Orzo pasta salad with peas, round courgettes and a few herbs

Orzo pasta salad with peas, courgettes and a few herbs

When I think of summer eating I have a strong image in my head and I’d like to share it with you if you don’t mind. Summer eating for me is light, fresh flavours, simple dishes and perfect produce. I dream of flat white peaches, dark blood coloured cherries, iridescent sardines, sweet crab and tender runner beans… I think of being in a lush, full country garden, bees and butterflies. It’s almost like a potager. I imagine a languid lunch eaten on white plates on an old wooden table, aged from years under the elements. There is flagstone paving that leads up a few steps into the garden beyond. Whatever food is eaten it is always enjoyed with something chilled and white, the glass is dewy on the outside where the cool wine has hit the warmed atmosphere of a late July afternoon. This image I have in my head is probably the result of indulging in few too many Rick Stein re runs recently. The reality of summer eating for me is sadly less romantic. I ate this salad for lunch 3 days on the trot in that darn windowless staffroom in Fife. A girl can daydream.

Orzo pasta

This is my take on a summery pasta salad. There are no rules, it is more of a framework than a recipe and works with whatever seasonal veggies you have in your fridge or whatever you like best. Think of this as a bit of inspiration.

Orzo pasta salad with peas, courgettes and a few herbs

Orzo pasta salad with peas, round courgettes and a few herbs.

Serves 4

300g of pasta, I used the pretty orzo

1 roasted chicken breast, shredded

fresh peas, shelled to give a handful or two

1 round courgette or 2 small standard courgettes, finely sliced

small handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped

couple of tablespoons of more flavourful herbs – I used mint and greek basil

few shavings of a hard aged cheese, I used pecorino

zest of 1 lemon

juice of at least one lemon

good glug of olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet, orzo takes about 7-8 minutes.

Drain the pasta and run it under cold water for a couple of minutes until cool.

Add all the ingredients to the pasta, taste and adjust proportions as required.

Season to taste.

Enjoy.

Courgette and feta fritters (summer loving)

Courgette and feta fritters

“The twice bitten” has been going for a few months now. It has had a couple of thousand hits and has been read in almost 30 counties. I am in shock. Despite this I sometimes feel a bit awkward about the writing bit. It's not something I've done a lot of before. I'm finding it hard putting myself out there.

Coming up with the recipes and making the dishes is the easy part; I have been doing it everyday for the last 15 years. The photography isn’t too thorny an issue due to a 50 mm camera lens. It is the writing part I find tricky.

Round courgette, lemon and mint

Looking through the blogs I follow (Orangette, Michelle Humes and The Wednesday Chef et al) is wonderful but also a little tough. It is hard knowing that I'm not at their level, not yet able to convey so eloquently the thoughts and emotions that are so integral to their blogs. Not to mention their wit…I guess it is my perfectionist tendencies slipping through although I do realise it is unrealistic to expect to be as awesome as these guys after a few months considering they have been doing it for years.

Eventually I’ll remember that this blog was only meant to be a self indulgent journey. A process that might be fun and I would hopefully learn some new skills along the way. It would give me a chance to collect and develop new recipes; a catalogue of all the things we like to eat.

So here is the easy bit. This recipe embodies summer eating - tasty, simple and perfect with a wee glass of something chilled. Salty feta, creamy courgette and fresh lemon zest and mint.

Courgette mix

Courgette and feta fritters  - serves 2

Adapted from the Jojo Tulloh  for the Telegraph 

2 medium courgettes, grated

100g of crumbled feta

2 spring onions, finely chopped

zest of 1 lemon

8-12 mint leaves to taste

1-2 cloves of garlic, smeared to a paste

8 gently rounded dsp of plain flour

1 beaten egg

seasoning to taste

oil for frying

Salt (about 1 tsp) the grated courgette and leave for at least 15 minutes.

Pat the courgette dry with kitchen towel, maybe give it a gentle squeeze.

Add it the feta, lemon zest, spring onions and mint, stir.

Add in the beaten egg and flour, stir.

Season to taste.

The mixture will be relatively loose don’t worry.

Put a large frying pan onto a moderately high heat with a few tablespoons of oil.

Once the pan is hot add a heaped spoonful of the mixture to the pan and flatten gently to make a fat pancake shape.

Leave to cook for a few minutes until golden brown, flip over and fry the other side.

Continue this process, frying a few at a time till the mixture is used up.

Rest the fritters on some kitchen towel.

I served it with a simple green salad and some lemon wedges.

Enjoy.