A Feast With a Twist of Fruits and Vegetables

The weird and wonderful thing about fruits and vegetables is that everybody uses them on a daily basis, but not many people know what they really are. For instance, did you know fruits develop from a flower of a plant and contain seeds, whereas vegetables are considered as roots, leaves and stems of a plant?

Looking at it from a culinary point of view, fruits have a sweet or tart taste, often used in desserts and juices, whereas vegetables have a savoury or mild taste, often eaten in main or side dishes.

In this surprising menu I wanted to share with you how fruits and vegetables can be interchanged and used in dishes you wouldn't normally expect them to appear.

Let's get cracking!

INGREDIENTS

• 250 g tinned tomatoes or tomato juice
• 250 g cooked beetroot
• 1 large red pepper
• Chilli sauce (e.g. tabasco or sriracha) (1/2 teaspoon - more or less depending on your heat preference)
• Cumin powder (1/2 teaspoon)
• Paprika (1/2 teaspoon)
• Salt (season to your liking)
• Pepper (season to your liking)
• Gin or vodka (optional)
• Water
• Ice cubes

GARNISH: (optional)

• Cherry tomatoes
• Pickled onions
• Olives
• Cocktail stick / umbrella / cocktail decoration

UTENSILS

• Cooking tray
• Electric blender
• Cocktail jigger
• Teaspoon
• Knife
• Bowl
• Bowl cover
• Stirrer
• Jug
• Glasses
• Preheated oven 200°C

A twist on the classic cocktail: The Bloody Mary

I'm not a big fan of Vodka, which is why I substituted gin in this recipe, feel free to leave out the alcohol all together or stick to traditional vodka.

1. Start off by cutting in half the red pepper and removing the stalk and seeds, roast in the oven at 200°C for 20-30 minutes.
2. Remove the pepper from the oven and place in a bowl with a cover/ plate/ lid on top. The heat from the peppers will create steam, which will loosen the thin skin, making it easier to peel.
3. Leave to cool, then remove the skin (which should be very easy at this stage).
4. In a blender add the beetroot, tomatoes (or tomato juice), salt, pepper, cumin, paprika and chilli sauce, blend until smooth. Add in the now cooled and peeled roasted red pepper, blend again.
5. At this stage you may or may not need to add water to dilute the mixture. If you use tomato juice you won't need as much water. Keep adding until you get the consistency you like. Here I aimed for a tomato soup thickness.
6. Transfer the mix to a jug and leave to chill in the fridge whilst you prepare the (optional) garnish and glasses. If you don't wish to garnish, allow to chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
7. Using cocktail sticks add your garnish, here I used cherry tomatoes, pickled onions and olives. You can add cornichons (gherkins) and even a celery stick.
8. Once the Bloody Mary mixture is cooled you are ready to serve.
9. If adding alcohol, add 5 ml per person to the Bloody Mary mixture and serve over ice cubes, add the garnish if using. If you prefer an alcohol free version, pour over ice cubes, garnish and enjoy.

A super quick, but very tasty appetizer to accompany your roasted red pepper and beetroot bloody Mary.

INGREDIENTS

• Cured smoked ham or bacon
• Pitted prunes

UTENSILS

• Cooking tray
• Greasproof paper
• Plate
• Preheated oven 200°C

1. Take a ham slice (mine were quite wide so I folded them in half) and please a prune on one side
2. Roll the prune in the ham and place on a tray
3. Cook in a preheated oven at 200°C for 12-15 minutes, remove just as they start to brown around the edges.
4. Serve and enjoy

INGREDIENTS

• 250g uncooked prawns
• 1 large mango
• Ice gem lettuce
• Juice of 1 lemon (or 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice)
• 2 shallots
• 1 chilli (I used scotch bonnet, but you can use whichever chilli pepper you prefer)
• Dried garlic (or 2 cloves of fresh garlic)
• Handful of coriander (or parsley if you prefer)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper for seasoning

UTENSILS

• Food processor
• Knife
• Peeler
• Bowls
• Spoons
• Chopping board
• Frying pan
• Serving dishes

1. Peel the shallots and place in the food processor (or finely chop by hand), along with the chilli pepper, garlic and olive oil, add to the prawns and leave to marinate (overnight is best, if not, leave for at least 1 hour).
2. Peel the mango (I find this the easiest way), then slice all around the seed. Finely dice the flesh and place in a separate bowl.
3. Add the lemon juice, finely chopped coriander and season to your taste with salt and pepper.
4. Heat a frying pan and gently cook the marinated prawns, making sure not to over cook them, maximum 90 seconds each side until they have just turned pink, add to the mango mix and stir.
5. Take off a few leaves of the gem lettuce and place in a dish. Serve the mango and prawn salsa inside the gem lettuce cups.

