The time is ripe

Ravneet Gill’s mini peach pavlovas

Issue No.287 Saturday 22 July 2023

Yotam Ottolenghi
Prawn-stuffed
aubergines
Meera Sodha
Strawberry cake
with luxury custard
Thomasina Miers
Roast tomato and
red onion quiche
Shivi Ramoutar
Sweet potato and
peanut stew
Felicity Cloake
How to make the
perfect gigantes
Ben Tish
Almond granita
with roast grapes
Rachel Roddy
Summer
minestrone
Grace Dent
‘The sort of menu
that makes my
heart go boom’
2 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023
 Yotam Aubergine and
red pepper pahi
with curry leaf oil
Ottolenghi
Prep 30 min There are many versions of this lip-
Cook 45 min smacking sweet-and-sour Sri Lankan
Serves 4 as a side dish, and this one uses coconut
Cost About £2 cream for richness and sweet red
a head peppers. If you can’t find pandan
leaf (look in Asian food stores), just
2 aubergines
(500g), quartered omit it. You can make the aubergine
lengthways, then base up to a day ahead.
cut lengthways
again into 4, then
cut into 4cm pieces
Heat the oven to 240C (220C fan)/
2 red peppers, gas 9. Put the aubergines and peppers
halved, stems, seeds on a lined baking tray, add two and
Aubergines are, for me, the gift that and pith removed
and discarded
a half tablespoons of oil and a half-
teaspoon of salt, then toss to coat.
keeps on giving. For all the aubergines 2½ tbsp olive oil
Fine sea salt Roast for 25 minutes, until lightly
that I’ve grilled, roasted, charred, steamed, 60ml coconut golden and charred, then remove.
vinegar, or apple
peeled, fried, blitzed and sliced in my life, cider vinegar
Once cool enough to handle, peel off
1 tbsp demerara and discard the pepper skins, tear
there always seems to be some new way sugar the flesh into roughly 4cm pieces,
to cook them or a new combination of For the spice base
then set aside with the aubergines.
2 tbsp olive oil Put the oil and onions for the spice
flavours to pair them with. Today, I look 1 onion, peeled and base in a large saute pan on a
to Sri Lanka and China for inspiration, thinly sliced (180g)
2 garlic cloves,
medium-high heat, and fry, stirring,
PHOTOGRAPHS: LOUISE HAGGER/THE GUARDIAN. FOOD STYLING: EMILY KYDD. PROP STYLING: JENNIFER KAY.

for 10 minutes, until soft and golden.

before fusing two much-loved Middle peeled
10g fresh ginger, While the onions are cooking,
Eastern favourites. peeled and roughly
chopped
put the garlic, ginger, curry leaves,
pandan, spices and coconut cream in
40 fresh curry leaves
1 pandan blade, a food processor, add 200ml water
middle stem removed and blitz until it’s like a paste. Scrape
and discarded, the this into the onion pan with a half-
leaf roughly teaspoon of salt, turn down the heat
chopped (10g)
2 tsp garam masala to medium and cook, stirring from
½ tsp ground time to time, for seven to 10 minutes,
FOOD STYLING ASSISTANT: SUSANNA UNSWORTH. INSET: GETTY IMAGES

turmeric until the oil splits. Gently stir in the

20g coconut cream
aubergines,
au until well coated.
For the fenugreek oil Mix
M the vinegar and sugar, add to
45ml olive oil the pan
pa and cook for three minutes.
25 fresh curry leaves Stir in the
t peppers and leave to cool.
¾ tsp fenugreek
seeds, crushed in For the fenugreek oil, put the oil in
a mortar a pan on a medium
m heat, then fry the
curry leaves
leav for two minutes, until
For the coconut
cream
translucent.
transl Add the fenugreek and
25g coconut cream an eighth of a teaspoon of salt, stir for
2½ tsp lime juice 30 seconds, then take off the heat.
⅛ tsp demerara In a small bowl, mix all the coconut
sugar
cream ingredients and an eighth of
a teaspoon of salt, then set aside.
Transfer the pahi to a high-sided
plate, spoon on first the coconut
cream followed by the fenugreek oil,
then serve at room temperature.

Vegetarian Vegan Gluten free Dairy free Feast 3

 Aubergine and
chraimeh
b’siniyah

Prep 35 min This brings together two Middle

Cook 1 hr 10 min Eastern/Mediterranean dishes that
Serves 6-8 I adore: b’siniyah, a comforting meat
Cost About £1.20 casserole with a tahini crust, and
a head chraimeh, a spicy Moroccan tomato
sauce. The result is a brilliant vegan
2 aubergines
(500g), peeled in showstopper; it’s also a great
alternate strips, so make-ahead dish, as good at room
they’re striped like temperature up to a day after making
a zebra, then cut
into 3cm cubes
it as it is warm straight out of the
2 onions, peeled and oven. If you like, serve this with
cut into ½cm-thick a mixed herb salad in a simple
rounds (360g) lemon juice and olive oil dressing.
350g cherry
tomatoes, stems
discarded Heat the oven to 240C (220C fan)/
60ml olive oil gas 9. Put the first four ingredients
Fine sea salt and
black pepper
in a large roasting tray with three-
quarters of a teaspoon of salt and
For the chraimeh toss. Roast for 40 minutes, until the
4 garlic cloves, aubergine and onions are charred
peeled and crushed
1 tsp paprika and soft and the tomatoes blistered
¾ tsp caraway seeds and falling apart, then remove. Keep
¾ tsp ground the oven on.
cinnamon
Meanwhile, put the first five
1 jalapeño chilli,
stem discarded, chraimeh ingredients in a small food
flesh roughly processor with three-quarters of the
chopped (remove cumin seeds, the oil, half a teaspoon
the pith and seeds,
too, if you prefer of salt and a heavy grind of pepper,
less spice) then blitz to a coarse paste. Put a small
1¼ tsp cumin seeds frying pan on a medium-high heat,
45ml olive oil add the spice paste and tomato puree,
2 tbsp tomato puree
40g dried sour and cook, stirring, for a minute, until
cherries, or dried dark and sticky. Stir in the cherries
cranberries soaked and 250ml water, bring to a simmer,
in lemon juice
then cook for two minutes, until the
For the batter mix thickens slightly and splits.
90g tahini Put all the batter ingredients in
170ml whole milk, a medium bowl with an eighth of
or soy milk if you
want the dish to a teaspoon of salt and whisk smooth.
be vegan Transfer the roast vegetables to
40g fine polenta a shallow, 28cm ovenproof casserole,
pour the chraimeh on top, then pour
over the batter so it covers everything
evenly. Bake for 12 minutes, until
the batter is spongy and bubbling,
then remove and turn on the grill
to its highest setting. Grill for five
minutes, until lightly charred, then
leave to rest for five minutes.
Toast the remaining cumin in a dry
pan, scatter on top and serve.

