Ingredients

Serves 4 People

• 400g pangasius filets or white fish
• 500g potatoes
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• 2 tbsp chopped chives
• ½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 11/2 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 150g white Panco bread crumbs
• Salt
• Ground black pepper
• Vegetable butter for frying

For Serving

• Lemon wedges
• Green salad
• Mayonnaise

Method

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them in disks. Place them in a dish, suitable for a microgolfoven plus some water and cook for 12 min on 700W, or until tender. Remove the excess water and let them cool.

2. Preheat the oven to 200C. Grease two large pieces of foil with a little butter. Sit both fish filets on the foil, season with salt and ground black pepper, then wrap to make a parcel.

3. Place the foil parcels on a baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes. Set aside and let the fish cool.

4. Tip the potatoes into a bowl. Mash them and stir the parsley, chives, lemon zest, mayonnaise, mustard and season with salt and ground black pepper. Break the fish into large pieces and gently stir into the mash without breaking the pieces up too much.

5. Shape into fishcakes. Dip each fishcake in the beaten eggs on both sides so it is well covered, then coat in the breadcrumbs. Pat to reshape. Chill for about 30 minutes.

6. Melt some vegetable butter in a non-stick frying pan. Fry the fishcakes on a medium heat for 5 minutes on each side. Serve with green salad, mayonnaise and lemon wedges.

Ingredients

Serves 2 people

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 225g traditional halloumi
• 12 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 handful of mixed green salad
• 2 tsp Mango-Ginger Vinaigrette
• 2 tsp mixed sunflower and pumpkin seeds
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a grill pan.

2. Slice the halloumi in 10 slices. Place on the hot grill for 2-6 minutes and turn once until grill marks appear on both sides.

3. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and grill in the hot pan, face down for a couple of minutes.

4. Plate, by serving mixed salad leaves seasoned with mango-ginger vinaigrette, topped with the grilled halloumi, cherry tomatoes and seeds.

Ingredients

HASSELBACK POTATOES

• 600 g skin-on medium-sized new potatoes
• 50 ml tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme, picked
• 25 g tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• sea salt

HERB CRUST

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
• 50 g finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 50 g dried Panco breadcrumbs
• grated zest of 1 lemon
• 2–3 tablespoons olive oil

PORK LOIN

• 2–3 tablespoons plain/all-purpose flour
• large knob of butter and olive oil for frying
• 1 pork loin fillet (around 500 g)
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. First, prepare the hasselback potatoes. Using a small sharp knife, make small slices widthways across the top of each potato, reaching two thirds down, to create a fan effect. Place in a large roasting tray.

3. Mix the oil and herbs together and coat all the potatoes, ensuring the sliced sides face upwards. Roast in the preheated oven for around 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, mix together all the ingredients for the herb crust and put them on a large plate. Put the flour on a separate large plate.

5. Heat the butter and some oil in a large frying pan. Sear the pork loin over a high heat until just brown on all sides, then roll lightly in the plate of flour and brush all over with the Dijon mustard. Finally, roll the pork in the herb crust mixture until fully covered.

6. Remove the tray of potatoes from the oven (leaving it on) and brush them with the melted butter. Sprinkle with the garlic, lemon zest and sea salt. Add the herb-crusted pork loin to the tray, nestled among the potatoes and return to the hot oven for around another 30 minutes until the pork is just cooked through and the herb crust is golden. Leave it to rest under a foil cover for 10 minutes before slicing.

7. Depending on their size, the potatoes might need a final 5 minutes to crisp up and become fully soft in the middle, but you can leave these in the oven while the pork is resting. Serve the sliced pork and potatoes with gravy as a roast with a selection of salads.

