Lundy party salads

By Carolyn

Oven dried tomatoes

200g of plum or cherry tomatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Sea salt & coarse ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 150ºC.

Quarter the tomatoes lengthways and arrange on a baking tray, skin side down. Sprinkle with sugar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, balsamic vinegar and some salt and pepper. Place in the oven for 2 hours or until the tomatoes have lost most of their moisture.

If using cherry tomatoes, halve rather than quarter and cook for 45 minutes.

Can be stored in a jar with extra olive oil for up to 2 weeks.

Pasta Salad

Mix any shape of short size cooked pasta with a generous amount of oven dried tomatoes and some oil, plus a big handful of basil and some fresh oregano or marjoram. Season with pepper to taste.

Rice Salad

Mix cooked long grain rice with sliced fresh red chilli, cooked sweetcorn and spring onions. Dress with a dressing made from 1/3 lemon juice, 2/3 olive oil with salt to taste.

Smashed Courgettes

2 crushed garlic cloves
1-2 small dried red chillies (or 1 fresh seeded and finely chopped)
extra virgin olive oil
8 small courgettes, unevenly sliced
large handful of chopped fresh mint
juice of a lemon.

Fry crushed garlic cloves and chillies in 2 tbs olive oil for a couple of moments (don’t let the garlic brown, just get it softer). Add courgettes, stir to coat and put lid on.

Turn heat down to low then shake and stir every 5 mins for about 35 mins making sure they don't catch on bottom of pan.

When they are nice and soft with some chunky bits and some really pulpy bits remove from heat and season generously with salt to taste. Pour in some more olive oil to loosen it all (about another 1-2 tbs). Finally add the mint and juice of a lemon.

Moroccan Carrot Salad

450g carrots (do these well in advance)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 garlic clove
juice of 3/4 lemon
1/3 tsp caster sugar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small bunch fresh coriander leaves, chopped
sea salt

Peel carrots and boil whole till tender. Drain, spread out to cool then slice quite thinly.

Roast cumin seeds, grind in pestle and mortar, add garlic and 1/2 tsp salt and pound some more. Mix lemon juice, sugar and olive oil into garlic mixture. Toss carrots in the cumin dressing with the coriander. Serve at room temperature.

Bean Salad

400g french beans, cooked
1 tin butter beans, rinsed
8-10 sprigs lemon thyme, leaves picked
1 tsp sumac (optional – buy as a powder from Iranian foodstores)
Juice of ½ lemon
1 tbs sunflower or rapeseed oil
Sea salt

Make dressing by whisking oil, lemon juice, sumac and a pinch of sea salt together, stir in thyme leaves and pour over beans.

Marinated Peppers and Pecorino Salad

1 red and 1 yellow pepper, quartered and cored
1 tbsp olive oil

For the marinade
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp water
½ tsp muscovado sugar
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
2 sprigs of thyme

For the salad
10g flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked
15g basil leaves, picked
30g watercress or young spinach leaves
50g mature pecorino cheese, shaved
1 tbsp capers, drained
1 tbsp olive oil

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5.

Toss the peppers in the oil with a pinch of salt, place on a tray and roast for 35 minutes, until they have softened and taken on some colour. Transfer to a bowl and cover with clingfilm for about 20 minutes. The skins should now peel off easily - discard them and slice the flesh into wide strips.

Whisk up the marinade ingredients, apart from the thyme, pour over the peppers, add the thyme and leave to soak in, either at room temperature for at least an hour, or overnight in the fridge.

When you're ready, toss together the herbs and watercress with the pecorino and capers. Lift the peppers out of the marinade and add, along with the oil and 1 tbsp of the marinade. Taste, adjust the seasoning if necessary and serve at once.