4 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023

 Prawn-stuffed
aubergines in
tomato sauce

Prep 15 min This is inspired by Chinese stuffed side, until golden, then return to the
Cook 20 min aubergines – a dish I love – with the tray and repeat with the remaining
Serves 4 sweet-and-sour tomato sauce here aubergines and oil.
Cost About £2.80 taking it in a slightly Middle Meanwhile, using the coarse side
a head Eastern direction. Earmark the of a grater, grate the tomatoes into
filling and sauce to use in other a small sieve set over a bowl and
2 aubergines, cut
into 2cm-thick meals, too: shape the filling into discard the skins. Leave to drain for
rounds (600g) patties, for instance, sear on both five minutes, then set aside both the
150g sustainably sides, then simmer in the sauce. pulp and the tomato water.
sourced raw king
prawns
Wipe clean the aubergine pan, put
100g sustainably Working with one aubergine slice at it back on a medium-high heat and
sourced haddock a time, use a small, sharp knife to cut add the remaining two tablespoons
fillet (or other white a slit in the side to make a pocket – of oil. Once it’s hot, add all the
fish), cut into 6
1 garlic clove, do not to cut all the way through. spices bar the pepper, then fry,
peeled and crushed Put the prawns, haddock, garlic, stirring, for a minute, until fragrant.
55g spring onions, spring onions, coriander, ginger and Add the tomato pulp and a half-
trimmed and
roughly chopped, 5g
turmeric in a small food processor teaspoon of salt, then nestle the
reserved for serving with half a teaspoon of salt, and pulse aubergines in the sauce, and cook for
15g coriander, to a thick paste. Using a tablespoon, four minutes, flipping them halfway,
roughly chopped, fill each aubergine pocket with one until the sauce thickens. Gently stir in
plus 1 tbsp extra for
serving to two tablespoons of the paste, the tomato water to loosen the mix,
10g fresh ginger, then gently push it inside, so the then cook for two minutes more,
peeled and finely whole pocket gets filled. until the sauce thickens enough to
grated
Put the cornflour in a small bowl, coat the aubergines.
⅛ tsp turmeric
Fine sea salt dip in both sides of each aubergine Sprinkle on the extra coriander
70g cornflour slice to coat, brush off any excess, and spring onions, grind over the
90ml olive oil then put on a tray. Put a large frying white or black pepper and serve.
5 fresh plum
tomatoes (500g) pan on a medium-high heat and, once The Guardian aims to publish recipes
1 cinnamon stick hot, add two tablespoons of olive oil. for fish rated as sustainable by the
1 tsp cumin seeds Fry half the stuffed aubergine slices Marine Conservation Society’s Good
1 tbsp tamarind for three to five minutes on each Fish Guide
paste
⅛ tsp white or
black pepper

Feast
Feast 5
 Thomasina Miers Roast tomato and
red onion quiche
Sunday best with black olives

Prep 20 min Tip the flour and butter into a food

Chill 1 hr 20 min+ processor with half a teaspoon of salt
Cook 1 hr 25 min and the parmesan, and pulse a few
Serves 6 times so the butter is still in large-ish
Cost About £2.40 flakes. Trickle in five tablespoons
a head of ice-cold water and pulse a few
more times – once you can push it
500g tomatoes
Hot sun, long summers. We all have (yellow, orange or to one side and form a rough lump,
red), halved transfer to a flour-dusted worktop
different memories of holidays but, for me, 2 medium red and bring together into a ball; if it
onions, peeled and
France has had an enduring appeal, with cut into wedges
starts to fall apart, pulse again with
15-18 black olives, another tablespoon of ice-cold water.
recollections of warm tomato salad, gutsy, de-stoned and Flatten into a disc, wrap in paper and
roughly chopped
mustard-hued mayonnaise, oil-drenched 1 handful fresh
refrigerate for one to two hours.
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 220C
pissaladière, and peaches in wine. This oregano leaves
Salt and black (200C fan)/gas 7. Put the tomatoes
beautiful, umami-rich roast tomato and pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
cut side up on a lined baking tray,
scatter over the onions, olives and
olive quiche should soften any longing for A splash of red-wine
vinegar oregano, season generously, then
the south of France, and is perfect for an 2 eggs, plus 2 yolks drizzle in the olive oil and vinegar.
- reserve the whites Roast for 15-20 minutes, until
outdoor gathering served with a green salad. for the glaze
everything starts to caramelise.
60g parmesan
or Grana Padano, Turn down the oven to 200C (180C
plus 1 tbsp extra fan)/gas 6 and grease a 28-30cm
for topping, finely tart tin. Roll out the pastry on a
grated
400ml double cream lightly floured surface and, using
A splash of whole the rolling pin, lift it up and drape
milk over the tart case, so there is an
For the pastry
overhang around the sides. Push
330g spelt flour the pastry into the corners of the
(I use a third tin, then lightly prick the base with
PHOTOGRAPH: YUKI SUGUIRA/THE GUARDIAN. FOOD STYLING: ROSIE REYNOLDS.
PROP STYLING: LOUIE WALLER. FOOD STYLING ASSISTANT: KRISTINE JACOBSSON

wholemeal and two- a fork and chill for 20 minutes.

thirds white), plus
extra for dusting Meanwhile, beat the eggs and egg
220g chilled yolks in a bowl, then pour in the
unsalted butter, cheese and cream, and season lightly.
cut into cubes, plus
extra for greasing
Line the tart case with tin foil,
Fine sea salt pushing it down into the edges.
70g parmesan, Blind bake for 20 minutes, then
finely grated remove the foil and brush the tart
case with egg white loosened with
splashes of milk. Bake for another
five to 10 minutes, until light brown.
Transfer the tomatoes, onions
and olives to the tart case. Pour in
the cream mix and scatter with a
tablespoon of parmesan. Bake for
15-20 minutes, until just set and
golden brown. Cool in the case,
then trim the edges of the pastry.
Serve with a crisp, green salad.

