Ingredient: Vegetables

It’s family meal night tonight within our collaboration series with Jesse Jenkins, A.D.I.P!

A Big ‘Green’ Mac & Cheese is a classic meal that Jesse’s wife and he often enjoy with their kids. A good pinch of Maldon Salt in the breadcrumb topping takes it to another level – and it’s easy to scrape aside for the kid’s portions if you have very little ones.

  1. Cook the pasta for about a minute less than the packet instructions. Jesse then rinses it so it stops cooking, lightly coat it in olive oil and set aside.
  2. For the topping – mix the breadcrumbs, grated cheese, olive oil, and a pinch or two of Maldon Salt.
  3. Blend the greens in a food processor or blender with the ice. The frozen peas and ice cubes add moisture while keeping the mixture cool as it blends. You want the greens to stay as vibrant as possible. If you want a very smooth texture for the greens (sometimes easiest with kids) just add a little water as you blend.
  4. Make a roux by cooking the butter and flour on a medium heat, stirring as you go. When it’s golden brown and the flour is fully mixed through add half the milk and whisk into the roux. When it becomes thick add the remaining milk and cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted then add the greens and cooked pasta.
  5. Transfer to a baking tray or keep in the pan if it’s oven-safe.
  6. Sprinkle all over with the bread crumb mix – bake at 225 for 10-15 minutes.
  7. Serve immediately.

We are delighted to announce the second recipe to our collaboration with Jesse Jenkins, A.D.I.P, is the delectable bibimbap.

Bibimbap is a Korean rice dish. The term bibim means “mixing” and bap is cooked rice. It’s one of Jesse’s favourites and a great way to make a meal for one using up the vegetable odds and ends you have to hand.

The simple combination of a pinch of Maldon Salt and sesame oil is delicious…A little Maldon goes a long way – there are 300 pinches in one 250g box!

  1. Thinly slice cucumbers before seasoning with a pinch of Maldon Salt, sugar, and vinegar.
  2. Set aside and drain before serving.
  3. Roughly cut your vegetables into similar sizes before sautéing in a splash of oil on medium heat. Cook until just tender, around 3-5 minutes. Season with a pinch of Maldon Salt and sesame oil. You can sauté all the veggies together but Jesse prefers to keep them separate until serving as mixing them in the bowl before you eat is very enjoyable!
  4. Put the vegetables, quick pickles, fried egg, sesame oil and spicy sauce over your rice and mix.
  5. Serve immediately – delicious!

Looking for a spicy, flavoursome side dish to jazz-up your dinner this week? Try our lip-smackingly good Bang-Bang Cauliflower! It’s quick, easy and packs a punch of flavour from the spices of smoked paprika and cayenne pepper. We also sweeten the dish through the use of runny honey and lime juice to give a zesty kick.

Why is it called ‘Bang-Bang’? It is actually derived from the Chinese cuisine and manner in which meat would be tenderized from using a stick or a hammer, creating a ‘banging’-like motion when hitting against the protein.

Make sure to add a generous sprinkle of Maldon Salt, as the salt will make sure the cauliflower retains its flavour and texture whilst roasting – avoiding a soggy cauli!

  1. Heat the oven to 180C.
  2. Line a large baking tray with paper.
  3. In a large bowl mix together the flour, spices, Smoked Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper. Slowly whisk in the milk until you have a smooth batter.
  4. Add the panko to a shallow bowl. First dip the cauliflower florets in the batter and then coat them in the panko, making sure each piece is well coated, before arranging on the baking tray.
  5. Roast them in the oven for 25 – 30 mins, turning them halfway, until they are crispy and golden.
  6. While they are cooking, add all the ingredients for the sauce in a small pan and gently heat so it is just warm and melted.
  7. When the cauliflower is cooked remove from the oven and then toss in the sticky sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds, spring onions and serve with lime wedges.

Have you ever tried baked ricotta before?! Try our recipe with Bold Bean Co and you will become hooked on the soft creaminess of this traybake, mixed with Queen red beans, beetroot and purple sprouting broccoli to give a nutty, earthiness to the dish. Sprinkle with a final pinch of Maldon Salt to enhance the sweetness of the gently baked ricotta cheese.

