More of an idea than a recipe but absolutely fabulous and delicious!!
Dressing: 45ml olive oil 15ml grape vinegar 2,5ml mustard 15ml honey a pinch of salt
Per portion/person: 1 fresh mango, peeled and sliced 1 smoked chicken breast, sliced a handful of rocket leaves
Mix all the ingredients for the dressing together and whisk until amalgamated. Dress the rocket leaves with half the dressing and set aside.
Layer the salad by arranging the mango slices on a plate, the chicken slices on top of that and finally top it with the rocket leaves. Drizzle with some of the remaining dressing and serve.
This is a delicious cold soup for warm summer days. Spice it up by adding a chilli or two or add a handful of freshly chopped basil leaves. Feeds 4-6 adults.
1 large English cucumber, diced 1 small onion, diced 3 cloves of garlic, minced 8 fresh tomatoes, diced 30ml olive oil 60ml grape vinegar salt and pepper fresh chilli or basil leaves, to serve
Dice the vegetables and add it to a large mixing bowl. Add the garlic, olive oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Scoop half the mixture into a liquidiser and blitz. Pour the liquid back into the mixing bowl and mix through with the diced vegetables. Refrigerate the soup for at least 2 hours so that the flavours can develop. Serve the soup with a few ice cubes and chopped chilli or basil leaves.
This is a great variation on banana bread and perfect for brunch when served with roasted peaches. Keeps for 2-3 days in an airtight container but it is very good when toasted thereafter.
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a 11cm X 25cm X 7cm loaf tin with baking paper. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until creamy. Add the eggs, milk and sliced bananas and mix for another minute. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa powder together and stir into the mixture. Take the bowl from the mixer, add the coconut and chocolate and stir through by hand. Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool. Slice to serve.
Preheat your oven to 200℃. Cut the peaches in half and remove the stones. Place the peach halves on an oven tray and dot the cubed butter over it. Drizzle over the honey. Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until caramelised and golden brown. Serve on a toasted slice of Tropical Chocolate Bread.
Cook the quinoa according to the packet instructions and allow to cool completely. Dice the sweet peppers, feta and peaches and chop the basil leaves. Mix everything together. Drizzle the pickling liquid from the sweet pepper over the salad or make the Lemon Dressing (search on this blog)
This is one of the best salad dressing you will ever make AND you can keep it in your refrigerator!! Delicious when drizzled onto seafood!
62ml lemon juice 1 clove garlic, minced 5ml Dijon mustard 1,2ml salt a pinch of ground black pepper 7,5ml honey 62ml olive oil 5ml thyme leaves, chopped
Add the lemon juice, garlic, mustard, salt, a pinch of black pepper and honey to a small bowl and whisk together. Drizzle in the oil while whisking. Keep going until all the oil is incorporated and the mixture has emulsified. Add the thyme leaves and stir through.
Store left-over dressing in a glass jar, in the refrigerator.
This is a refreshing drink to have on a summer’s day and a real crowd pleaser. Add a shot of vodka or tequila and serve with aperitifs!
500ml water 2 sprigs rosemary about 15cm long 125ml sugar 125ml honey 300ml fresh lemon juice 1,5 litre cold water
Pour the water into a small sauce and bring to a boil. Add the rosemary, cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce to a simmer, for 10 minutes. Take from the heat and remove the rosemary. Stir in the sugar and honey. Pour the mixture into a jug and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Add the lemon juice and 1,5 litres cold water. Chill the lemonade for at least an hour. Serve over ice and top with fresh lemon slices and a sprig of rosemary.
This bread involves absolutely no kneading or fussing and I guarantee you that it will be one of THE best olive breads you have ever tasted.
360g bread flour 1,2ml instant yeast 10ml salt 310ml tepid water 250ml olives, stoned and sliced in half
Add the flour, yeast and salt to a large mixing bowl. Pour the water into the bowl and mix. Add the olives to the dough mixture and make sure they are evenly distribute – squish them with your hands. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave at room temperature to rest for about 18 hours.
Flour a working surface and scrape the dough onto it. Form the dough into a ball shape and place it onto a square of baking paper. Cover with a tea towel and allow to rest for another hour.
Preheat your oven as well as a dutch oven to 230℃. (A dutch oven is simply a cast iron pot with a tight-fitting lid) Once the oven temperature is reached, remove the dutch oven and lift the bread in the paper, into the dutch oven. Replace the lid of the dutch oven and immediately place the bread into the oven. Bake for 30 minutes, remove the lid of the dutch oven and bake for another 25 minutes. Take the bread from the oven an cool for about ten minutes before removing it from the dutch oven. Cool the bread completely before slicing.
My Whisk and I 