Feast 7
Shivi Ramoutar Frozen peanut
butter cups
The £1 store
cupboard
Prep 5 min This take on peanut butter cups is
Cook 15 min a little more sophisticated and less
Freeze 2 hr+ sickly than shop-bought versions,
Makes 12 and is a great way to get children
Cost About 20p involved in cooking.
a cup
Grease a 12-hole cupcake tray (or
30g butter, plus
a little extra for use a 24-hole mini cupcake tray).
Peanut butter is a pantry stalwart greasing Melt the chocolate in short bursts
(well, definitely in my house) that 150g dark chocolate
50g peanut butter
on high in the microwave, stirring
often. (You can also melt it in a
works beautifully in both savouries 6 digestive biscuits,
blitzed or bashed in heatproof bowl set over a pan of
and desserts, adding a richness and a tea towel or bag
until finely crumbled
barely simmering water, making
sure that the bowl isn’t touching
subtle sweetness in one simple step. A pinch of salt
the water.) Leave to cool a little.
I always opt for the crunchy stuff, but In a bowl, mix the butter, peanut
butter and biscuit crumbs with a
smooth works, too, and both are pinch of salt. Divide the mixture
interchangeable in today’s recipes. This between the holes of the cupcake
trays, pushing it right down into
west African-inspired stew and peanut them with the back of a spoon and
butter cups make peanut butter the making each as level as possible.
Carefully spoon over the dark
well-deserved star of the show, and can chocolate, then pop the tray into
be batched up and frozen in portions the freezer, for two to three hours,
for future meals . until frozen solid. Pop out the cups
and serve, or store in a resealable
bag in the freezer.

8 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023

 West African-
inspired
peanut stew

Prep 15 min Earthy and sweet, this stew can

Cook 40 min be made to your tastes and needs,
Serves 4 using up vegetable or protein odds
Cost About £1 and ends to avoid waste (think
a head leftover Sunday roast). You can also
add more stock and leave out the
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, peeled and rice for more of a soup-based meal.
roughly chopped
1 pepper (red, Heat the oil in a large saucepan on
orange or yellow),
stalk, seeds and
a medium heat, then add the onion
pith discarded, flesh and pepper, and cook, stirring
roughly chopped regularly, for about five minutes,
3 garlic cloves, until softened.
peeled and crushed
½ thumb-sized Add the garlic, ginger and spices,
PHOTOGRAPHS: YUKI SUGIURA. FOOD STYLING: ROSIE REYNOLDS. PROP STYLING: LOUIE WALLER. FOOD STYLING ASSISTANT: KRISTINE JACOBSSON

piece fresh ginger, and stir continuously until the

peeled and grated aromas hit you. Add the peanut
1 tbsp ground
coriander
butter and stock, stirring until well
½ tbsp ground cumin mixed, then add the sweet potatoes
60g peanut butter and chickpeas, cover and cook for
500ml vegetable about 25 minutes, until the sweet
stock
2 medium sweet potato is cooked through.
potatoes, peeled Add the spinach towards the
and chopped into end of the cooking time, so it
bite-size chunks
just wilts down, then season
1 x 400g tin
chickpeas, drained and serve with plain rice.
1 small handful Cook Clever: One Chop, No Waste,
spinach leaves All Taste, by Shivi Ramoutar, is
Boiled rice, to serve
published by HarperCollins at £20.
To order a copy for £17.60, visit
guardianbookshop.com

Feast 9
10 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023
 Meera Sodha Strawberry cake
with luxury
The new Bird’s custard
vegan
Prep 10 min The Bird’s custard element has been
Cook 50 min given a bit of the razzle-dazzle
Serves 8 treatment with whipped cream and
Cost About 90p creme fraiche, and is much better
a head for it; alternatively, serve with good
vegan vanilla ice-cream instead.
For the cake
175ml whole oat milk
Considering the love we English have 2 tsp apple cider
vinegar
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/
gas 6. Grease and line a 22cm x 32cm
for strawberries, I am stumped trying ¾ tsp fennel seeds,
ground
baking tray (ie, a standard American
to think of more than three puddings that 200g caster sugar, nine-inch x 13-inch baking sheet)
plus 2 tbsp extra for with greaseproof paper.
contain them. This is my attempt to sprinkling on top Pour the oat milk and vinegar into
250g self-raising
bolster the coffers: a strawberry ‘sheet flour a medium bowl and put to one side.
½ tsp bicarbonate Mix the fennel seeds and two
cake’ borrowed from one of my favourite of soda tablespoons of sugar, then set aside.
½ tsp fine sea salt
food writers, Deb Perelman, and her blog, ½ tsp vanilla bean
Whisk the flour, bicarb, 200g sugar
and salt in a large bowl. Stir the
Smitten Kitchen. I made this vegan paste
125ml rapeseed oil vanilla and rapeseed oil into the oat
version for my daughter Yogi’s birthday, 600-700g ripe
strawberries, halved
milk mix, then pour into the flour
mixture and stir well. Spoon on to
adding a little fennel sugar to the top, For the custard the lined tin, shake the tin, then
and she declared it the best cake ever 1½ tbsp (17g) give it a couple of sharp taps on
custard powder –
a work surface to settle the batter
(although she is three and admittedly I use Bird’s
and release any air bubbles.
1 tbsp (17g) caster
has previously declared five other cakes sugar Place (rather than push) the berries
250g vegan on top of the batter, arranging them
also to be the best cake ever). whipping cream
toe to toe and trying to fit on as
PHOTOGRAPH: LOUISE HAGGER/THE GUARDIAN. FOOD STYLING: EMILY KYDD. PROP STYLING:

– I use Oatly
75g vegan
veg creme many as you can. Sprinkle over the
fraiche – again, spiced sugar, then bake for 30
I use Oatly
Oat
JENNIFER KAY. FOOD STYLING ASSISTANT: ISOBEL CLARKE.. INSET: GETTY IMAGES

minutes, until the sponge is golden

and a sharp knife inserted into the
middle comes out clean (it’s OK if
it has some strawberry juice on it).
Meanwhile, mix the custard
powder, sugar and two tablespoons
of the cream in a small saucepan,
whisking to remove lumps, then mix
in the rest of the cream. Bring the
custard mix to a gentle boil, then
take off the heat. Leave to cool to
room temperature, then put in the
fridge to chill – to prevent a skin
from forming on the top of the
custard, cover its surface with a
circle of greaseproof paper just
touching the top of it.
When you’re ready to serve, stir
the creme fraiche into the custard
mix, then serve alongside or over
slices of the cake.

