Sunday multitasking continued

Pre-heat your oven 200c/180fan/Gas 6.

Tip your veggies into an appropriately sized foil tray ensuring that you've placed the tray onto a baking sheet. The veggies will take an hour to roast. If you've cooked your shanks today or yesterday they'll still need browning. As mentioned previously they'll take 30 minutes, so 30 minutes into the roasting time for your veggies, add the shanks to brown. If they won't stand up of their own accord then turn them after 15 minutes. Bag and fridge your leftover veggies.

Mashed potatoes

Peel a large pan of potatoes, cut to a similar size and boil until cooked through. Make sure you cook extra – you'll need them. This task can be done as you go – the potatoes can be re-heated in a microwave minutes before serving. Place leftovers in a sealed container and fridge.

If you're a mashed potato purist then you can put your potatoes through a ricer so that they will be lump free – others prefer the ordinary masher method – it's a matter of personal taste.

Whilst you're at it :

Make use of your oven and bake 350g (to serve two for a main course – double the quantity to serve 4) of new potatoes in their skins in a foil tray. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt and a glug of rapeseed oil – shake to cover in the tray. Bake for 20 minutes. They should be firm – leave them in their foil tray, cool, cover and fridge.

“Smoke” 4 chicken fillets in a frying pan on the hob. Remember how – poach them in chicken stock for 10 minutes and allow them to cool in the stock. Make sure your fillets are of a similar size so that they cook at the same time. You can slice the fillet if you prefer – it's entirely a matter of choice.

Skin and flake 2 smoked mackerel fillets or one per person. Box and fridge.

Grate a bag/box of mature cheddar cheese.

Make a “raw slaw” base, bag, clip and fridge – check out the following post.

Weigh 260g of orzo and bag it, in readiness for Thursday's supper – it might sound ridiculous but I promise you when you arrive home on Thursday evening you'll be glad you did – it's quite simply one job less.