Two tomato-led braises against a sweet and sour glaze, with purple potatoes and a mint-heavy salad

Stroganoff is normally strips of beef, and turning it into meatballs was a request I have come round to. The classic cut cooks fast and goes tough the moment it is reheated, where meatballs sit in the mushroom cream without tightening, which matters far more on day three than on day one. The sauce is built on the mushroom fond and finished away from the heat so it cannot split.

Asparagus gets charred hard and dressed while hot with shallots, almonds and raisins rather than blanched into submission. The raisins plump on the residual steam and do the work a dressing would. Purple potatoes were the better buy at the market this week, and they keep their color if they are cut into batons and roasted dry.

Reheating. The chicken pomodoro and the beef stroganoff meatballs both want 12 minutes at 325°F covered and sitting in their own sauces, because both sauces break over direct heat. Parmesan baked gnocchi takes 10 minutes at 375°F uncovered so the top crisps up again. Crispy baked zucchini sticks and the maple purple potatoes want an air fryer, or 400°F for 8 minutes, while the cucumber pomegranate salad and its lemon dressing never see heat at all.