Feast 11
12 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023
 Ben Tish
It’s a Sicilian
thing
Granitas are a specialty of sugar, blend again A delicious, refreshing This is a brilliant finish
Sicily and a legacy of its briefly, then pour in and vibrant granita that to a summer menu.
Moorish past. Essentially, 570ml water and the makes the most of The secret is to grind
they are just water mixed lemon juice, and blend rhubarb season, which your own almonds,
with sugar and a once more. Pour into a is coming to an end because that way you
flavouring, then frozen fine nylon sieve set over soon. Rose adds a get to keep all those
and scraped up to form a bowl, then rub the Moorish slant, as do fresh, natural oils.
a deliciously refreshing puree through the sieve. the crunchy, emerald-
‘snow’. They’re usually Pour into a freezer-proof green pistachios. Put the almonds in
served in a little glass at container, cover and a food processor and
the end of a meal or, freeze for two hours. Put the rhubarb in a pan grind to a powder.
more extravagantly, After this time, the with the sugar, orange Put a litre of water
loaded into a sweet mixture should have juice and zest, and add and the caster sugar in
brioche bun and eaten for started to freeze around water to come level with a medium pan, bring to
breakfast. On a recent the edges. With a large the top of the rhubarb. a boil, then turn down
trip to Palermo, I was fork, vigorously stir the Bring to a boil, then turn the heat and simmer
lucky enough to stay in frozen parts into the to a simmer and cook gently for seven
a rather swish hotel where unfrozen bits, then cover gently until the sugar minutes, until you’re
PHOTOGRAPH: OLA O SMIT/THE GUARDIAN. FOOD STYLING: KITTY COLES. PROP STYLING: IONA BLACKSHAW. FOOD STYLING ASSISTANT: EL KEMP

the breakfast buffet had again and freeze for dissolves and the rhubarb left with a thin syrup.
a granita bar boasting a another hour. Repeat the starts to break up. Pour into a bowl, then
row of silver canisters mixing, cover again and Tip the mix into a leave to cool.
filled with different freeze for another hour. blender, blitz very When the syrup is
granitas – coffee, orange, By this point, the smooth, then pass cool, stir in the almonds,
lemon, almond – that you granita should be a through a sieve. Pour transfer the bowl to the
could mix and match, completely frozen snow into a plastic container, fridge and chill for at
then add toppings such of ice crystals and is stir in rose water to least four hours (or
as dried or fresh fruit, ready to serve. It will taste, then cover and overnight).
nuts and whipped cream. keep at this servable freeze for at least eight Strain the syrup
Every morning, I was like stage in the freezer for hours, or overnight. through a fine sieve,
a kid in a sweet shop, three or four hours, but About 15 minutes discard the almond
compiling indulgent any longer and the ice before you want to pulp, then pour into
mixes and then feeling will turn too solid. If serve, put the container a container and freeze.
a bit sick afterwards. that happens, pop the in the fridge, so the After an hour, scrape
container in the fridge granita defrosts a little. the mix with a fork, and
and leave to soften for Scrape with a fork to repeat every hour for
Strawberry granita
30-40 minutes, until it’s soften and break down three or four more
defrosted enough to be into crystals, then spoon hours, until the granita
broken up with a fork. into glasses, sprinkle looks like snow
Prep 10 min over the pistachios, top (alternatively, churn the
Rhubarb and rose with a few rose petals, syrup in an ice-cream
Freeze 4 hr if using, and serve.
granita with machine until frozen).
Serves 6–8 While the syrup is
Cost About 50p
pistachio
freezing, roast the
a head Almond granita grapes. Heat the oven to
with roast grapes 210C (190C fan)/gas
450g ripe strawberries, Prep 10 min 6½. Cut the grapes in
hulled half lengthways, arrange
175g caster sugar Cook 15 min them cut side up in an
Juice of 2 lemons Freeze 8 hr+ Prep 5 min oven dish, then drizzle
Serves 6-8 Cook 15 min the honey all over
Fragrant strawberries Cost About 80p Chill 4 hr+ them. Roast for 20
work brilliantly in a head Freeze 3 hr+ minutes, until the
granita. If you like, juices start to bleed and
Serves 6
infuse the base with 800g trimmed rhubarb, the skins are lightly
basil – add a few Cost About 90p blistered, then remove
cut into 5cm lengths
stalks to the strawberry a head and leave to cool.
250g caster sugar
and sugar mix before Zest and juice of 1 orange Spoon the granita
blitzing, then strain A few drops rose water, 200g blanched shelled into glasses and serve
as below. to taste almonds topped with a few
100g shelled pistachios, 300g caster sugar roast grape halves.
Put the strawberries in roughly chopped 150g black seedless Ben Tish is chef director
a blender and blitz to Small rose petals, to grapes of the Cubitt House
a smooth puree. Add the garnish (optional) 50ml runny honey group based in London