  1. Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan/gas 7).
  2. Tip the red beans, beetroot, thyme, shallots and garlic into a large roasting tin (big enough to fit everything in in a single layer). Mix with the honey with a good pinch of Maldon Salt and olive oil.
  3. Mix well, then put in the oven for 30 minutes.
  4. Toss the broccoli with some olive oil and add to the tray, dotted throughout the beetroot & bean mix.
  5. At the same time, make a space in the centre of the tin, and gently upend the ricotta into it.
  6. Dress it with the olive oil, Maldon Sea Salt, the zest of half a lemon and freshly ground black pepper.
  7. After this, return the tin to the oven for a further 20 minutes, lowering the temperature to 200C (180C fan/gas 6).
  8. When the traybake is cooked, drizzle over the extra-virgin olive oil, the other half of the lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice, and scatter on a few more thyme sprigs and a final pinch of Maldon Salt before serving.

The only thing that survived this winter’s frost in Olia’s garden was kale, so she is using it in anything and everything! Use any dark greens that you have – spinach, cabbage, spring greens, wild garlic or nettles if you go foraging. Leeks give this pie a nice body and sweetness.

  1. Clean the leeks well and slice lengthways in half, then slice thinly across. I only trim the dry edge of the green part of the leek, but use up the rest of the green part. Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan or pot and add the leeks, cook over a medium-low heat until they soften, then add the garlic followed by the spinach and the kale and a generous pinch of Maldon Salt. At this point I cover the pan with a lid, this will help steam the greens. You want everything to yield and become nice and soft. Add the spring onions at the very end and cook for 2 minutes.
  2. Let the filling cool down a little, then stir in the feta and plenty of black pepper. Butter a pie dish or a small deep tray and put the filling in.
  3. Brush the melted butter over each filo sheet and crumple it on top of the filling.
  4. Preheat the oven to 180C fan. Cook for 30 minutes or until the top is golden and the filling piping hot.

We’ve teamed up with our good friend’s Bold Bean & Co in creating a perfectly spiced bean dish, accompanied with sweet, slow roasted carrots and crispy kale to add texture.

Bold Bean & Co’s Organic White Beans (haricot beans) are perfect to use for this dish as their bean’s are slow-cooked which allows them to hold their shape, creating the perfect, buttery and smooth flavour.

Amongst a bundle of spices such as chilli, cumin and garam masala, we add carrots to bring a gentle sweetness to the dish, with also a generous pinch of Maldon Salt to enhance the sweet notes and counteract the bitterness.

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C.
  2. Start by roasting the carrots. Peel the carrots and cut them into 2-inch pieces, then toss in some olive oil and 1 tsp of cumin seeds. Season with Maldon Salt and pepper and place in the oven to roast for 15 minutes.
  3. While the carrots are cooking, start the spiced beans.
  4. Melt the coconut oil in a large sauté pan. Add the diced onion and cook gently until softened. Then add the garlic, chilli, and ginger and cook for another minute. Then add the cumin seeds, turmeric, black mustard seeds, garam masala and ground coriander and cook for another minute. Follow this with the chopped tomatoes. Cook these down gently until they collapse and soften.
  5. Once the tomatoes are soft, add the Bold Beans & Co White Beans – including their juices – and the coconut milk to the pan, and mix. Then gently simmer this for 10 minutes until lovely and thickened. Season well with Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper.
  6. Once the carrots are cooked remove from the oven and tip out of the baking tray. In the same baking tray then add the kale leaves.
  7. Drizzle in olive oil and a good pinch of Maldon Salt and scrunch together with your hands so they are well coated. Place this back in the oven for 5 – 10 minutes until crispy but still green.
  8. Remove from the oven.
  9. To serve, spoon the beans into bowls and top with the cumin roasted carrots, crispy kale, and some coriander. Serve alongside some natural yoghurt and mango chutney.

For this Shakshuka dish, I’m using eggs from my hens, and cooking it over live fire, but this can just as easily be made on the hob at home.

