Dietary: Dairy-Free

This recipe demonstrates just how simple it is to make flavoured sugar syrups at home – it is worth the extra effort for really spectacular cocktails. The hibiscus turns this Pisco Sour into a fantastic bright pink colour.

Start by making the hibiscus sugar syrup. Add the sugar, water and hibiscus to a small pan and gently bring to the boil. Allow the mixture to bubble away until all the sugar has dissolved. Then remove from the heat and allow to cool. Once cool, pass through a sieve to remove the flowers and store in an airtight glass bottle or jar in the fridge until ready to use.

To make the hibiscus pisco sour start by adding the pisco, lime juice, hibiscus syrup, Maldon salt and egg white to a cocktail shaker. Shake well for 1 – 2 minutes until foamy. Then add ice cubes to the shaker and mix again well. Strain this into cocktail glasses such as a classic coupe. Garnish with a few dots of angostura bitters and a dried hibiscus flower.

You will not miss the Amaretto in this alcohol-free variety! The combination of pineapple and almond extract tastes very similar to the original and makes a delicious sweet and sour cocktail.

In a cocktail shaker add the Maldon salt, sugar syrup and almond extract. Mix together well to dissolve the salt into the sugars. Then fill the shaker with ice and add the pineapple juice, lemon juice and egg white. Shake well again for 1 – 2 minutes.

Strain the mocktail into two tumbler glasses filled with ice. Garnish with a slice of fresh pineapple.

Did you know Havan, Cuba is where the the mojito cocktail originated from, with the main components of this refreshing cocktail being rum, or ‘aguardiente de caña’ which means burning water, with also the sweeter elements of lime, sugarcane juice and of course, mint!

We’ve taken on the classic and giving it our own refreshing twist with our alcohol-free mocktail which is bursting full of Summer flavours. The watermelon and basil is a fresh tasting alternative to the traditional lime and mint mojito, giving it a slightly sweeter flavour when a pinch of Maldon Salt is added to the sugar syrup mixture.

  1. In a blender, add the watermelon and blitz until smooth – then pass this through a sieve to remove any pips.
  2. In two tall highball glasses start with a handful of basil leaves in each, 1 tbsp of sugar syrup and a pinch of Maldon salt. Then muddle these together using a muddler (or similar) to break down the basil leaves and infuse the flavours.
  3. Add the lime juice, fill the glass with ice and finally top up with the strained watermelon juice. Mix together.
  4. To serve, garnish with a small triangle of watermelon, a slice of lime and some basil leaves.

A traditional Moscow mule contains Vodka, lime juice and ginger beer – this middle eastern version has the addition of pomegranate juice and fresh mint which works brilliantly alongside the Smoky Baba Ghanoush, perfect for hot summer evenings or BBQs.

In a tumbler glass add the vodka, lime juice and pinch of Maldon salt and mix together. Fill the glass with ice and then add the pomegranate juice. Top up with ginger beer and garnish with pomegranate seeds, a slice of fresh ginger and a sprig of mint. Serve immediately with smoky baba ghanoush and crudites.

Baba Ghanoush is a Lebanese dish which comprises of soft aubergine and spices – it’s a delicious alternative to Hummus and is works brilliantly with the fresh crispy crudites. Serve alongside pomegranate and ginger Mule cocktails.

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Place the aubergine on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Place in the oven and roast for 45 minutes – 1 hour (depending on the size of your aubergine) until the outer skin is blackened and charred but the inside is soft and tender.

Allow the aubergine to cool, before slicing open and scooping out the tender flesh and discarding the skins. In a food processor add the soft aubergine, garlic, 2 tbsp olive oil, tahini, cumin, paprika and parsley and then a generous pinch of Maldon smoked salt and some cracked black pepper. Blend together until it is smooth.

Place the baba ghanoush in a bowl and drizzle with some olive oil, then top with a sprinkling of za’atar and Maldon smoked salt. Serve alongside crudites or flatbreads to dip and a delicious Pomegranate, Honey and Ginger Mule. 

Negroni Sbagliato Cocktail with Prosecco

Did you know ‘sbagliato’ in Italian means ‘mistaken’ or ‘bungled’. This is how the the delicious Negroni Sbagliato cocktail was invented…by mistake! A traditional Negroni is made from Campari, which is bitter tasting liqueur mixed with sweet vermouth and gin.

The Negroni Spagliato is a take on the classic, where Campai and sweet vermouth are added, however the gin is replaced with sparkling wine or prosecco. As a result, the use of prosecco will make it less alcoholic, with the bubbles adding an elegant flavour and gentle fizz as you take a sip.

As you would with a traditional Negroni, you can serve these in stem of flute glass, garnished with orange peel or grapefruit zest.

Why Add Salt To A Negroni Sbagliato?

Adding a pinch of Maldon Salt will counteract the bitter notes that a typical Negroni has, and intensifies the sweeter notes of the the Red Vermouth and Prosecco to come through.

