Sherry Onion Soup with Saffron

The Spanish combination of onions, sherry and saffron gives this soup an enthralling flavour that is perfect for the opening course of a meal. The addition of ground almonds to thicken the soup gives it a wonderful texture and taste.

Ingredients:

40g butter

2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced

2.5ml chopped garlic

Pinch of saffron threads

50g blanched almonds, toasted and finely ground

750ml vegetable or chicken stock

45ml sherry

2.5ml paprika

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To Garnish:

30ml flaked or slivered almonds, toasted

Chopped fresh parsley or coriander

Method:

Melt the butter in a heavy pan over a low heat. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to ensure that they are thoroughly coated in the melted butter. Cover the pan and cook very gently, stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes, or until the onions are soft and golden in colour.

Add the saffron threads to the pan and cook, covered, for 3-4 minutes. Add the ground almonds and cook, stirring constantly, for a further 2-3 minutes, until the almonds are golden.

Pour the stock and sherry into the pan and stir in 5ml salt and the paprika. Season the soup with plenty of black pepper. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer gently for about 10 minutes.

Blend the soup well with a stick blender until the soup is completely smooth. Reheat slowly, stirring occasionally, without allowing the soup to come to the boil. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if required.

Ladle the soup into heated bowls, garnish with the toasted almonds and a little chopped fresh parsley or coriander and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Mango, Tomato and Red Onion Salad

This salad makes an appetizing starter. The mango needs to be under-ripe so that it is not too sweet and still hold a good bit of firmness and does not break up when slicing. To add a little extra for a full meal add some sliced continental ham, chopped chorizo, flaked Cajun grilled chicken, strips of spicy marinated and grilled tuna, Carpaccio of tuna or slices of smoked salmon.

Ingredients:

1 firm under-ripe mango

2 large tomatoes, sliced

½ red onion, sliced into rings

½ cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced

Snipped chives to garnish

For the Dressing:

30ml sunflower oil

15ml lemon juice

1 clove garlic, crushed

2.5ml hot pepper sauce

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Halve the mango lengthways, cutting either side of the stone. Cut the flesh into slices and peel away the skin.

Arrange the tomatoes, cucumber and mango on a large serving plate.

To make the dressing, blend the oil, lemon juice, pepper sauce and seasoning in a blender or food processor, or place the dressing ingredients in a screw top jar and shake vigorously.

Pour the dressing over the salad and serve garnished with snipped chives.

Peperonata

This Southern Italian dish is most often served as a vegetable or as a sauce for pasta. 

It can be stored in a mason jar in the fridge for about 1 week and makes a delicious salad.

Ingredients:

4 yellow peppers, deseeded and cut into strips

4 yellow peppers, deseeded and cut into strips

2 onions, peeled and sliced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

Olive oil

2 firm, ripe tomatoes, deseeded and cubed

1-2ml chilli powder

45ml wine vinegar

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and fry the peppers, onion and garlic for 5 minutes. Cover and cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes until tender. Add the tomatoes and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and mix in the chilli powder, vinegar and seasoning. Allow to cool and serve at room temperature.

Radish and Sour Cream Salad

Ingredients:

24 medium radishes, thinly sliced

1 small red onion, cut into thin rings

300ml sour cream

15ml wine vinegar

5ml sugar

5ml salt

Black pepper

Method:

Place the vinegar, sugar, salt and a grinding of black pepper in a salad bowl and stir thoroughly. Beat in the sour cream, a few spoonsful at a time.

Fold in the radishes and onions. Add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Chill in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.

Beetroot and Onion Salad

When selecting beetroots, don’t buy limp leaved beets; choose instead undamaged vegetables that won’t lose moisture and flavour when they are cooked. Furthermore, when cooking the beets, leave the whiskery roots and a little of the leaf stalks intact. From a cooking point of view, it’s good to have beets of an even size.

Ingredients:

5 large cooked beetroot, skinned and thinly sliced

2 medium onions, thinly sliced

60ml vinegar

Sugar

Salt and pepper

Method:

Combine the beetroot and onion in a bowl.

Sprinkle with sugar, salt and pepper to taste and pour over the vinegar.

Allow the salad to stand for about 30 minutes before serving or store in a large sterilised mason jar in the fridge.

Butter Bean, Tomato and Red Onion Salad

Serve this salad with toasted pitta bread for a fresh summer lunch, or as an accompaniment to meat cooked on the braai or barbecue.

To make a variation add a 200g tin of tuna. Drain and flake the tuna and stir into the bean salad. For extra colour and flavour, stir in a handful of pitted black olives and a handful of chopped fresh parsley or a teaspoonful of capers and a couple of gherkins, chopped or sliced.

To make a wholesome version of the Italian salad, Panzanella, tear half a loaf of ciabatta into bit size pieces and stir into the salad. Leave to stand for 20 minutes before serving.

Ingredients:

2 x 400g cans butter beans, rinsed and drained

4 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 red onion, finely sliced

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

45ml herb infused olive oil

Method:

Mix together the beans, tomatoes and onions in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the oil.

Cover the bowl with cling wrap and chill for 20 minutes before serving.