Meals inspired by your holidays

Have you ever fallen in love with a dish you've had on holiday and wished you could recreate it back at home? Stepping back onto home soil doesn't have to mean saying goodbye to the evocative flavours you've tried abroad, as it's easy to serve up some exotic tastes on your very own dinner table.

Tortilla, like the one above, is a Spanish staple and is easy to make. Potatoes, eggs and onion are combined into a kind of gently cooked omelette, which can also be eaten cold for lunch the next day. Paella is Spain's other great national dish and this classic version including meat, fish and vegetables. It's not a quick dish to cook but the end result is well worth it.

Other Spanish suggestions:
Spanish breakfast
Patatas bravas
Chicken and potato stew

Anyone who's been to Italy will know food is of optimum importance there. Pasta is central to many meals and you can't beat a traditional carbonara or spinach and ricotta ravioli. If they're too rich for you, try a tomato-based arrabiata sauce.

Pizza is another Italian stalwart and is perfect for an easy evening supper. This pepperoni version is a classic, but if you want to stretch your skills more, try this fiorentina version, which has an egg on top. Something a little more upmarket but still distinctly Italian is the risotto - make sure you turn down the heat and add warm stock little by little.

Mouth-watering Italian options:
Pesto
Bruschetta
Tiramisu

Light food is the order of the day in Greece, and to get that feel at home, try a selection of dips. Tzatziki, taramasalata and hummus are all easy and tasty, and they go well with stuffed vine leaves. Moussaka brings a taste of the country home too, or if you're a seafood fan, try this traditional octopus dish.

Meat lovers will enjoy whipping up a Turkish feast at home, and the first port of call should be these lamb skewers. A kebab is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser too, or you could try traditional pide. It's a bread dish which sees the dough covered in lamb, apricots and pine nuts. Delicious on its own or alongside a main meal.

More Greek and Turkish dishes:
Spinach and feta filo pie
Greek salad
Meze plate
Baklava

More dishes inspired by holidays: