Summer is pretty much here and it pays to get organised ahead of picnic season (and it's officially National Picnic Week at the moment, so no excuses). Here is a selection of my favourite picnic recipes that will help up your picnic game – no homous and carrot sticks here! These foolproof recipes will have everyone asking for more, and each and every recipe is simple, easy to make, and, above all, delicious. There are quick 15 minute dishes alongside some that need a little more TLC; every dish, however, is a real crowd pleaser.
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Pizza Style Puff Pastry Tart
Feeds – 8-10
Preparation time – 10 minutes
Cooking time – 25 minutes
Ingredients
450 g (1 lb) pre-rolled puff pastry (about 2 rolls)
14–16 ripe cherry tomatoes
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 small glugs of extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 white onion, sliced into rings
250 g (9 oz) mozzarella, ideally buffalo, roughly torn
5 slices of prosciutto
2 large handfuls of basil leaves
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 190°C and lightly oil two baking trays. Lay the pre-rolled pastry on the baking sheets and cook in the oven for around 15 minutes or until golden brown, risen and cooked through.
Meanwhile, place the tomatoes, oregano and olive oil in a pan, season with salt and pepper, then cook over medium heat for around 10 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to soften. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes – it should still be firm/crisp, but not entirely raw.
Top the cooked pastry with the mozzarella, followed by the tomatoes and onion, then return to the oven for a further 5–7 minutes until the cheese melts. Drape over the prosciutto, then garnish with basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil and black pepper. Tip: Leave out the prosciutto and add mushrooms for a vegetarian version.
Eat the Week by Anna Barnett (Murdoch Books, £17.99)
Photography by Alan Benson
Homebaked vegetable crisps
Feeds 4-6
Preparation Time – 10 minutes
Cooking Time – 20 minutes
Ingredients
2 Parsnips
2 Beetroot (beets)
1 Sweet potato
Glug of olive oil
Sprinkle of sea salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Using a mandoline or food processor, finely slice all the vegetables, then pat dry with paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Put the vegetables slices in a large bowl, drizzle very lightly with olive oil and mix to coat. Spread the vegetable slices out on baking trays in a single layer and bake for 15–20 minutes, turning them halfway through. Keep an eye on them: it can be hard to tell when the beetroot is ready, but when the parsnip and sweet potato are golden, they’ll all be done. Drain the crisps on paper towel, then sprinkle with salt.
Eat the Week by Anna Barnett (Murdoch Books, £17.99)
Photography by Alan Benson
Heritage Potato, Roasted Celeriac, Gorgonzola & Cavelo Nero
Feeds – 4-6
Preparation Time – 5-10 minutes
Cooking Time – 25 minutes
Ingredients
500g Heritage Potatoes
Rapeseed oil
Sea salt flakes
1 Small celeriac – Peeled & Roughly chopped into 1½ inch pieces
2 Cloves of garlic – Peeled, crushed and finely chopped
1 Bunch of Cavelo Nero (around 6-9 stalks) – Roughly shredded/thinly sliced
2 Spring onions – Finely sliced
Handful of curly parsley - Roughly chopped
350g of Gorgonzola
2 Tbsps of dried oregano flowers
Several turns of freshly ground black pepper
An extra drizzle of extra virgin rapeseed oil
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Prepare the celeriac, peel and chop into chunks as noted then drizzle with rapeseed oil, coating all sides of the celeriac evenly. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes and roast for 20-25 minutes or until it’s begins to turn golden.
Cut the heritage potatoes into just under 1cm thick slices and add these to a separate baking tray again drizzling with oil, seasoning with salt then roast for around 20 minutes or until they begin soften and crispen.
Once your celeriac and potatoes are nearly done, take a large saucepan and heat a generous glug of rapeseed oil over a medium heat. Crush and chop your garlic then add to your pan followed by the prepared Cavelo Nero. Using tongs or a spatula move the greens and garlic around so it all cooks evenly, cooking it for just a minute or two so it’s softens but retains crunch.
Prepare all remaining ingredients as noted and combine in a large serving dish. Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary then let everyone dig in and help themselves.
