A long, cool zest drink to enjoy on a warm sultry evening with friends.
It’s really is delicious served with Mexican food, taming some of the heat and complimenting the
complex flavours.
These delicious appetizers were served at our first Thursday Evening Kitchen and went down a storm.
You will need the special cornflour Masa Harina to make them and you can find this online at Amazon or at www.mexgrocer.co.uk.
You can roll them by hand, but to be honest, I prefer using the traditional tortilla press. It is a little investment, but you will find yourself using it regularly if you like this style of food. You can also find this online.
This is such a delicious rice dish to accompany any curry, but also roasted
meats, vegetables. and fish. It is also lovely cold as a rice salad. I
also like to add prawns, flaked cooked fish, or cold roasted chicken.
Summer cauliflower, a little aromatic spice and creamy keffir make a
delicious combination in this curry. It is light and zesty, perfect with
the Summer Pilau rice recipe below.
I recently demonstrated this dish at the Cookery School and it reminded me of great times with friends. Little dishes of tasty goodies are perfect for sitting around a table and chatting, picking and dipping your way through a delicious and varied feast.
At home I also serve pickles with this dish, some fried halloumi and roasted abubergine finished with toasted almonds and pomegranate molasses.
I love fish, it is the original fast food, ready in minutes. This recipe is inspired by Honey & Co, their idea of mixing a fresh salsa of cucumber and grapes together to serve with fish is inspired. Here I couple it with some yummy, creamy hummus, it is a delicious addition. When I demonstrated this dish, I also added some roasted chickpeas, mixed with a little sumac and smoked paprika, it was really good. Here’s mu quick recipe for crispy chickpeas-
200g cooked chickpeas (not tinned)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Mix together and roast on a high heat 180c fan/200c/gas6 for 12-15 minutes until golden and firm to the touch.
Tip into a small bowl and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon sea salt, 1 teaspoon each of sumac and smoked paprika. Serve as a garnish on dishes such as salads, mezze, especially hummus.
I April 2023, I visited Plymouth to take part in BBC Radio 4’s The Kitchen Cabinet, hosted by the impeccable wit that is Jay Rayner. It was great fun, and following the show we all hot footed it to a local restaurant offering Persian cuisine called Toot which Jay wanted to try out. We were treated to a rolling, fabulous feast of non-stop goodies starting with mezze style treats and flatbread, then plates of Persian rice arrived for each of us, followed by huge platters of charcoal grilled meats and bowls of slow cooked meatballs in a rich spicy, sweet and sour sauce- yum! This recipe is a homage to that lovely meatball dish, it goes really well with the Pilaf recipe with lentils.
We just love this cake, it doubles up as a gorgeous dessert and I tend to make little changes throughout the year as the seasons change, for instance, I will add cinnamon stick, a couple of bashed green cardamom pods and few cloves to the syrup, in summer I serve it with fresh berries. It keeps really well, but once tasted, well, it won’t last! I love it with some strained Greek Yogurt flavoured with a a little vanilla, lemon zest and a sprinkle of sugar, it is utterly delicious. It’s the perfect dessert to make ahead for a gathering.
So many people have asked for this recipe. It is a beautiful salad to look at and the taste is just perfectly refreshing, great with
rich roasted meats, fish, roasted veggies and so many other spicy dishes.
one of my favourite supper dishes and next day salad boxes. Simple add crumbled feta, or torn roasted chicken, or eat just by itself, it’s delish!