This is the point in the year when being outside with a glass in your hand matters even more than being in the kitchen. Well, it does to me. Half an hour of chopping and stirring is pretty much my limit right now. With that in mind, here is a good handful of recipes that take little more than 30 minutes' preparation, leaving you free to sit in the sun while they do their thing.
Crab cakes with pea purée
I like the rich, creamy crab cake but these lighter, brighter-tasting ones seem more suited to summer eating. I serve them with a dollop of fresh pea purée.
Serves 2-3
crabmeat - 300g
a large stick of lemon grass or 2 smaller ones
zest and juice of a lime
a thumb-sized piece of ginger
spring onions - 2
a small, hot chilli
a small handful of coriander leaves
soft white breadcrumbs - 8 tbs
butter and oil for cooking
For the minted pea purée:
shelled peas - 400g
sprigs of mint - 4
olive oil - 3 tbs
Put the crabmeat into a mixing bowl. Discard the outer leaves of the lemon grass, then chop the inner leaves very finely and add the crab. Peel and finely grate the ginger, finely chop the spring onions and the chilli and gently stir into the crabmeat with the lime juice and zest, making sure not to crush the crab meat into a paste.
Fold in the chopped coriander and the breadcrumbs together with a little black pepper. Take up scoops of the mixture and pat in small thickish cakes about the diameter of a digestive biscuit. The mixture should make about six thick patties.
To make the pea purée, boil the peas and mint sprigs in lightly salted water till tender, drain and whizz peas and the mint in a food processor with the oil till smooth.
Warm a little butter and oil in a shallow pan. Lower in the crab cakes and cook till golden on each side. Serve with the pea purée.
Roast chicken wings with lemon, maple syrup and cracked pepper
This is finger food at its very best. You can double the recipe easily enough for larger numbers. The trick is to roast them till they are almost stuck to the roasting tin. Don't even think of using a knife and fork here.
Enough for two
large, free-range chicken wings - 12 (about 725g)
a large, juicy lemon
bay leaves - 5
maple syrup - 2 tbs
black peppercorns - 1 heaped tbs
olive oil - 2 tbs
sea salt flakes - 2 tsp
Check the chicken wings for stray feathers - they seem to be more prevalent on the wings than any other part of the bird. Put the wings into a roasting dish, halve the lemon and squeeze it over them, then cut up the lemon shells and tuck them, together with the bay leaves, between the chicken pieces. Drizzle over the maple syrup.
Put the peppercorns in a mortar and bash them so they crack into small pieces. They should still be knubbly, like small pieces of grit, rather than finely ground.
Mix the peppercorns with the olive oil then toss with the chicken and lemon. Scatter the salt flakes, without crushing them, over the chicken. Roast for 40-45 minutes, turning once. The chicken should be golden and sticky, the edges blackened here and there.
Five spice quail
Quail, the most diminutive bird we can roast, demands to be picked up at the table, its bones nibbled and sucked almost clean. If you can't bear such table manners and attempt to go at it with a knife and fork, you will miss the most toothsome of feasts. It is difficult to know exactly what to serve on the side with something you eat in this manner. My first choice would be a simple rice pilaf.
Serves 2
oven-ready quail - 4
a large clove of garlic
hot ground chilli powder - 1 tsp
Chinese five-spice powder - 2 slightly heaped tsp
the juice of a lemon
groundnut oil - 2 tbs
Set the oven at 200C/gas 6. Peel and mash the garlic, put it in a glass, steel or china bowl then stir in the ground chilli, the five-spice powder, lemon juice and the oil. Season generously with sea salt - a good half teaspoon. Dip the quails in and toss them gently round. You can leave them like this for several hours if it suits you, though just one hour will do.
Put the birds and any marinating juices into a small roasting tin. They should be close, but not actually touching. Roast them for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on their size, turning once. The little birds will look quite dark after the full cooking time, but this is fine. Serve them piping hot with orange or lemon wedges to squeeze and some crusty bread.
Peppers with tomatoes and basil
My version of the classic Italian baked peppers dish. Gorgeous flavours here, especially when the tomato juices mingle with the basil oil.
peppers - 1 large one per person
cherry tomatoes - 3 or 4 per person
olive oil - 75ml or so
basil leaves - a couple of handfuls
Set the oven at 200C/gas 6. Cut the peppers in half and discard the seeds and white core. Put them cut-side up in a roasting tin and baking dish. Cut the tomatoes in half or into quarters and season with salt and black pepper. Divide between the peppers. Pour a little olive oil into each pepper and bake in the preheated oven. Bake till the peppers and tomatoes are soft, about 45 minutes.
Blitz the basil leaves and about 70ml of olive oil (this will be sufficient for about 8 halves) together in blender (or use a pestle and mortar) then pour into the peppers. The basil dressing will mingle with the warm tomato juices.
Brown rice pilaf with asparagus and broad beans
Brown rice has the added pleasure of a deep nutty flavour. The smell of brown basmati drifting lazily through the house is as instantly soothing as the smell of dim sum or treacle tart.
Serves 2 as a main dish
brown basmati rice - 250g
onion - 1
butter - 50g
allspice berries - 6
cinnamon stick - 1/2
stock - 425ml
a bunch of asparagus
shelled broad beans - 150g
spring onions - 6 thin ones
large handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves
a large handful of mint leaves
Put the rice into a bowl of cold water, swish it round with your fingers until the water has turned cloudy then rinse it. Wash it again, and then again. Cover with fresh water, add a teaspoon of salt and set aside.
Peel the onion, finely chop then let it soften in the butter over medium heat with the allspice berries and cinnamon stick until translucent. Drain the rice and add to the onion together with the stock.
Bring to the boil, turn down to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for 7-8 minutes then add the asparagus and the broad beans. Season with salt and a little black pepper. Continue cooking for further for 7 or 8 minutes then test the rice for doneness. Brown rice always has a slightly nutty texture, but it shouldn't be tough. If it needs a few minutes longer, check the liquid level and let it continue cooking. Stir in the spring onions finely chopped, the parsley and mint, check the seasoning, and serve.