All The Greens, Preserved Lemons, Chilli & Buckwheat
Feeds – 4
Preparation Time – 10 minutes
Cooking Time – 25 minutes
Ingredients
150g Buckwheat
Generous glug of rapeseed oil
1 Pint of water
Generous glug of extra virgin rapeseed oil
2 Large leaves of chard – Finely shredded
2 Leaves of Cavelo Nero – Finely shredded
½ Preserved lemon – Finely sliced
1 Spring onion – Finely sliced
Handful of parsley – Roughly chopped
1 Green chilli – Finely sliced
1 Tbsp Fennel tops
25g Parmesan – Finely peeled
Handful of walnuts
Generous sprinkle of sea salt flakes
Generous sprinkle of pink peppercorns (or black)
Instructions
First soak your buckwheat in boiling water. Leave for one minute then drain and lightly toast in a good glug of oil before adding your water (don’t add salt until cooked as it makes them tough). Cook for 15 or so minutes then leave to rest for 10 minutes.
Once the buckwheat is cooked allow to cool. Take a medium sized saucepan and add a small glug of rapeseed oil, add your chard and Cavelo Nero along with a generous sprinkle of seasoning. Cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes or until they begin to wilt and remove and allow to cool.
Once cool add in the buckwheat and combine, adding further seasoning if necessary (have a try before you do). Sprinkle over the preserved lemon, spring onion, parsley, chilli, fennel tops, Parmesan and finally the walnuts. Finish with a little extra extra-virgin rapeseed oil and pink or black pepper. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
Rocket Pesto Parmesan Tart
Feeds – 4-8
Preparation Time – 20 minutes
Cooking Time – 30 minutes
Tart Ingredients
275g Plain flour (have extra on hand for when you roll it out)
½ tsp salt
150g Unsalted butter – Roughly chopped into chunks
25g Parmesan – Finely grated
2 Medium free range/organic egg yolks
1 Tsp Dijon mustard
1-2 Tbsp Cold water
Filling Ingredients
2 Sweet Potatoes – Peeled and cut in 1 inch square pieces
8-10 Baby shallots
1 Courgette – Cut into thin chip sized pieces
Glug of rapeseed oil
Sprinkle of sea salt flakes
Handful of wild rocket
Handful of fresh mint leaves
Wild Rocket & Walnut Pesto Ingredients
1 Large clove of garlic
1 Handful of wild rocket (the extra peppery variety)
Small bunch of basil leaves
Small handful of walnuts
Small handful of finely grated Parmesan
Generous drizzle of extra virgin rapeseed oil
Sprinkle of sea salt flakes
Combine the flour and salt in a bowl, add the lumps of butter then rub the flour and butter between your fingers until you have a crumble type consistency. This can be done with a K beater in a mixer also.
Next whisk together the egg yolks, Dijon and Parmesan then add this to the crumble stirring until you have a smooth dough. If it’s a little dry add in the water, a dash at time. This can also be done in the mixer and takes even less time. Once the dough has come together slightly flatten it out (don’t leave it in a ball) and wrap in parchment paper or cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.
When you’re ready to bake the tart, remove the pastry from the fridge and roll it out until it’s a little thicker than a pound coin then press it into the tart tin. You can make 8 small 8cm tarts out of this batch of pastry or one 24cm tart tin. Make sure your pastry case isn’t too thin and once you’re happy with your case, prick the bottom with a fork several times.
Next place a piece of parchment paper on the base followed by baking beans and bake for 12-15 minutes on 160°C. Remove the parchment and baking beans and bake again for another 10-12 minutes until the pastry case is cooked through but not overly browned.
On a non-stick baking tray add the sweet potato, shallots, and courgette along with a generous drizzle of oil and a sprinkle of sea salt flakes. Roast on 200°C for 15-20 minutes or until slightly golden. Prick the sweet potatoes to make sure they’re cooked through before removing from the oven. The courgette and shallots may take less time.
For the pesto simply muddle all ingredients together then add in the oil once you have a thick, smooth paste. Have a try and check the seasoning, adding in more Parmesan for extra creaminess and more rocket for extra pepper.
Serve by scattering over the fresh rocket on the warm pastry base, followed by the roasted shallots, sweet potato and courgettes and finally add generous dollops of pesto followed by some fresh mint leaves and a drizzle of rapeseed oil.