  1. Ahead of preparation, keep your Campari and Red Vermouth chilled in the fridges before use.
  2. Add the measurements of Campari and Red Vermouth in to a champagne flute or stem glass. Add a small pinch of Maldon Salt.
  3. Mix well with a bar spoon until the salt has completely dissolved into the spirits.
  4. Top the glass with chilled prosecco.
  5. To serve, garnish with orange peel or grapefruit zest over ice.

For this recipe we want courgettes to char and not release their water, so it is important not to salt the courgettes in advance. The strong seasoning (that courgettes love) comes in a vinegar and herb dressing. Don’t skimp on the Maldon salt here, courgettes need to be seasoned properly because of their high water content. Also, if you dress the courgettes while they are still hot or warm, they will absorb the aromatic sweet, sour, and salty dressing and will be delicious eaten straight away or even the next day. You can use any good-quality vinegar you like, and pretty much any combination of soft herbs works. I have tons of oregano, marjoram and chives growing in my garden, so that’s what I use, but a mixture of tarragon, dill and basil also works beautifully. If you do happen to come across nasturtium leaves and flowers, they will add a beautiful peppery taste to the dish.

If your courgettes are small, slice them in two lengthways. Slightly fatter small courgettes can be cut lengthways into quarters, and if your courgettes are massive, cut them in half across and then into quarters lengthways.

Put the cut courgettes into large bowl and drizzle over the oil, then give them a good toss, making sure they are slicked in oil. Do not be tempted to season with salt here! Remember the dressing will season them once they are charred.

I use a plancha set over some glowing embers in my fire pit. But you can use a griddle pan or even a frying pan – either over your barbecue or over the hob. Make sure the plancha is hot and then put the courgettes in cut side down. Don’t be tempted to turn them too quickly. You want the beautiful char to come through. Turn them on the other side and cook some more, until all the sides are well-charred and courgettes feel softer.

Meanwhile, pick the leaves off your herbs. Cut the garlic roughly and put it into a pestle and mortar and add the 1/2 tbsp of Maldon. Remember you are seasoning 700g of courgettes, so this amount of salt is not too much. Now start bashing the garlic with the salt, the flakes will help crush that garlic into a paste in no time. Now add the herbs and bash some more. It’s ok for the herbs to be simply bruised rather than pulverised. Add the vinegar and the honey and give it all a good mix and a taste. At this point you can work with your taste buds and add more vinegar, honey or salt. Keep in mind that the dressing should taste strong, almost on the verge of being over seasoned. Courgettes will release their water and will dilute the dressing, so don’t be shy with the seasoning.

Scrape the dressing into the bowl where you had the oiled courgettes. Then when the courgettes are sufficiently charred and soft, drop them into the bowl with the dressing. Give them a good stir to cover and taste. If it needs more seasoning, do add some more.

Pile the courgettes on to a serving plate and sprinkle over the flowers and leaves of nasturtium, borage or any other pretty edible leaves or flowers.

This dish is fantastic piled into a pita bread and some grilled halloumi or serve alongside some grilled fish or chicken.

We’ve teamed up with the talented Olia Hercules to create a refreshing and zingy salad, perfect for light lunch or as a side dish to a hearty meal like spatchcock chicken.

The salad contains all the flavours that Olia enjoys! Beetroot is paired with vibrant chicory wedges and bursts of orange segments to bring a gentle sweetness to the dish. The dish is inspired by an amazing recipe from Georgia called charkhali. The original dish is fantastic, and involves boiled beetroot tossed in a spicy sour plum puree, flavoured with pennyroyal mint, garlic, dill and Georgian spices. Olia goes a step further by charring the beetroot and cooking the plum sauce over fire, adding an amazing smokiness to the whole dish!

Here is how to boil beetroot…

Young beetroot with leaves work best here, if yours are large, simply boil them for much longer, until you can pierce them with a tip of a knife.

  1. To boil the beetroot, simply put them into a pan, whole, with the skins still on. If you have beetroots with decent leaves and stalks, do not throw those away! What Olia likes to do is bring a large pan over the flame of the hob and lower the beetroot roots inside and cover those with water, leaving the leaves to hang over the side of the pan. Leave the beetroot boils whilst the leaves hang out.
  2. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes, dropping the leaves into the pot for the last 2 minutes of cooking. The beetroot is ready when you can pierce a knife through them quite easily. You want the beetroots to be al dente, but pierceable. Drop the leave into the pot for the last 2 minutes of cooking.
  3. Drain them when ready and run under a cold tap to cool them down. Then slice lengthways. This can be well in advance of your barbecuing, even a day or two before (just keep them in the fridge until ready).

How to make the plum sauce…

The early addition of Maldon Salt will help the plums to release their juices quickly, speeding up the sauce-making process. You can use other dark fruits too, including blackberries, sour cherries and blackcurrants. Just make sure to balance the sweetness according to how sweet the fruit is (i.e. if your blackberries are pretty sweet, omit the honey). You can use chilli flakes instead of fresh chilli too. As long as you have, sweet, sour, salty, slightly spicy flavours – your beetroot will sing and will turn the biggest beetroot hater into a beetroot lover!