Feast 13
Fiona Beckett
Carry the can: the
best drinks in tins
Canned drinks are nothing new, of the quality is variable, especially in
course, but they’re now seemingly ready-to-drink (RTD) or pre-mixed
taking over the shelves of practically drinks, where the flavours can often
any supermarket or booze shop taste quite synthetic. Maybe it’s just
you walk into. Marks & Spencer, for me, but they’re also very sweet:
instance, recently extended its range I wanted to like M&S’s Marksologist
of canned cocktails off the back of a range more than I did (and the store
25% increase in sales over the past deserves brownie points at least for
12 months, while more and more effort), but can really recommend
no- and low-alcohol producers are only the Salted Caramel Espresso
putting their drinks into cans, too. Martini (£3.50 for 150ml, in store
It’s not hard to see why, what with and Ocado; 14.2%), and even then
our hectic, on-the-go lifestyle. Just as probably only if you’re a Bailey’s fan.
you might grab a sandwich or a salad The same store’s low-alcohol range,
for the train or for lunch al desko, however, is better – surprisingly,
you can also now pick up a can to even its 0.5% Extra Dry Botanical Gin
go with it. They’re a much better bet & Tonic (£2 in store and Ocado) is an
than bottles for picnics and festivals improvement on many RTD G&Ts.
as well – lighter, unbreakable and And if producers such as Moth can
easier to keep cold. do it, I feel Marks and Sparks could
The only downsides are that your up its game, too.
options are more limited and that Quality overall is also improving
when it comes to canned wine,
although the better examples don’t
Four cans to come cheap – the equivalent bottle
drink on the go cost of the Canned Wine Co’s St
Laurent in my pick this week, for
example, would be between £16.50
Mad Med Le Rosé 2022 and £18. I like it, but expect more for
£6.50 (250ml) Gnarly that price. That said, it’s useful to
Vines, 13%. Delicately have a can to hand if you’re trying to
fruity, unfiltered, organic moderate your drinking, plus cans
Provence rosé in a tin are still cheaper than half-bottles. I’m
also very happy to see natural wines
Canned Wine Co St Laurent such as Mad Med finding their way The good The sweet flavour profile of
No 4 2020 £5.99 (250ml) into tins, though not all the range rhubarb liqueur marries especially
Novel Wines, 13.5%. Dry, is as good as the rosé in my pick.
mixer well with the refreshing zing of
sophisticated Austrian red Beer, though, is still the star of Sparkling ’99 the citrus in this uplifting summer
with a bitter cherry twist the canned drink sector for me. Serves 1
refresher. The rosemary garnish,
Amazingly, it’s also sometimes as though optional, adds a subtle,
PHOTOGRAPH: ROB LAWSON/THE GUARDIAN.

Fizzology Spritz £8.99 good as drinking it on tap. I really 50ml rhubarb herbal element.
(4 x 250ml) Laithwaite’s, fell for the Bru-1 Pale Ale (5.1%), liqueur – we use
Briottet
4.6%. Great low-alcohol part of Polly’s Brew Co’s the Hop 25ml fresh lemon Put the rhubarb liqueur, lemon juice
option for a sunny day. series, which I had at a great little juice and syrup in a cocktail shaker filled
DRINK STYLING: SEB DAVIS

Not too sweet, either beer

b bar and shop called Bottle & 15ml vanilla-infused with ice and shake hard for eight to
sugar syrup
Barrel in Aberystwyth the other 10 seconds. Fine-strain into a chilled
Sparkling rosé, to
Moth Aperitivo Spritz day, and it was just as good in a top – we use flute or glass, top with the sparkling
£3.99 (200ml) Waitrose, can. According to the manager, Taittinger Prestige rosé, garnish with the rosemary, if
10%. Smart, Aperol spritz- Paddy, they’re one of Wales’ best Rosé using, and serve.
1 sprig fresh
like aperitivo with a good breweries right now (you can argue rosemary, to garnish Devon Snoddy, head bartender, The
bitter orange flavour about this among yourselves). Landmark London, NW1

Feast 15
16 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023
 Ravneet Gill Mini peach
pavlovas
The sweet spot

Prep 5 min Heat the oven to 180C (160 fan)/

Cook 2 hr gas 4. Cut the peaches in half,
Makes 6 remove the stones, and put the
Cost About 90p fruit skin side up in a roasting tray.
a head Drizzle over the honey and thyme,
and toss to coat. Roast for 15-18
150g egg whites
1 tbsp lemon juice minutes, until soft but not mushy,
Biting into a perfectly ripe peach is 250g caster sugar
2 tbsp cornflour
and the skins have blistered slightly
and wrinkled at the edges. Remove
one of my summer highlights, and For the peaches
and leave to cool, then peel off and
I wait all year for that first good one. 3 large peaches discard the skins.
3 tbsp runny honey Turn down the oven to 120C
Once they are here, I can’t get enough 2 sprigs thyme (100C fan)/gas ½. In a large, clean
and often enjoy them sliced as they are For the cream bowl with an electric whisk, or
300ml double cream in the bowl of a stand mixer with
or sat hunched over in the garden with A pinch of sea salt the whisk attachment, beat the
1 tbsp icing sugar
the juice running down my arm to my egg whites and lemon juice on
a medium speed until they turn
elbow (totally worth it). Peaches and frothy and thick. Add the caster
pavlovas are a gorgeous match, and a sugar in three equal instalments,
whisking well between each
constant classic. Make this for friends or addition, then keep beating
for a picnic spread, and keep extra peaches until the mixture is thick and
meringue-like. Add the cornflour
he sun.
for later, so you can eat them in the
PHOTOGRAPH (INCLUDING COVER): LAURA EDWARDS/THE GUARDIAN. FOOD STYLING: BENJAMINA EBUEHI.

and whisk briefly to incorporate.

incorp
trays with
Line two flat baking tray
greaseproof paper, then ta take two
large tablespoons to shape the
meringues – it helps to dip them
in hot water briefly first. ShShape six
PROP STYLING: ANNA WILKINS. FOOD ASSISTANT: JULIA ADEN. INSET: GETTY IMAGES

large tablespoons of the pa pavlova

mix on to the tray, using th the spoons
to guide their shape. I like to make
an indent in the middle of each one
with the back of the hot sp spoon, so
inside it
the filling will sit nicely ins
later. Bake for one and a ha half hours,
until the meringues lift off the paper
without much resistance – they
should be dry to touch. Tu Turn off the
meringues inside
oven and leave the mering
to cool completely – once y you can
lift them off the paper, take them
out of the oven.
Lightly whip the cream w with
the salt and sugar until it holds
h its
shape. Top each meringue with
some cream and roast peac peaches,
along with a bit of the peach
peac syrup,
and serve.

