Celery is, we admit, one of those food items that you either love or hate – but did you know it can be used as an onion substitute in many meals? Give it a go sometime; you might be rather surprised! Instead of adding chopped onion to fried mince as the base for a spaghetti Bolognese, dice a couple of sticks of celery, gently fry it then carry on adding the rest of the ingredients. We’re fans of making Bolognese from scratch rather than reaching for a packet – it tastes way better and it’s really easy to cook (our secret: 50% pork and 50% beef mince). Of course, we make a big pot of it and freeze it into portions for an easy mid-week meal.

Keep celery in the fridge, of course – but did you know that if you pop it into a plastic tub with a little water and put a lid on it, it’ll keep for a week or more in perfect condition? Remove the plastic bag it comes in (ideally, buy it loose – we really don’t need plastic on everything!), give it a quick rinse and transfer it into one of those snap-shut pots that all the shops sell these days. The lid keeps the water from condensing on the back wall of the fridge and will keep the celery nice and crisp. Voilla: long-life celery.

Now, if only we knew how to make garlic bread last. It always vanishes within minutes of coming out of the oven!