Mackerel Pâté

Rich pâté full of the goodness of oily fish.

 10 min

Ingredients:

• 2 smoked mackerel fillets (without skin)
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1 spring onion, chopped
• 50 g unsalted butter (or margarine)

Instructions:

Throw it all in a blender and blend until smooth.

Eat with crusty bread.

TIP: Use margarine for a softer result.

Mayonnaise

My mum’s recipe for mayonnaise: Much better than the stuff you get in a bottle.

5 min

Ingredients:

• 1 egg (for 2 people)
• 4 drops of lemon juice
• Olive oil and salt

Instructions:

Add the egg, lemon juice, a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil into a tall container.

Blend it and keep adding olive oil until it has got a creamy consistency. The more oil you add, the thicker it will get. Add salt as desired.

TIP: Try serving it over asparragus, baked potatoes or artichokes.

Guacamole

Fresh-tasting Mexican dip with all the goodness of avocados.

10 min

Ingredients:

• 3 avocados
• 1 big tomato, peeled
• 1 medium onion
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cloves of garlic
• ½ tsp cumin
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Prepare and blend all the ingredients together.

Add more cumin, salt and pepper to taste.

TIP: Serve with tortilla chips or fajitas.

…Thanks for the recipe Mar!

Caprese Skewers

Fresh and delicious!

5 min

Ingredients:

• 2 large tomatoes (preferably organic)
• 2 mozzarella balls (125 g each)
• 6 tsp pesto
• extra virgin olive oil
• salt

Instructions:

Slice tomatoes and mozzarella balls thickly.

Layer tomatoes and mozzarella together alternatively, maintaining the layers of the tomato (as in picture).

Spoon over the pesto, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

TIP: You can use a wooden skewer to secure the tomato and mozzarella slices together.

Hummus

A popular Middle Eastern dip made from crushed chickpeas and tahini.

15 min

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas (400g)
• 4 tsp of tahini
• 4 tsp of natural yougurt
• 8 mint leaves
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed with ½ a tsp of salt
• paprika
• extra virgin olive oil
• parsley (optional)

Instructions:

Blend all the ingredients together in a suitable container.

Taste and add more of any ingredient if required (generally tahini/mint/salt).

Serve spread on a plate sprinkled with paprika, olive oil and parsley (as shown in picture).

TIP: Good for dipping toasted bread or pitta and raw vegetables, such as carrot or cucumber.

Tzatziki

A popular refreshing Greek meze, great for dipping!

1 hour rest + 15 min preparation

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp white or red wine vinegar
• salt
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 300g thick Greek-style yoghurt
• 1 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped

Instructions:

Spread the finely sliced cucumber out in a colander and sprinkle with the wine vinegar and salt. Leave to drain for one hour.

Thoroughly wash the salt off the cucumber and then squeeze out the water with a clean tea towel (or similar) and pat dry with kitchen towel.

Crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar with 1 tsp of salt.

Add the cucumber, garlic, yoghurt and mint to a bowl. Mix well and season to taste. Serve with warm pitta or flat bread.

TIPS: The tzatziki will taste even better if left to marinate in the fridge overnight.