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Simple Italian tomato salad

August 2013

Ingredients

250g of tomatoes
10 leaves of basil, finely chopped
Half a clove of garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of cider vinegar
Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Slice your tomatoes, and place them in a shallow bowl.
  2. Scatter over the basil and garlic and drizzle over the oil and vinegar.
  3. Season just before serving. A brilliant edition to a mezze or BBQ salad selection.

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Classic Spinach, bacon and potato salad with basil and garlic tomatoes

August 2013

Serves 4 as a light main. A speedy simple supper.

Ingredients

400g of new potatoes 
200g spinach
8 rashers of bacon
25g butter
150g of cherry tomatoes
10 leaves of basil, finely chopped
Half a clove of garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon of cider vinegar
Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Scrub your potatoes and place in a large pan of water. Bring to the boil and simmer until tender, should be around 25 minutes.
  2. While the potatoes are cooking, slice the tomatoes and combine them with the oil, vinegar, garlic, basil and season to taste.
  3. When the potatoes are 15 minutes into their cooking time grill or fry your bacon until crisp.
  4. When the potatoes are tender, drain them and toss them in the butter.

To serve, lay the spinach on your serving plates to form a bed for the potatoes. Sprinkle over the tomatoes and their dressing and top with your slices of crispy bacon. 

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Oven-roasted round courgette with cheese and chilli baked fondue

August 2013

Serves 4 as a sharing starter. Perfect for stress free but impressive entertaining. 

Ingredients

2 large round courgettes
A drizzle of olive oil
100g mozzarella cheese, chopped into small cubes
80g cheddar cheese, finely grated
10 leaves of basil, finely chopped
I clove of garlic, crushed
a half teaspoon of dried chilli flakes
2 heaped teaspoons of Crème fraîche
2 level teaspoons of corn flour

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees celsius.
  2. Cut the tops off of the courgettes and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the insides of the courgettes with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven on a baking sheet for 1 hour.
  3. Meanwhile, combine all of the other ingredients in a bowl.
  4. 30mins into the courgette’s cooking time, spoon the fondue mixture into the centre of the baking courgettes put them back in the oven for the remaining cooking time.
  5. When the courgettes are tender and the fondue is melting and unctuous remove them from the oven onto a serving plate. Replace the courgette tops and surround with fresh herby salad allow a generous amount of crusty bread per person for dipping and enjoy!