11 Light Summer Supper Recipes

Slice the cucumber as thinly as possible and mix with the cider vinegar, sugar and season with salt and pepper. Leave for 30-40 minutes then drain, reserving the pickling liquid.

Pre-heat the oven to 160°C/Gas Mark 3.

Warm the salmon for about ten minutes in the oven, meanwhile whisk all the ingredients together for the dressing. Flake the salmon into pieces and arrange on a large serving platter with the leaves and cucumber, then spoon over the dressing.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Put the dry orzo into a large ovenproof dish. Chop the shallots into slices and add to the dish with the garlic. Next add some roughly torn dill, the juice of ¼ lemon, the dried mint and capers.

Pour the stock over the dry orzo and stir. It will seem like there is a lot of liquid, but it will absorb when cooked.

Season with salt and pepper, and place on the middle shelf of the oven for 25 minutes. Check and stir gently after 10-15 minutes.

After 25 minutes or when the liquid is thick and mostly absorbed, take the dish out of the oven and crumble the feta over the top. Add the cherry tomatoes on their vines pressing gently into the orzo.

Put the dish back in the oven for a further 15 minutes, until the top is crisp, and the feta and tomatoes have blistered and softened.

Garnish with more fresh dill and drizzle generously with olive oil.

If using salt cod, soak the fillets overnight in water. The next day, rinse again under cold water; drain and squeeze the fillets to remove any excess water.

Roughly chop all your veggies.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Lay the fish flat in a baking dish and sprinkle with oregano.

Fry the onions, garlic and potatoes in olive oil for 5 minutes.

Add the bay leaves, spices, currants and red pepper and 80ml of water.

Cover and steam for 10 minutes, stirring so that the potatoes don’t stick.

Add the tomatoes and cook for a further 2 minutes with the lid on, then remove from the heat and pour the mixture over the cod in the baking dish.

Sprinkle half the chopped parsley over the top and the remaining water, then bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

When cooked, garnish with the remaining chopped parsley and serve with a slice of bread for soaking up the juices.

Blanch the peas, artichokes and beans. This means drop them into boiling salted water then drain while still fairly crisp and refresh with cold water. This retains both colour and texture.

Mix the lemon, basil and olive oil, then toss the blanched vegetables in this dressing along with the radishes and watercress leaves.

To make the fritters, stir the flour and water together, and season with salt and pepper. Whisk in a saucepan over a moderate heat until thick. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes then stir in the chopped parsley and remove from the heat.

Turn the mixture onto oiled greaseproof or nonstick paper and spread with a flat-bladed or palette knife until 0.5cm thick. When it’s cooled, cut into diamond shapes.

Heat the oil and deep fry the fritters, in batches, until crisp. Season with salt and a few drops of lemon.

Serve by placing 50g of burrata per person on cold plates with a small heap of the vegetable salad to one side and some hot fritters.

Make the dressing by adding olive oil, sea salt, the juice of one lemon and some sweet vinegar to a bowl. Whisk together to taste.

To the dressing add your beans, potatoes (cut in half), some finely sliced red onion, chopped tomatoes, a handful of fresh basil and black olives.

Drizzle some olive oil on an oven tray, lay the sardines on top, and sprinkle with salt and dried oregano. Pop under a hot grill or into a pizza oven until the skin is crispy. Then add to the salad and toss all the ingredients together.

Add a final squeeze of lemon, sprinkling or salt and finish with the chopped boiled egg.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Cut the flatbreads into triangles, transfer to a tray and toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of zaatar, salt and pepper.

Cook in the oven for 5 minutes until starting to crisp up a little.

In a large bowl toss the tomatoes with the sliced red onion, vinegar and remaining olive oil and zaatar. Season to taste.

Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat. Once hot, crumble in the halloumi and cook until golden all over.

Add the flatbread pieces, halloumi, cucumber and herbs to the tomatoes and toss well.

To make the salsa verde, chop up the spring onions, including the green parts. Scrunch up the basil, mint and parsley in your hand and then roughly chop it up. Dice half a green pepper. Combine in a bowl. Add a glug of sweet vinegar and olive oil, a sprinkling of salt, then mix it all together.

To make the monkfish kebabs. Take the monkfish off the bone so you are left with two strips, then cut it into one-inch chunks. Strip the sprigs off the bottom ¾ of two rosemary branches, then thread the monkfish on to create two kebabs.

Sprinkle some of the stripped rosemary sprigs onto an oven tray, then place the monkfish skewers on top. Drizzle with olive oil and a little salt, then pop into a really hot oven (or pizza oven) until it begins to char around the edges.

While it’s resting for a couple of minutes, drizzle with a little bit more olive oil, squeeze over some lemon juice, then serve topped with the salsa verde.

To macerate the strawberries, combine the fruit with the lime juice and chilli, then set aside for 10 minutes.

To make the tacos, warm in the oven for a few minutes following the pack instructions. Combine the crab with the lime zest and some salt and pepper. Fill the shells with lettuce and avocado, top with the crab, strawberries, a scattering of coriander and some soured cream if using. Serve immediately.

For a veggie version, combine a 400g can of drained chickpeas with the zest of 1 lime. Roughly mash the avocado and mix with the chickpeas and some seasoning. Use in place of the crab. Fresh crab can be expensive – try using a mixture of brown and white to reduce the cost and increase the flavour, or you can use canned.

First make the tartare sauce. Place the miso mayonnaise in a bowl and add the shallots, capers and gherkins. Mix them until well incorporated, then stir in the tarragon and chives. Refrigerate until needed.

Season the flesh side of the pollock fillets, and oil lightly. Grill, skin side up, under a hot grill for 2-3 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets. Set aside and allow to rest for 2-3 minutes

Sauté the spinach in the butter until wilted. Serve the pollock fillets with a large dollop of tartare sauce, with the potatoes and spinach alongside.

Start with the tomatoes. Preheat the oven to 110°C. Take your tomatoes and cut them in half, then cut into three random shapes per half. Toss in a bowl with a good dash of sea salt and place onto a high-sided baking tray. Cook in the oven for 7-10 minutes at a time. Check after each time period – you don’t want them to go completely soft, they still need a little personality. Overall, this should take between 15 and 25 minutes depending on the size and ripeness of your tomato.

Once they are cooked, gently add them to a bowl and stir gently with a little of the juices that will have been released from cooking. Add a glug of good olive oil and a dash of vinegar. Add some sea salt and a squeeze of lemon. Taste to make sure the salt level.

Arrange randomly in a deep plate, crumble the feta over the dish at will, sprinkle a little sumac over, place some red onion over the tomatoes, then rip some mint into thick bits and place over the dish. Put a little more olive oil on for good measure.