Traditionally tabbouleh is made using couscous or bulgur wheat, but if you are trying to up your intake of vegetables or in our case avoiding gluten due to allergies, cauliflower is THE perfect substitute.

INGREDIENTS

• Large cauliflower
• 50g raisins
• 100g dried apricots
• 100g dried figs
• Fresh basil (large bunch, around 50g)
• Fresh mint (large bunch, around 50g)

VINAIGRETTE

• 1 lemon or 2-3 tablespoons or lemon juice (add more or less according to your taste and size of cauliflower)
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil (add more or less according to your taste and size of cauliflower)
• Salt and pepper for seasoning to your taste

UTENSILS

• Large mixing bowl
• Grater and / or Electric food processor
• Knife
• Chopping board
• Spoons

1. Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and cut into quarters.
2. If you are using a grater, grate the cauliflower into the large bowl. If you are using a food processor, blend the florets of cauliflower until they resemble grains of rice, add to a large mixing bowl.
3. Finely chop the herbs, add to the cauliflower.
4. Finely dice the dried apricots and figs,add to the cauliflower mix along with the raisins.
5. VINAIGRETTE - mix the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper, add to the cauliflower.
6. Thoroughly mix and leave to sit, covered, preferably over night allowing the flavours really develop, but if you can't wait that long, leave it at least an hour before serving.

This dish is inspired by a recipe my Dad used to make, taking 2 of my favourite salmon dishes he would cook and merging them into one. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

INGREDIENTS

• Salmon fillets
• 250g cherry tomatoes
• 400g Tin of pineapple pieces
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• Oil
• Salt and pepper
• Parsley

UTENSILS

• Frying pan
• Sauteing pan
• Wooden spoon
• Fish spatula
• Serving plate

1. Place the cherry tomatoes in the saute pan, followed by the pineapple chunks, salt, pepper (to your taste) and the balsamic vinegar.
2. Cook over a medium heat until the tomatoes start to burst and the juices reduce to a glaze, turn off the heat.
3. In a frying pan cook the salmon fillets in a little oil over a high heat for approximately 3-4 minutes each side (more or less depending on the thickness of your fillets).
4. Add the tomato and pineapple mix to the pan and turn of the heat.
5. Transfer to a large serving plate and garnish with parsley.

A feast just wouldn't be complete without a cake now would it?

We are upping the ante on a traditional lemon drizzle cake by adding courgettes. Since gluten free cakes can sometimes be a little dry, courgettes will add some extra moisture, without overpowering the wonderful lemon flavour.

INGREDIENTS

CAKE:

• 2 courgettes
• 250g gluten free flour
• 200g sugar
• 150 ml oil
• Zest and juice of 2 lemons
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 sachet of baking powder (10g)

LEMON DRIZZLE:

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 75g icing sugar

UTENSILS

• Food mixer
• Electic grater or hand grater
• Zester or grater
• Juicer
• Weighing scales
• Spatula
• Measuring jug
• Measuring spoons
• Loaf tin with greaseproof liner

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C.
2. Grate the courgettes and add in the lemon zest.
3. In the food mixer beat together the oil, sugar and eggs until light and creamy.
4. Add in the courgettes and lemon zest, lemon juice and beat gently until mixed.
5. Fold in the flour, xanthan gum and baking powder wth a spatula until fully incorporated.
6. Tip into the loaf tin and bake for 55 mins to 1 hour until, golden, risen and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
7. Remove from the over and prick all over with the skewer or a toothpick.
8. Drizzle over the lemon mix and allow to cool in it's tin.
9. Once fully cooled, remove the cake from the loaf tin and serve in slices.

Dinner is served.

Bon appétit!