I like busy days. Even if I'm very tired, I feel that I use this time to the max. I'm glad especially when everything goes as planned and I manage to do everything. On such days it is worth having a few recipes for swift dishes to make a nice homemade lunch.

Pastas with homemade pesto or sauces are excellent for such situations. Most often I make my favourite green basil pesto or red pesto with dried tomatoes. I sometimes use tomato sauce. Today I chose creamy curry sauce with Parma ham. I also added black olives and chopped parsley. It was so yummy!

Ingredients (for 2 people)
150g of pasta
150g of Parma ham
1 clove of garlic
1 shallot
chili pepper
1 tablespoon of butter
150 ml of 30% sweet cream
1 teaspoon of curry powder
10 black olives
2 tablespoons of chopped parsley
salt and pepper

I have a few recipes for soups which rescue me when I have to prepare something warm for lunch or dinner. These are: tomato soup, green bean soup, cream of courgette and, recently, cheese soup. I have made cheese soup before, but a simple version. This time I used a recipe by Jakub Kuroń. This Neapolitan version of cheese soup was with bacon, carrot and red pepper. My older version wasn't so good. I prepared crunchy croutons for my cheese soup, but you can use crunchy bread. My children were delighted and had a second helping. I recommend it!

Ingredients:
300 g of cream cheese
1l of vegetable bouillon
100 g of cubed bacon
1 small leek
1 carrot
a piece of celery root
1 parsley root
1 sweet red pepper
2 chopped cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of oil
1 teaspoon of butter
2 bay leaves
3 allspices
salt and pepper
croutons or crunchy fresh bread
2-3 tablespoons of chopped parsley

Roasted or potted meat is excellent - both just after cooking and cold or reheated the next day. Sometimes I like to prepare a satisfying lunch sandwich with such meat. It is great with many fresh additions. You can eat it at home, pack it for travel or for work.

When I was a child I liked sandwiches with fried pork chop. Today I used potted rabbit, stewed the day before. The rosemary-fragrant meat, slightly spicy guacamole and fresh bread was an excellent combination.

Ingredients (for 2 people)
2 portions of potted rabbit
1 avocado
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 clove of garlic
4 lettuce leaves
1 tomato
1 red pepper
salt and pepper

My children don't like dried tomatoes, so this swift lunch was only for me. Spicy red pesto with dried tomatoes, roasted cashew nuts and parmesan was excellent. My children didn't even know what a yummy dish they refused. If I have to choose which pesto I like most, I can't do it. I like green pesto with basil, and red pesto with dried tomatoes. Both of them are delicious. What kind of pesto do you like?

Ingredients (for 2 people)
10 dried tomatoes in olive oil
100ml of olive oil
A fistful of roasted cashew nuts
4 tablespoons of parmesan
1 clove of garlic
1 small chili pepper
150g of penne
2 sausages
10 black olives

Since my daughter stopped eating lunch at school I have had a permanent culinary problem. What should I make for lunch? There are moments when I don't have a clue and my creativity plays hide and seek. Sometimes I ask my children what they want. They always want tomato soup, spaghetti, borsch with ravioli and crepes. All these dishes are very yummy, but in the long run they can get boring. Chili con carne we know as a main course served with rice. Today I needed soup for my lunch, so I prepared chili con carne soup.

Ingredients (for 4 people)
400g of minced beef meat
500ml of tomato passata
500ml of beef bouillon
1 red sweet pepper
1 tin of red beans
1 tin of sweetcorn
1 red onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 chili pepper
1 tablespoon of butter
2 tablespoons of oil
1 teaspoon of sweet paprika
half a teaspoon of cumin
a pinch of curry powder
salt and pepper