  1. Finely slice a white onion, add a pinch of Maldon Salt and cook until softened.
  2. Add chopped garlic, cloves, smoked paprika, tinned tomatoes, sherry vinegar, pepper and another sprinkle of Maldon Salt.
  3. Reduce the tomatoes slightly. At this point you could also add other veg like chestnut mushrooms or finely chopped courgettes but on this occasion, I’m keeping it simple.
  4. Using the back of a spoon, make small divots in the tomato sauce for the eggs, cover, and leave to cook on the coals or place into the oven until the eggs are cooked.

This sweet and sour chutney is made with a variety of home-grown tomatoes – I’m using un-ripened tomatoes, which are left behind at the end of the harvest but are delicious when fried or used in chutneys.  

  1. Start by slicing the onions and dicing your tomatoes. Put both in a pan on a low heat along with cloves, star anise, sugar, wine, pepper and a good sprinkle of Maldon Salt.
  2. Slowly cook the ingredients on a medium heat, stirring regularly.
  3. The chutney is ready when it has reduced by about 3 quarters and the texture has turned jammy.
  4. Serve on fresh toast with a poached egg, add pepper, a final pinch of Maldon Salt and enjoy!

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 salad is inspired by an amazing dish 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!

A quick pickling recipe

The pickling section of this recipe is very important to bring life to the dish. It is also very easy and quick to do in the comfort of your own home! With a combination of vinegar, honey and Maldon Salt, you need to mix the beetroot slices into the season vinegar for 15 minutes. However, if you would a stronger pickling flavour, you can leave the beetroot slice in the mixture overnight to really elevate the flavours!

Here is how to make the beetroot and chicory salad…

  1. To boil the beetroot, simply put it whole, skin on into a pan of cold water.
  2. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes or until a knife can pierce them quite easily.
  3. Cut the chicory into thin wedges.
  4. Segment the oranges (do watch a quick video online if you don’t know how to do it).
  5. Add the vinegar, honey and the 1 tsp Maldon Salt into a large bowl, mixing well. The vinegar will help dissolve the honey and sea salt flakes. Set aside.
  6. In the meantime, the beetroot should have cooled off by now. Begin rubbing off its skin and cut into thin slices.
  7. Drop the beetroot slices into the seasoned vinegar. You can leave it there to pickle for as quick as 15 minutes or do this in advance and leave them macerate in vinegar overnight for a stronger flavour.
  8. In a large bowl, add the now pickled beetroot slices. Next, begin adding the chicory wedges, orange segments, olives and onion. Give it all a good mix until everything is blended together.
  9. Arrange on a serving plate, drizzle over oil and add the dill.
  10. Serve immediately. If there is any leftover, you can store in the fridge for up to 1 week.

What dressing could you use for this salad?

A dressing that would pair perfect with this salad would be a vinaigrette using fruit vinegar and honey. It is very easy to make and requires very few ingredients

  1. In a bowl, add the ingredients and mix well, ensuring everything is coated evenly.
  2. Add a few dill fonds into the mixture.
  3. Once finished, let it chill in the fridge for a few minutes to let the flavours infuse together.
  4. Once your salad is assembled, drizzle the dressing over the dish generously.

Fermented food is great for your gut and this organic sauerkraut is such a treat to make and eat.

  1. Chop the cabbage or put it through a mandolin, adding the spices or herbs of your choice. Put the cabbage into a mixing bowl and add Maldon Salt.
  2. Massage the cabbage for about 3-5 minutes until moist. You should see liquid start to appear when you squeeze it. Salt plays a key role in the fermentation process, encouraging the growth of healthy bacteria whilst also killing off any bad bacteria.
  3. Sterilize a jar with boiling water and then fill the jar with the cabbage, pushing it down so that the sauerkraut has no air bubbles in it. Ideally you want the cabbage to be fully submerged in the liquid.
  4. Leave in your kitchen for at least 5 days. You can leave it for longer if you prefer a tangier flavour, but once open, be sure to store in the fridge.