TAKE A DIP

Perk up summer menus with one of these simple dips

Elevate your summer menus with one of our simple dips

Blue cheese and chive dip

Mash 100g roquefort in a bowl. Add 75g mayonnaise, 100g soured cream, 2 tsp white wine vinegar, 1 tbsp chopped chives or spring onion tops, season and stir well. Sprinkle over extra chives and serve with chicken wings or sweet potato wedges.

Beetroot, yogurt and lime dip

Cut 150g cooked beetroot into chunks and put in a small food processor with a crushed garlic clove, 3 chopped spring onions, 3 tbsp greek yogurt and 2 tsp lime juice. Season well then whizz until smooth and scrape into a bowl. Serve with grilled halloumi.

Cheat's aÏoli

Put 1 crushed garlic clove in a small bowl with 2 tbsp lemon juice and a good pinch of sea salt. Put a pinch of saffron in a serving bowl, add 1 tbsp of just-boiled water and leave for 5 minutes. Add 150g mayonnaise and 1 tsp dijon mustard to the saffron. Sieve over the lemon juice, leaving the garlic bits behind. Mix everything together really well. Serve with hot chips.

Cucumber Raita

Cut º of a large cucumber in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds. Cut into small dice and drain on kitchen paper. Finely chop º of a red onion and a green chilli. Mix the veg with 150g greek yogurt, Ω tsp ground cumin and 2 tbsp chopped mint, and season really well with sea salt. Sprinkle over a little more ground cumin if you like and serve with warm pittas.