Versatile veggie summer treats

Fancy going meat-free for a fab feast? Try these super recipes for a veggie meal...

THERE is an abundance of fantastic produce available at this time of year, so head for your local farmers’ market so that you can make the most of summer’s bounty. Courgettes, runner beans and squash are all in season and are very versatile – courgette, for example, can be stir-fried, roasted, stuffed, grated and made into a fritter, or grated to make a lovely moist cake.

If you grow your own produce, and you find you have an overload of any vegetable, or tomatoes that won’t ripen, then make a chutney. Chutneys need to be left for six to eight weeks to mature, then they are perfect with cheese. Better still, they are very simple to make.

This year, many people are reporting that their apples are ripe far earlier than usual, more than likely because of our warm spring, so look out for the first crisp, tasty apples. They round off a meal perfectly when eaten raw, but can be put to a multitude of other purposes, a delicious crumble, for instance, where apples can be combined with blackberries to create a heavenly combo – especially when topped with fresh cream.

Here, top chef Angela Gray makes great use of courgettes, turning them into a deliciously moreish dish. The two salad recipes from our other chefs show that there is much more to this muchmaligned side dish than limp lettuce and a hefty slice of tomato.

Healthy food can be interesting, colourful and fun.

COURGETTE FRITTERS AND YOGURT DIP

From Angela Gray’s Summer Recipes published by Graffeg, pictures by Huw Jones

Ingredients

For the fritters:

75g grated potato

½ small onion, very thinly sliced 1 fat garlic clove, grated with a little sea salt

200g courgette, coarsely grated ½ teaspoon sea salt

1 medium free-range egg

2 sprigs mint, leaves chopped

3 sprigs parsley, leaves chopped ¼ teaspoon black pepper

25g self-raising flour

For the yoghurt dip:

200g Greek yoghurt,

¼ teaspoon sea salt,

Pinch of black pepper, 2 tablespoons mixed, chopped herbs,

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

Method

Place all the ingredients for the fritters in a bowl and mix together. You may need a little more flour depending on the moisture level in the potato and courgette. The finished mixture should be thick and creamy.

Heat a large/wide pan ¼ filled with sunflower/olive oil, pop a little of the fritter mixture to test the heat.

When it starts to sizzle, add a dessertspoon of the mixture, about six at a time, and cook until a medium golden colour, turn over to complete the cooking.

Drain well on double-layered kitchen paper.

Plate the fritters on a plate and serve with the yoghurt dip.

HALLOUMI WITH CAESAR DRESSING

From the newly-reopened Topstak Gallery Café in the Vale of Glamorgan

Ingredients

Lettuce of your choice

Day-old bread cut into small chunks to make croutons

4 tbs grated parmesan

400g pack of halloumi, cut into eight slices For the dressing:

Half a cup Greek yogurt

Juice of one lemon

2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

1 clove of garlic

Shavings of parmesan (use a potato peeler) Handful of walnuts

Method

Rinse the lettuce and dry the moisture off well to prevent making the salad soggy. Chop into large strips. Make the dressing by blending all the ingredients in a food processor.

Pan-fry the bread pieces in hot olive oil until they are crisp and golden on both sides.

Cut the halloumi into slices and brush each side with olive oil and grill or pan fry in a little oil until they are richly coloured on both sides.

Be careful, as they can quickly burn.

Toss the lettuce, croutons, parmesan and dressing in a large serving bowl before adding the halloumi.