Feast
F
Feast 17
Felicity Cloake
The perfect ...
Gigantes
The beans Greek Cookbook, peel the beans, but
In her book The Foods of Greece, I prefer to keep most of them intact,
Aglaia Kremezi writes: “Gigantes, skinning just a handful, as per
which means ‘extremely large’ in Georgina Hayden’s recipe in her
Greek, is what the Greeks call the book Taverna, so they break down
very large lima beans used for this and thicken the sauce.
dish.” Lima or butter beans will
Gigantes plaki, or (very) big baked indeed work here, though if you The sauce
can find Greek gigantes, they tend The sauce usually starts with onion,
beans, is a Greek classic, often served to be fresher and creamier. Tinned carrot, celery and garlic – Petretzikis
as a warm stew, particularly during Lent, or jarred beans will also do, though adds red pepper, too – moistened
tened
they won’t absorb as much flavour. with tomatoes (you can use either
and as a meze all year round. Described Soaking the beans in brine, as fresh or tinned
ned). However, I’ve
by Athenian food writer Rena Salaman celebrity chef Akis Petretzikis skipped
pped the tomato puree with
suggests, both softens their skins which many recipes enrich the dish,
as ‘a sensational dish, sple
splendidly and helps to season them. (Belinda as well as Petretzikis’s stock and
sly rich’, and given
vegetarian, luxuriously Harley, author of Roast
ast Lamb in the wine, preferring to amp up the bean
Olive Groves,
es, soaks
s hers with notes with some of their cooking
that we should all be consuming more bicarbonate
bicarbon but
nate of soda, buut I’m not water (another tip from Hayden).
fibre-packed beans and pulses, this is keen on the soapiness
t faint soapi iness that I want this liquid, and the beans
brings to proceedings.)
p ) themselves, to have as much flavour
a recipe you need inn your repertoire. Evdokiaa Antginas and
an
nd Christos as possible, so I’ve added bay and
Sourligas, authors
a of MMy Big Fat Hayden’s cinnamon to the mix, too.

3 Simmer the beans

until tender.
Meanwhile, peel
and chop the onion,
celery and carrots for

1 Put the beans in

a bowl, add salt
and enough cold
the base of the dish

water to cover them

by 5cm, and soak for
at least eight hours

4 Saute the onion,

carrot and celery
mix until golden,
then add chopped

2 Drain the beans,

peel a handful
and put them all
garlic and oregano
and fry for a minute

in a pan with garlic,

bay and cinnamon.
Add water to cover

18 Feast
F
Feast The Guardian Sa
Saturday
aturday 2
22 July 2023
 I like oregano here, but thyme is temperature, rather than hot, and Prep 15 min a lid, and put it on a gentle heat. Fry
also popular, and the honey with plenty of bread. Soak 8 hr+ the chopped onion, celery and carrot,
suggested by Rosemary Barron’s Cook 1 hr 50 min until soft and golden. Finely chop
Flavours of Greece (as well as Perfect gigantes Serves 4 the remaining garlic clove, add to
Harley’s dash of red-wine vinegar) Cover the beans with about 5cm Cost About £1.25 the mix, stir in the oregano and fry
brings out the sweet-and-sour notes water, add a tablespoon of salt, stir a head for another minute.

PHOTOGRAPHS: ROBERT BILLINGTON. FOOD STYLIST: LOÏC PARISOT

of the tomatoes. to dissolve, then leave to soak for Stir in the vinegar, honey and
500g dried gigantes
eight to 24 hours. tomatoes, bring to a boil, then turn
or butter beans
The baking Drain the beans, then put all but 1⅓ tbsp flaky salt, down the heat and simmer gently
Bake the beans, covered initially, a small handful of them in a large plus extra to serve for five minutes. Heat the oven to
which will allow them to finish saucepan. Add fresh water to cover 2 bay leaves 180C (160C fan)/gas 4.
1 cinnamon stick
cooking and mingle with the sauce, them by 5cm, stir in another 2 garlic cloves,
Drain the beans, reserving their
before uncovering and cooking until teaspoon of flaky salt, the bay leaves, peeled cooking liquid, then stir about
they go crisp on top, so giving the cinnamon and one of the garlic 50ml extra-virgin 300ml of it into the sauce. Add the
dish its characteristic mix of textures cloves, squashed, and bring to a boil. olive oil, plus more beans and aromatics, and bring to
to finish
and tastes. Peel the reserved handful of 1 large onion, peeled a boil. Cover the pan, transfer to the
beans, add them to the pot, then and finely chopped oven and bake for 40 minutes.
The garnish boil hard for 10 minutes. Turn down 2 celery sticks, Remove the lid, and bake
trimmed and finely
Parsley, dill, chilli, lemon zest or to a simmer and leave to cook gently chopped
uncovered for 15 minutes more; stir
crumbled feta are all suggested, but for 45 minutes to an hour, until the 2 medium carrots, in a little more of the cooking water
I think this simple dish needs nothing beans are tender. trimmed and finely if the beans look dry. Leave to cool

PHOTOG
more than a little extra olive oil. Meanwhile, pour the oil into
nto an chopped a little, check the seasoning, drizzle
2 tsp fresh oregano
Serve either warm or at room ovenproof dish for which you ou have 2 tbsp red-wine with a little more oil and serve.
vineggar
vinegar
2 tsp
p honey
1x4 00g tin chopped
400g
tom
o a atoes, or 4 plum
tomatoes,
tom
oma atoes, chopped
tomatoes,

5 Add the vinegar,

honey and
tomatoes, turn
down the heat and
simmer for about
five minutes

7 Cover, bake for

40 minutes, then
uncover and cook
for 15 minutes more.
6 Drain the beans,
reserving the
water, then add to
Serve with bread
and a slick of oil
the sauce with the
aromatics and
300ml of the liquid