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 250ml coffee (cold)
• 1 tbsp cognac
• 250g powder sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ tsp instant coffee Expresso
• 300g butter, softened on room temperature
• 38 (300g) petit-beurre cookies

For the chocolate mirror glaze:

• 2/3 cup water
• 2/3 cup cream
• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup + 2 tbsp white sugar
• 3 gelatine leaves

Method

1. Make a big cup of coffee. Let the coffee cool in an oven dish or large mixing bowl. Add a splash of cognac.

2. Place the powder sugar and eggs in the mixing bowl. Beat both ingredients until smooth and foamy.

3. Brew a small cup of extra strong coffee. Use instant coffee for this.

4. Cut the soft butter into cubes. Beat the butter little by little into the egg-sugar mixture. Add a spoonful of the strong coffee. Beat well until you get a smooth buttercream.

5. Place a layer of dry biscuits on a serving dish for a crispy bottom. Spread a layer of crème au beurre on top. Then build another layer of cookies, but dip them first in the baking dish with cooled coffee. Spread another layer of butter cream on top. Repeat these steps until you have a nice stacked cake. Brush the sides of the cake with the butter mixture as well. Let the petit beurre cake rest for an hour in the fridge.

6. In the meantime, place cold water and the gelatine leaves in a small bowl. Leave for 5 minutes. Place cocoa and water in a medium saucepan then mix until virtually lump-free. Add a splash of cream to the cocoa mix and stir. It will loosen up. Add remaining cream and sugar, then gently continue to mix to combine. Turn stove onto medium high heat. As soon as it comes to the boil, remove from the stove. Add the gelatine leaves, then stir until they dissolve and you have a smooth glossy glaze. Cool on the counter for 2 hours. Just before pouring over the cake, strain the glaze into a jug.

7. Remove the cake from the fridge, transfer onto a rack. Starting at the end of the cake, pour the glaze on, moving towards the other end of the cake, to make the glaze spread across the surface and drape like curtain down the sides. For the most perfect surface, try to do it in one motion without breaking the pour. Ensure all sides are fully coated – if not, quickly do a little pour down the sides to coat the naked patches. Let the mirror glaze set for around 10 minutes, before moving the cake to a cake platter. Leave in the fridge overnight then serve.

Ingredients

• 150 ml acacia honey
• 3 2/3 pears, quartered
• 375 g sheet of butter-puff pastry
• Vanilla ice-cream, to serve (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Cook honey in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat until dark caramel in colour (10 minutes), remove from heat and let bubbles subside. Pour the caramel in a 25 cm-diameter cake form. Arrange pears over caramel, to fit snugly, and stand until cool.

2. Meanwhile, using a plate slightly larger than the cake form as a template, cut a round of pastry. Place over pears, tucking in edges, then bake until pastry is risen and dark golden (35 minutes).

3. Let the cake rest for 5-10 minutes, then place a large serving plate over the form and carefully invert onto plate (be very careful, the caramel will be hot).

4. Serve immediately with vanilla ice-cream.

I prefer frying over baking the falafels. Frying results in a superior texture, crispy outside and moist/soft inside, something you can’t get with baking. I recommend you only fry them before serving, they tend to lose some moisture as they cool down.

Served with hummus, goat cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers and green salad these falafels are my favourite meal on a summer day.

Don’t hesitate to check out two of my favourite hummus recipes here!

Ingredients

• 2 cups canned chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 tsp dry parsley
• 1 tsp dry mint
• 1 tsp dry dill
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp dry oregano
• 1/4 tsp of each: ground cinnamon, anise, cardamom, ginger
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup rice flour (or chickpea flour)
• oil for frying

Method

1. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Place them in a food processor and all the other ingredients: celery, onion, dry herbs, salt, spices, baking soda and rice flour.

2. Pulse until all the ingredients are finely chopped and a coarse meal forms. Scrape down the sides and pulse again until the texture looks like a fine meal, like couscous. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed.

3. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Using your hands, form small balls, or thick discs and place them on a place lined with parchment paper. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1h or even better overnight.

4. Fill a large skillet with vegetable oil. Heat over medium heat for about 5-7 minutes. When the oil is hot, fry the falafels for 3 minutes per side.

5. Once the falafels are ready, remove them from the oil using a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate covered with paper towels.

6. Serve immediately and enjoy with hummus, green salad, tomatoes, cucumbers and goat cheese.