Small Spice Bundle

Charred Sweetcorn with Green Sauce & Dukkah

This is a great starter or buffet dish to serve in summer. Even better at a BBQ as you can char the corn on the BBQ instead of the hob.

Serves: 4 people.

Ingredients:

• Large handful of parsley including stalks. Approx 30g.
• Large handful of coriander including stalks. Approx 30g.
• 1/2 cup of tahini.
• Juice of 1 lemon.
• 2 whole green chillies. Just the stalks removed. Take out the seeds if you want a milder sauce.
• 1 tsp salt.
• 4 corn cobs.
• 1 tbsp dukkah.

Instructions:

Firstly, make your green sauce. In a blender add the parsley, coriander, lemon juice, chillies, salt and a splash of water. Blend until smooth. You may need to add a couple of splashes of water in order to get a smooth and well combined sauce.

Cook the corn cobs in salted boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain and then char for a few minutes on each side, on the BBQ, hob or under the grill on the highest setting if you're not comfortable working with open flames.

Once the corn is done, drizzle over the sauce. You may not need all of it. Then sprinkle over the dukkah. Eat immediately.

The sauce will keep fine in the fridge for 3-4 days and you can use it as a dip or dressing for a salad.

Poached Eggs, Pickles and Dukkah

This recipe is a bit like the Turkish eggs we serve at the café but a simpler version which is easier to make at home. We have included our red onion and radish pickle recipe which can be used for so many different things, however, if you prefer to but some pickles of your choice then this is also fine.

Pickles:

• 1 large red onion
• 6-8 radishes
• 1 cup white wine vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp each of coriander seeds and fennel seeds

Instructions:

Thinly slice the red onion and radishes and put into a suitably sized sterilized jar or container.

Heat everything else up in a pan, stirring occasionally.

Once the liquid has reached boiling point, pour over the pickles.

Leave to cool and then refrigerate. Enjoy the pickles the next day and for the following 2-3 weeks.

Brunch Dish:

Serves: 1 person

Ingredients (for one):

• 5 tbsp Greek yoghurt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp dukkah
• 1/2 tsp chopped dill leaves
• 1 tbsp red onion and radish pickles
• Good quality olive oil for drizzling

Instructions:

Add the Greek yoghurt to a small bowl then poach the eggs for 3-4 minutes.

When these are ready, drain and add these to the yoghurt.

Add pickles to the side of the eggs then sprinkle over dukkah, dill and drizzle over the olive oil.

Serve with buttered toast.

Baked Feta with Za'atar and Honey

This is a lovely dish to serve as part of a spread of Mediterranean plates like salads, bread and dips.

Serves: 2-4 persons as part of a larger meal.

Ingredients:

• 200g block feta.
• 1 tbsp honey.
• 1/2 tbsp za'atar.
• 1 tsp olive oil.

Instructions:

Pre-heat the grill to medium high.

Use a small heatproof skillet or dish and place the feta, whole, in the middle of it. Rub the oil over feta then sprinkle the za'atar on top followed by the honey.

Grill for 15 to 20 minutes or until the top is nicely browned and the feta is sizzling. Serve immediately.

Za'atar Roasted Cauliflower & Chopped Salad

An impressive vegetarian main meal. You can either keep the cauliflower whole and carve it at the table or plate up as seen in the photo. Crusty bread is essential for mopping.

Serves: 4 people.

Ingredients:

• 1 cauliflower
• 1 tbsp za’atar
• 2 tins toms
• 3 cloves garlic sliced
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• 200ml Greek yoghurt
• 1/2 preserved lemon pulp removed and skin finely chopped
• 1 tsp nigella seeds
• 1 tsp toasted chopped hazelnuts
• Small handful of parsley chopped
  For the salad:
• 2 x baby gem lettuces
• 1/3 cucumber
• 2 large or 8 cherry tomato
• 5 radishes
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 tsp sumac
• Juice of 1/4 lemon
• 2 tsp pomegranate molasses
• 1 tbsp good quality olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions: Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and remove any woody stalk. Cook the cauliflower in salted water for 10 minutes. Remove and place on a baking tray and rub with oil and salt and za’atar. Cook in a very hot oven for 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. First fry the sliced garlic and cumin seeds in oil on a low heat for a few minutes, do not let them burn. Then add smoked paprika, red wine vinegar and stir. Then add the tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

In a small bow, mix the chopped preserved lemon and yoghurt. Season if required.

Make the salad. Combine the sumac, pomegranate molasses, red wine vinegar, lemon, oil and salt and whisk.

Chop the little gem lettuce, tomatoes (hopefully home grown!) radish, red onion and cucumber into bite sized chunks and place in a serving bowl. Stir through the dressing.

To check whether the cauliflower is done, insert a skewer or sharp knife into the centre of the stalk. It should pass through with little resistant. If it still feels hard give it more time.

Either serve the cauliflower whole on top of the tomato sauce as sharing dish in the centre of the table or slice it into four and serve on individual plates. Either way, drizzle over the preserved lemon yoghurt and then the hazelnuts, nigella seeds and parsley on top.