Feast
F
Feast 19
 Kitchen aide
Wanted: savoury ways
with summer fruit
How do I use summer fruit– apricots
that refuse to soften, cherries, figs,
them to wrap meat before cooking
– they’re a good foil for fatty meat Waste not ...
etc – in savoury dishes?
Simon, Bristol
such as duck or pork belly – or dry
leaves for fig leaf tea or to make an
Juice pulp
l
In its raw state, stone fruit so often
disappoints – it’s rare to catch, say,
infused lemonade.”
Then, of course, there are salad
Tom Hunt
an apricot or peach at its perfect days. You’ll be hard pushed to Ben Hodges was the first head chef
moment. For this reason, baker Dee better Feast contributor Ravinder I worked under. He cooked mainly
Rettali suggests turning up the heat. Bhogal’s maftoul salad topped with Moorish food, because he spent a lot
“Apricots baked with capers is a good watermelon infused with rose water of time in southern Spain, and
one, and really nice with rice or a or Ed Smith’s chopped grilled Middle Eastern cuisine still inspires
chopped salad,” says the co-founder peaches from his book Crave, which a lot of my own cooking to this day.
of Fortitude Bakehouse in London. It he combines with basil, olive oil, Today’s recipe is adapted from one
couldn’t be simpler, either: stone and pistachios and lemon juice, and sits I wrote for Cook for Syria, an
halve the fruit, then pop in the oven on burrata. Alternatively, turn a glut incredible campaign in aid of
with a little water and oil, and roast of strawberries into Rettali’s current Unicef’s work in Syria. Falafel are
until soft. Once cool enough to go-to dressing: “Put balsamic, basil, a great carrier for juice pulp, which
handle, chop into small pieces, then lots of strawberries, salt and pepper binds well with chickpeas to create
“get good gherkins and capers, chop in a blender with a drop of hot gorgeous, waste-reducing fritters.
them finely with sea salt and pepper, water,” then fold through couscous,
and fold through the fruit”. quinoa or rye grain with a load of Juice pulp falafel
Apricots should also find their way chopped parsley. “My mother would Soak 200g dried chickpeas and half
into a Moroccan pastilla pie. “Cook make an egg salad with a raspberry a teaspoon of bicarb in cold water
them down, then layer with almonds and orange dressing,” she recalls. for eight hours. Drain, dry in a tea
and mint,” Rettali says. “That’s a “That’s so 1970s, but so gorgeous.” towel, then put in a blender with
fantastic dinner party dish.” Finally, as in life, it pays to consider 100g juice pulp (or grated veg),
When it comes to cherries, the future, so preserve some summer three peeled garlic cloves, 10g finely
meanwhile, Simon could also look love for the colder months. Pickled chopped coriander stalks, one and
farther east, with zaalouk, a sort of gooseberries or blackberries, say, a half tablespoons of chickpea
aubergine salad. First, Rettali says, work a treat with mackerel, while flour and a teaspoon each of baking
“blitz sun-dried tomatoes, cherries, cherries will come out tops come – powder, toasted cumin and salt.
sweet paprika and lots of pepper”. dare I say it – Christmas. “Stone one Blend for a minute, to make a rough
Char the aubergines, then chop and them, then put in brine with port paste, then scrape into a bowl.
transfer to a pan with lemon juice, and bay leaves,” suggests
uggests Rettali, Divide and shape the mix into 16
olive oil and confit garlic, and cook and store in sterilised
terilised jars. “They’re patties, then poke a hole in the
“until it becomes like a paste”. Fold a great present, and delicious with centre of each one. Arrange on a tray
in the cherry and tomato dressing, cold
ld turkey.” and refrigerate.
YO4 4AU

and eat with feta. Anna Berrill Fill a medium saucepan with
For Joshua Overington, chef/ Got a culinary dilemma? vegetable oil to a depth of 2½cm
d Group, Elvington, York YO41

owner of Mýse in Yorkshire, e, figs Email [email protected] and put on a medium heat. The oil is
can be used in myriad d dishes – “with ready when it hits 180C; if you don’t
various proteins, s, in salads, or even have a thermometer, drop in a pinch
preserves”. There’s
ere’s currently a pork- of the falafel mix – if it bubbles and
PHOTOGRAPHS: GETTY IMAGES

and-fig relish number

mber on his menu, floats to the top, the oil is ready.
but at home Overington’s
ngton’s “favourite Fry the falafel in batches,turning
thing is to roast halved
ved figs with them once after a minute or so.
Printed at Walstead

sweet onion, hearty herbs [sage or Once golden brown all over, lift
rosemary, say], a bit off balsamic out, drain and put in a warmed
vinegar and olive oil, until
ntil bowl. Repeat with the remaining
caramelised and sticky”. You can falafel mix, then serve with
even utilise the leaves, too:: “Use flatbreads and all the trimmings.

20 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023

 Cookery writer of the year

Rachel Roddy
Tales from an
Italian kitchen
Summer minestrone on the plate, then you leave the
with chicken and rice minestrone to rest.
There was a house on Cassland In a heavy-based pan or casserole,
Road, east London, that would warm two teaspoons of olive oil
produce the most fantastic cooking and fry a diced, roughly 200g
smells. This is more than two skinless and boneless chicken
decades ago now, when I would pass breast until cooked through,
the house once or twice a week, adding a tablespoon of minced
usually on my way to catch the bus. rosemary, a minced clove of garlic
It didn’t matter what time of day it and some salt and pepper in the
was – early morning, late afternoon last seconds. Pull off the heat,
or evening – evidence of something tip on to a plate and set aside.
baking, simmering or roasting was Back in the pan, gently fry two
almost always drifting through the sliced onions in six tablespoons of
kitchen window, over the wall and olive oil with a small pinch of salt
across the pavement. What made until they start to soften and turn
the situation even more intriguing, translucent. Add 150g each of diced
(and slightly Roald Dahl) was that potato, courgettes and red pepper,
I never saw anyone at the window, 150g green beans cut into 3cm
or going in or out. Who was lengths, plus another small pinch
responsible? And why? Did they of salt and one and a half litres of
have a large family, lots of friends, water. Bring to a slow boil, then
or run a small catering company? reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes.
Were they happy cooking, or Add 180g arborio or carnaroli
exhausted, or both? Whatever the rice and raise the heat so the
reason, their repertoire was soup simmers in a lively way for
wonderful, and the smell of fruit another 10 minutes. In the last
cakes, things covered in pastry, minutes, return the chicken (and
burnt sugar, rice and peas, full roast any juices) to the pot and add 200g
dinners and even fuller curries cooked cannellini beans. Take
circled like low-flying aircraft before off the heat and add a handful of
being whisked away on the east torn-up basil, black pepper and
London breeze. salt, if you think it needs it.
Twenty years later in Rome, The rest is vital, by the way – it
the smell of burnt jam and frying needs at least 15 minutes and up to
chicken brought back memories of a few hours, so the rice can swell and
Cassland Road. I was cooking in my – one (or oni) – denotes largeness, Spoonable: Rachel the flavours settle. At this time of
dressing gown at 9am, an attempt so a minestrone is a big soup. Of Roddy’s Milanese- year, there is no risk of resting food
style summer
to beat the heat and stickiness that the countless versions from every minestrone with going cold, which is also why “room
PHOTOGRAPH: RACHEL RODDY/THE GUARDIAN

