High summer recipes

Three dishes to help you keep cool as temperatures rise.

For better or worse, the properly hot weather is here and we want light, easy and refreshing food with minimal time spent in the kitchen .

It’s also high melon season, and with that comes maximum fragrancy and flavour and very little need to do much to them. I’ve given you two melon recipes - one a refreshing starter, the other a pretty dessert - and a classic mackerel Escabèche, great served with a cold or warm herbed potato salad.

Escabèche

Colourful, fresh and tangy, it’s an easy dish that’s perfect for summer.

For 4

10 minutes preparation/ 5-7 minutes cooking

1 hour resting

The boned fillets of 4 medium-sized mackerel, skin on

2 carrots, finely sliced

4 shallots or 2 red onions, finely sliced

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 clove garlic cut into 3 or 4 slices

300 ml dry white wine

400 ml fish stock

150 ml olive oil

Fresh lemon and/or orange slices

Salt and pepper

Check carefully that there are no bones left in the fish flesh.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a medium saucepan, add the peeled carrots, cut into slices, and sweat lightly without colouring over low heat for 1 minute or 2. Then add the onions or shallots, the garlic, fennel seeds and coriander and cook together for one minute.

Pour in the white wine, oil and stock and cook for 5 -8 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Season with salt and pepper, checking the seasoning.

Place the mackerel fillets in a gratin dish, skin up, and pour the contents of the pan over them. Add the lemon and/or orange slices on top and submerge them in the hot liquid.

Cover the dish and let the fish poach and cool in this liquid. Then chill in the refrigerator for an hour or so before serving with some potato salad.

Chilled melon soup with tarragon

You’ll need a strong blender for this to tackle the ice cubes. They chill everything, obviously, but also dilute the texture. Add a dash of cider vinegar and a touch of shallot if you like, to spike it with a little acidity. You can of course use the more traditional basil, but the aniseedy tarragon go incredibly well with the sweet melon too.

For 6-8

5 minutes preparation

The flesh of 2-3, nicely ripe charentais melons

The leaves of a sprig of tarragon – about a tablespoon

3 or 4 ice cubes

Fleur de sel

White pepper

Put everything in the blender (in two lots depending on the size of your machine) and blitz until smooth. Season and serve in pretty glasses or dishes garnished with a little tarragon.

Photo: Joann Pai, from “Un Déjeuner à La Campagne”.

Melon with tarragon sugar

A close cousin to my strawberries with basil sugar, and just as easy and delicious. A light dessert in just a few minutes.

For 4

10 minutes preparation

1 nice Charentais or cantaloupe melon, peeled, cored, cut into thin slices

3-4 tablespoons of sugar

3 tablespoons tarragon leaves

Mix the tarragon with the sugar in a mini blender.

Sprinkle over the melon, let sit for a minute or two to form a pretty green syrup and serve.

Photo: Virgine Garnier from “Un Soupçon de Sucre”.

Escabèche

Colourful, fresh and tangy, it’s an easy dish that’s perfect for summer.

For 4

10 minutes preparation/ 5-7 minutes cooking

1 hour resting

 

The boned fillets of 4 medium-sized mackerel, skin on

2 carrots, finely sliced

4 shallots or 2 red onions, finely sliced

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 clove garlic cut into 3 or 4 slices

300 ml dry white wine

400 ml fish stock

150 ml olive oil

Fresh lemon and/or orange slices

Salt and pepper

 

Check carefully  that there are no bones left in the fish flesh.

 Heat a tablespoon of oil in a medium saucepan, add the peeled carrots, cut into slices, and sweat lightly without colouring over low heat for 1 minute or 2. Then add the onions or shallots, the garlic, fennel seeds and coriander and cook together for one minute.

Pour in the white wine, oil and stock and cook for 5 -8 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Season with salt and pepper, checking the seasoning.

 Place the mackerel fillets in a gratin dish, skin up,  and pour the contents of the pan over them. Add the lemon and/or orange slices on top and submerge them in the hot liquid.

Cover the dish and let the fish poach and cool in this liquid. Then chill  in the refrigerator for an hour or so before serving with some potato salad.

Photo: Virginie Garnier from “C’est de la Trish”.