Green Quiche

Fast food anyone? This quiche only took me about 15 minutes to make, and then it stayed in the oven for 40 minutes while I sat outside reading my book. Not much more effort than calling for a take-away.

You can make two individual quiches like I've done here, or you can make one larger one, it depends on what oven-proof dishes you have handy.

I was lazy today and used ready made (shop-bought) gluten free pastry, but you can make your own instead if you prefer.

This quiche is lovely served with a small side salad.

Serves 2

100g petit pois peas (frozen)
100g broadbeans (frozen)
50g samphire
400g shortcrust pastry
1 tablespoon oil for greasing the dish
1 egg
100ml double cream
250g mozzarella cheese
a large pinch of dried mixed herbs
a pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Turn the oven on to 180^oC and let it pre-heat while you make the quiche.

Bring water to the boil and add the peas and broadbeans. Let them simmer for 5 minutes before adding the samphire, then simmer for another 4 minutes. Drain.

Grease your oven-proof dish(es) and place the pastry in it. I'm lazy and tend to just press it out into the dish, but you could do it properly and use a rolling pin to roll it flat then add it. Up to you. Make sure the corners don't get too thick and clumpy.

Tear the mozzarella cheese into small pieces and scatter on the base. Grate some black pepper over it, and then add the boiled greens.

Mix the egg and the double cream in a bowl, and add a large pinch of dried mixed herbs. Pour this mixture over the quiches.

Place in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes until the egg and cream mixture has set.

Purple Potato Salad

You don't necessarily need purple potatoes for this recipe, but I just couldn't resist them last time I went shopping. They are so beautiful and inviting, and so vibrant when you cut into them. Of course they lose a lot of their colour when boiled, but you still end up with thrillingly blue tatties.

I think a potato salad goes with most things; Sunday roast, boiled greens, juicy salad, barbecue, ... and the list goes on. I had mine with boiled asparagus and a salad, and it was delicious.

Serves 2

4 medium size potatoes
2 handfuls of broadbeans (frozen)
2 eggs
4 spring onions
2 tablespoons of sour cream
2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
a pinch of freshly ground pepper
a pinch of freshly ground sea salt

Wash your potatoes and cut them into bite size pieces (you're going to chop them up anyway, so you might as well save on cooking time by chopping them before boiling). Place in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to the boil. Add the frozen broadbeans, and let the water get back to boiling. Boil until the potatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.

While the potatoes and broadbeans boil, also boil your eggs until they are hard-boiled but not green, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Finely chop the spring onions, and place with the rest of the cold ingredients in a bowl. Drain the boiled veg. and the egg, and shell the egg. Chop the egg into pieces, and mix all the ingredients together.

Asparagus & Samphire Salad

A warming salad can be just the thing to round off a warm summers day. It's light and delicate, easy and quick to make, and gently warms you while the temperature drops and the evening draws in. There are unlimited possibilities for ideas, but here's one which contains samphire, a salty march vegetable that's both tasty and nutritious. And being quite salty, it's perfect for a warm day when you need to replenish some of the salt you lost during the day.

Serves 2

20 cherry tomatoes
2 eggs
200g broadbeans (frozen)
2 bunches asparagus
80g samphire
a few salad leaves
4 stalks of spring onion

Turn your oven on to 180^oC  and slice the tomatoes in half. Place them on a baking tray and roast for about 15 to 20 minutes then remove from the oven.

While the tomatoes are roasting, boil the egg to your preference. I like them hard-boiled but not green, so I boil them for 6 to 7 minutes. Shell your egg and leave it in hand-warm water until you need it.

At the same time as you start boiling the eggs, also bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Add the broadbeans and cook for 10 minutes. Then add the asparagus, leave to boil for 4 minutes, and finally add the samphire and cook for a further 4 minutes. (If you are using tinned broadbeans, drain them, and add them last when the sampire has only got one more minute to cook.)

Tear the salad leaves into pieces, and place on plates. Finely chop the spring onion and scatter then over the salad leaves. Drain the greens and add to your plates. Then divide the tomatoes evenly, and finally slice the eggs lengthways and place round the edge of the plates.

If you want you could add a little drizzle of olive oil, or even a vinaigrette. The Lemon and Maple syrup vinaigrette goes quite well.

Lemon & Maple Syrup Vinaigrette

The simplest things are often the nicest, so also with vinaigrettes. You can buy expensive bottles containing a long list of ingredients; or you can make your own, much simpler, versions. This particular vinaigrette is a sweet and sour one, perfect with salads containing something bitter, and also perfect with roast vegetables.

Serves 2

15 ml lemon juice (the juice of half a lemon)
5 ml olive oil
10 ml maple syrup

Measure the ingredients and add to a small jar, and mix thoroughly before serving. There is no need to be too worried about exact measurements, as long as you get the proportions more or less right.