  1. If your plums are not the ripest and tastiest, it is not the end of the world. Just chop them up into smaller pieces to help them cook quicker. If your plums are ripe and separate easily when twisted, simply do that – split them in half and take out the stones.
  2. Put the chopped plums into a cast iron pot (or another flame-proof pot) and pop it on the plancha or a barbecue. The embers should be barely glowing. Add 1 tbsp of Maldon Salt. This will help to draw out the juice out of the plums, speeding up the cooking process.
  3. Add the garlic and chillies to the plums as well as the dill, give it all a good stir and bring to the boil. The plums should break down and start bubbling beautifully fairly soon.
  4. Taste the sauce once it breaks down, add some honey or a touch of brown sugar if you feel like you want a little sweetness there. The original Georgian sauce is pretty sour so it’s all down to individual taste.
  5. The sauce needs about 20 minutes of cooking or until the plums break down properly.

Cooking the beetroot…

  1. While the sauce is cooking nicely, put the beetroots into a bowl and drizzle over the oil, toss well to coat.
  2. Put the beetroots and their stalks and leaves on the hot plancha or griddle pan or cast-iron pan set over the coals of a barbecue and cook them until gently charred.

Adding the chicory…

Most other bitter leaves, especially radicchio, will do beautifully here, but Olia likes to use chicory for both a hearty crunch and a slightly sweeter taste.

  1. Cut the chicory lengthways into elegant wedges and put them into the bowl where you oiled your beetroots.
  2. When the beetroot is nicely charred, add them to the chicory – don’t worry about the heat, it’s ok for the chicory to get that little bit of residual heat.
  3. If the plum sauce isn’t quite reduced enough yet, Olia likes to skim some of its juice off the top and pour it into the bowl with the chicory and the beets. Put as many as 5 tbsp in. You want the vegetables to be nicely coated in the spicy pink juices!
  4. Taste the beetroot or chicory and add more Maldon Salt if you feel it needs it.

Assembling the salad…

  1. Layer the beets and their leaves and the chicory on a beautiful platter or a large serving plate and sprinkle over the tarragon and mint or any other soft herbs that you really love or have at hand. Coriander, dill and basil make a beautiful trio.
  2. Drizzle over some more oil to make the salad glisten and serve alongside a barbecue feast.

How long does this recipe keep?

This salad keeps very well, especially if covered with more of the plum dressing (which will almost pickle it all!). Just cover the leftovers with more of the plum tkemali, put it into an air-tight container and keep for a up to 5 days.

What can you do with the leftover plum tkemali?

You can blitz the rest of the plum tkemali into a puree and keep in a small sterilised jar in the fridge for up to a week or even longer. It is good served as a condiment – with roast duck, pork, roasted vegetables and even fish. It also freezes beautifully.

The day before you want to cook, dry brine the chicken. Make a few deep slashes in the meat of each chicken leg and sprinkle the salt all over, rubbing it in well. Set on a rack hung over a tray and slide into the slide uncovered overnight.
The following day, fire up the barbecue ready for direct and indirect cooking.
Set the chicken onto the grill bars away from the fire and leave to cook indirectly, with the lid down, for a good 20 minutes, turning and rotating once or twice.
While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce by whisking together the mayonnaise, vinegar, lemon juice, horseradish, crushed peppercorns and chilli flakes in a bowl. Season to taste with salt. Transfer half to a small serving bowl to use as a dressing for the finished dish. Take the other half to the barbecue and have a silicone pastry brush ready for basting.
Tip the bread cubes into a fireproof pan (no wooden or plastic handles) and drizzle over 2 tbsp of the olive oil. Use the flat of a large knife to bruise the garlic cloves and add them to the pan with the rosemary. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil onto the tomato halves and season with salt and pepper.
Once the chicken has had its 20 minutes’ cooking time, begin basting with the sauce. Brush all over regularly and keep cooking and turning for a further 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. When tested with a digital probe thermometer in the thickest part of the leg, it should read 74°C.
When you start basting the chicken, set the pan of bread over the direct fire and cook until crisp and golden, tossing to cook evenly. Remove the croutons from the fire and set aside. At the same time, rest the tomato halves over the fire so they grill and soften, turning to cook both sides.
To serve, scatter the watercress onto a large platter and top with the grilled tomatoes. Add the chicken legs and sprinkle over the croutons. Drizzle with some of the reserved sauce and serve the rest alongside.

Place your prawns into a tupperware container with a lid (or bowl with clingfilm). Mix all the remaining ingredients together in a small bowl until nice and even. Season generously with Maldon salt and pepper and pour over the prawns. Place the lid tightly on the container and shake to marinate the prawns. You can leave them for 30 minutes if you wish but can cook immediately too.

Sear prawns on the BBQ on both sides until opaque and bright coral in colour, adding a touch more Maldon salt on each side. Once cook, serve immediately.