special enough for a Saturday, and easy to double. I’ve changed it to use a standard 400g packet of mince, rather than 360g and cut out the sliced plum tomato, which I felt added very little. I could eat these every week.

Makes about 12–16 (so enough for 2–3 people)

For the meatballs: cupboard (or things you may already have)
egg
flaked sea salt, ½ tbsp
baking powder, ½ tsp
ground cumin, 1 tbsp
ground cinnamon, a pinch
ground black pepper, a pinch
fine breadcrumbs, 50g

For the meatballs: shopping list
beef mince, 400g
full-fat Greek yoghurt, 50g

How to: meatballs
1. Mix all the ingredients together then divide into balls, about 30–40g each (bigger than a walnut, about the same size as, but much tastier than, a Deliciously Ella energy ball…). Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (and up to 24 hours).

2. When you’re ready to eat, preheat the oven to 200ºC/180ºC fan-assisted/gas 6, put the meatballs into an ovenproof casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes or so, or until completely cooked through.

For the sauce: cupboard (or things you may already have)
small onion
garlic, 3 cloves
olive oil, 3 tbsp
ground cumin, 1 tsp
ground cinnamon, a pinch
flaked sea salt, ½ tsp

For the sauce: shopping list
Swiss chard, a bunch (about 250g)
full-fat Greek yoghurt, 50g
lemon, ½, juice only
flatbreads or couscous, to serve (optional)

How to: sauce
1. Prep the vegetables. First, peel and finely chop the onion and garlic, then trim the chard and separate it into leaves and stems. Wash the chard thoroughly, then chop the stems into small pieces and tear the leaves a couple of times each, so that you have large-ish pieces.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, add the onion and chard stems and sweat until soft and translucent.

3. Add the garlic, cumin, cinnamon and salt, cook for another minute or so, then add 350ml water and simmer for another five minutes.

4. Add the chard leaves and cook until they wilt then remove from the heat. Leave it to cool a little (so the yoghurt doesn’t split) then stir in the yoghurt and lemon juice. If you are serving them with couscous, now’s the time to get this ready.

5. Pour the sauce over the meatballs in the casserole dish, and stir gently (so that you don’t break up the meatballs) to mix in any juices. Return to the oven for 3–4 minutes (put the flatbreads, if using, in the oven to warm too) then serve.