Royal potato salad a l'Ottolenghi

800 g new potatoes, washed 

150 g frozen peas

20 g parsley leaves

20 g basil leaves

60 g pine seeds

60 g parmesan

2 cloves garlic

200 ml olive oil

1 tsp white wine vinegar

handful of mint leaves

5 boiled eggs (or 15 quail's eggs)

salt and pepper

Wash the potatoes, boil for around 20 minutes until soft but firm. Boil the eggs until ready (I reckon about 4 minutes is enough), then refresh in cold water. Blanche the peas for 30 seconds in boiling water, then rinse and refresh in cold water.

While the potatoes are boiling, add the parsley, basil, pine seeds, garlic and parmesan to a food processor and blend. Add in olive oil bit by bit until you have a runny pesto. 

When the potatoes are cooked and have cooled enough to handle, cut them in half or quarters, then mix in with the pesto, mint leaves and vinegar. Season with plenty of salt and pepper.

Peel and quarter the eggs, mix in gently with the potatoes, and serve. Add extra mint or parsley as garnish if you want.

Watermelon gazpacho

Another excellent find from this summer. The original is courtesy of Saveur, and a very nice place it is too.

1 kg watermelon, rind removed and roughly chopped
big bunch coriander
a third as much mint (or to taste)
3 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 Noa or English cucumber, peeled and roughly chopped
1 chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 big tomato (I used coeur de boeuf, but it's up to you), roughly chopped
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Throw everything into a blender or food processor. Chill for a few hours and serve.

Excellent on a hot summer's evening. 

Thai gazpacho

It was a very hot summer here, so we ate a lot of cold soups. This one turned out very nicely, although if you want it to have a reasonably attractive colour, make sure you use yellow tomatoes, not red ones. Otherwise, though, it's all very tasty. Based on this recipe.

Ingredients:
3-4 large yellow tomatoes, cut into chunks
1 full Noa cucumber, or 1/2 English cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
1 onion
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp lemongrass (paste, fresh, or frozen)
1 thumb-size piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
juice and zest of 1 lime
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp chilli paste OR 1 chilli (or to taste)
mint, (Thai) basil and coriander to taste (should be about 1/2 cup or so)
1/2 a 400ml tin of coconut milk (you can use more too, but keep some for serving)
seasoning

Throw the tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, and onion into a blender and blend. Add the garlic, lemongrass, ginger, lime juice and zest, fish sauce, chilli, herbs and seasoning, and then as much coconut milk as you want (less is more, add little by little until you have as much as you want). Blend the mixture until smooth.

Put in the fridge to cool for a few hours. Serve with some bread on the side. 

Maghmour (Lebanese aubergine stew)

Just, like, the greatest dish ever. Honestly, this is one of the best things I have tasted. It's very simple, very quick, and tastes amazing. I cannot recommend this enough.

It's basically this recipe with a few small changes.

1 kg brinjal/aubergine, cut into cubes of ca. 5x5x5 cm
1/2 cup olive oil
2 x 400g tins chickpeas, well rinsed
1-2 onions, diced
Garlic to taste (original recipe calls for 5 cloves)
thumb-sized piece of ginger, minced
2 x 400g tins tomatoes (or equivalent fresh diced tomatoes. I've used both, and both work well)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1-2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp dried mint or mixed herbs (I also used fresh mint the first time, which worked quite well)
1 - 2 cups water (depending on preferences)

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Arrange the aubergine on a baking sheet, cover with 1/4 cup of olive oil and bake for 20-30 minutes until brown. While you're doing that, add the rest of the olive to a pot and brown the onions, then add the garlic and ginger and cook for a few more minutes on a medium heat. Finally, add the chickpeas, tomatoes, tomato paste, herbs, and aubergine, mix together, and cook for about 20 minutes. If it gets too dry, add some water to maintain a stewish consistency (to be fair, I've never needed to add any).

Serve with couscous and enjoy. It is lovely.