moves in by mid-morning, a state region, this one from Milan is a chicken and rice temperature” or “tepid” are better
not helped by watermelon, which particular favourite, and a delight to is best served at descriptors than “cold”, because
turns every surface into adhesive. make. The first step is frying diced room temperature that is how it is eaten. Some recipes
The burnt jam had leaked out of chicken, then, just before pulling it suggest turning out the soup into
a tart, and the chicken was for this off the heat, adding minced garlic, a dish, or sticking spoons upright in
week’s recipe: minestrone estivo rosemary, salt and pepper. This it. This version is soft, however, even
freddo, or cold summer minestrone. delicious-smelling mix then rests at room temperature, so it’s best
The name minestra comes from while you make an onion, potato, served straight from the pan or from
a verb for distributing – minestrare courgette, bean and red pepper a tureen. And, of course, you can
or somministrare – so a dish that soup, cook rice in it, then add reheat if you want to, which means
needs a spoon to dollop from a large some cooked beans and the chicken, the scent will circle around the
dish into smaller ones. The suffix as well as any juices collected kitchen, while we hope for a breeze.

Feast 21
Restaurant writer of the year

Grace Dent
‘This is the sort of menu that
makes my heart go boom’

PHOTOGRAPHS: MATTHEW HAGUE/THE GUARDIAN

I took Charles to Mallow in Canary again with lunch at Mallow, which Mallow
Wharf because one of the worst just opened a second site on Wood 12 Park Drive, Wood
spats we ever had was when I duped Wharf. Mallow, whose original place Wharf, London E14,
him, while he was very hungry, into is in Borough, is vegan, but quietly 020-8050 8704.
eating at a vegan cafe in Edinburgh so, and its intention to feed you well, Open all week,
Mon-Fri 8am-11pm,
without so much as whispering the but without cruelty, is carefully Sat 9am-11pm, Sun
words “plant-based”. Somewhere communicated. It’s a chic, glass- 9am-10pm. From
between the concrete scones, the fronted modern brasserie where you about £40 a head à
sludgy, tree-bark soup and the can get tipsy on nori sesame old la carte, plus drinks
and service
bottom-of-a-bird-cage tabbouleh, fashioneds and take glamorous snaps
the truth came out, though. of yourself in the bathroom.
I say “spat”, but it was more one of The place is from the team behind
those silent, incandescent, mutual Mildreds, a forerunner in British
huffs couples have in restaurants that vegetarian and vegan cooking since
involve much eye-rolling, sighing and as far back as 1988, when the
pass-agg napkin-flapping. We laugh vegetarian option was, by and large,
about it now – it has taken five years chips and iceberg lettuce. If you’re a
– so it felt the ideal time to dupe him fan of Mildreds, then Mallow’s menu

22 Feast The Guardian Saturday 22 July 2023

will make your eyes spin. It is the
sort of varied, plant-based, all-day,
thoughtfully written list that makes
my heart go boom: mung dal,
shiitake miso croquettes, sweetcorn
ribs, za’atar padrón peppers, pumpkin
blossom, biryani, and on and on.
But it’s not only the dishes
themselves, it’s the drizzles, dipping
sauces and marinades that come
with them: whipped tahini, sour
cherry molasses, aguachile, baba
ganoush cream, celeriac skordalia,
coconut sambol … Mallow ransacks
the world’s cuisines, taking flavours,
dishes and cooking styles from all
corners, and makes them vegan
without even saying the awful V word
that so rankles some diners. For a stuff. They aim to please everyone call hearty – I vastly underestimated
long time, vegan signified going here. Even people such as Charles, how much pulled mushroom biryani
without, not opening oneself up to who are so overcome with small would arrive, accompanied by plum
more, yet it’s hard to look at Mallow’s plates of sourdough with onion tomato shorba, cardamom raita,
breakfast menu and feel short- caramel butter, dill spinach dal and cucumber sambol and an enormo-
changed by black forest chocolate dumplings that they don’t realise poppadom bigger than my head
pancakes, creme brulee brioche that the butter isn’t dairy and that (pictured above). A beetroot tempeh
French toast or a brunch thali with nothing has even the merest hint of burger was equally generous, with
scrambled tofu, almond pilaf, spleen, valve, loin or rendered fat. a pile of onion rings, slaw, cherry
sambol, naan, dal and all the rest. I preferred the small plates to the tomato relish and guajillo chilli mayo.
Notably, it also offers a garlic- and big ones, because they’re where Instafeed It was all very good, but if you go big
onion-free menu, presumably for the much of the ingenuity lies: miso- on the small plates beforehand, I’d
allergic or Jain vegetarians, as well soaked shiitakes stuffed into advise you take some Tupperware.
as for those who just can’t stick the croquettes offer punchy, umami hits By this stage of the meal, all
and come with pickled shimeji, shiso Charles’ memories of being
leaves, yuzu and mayo. Korean- underfed by vegans in Edinburgh
inspired vegetable dumplings come had been replaced by being stuffed
with a sweet, feisty gochujang sauce senseless on Wood Wharf. But do
Pastries at Popham’s
and a pile of nicely whiffy kimchi, Bakery in London leave room for the glossy passion-
and vibrant spinach mung dal is laced Fields, Hackney. fruit Sachertorte with chantilly
with a balm-like coconut yoghurt Peak Saturday “cream” (far left), and make space
morning civility
that we ate with naan. It was one of on the window sill for the business
the best things I’ve eaten all year. card they give you when you pay.
Perhaps Mallow is so good at this Closer inspection reveals that you
type of thing because they’re not can plant it and water it, and it will
jumping on a bandwagon – mainly grow into flowers and save the
because, for so long, Mildreds has planet. That’s the thing with these
been the bandwagon, tirelessly vegan environmental sorts: they
working out which plant product always have to have the last word.
Cédric Grolet makes
makes a nifty substitute for animal the best chocolate Grace Dent’s new book, Comfort
stocks and fats, and which parts of cookies in the world. Eating, is published by Guardian Faber
the world’s menus are vegan anyway. Its just fact in October at £20. To pre-order a copy
Main courses are what you could @gracedent for £16, go to guardianbookshop.com

Feast 23*