Dark Chocolate, Lavender & Pistachio Cookies
Feeds - 20
Preparation Time – 15 minutes (30 minutes chilling time)
Cooking Time – 10-12 minutes
Ingredients
260g Mornflake Oatbran
1 Tsp Baking soda
2 Tsp Corn flour
1 Tsp Sea salt flakes
250g Butter
150g Light brown Sugar
75g Caster sugar
2 Free-range eggs
2 Tsp vanilla extract/1 tsp vanilla bean paste
225g chocolate chips/dark chocolate chips or roughly chopped chocolate
50g Roughly chopped pistachios
1 Heaped tsp of dried lavender – Finely chopped
Instructions
Begin by combining the oatbran, baking powder and sea salt. Melt the butter and allow to cool, then with a hand blender combine with the sugar until smooth. Next add in the whisked eggs and vanilla extract and gradually add in the flour mix. Gently fold in your chocolate chips, pistachios and finely chopped lavender, spooning it into the mixture in small quantities and gently folding so that you get an even distribution of small pockets of flavour.
Next cover with cling film and place in fridge for at least 30 minutes, ideally an hour if you can. Preheat the oven to 190°C then make rough balls a little smaller than a golf ball and place on parchment paper or a nonstick baking tray leaving enough room for the cookies to spread out. Cook for 10-12 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden (only just) and the centre is still soft and slightly uncooked. Allow to cool or eat while warm if you can’t wait. Store in an airtight container.
Slow Roasted Lamb, Black Rice Salad, Radish, Pomegranate, Fresh Mint, Parsley, Green Harissa
Feeds 4-6
Preparation Time – 15-20 minutes
Cooking Time – 3-4 hrs
Ingredients
1.2kg Organic Shoulder of Lamb
1 Whole bulb of garlic
Generous sprinkle of sea salt flakes
250g Black rice
½ Red onion – Finely sliced
Bunch of radishes – Finely sliced
½ Pomegranate
Handful of fresh mint leaves – Roughly chopped
Handful of parsley – Roughly chopped
Juice from half a lemon
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Generous sprinkle of sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
Green Harissa Ingredients
2 Shallots
3 Tbsp of pickled jalapeños
Handful of fresh coriander
Handful fresh parsley
2 Birdseye green chillies (1 for less spice)
1 Tsp ground coriander
1 Tsp ground cumin
Zest of 1 lemon
¼ Tsp sugar
Several good glugs of olive oil
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 220°C. Place the lamb in a roasting dish, add seasoning and garlic plus a glug of olive oil and roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Next reduce the heat to 160°C and roast for 3-4 hours until crisp and the meat is falling from the bone.
For the black rice salad, pour 250g of black rice into a saucepan with 500ml of water, add a sprinkle of salt and bring to the boil. Once boiling reduce the temperature and allow to simmer for 35-45 minutes or until the rice is soft but with a little bite to it still. Rinse with cold water or allow to cool.
Next mix in the chopped red onion, radishes, pomegranate and chopped fresh mint and parsley. Add in the fresh lemon juice a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and add seasoning.
For the harissa simply blitz all ingredients together then check for seasoning and spice, adjusting if necessary. Store in an airtight container in the fridge and use when ready. Serve up the lamb, rice salad and harissa and allow everyone to help themselves.
Celeriac Steak Stack With Wilted Chard
Feeds – 4
Preparation Time – 10 minutes
Cooking Time – 25-30 minutes
Ingredients
Medium Celeriac – Peeled and cut into 1.5cm/ 1inch thick slices
Zest of 1 lemon, plus juice
Generous glug of rapeseed oil
Sprinkle of sea salt flakes
1 Tsp pink pepper corns – Lightly crushed
1 Large bunch of fresh chard
6 Figs – Cut into quarters
1 Large spring onions – Finely sliced
250g Stilton/Pico Bleu/Gorgonzola
Extra drizzle of extra virgin rapeseed oil
Squeeze of lemon juice
Sprinkle of sea salt flakes
Instructions
Begin by preheating the oven to 200°C then peel and slice the celeriac as listed. Next place it on a baking tray, sprinkle over lemon zest and add the juice before adding seasoning. Cover with foil and roast for 20 minutes then remove foil and continue to roast for another ten minutes or until soft but crispy.
Prepare all other ingredients as noted.
Once you’ve roughly chopped the chard into thin strips, add to a hot frying pan with a good glug of oil and seasoning, cooking over a medium to high heat for one to two minutes or for long enough for the chard to wilt slightly.
This dish is best served on a large sharing platter where you can lay out the celeriac steaks one end and add the chard to the other, along with the figs, crumbled blue cheese, walnuts and spring onions. Serve straight away with an extra drizzle of oil and seasoning.
