Charlotte Pike

Food & Drink Expert

Lunch

Gazpacho

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Gazpacho

Gazpacho is one of the highlights of summer cooking and eating, for me. Chilled soups are some of my favourite things to eat on hot days, and gazpacho is probably my favourite of all. I first learnt how to make gazpacho when I lived in Madrid. The summer was seriously hot, well into the mid 40s, and this was pretty much all I fancied for my evening meal. Gazpacho is eaten very widely in Spain, and in every deli or supermarket, you’ll see cartons of gazpacho for sale in the chiller.

We ate this every day a few weeks ago, during the heatwave here in the U.K., and it reminded me just why I love it so much. It is perfect for those evenings when it almost feels too hot to bother cooking and eating. It’s cooling, refreshing, nourishing, with such lively and exciting flavours.

This really is a soup to make in the peak of summer, when the ingredients are at their best. Quite simply, it won’t taste the same if you try it at any other time. The flavour of properly ripe tomatoes really make gazpacho sing. Good bread is essential, for body and texture.

For the best results, make this gazpacho in a blender or liquidiser, rather than a food processor, for the smoothest result. When it’s really hot, I often make this in the Nutribullet, meaning there is even less equipment to clear up afterwards. Olive oil and parsley make a wonderful topping, but chopped vegetables are quite traditional.

Gazpacho 

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

½ large cucumber, peeled, roughly chopped

1 large yellow pepper, de-seeded, roughly chopped

1 large red pepper, de-seeded, roughly chopped

6 large, perfectly ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped

2 banana shallots, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

100g best quality bread, such as sourdough

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp Sherry vinegar

Sea salt

 

Method

Blend most of the cucumber, peppers, tomatoes and shallots to a rough purée in a food processor, reserving a couple of chunks of each vegetable for the garnish.

Add the garlic, bread, olive oil and sherry vinegar to the food processor and blend again until smooth, or to a more textured consistency if desired. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Transfer the soup to a jug, cover with cling film and chill for at least 20 minutes, or until cold.

Cut the reserved vegetables into small cubes. When ready to serve, pour the gazpacho into bowls and garnish with the vegetables.

Homemade sausage rolls

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This is a very flexible recipe. Good quality sausage meat makes an excellent filling, and it is pre-seasoned, too. You can add extra flavours to the meat if you wish, such as dried chopped fruit, maybe apricots, or fresh herbs, such as sage. Try a sprinkling of sesame seeds on top of the pastry for an extra layer of flavour. I often do half and half.

Good quality sausage meat and all butter pastry make all the difference here.

Make large sausage rolls for lunch or a picnic, or mini sausage rolls to serve with drinks. Either way, I promise you they’ll be gone in a flash.

Homemade sausage rolls

Charlotte Pike

Makes 8-10

Ingredients

450g free range sausage meat (do buy pre-seasoned from your butcher)

300g ready rolled all butter puff pastry

1 egg, beaten

 

Method

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/Gas Mark 4.

On a floured work
surface, unfurl the pastry, and cut lengthways into 
two long, even rectangles. Roll the sausage mixture into sausage shapes with your hands and lay along the centre
 of each rectangle. Fold one side of the
 pastry over, wrapping the filling inside. Press down with your fingers or the edge of a spoon to seal. Cut 
the long rolls into the sizes you want and space them out on a baking tray. Brush with the beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until puffed, golden and cooked through. Serve hot, perhaps with some tomato relish on the side.

Kale, spinach, pomegranate and walnut salad

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Salads are not just for sunny days. In the depths of winter, a salad can be a wonderful thing; full of nourishing ingredients and vibrant flavours to ward off colds and cheer the spirits. In many ways, a good winter salad is more exciting than a summer salad. It’s an unexpected injection of flavour at this cold and dark time of year.

I love interesting salads, packed with interesting flavours and textures. A good salad is a deeply satisfying meal, and this is one of my very favourite winter salads. I adore kale and love it raw in salads. The key is carefully preparing the leaves, picking out any stalks or tough stems, and ensuring that the leaves are shredded into small pieces.

This salad is just wonderful enjoyed on its own, or with some lamb kofte or meatballs to turn it into a complete meal. It’s one I make time and time again at this time of year. I hope you love it too.

Kale, spinach, pomegranate and walnut salad

Charlotte Pike

Serves 4, generously

Ingredients

3 red onions, thinly sliced

25g butter

200g kale, stalks removed and sliced into thin strips

500g baby spinach

25g walnuts, chopped

Seeds from 1 pomegranate

1 bunch dill, chopped

¼ tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp pomegranate molasses

Juice from ½ lemon

Zest of 1 unwaxed lemon

Pinch caster sugar

Sea salt

Olive oil

 

Method

Gently fry the onions in the butter for around 15 minutes until translucent. Set aside and leave to cool.

Once the onions have cooled, combine all the ingredients together, gently tossing to ensure the leaves are evenly dressed. Add enough olive oil to lightly dress the leaves. Season to taste. Serve immediately.