Nests Of Radicchio With Roasted Beets, Black Quinoa, Pomegranate & Fennel Tops
Feeds – 5
Preparation time – 10 minutes
Cooking time – 30 minutes
Ingredients
5 Medium fresh beetroots – Thoroughly washed, ends removed then sliced into 6-8 segments
2 Glugs of balsamic
5 Cloves of garlic – Left in the skin and roasted
1/2 Pomegranate – Pearls removed
Handful of black olives (I like the salty Greek styles ones – NOT in brine)
Generous glug of red wine vinegar
Sprinkle of sea salt & black and white pepper
Good glug of extra virgin olive oil
1 Fennel – Tops/herbs removed and finely chopped
400g Black quinoa (white works too) – Cook in boiling water as per instructions (add a chopped up glove of garlic for extra flavour)
2 Radicchio – Leaves removed and used for the nests
Instructions
Start by preheating the oven to 190°C. Prepare the beetroot, place on a baking tray with the whole cloves of garlic, season and add the balsamic vinegar, roast for 20 minutes before shaking and roasting for a further 5-10 minutes.
Bring a pan of water to the boil and add the quinoa, cooking as per instructions then allow to cool. Prepare the pomegranate, remove the stones from the olives and chop up the fennel tops, ready to garnish.
Once the beetroot has roasted, remove from the oven, allow to cool and combine with the quinoa making sure you pour in the balsamic also (this will be rich with flavour). Squeeze the garlic from the skins and thoroughly mix into the quinoa. Next add in the red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, seasoning and thoroughly mix. Taste and adjust flavours accordingly, adding extra red wine vinegar if you want more of a tang and extra pepper for more heat and flavour.
Make up your radicchio nest by taking two leaves and slotting them together. Serve up two generous spoonfuls per radicchio nest, sprinkle over the black olives, pomegranate and fennel tops to garnish, serve immediately. Tip: This dish can be served warm or cold and can be prepared well in advance.
Oat Crust Tart with Zested Crème Patissiere & Charred Nectarines
Feeds 8-12
Preparation Time – 30-40 minutes
Cooking Time – 25-30
Ingredients
For the Oat Crust (28cm tart tin):
180g Butter – Melted
550g Mornflake Jumbo Oats – Lightly blitzed
60g Desicated coconut
Zest of ½ lemon
Sprinkle of salt flakes
260g Caster sugar
Crème Patissiere:
8 Organic eggs yolks
200g Caster sugar
50g Plain flour (or cornflour) – Sifted
700ml Milk
1 Vanilla pod – Scored down the middle, seeds scrapped out
Fruit topping:
5-6 Small nectarines -Cut in half, stone carefully removed
3 Large nectarines – Cut in half, stone carefully removed
Selection of edible flowers to garnish
Instructions
Begin by pre-heating your oven to 190°C. Lightly blitz your oats then add in your melted butter and sugar. Stir until all oats are evenly coated and when you press the back of a spatula down the oats should begin to hold the shape – add more butter if necessary until this happens.
Next evenly spread your oats over the base of the tin and up the sides, pressing down firmly so that the oats stick together and form and the case. Let this rest in the fridge for half an hour which will help it hold it’s shape when baking.
Once chilled transfer to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden, then remove and allow to cool completely. Next get the crème patissiere made. Begin by adding both the milk and vanilla pod with the seeds in a saucepan over a medium heat, bring the milk almost to the boil then set to one side. In a separate bowl whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture begins to lighten and turn fluffy.
Next add in the sifted flour, folding it into the egg and sugar mixture until it’s smooth. Once the milk has cooled for a minute or two gradually pour into the egg, sugar and flour mixture, whisking the whole time to ensure the sauce is smooth ands there’s no lumps.
Then pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over a medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon the whole time to avoid lumps forming. Cook until you have a thick smooth sauce that begins to hold it’s shape.
Once cooked remove from the heat and cover with clingfilm to avoid a skin forming, transfer to the fridge once cooled. If lumps form you can pass it through a sieve.
For the charred nectarines, simply heat a griddle pan for several minutes over a high heat and place the nectarine flesh side down, allowing them to char for 3-4 minutes, then carefully turn and cook skin side down. They will stick a little which I don’t mind but you can always cook them on a sheet of parchment paper to avoid this.
Now all that’s left is to put everything together. Spoon the crème patissiere into the oat crust then place the charred nectarines on top, some face down some flesh side up. Sprinkle over your selection of edible flowers and serve. This will keep refrigerated for several days.
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