Beetroot, Yoghurt & Tahini Salad

by Liz Child

The flavours in this simple salad work so well together. Sweet, earthy beetroots, tangy natural yoghurt, nutty tahini and crunchy toasted pumpkin seeds. Serve it in layers like the photo above, or mix it up for a shocking pink platter. This salad goes well with a BBQ or as part of a buffet spread, or even as a meal in it’s own right with some bread to scoop up the juices.

Liz x

Ingredients

  • 3 beetroot, leafy greens included
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 6 tbsp natural yoghurt
  • 3 tbsp tahini
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • the zest of a lemon
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 50g pumpkin seeds, toasted
  • a handful of fresh herbs, chopped (eg chives, dill or parsley…)

Method

  1. Give the beetroot and leaves a good wash. Then chop the leaves off and boil the beetroots whole, in plenty of water until they are cooked through. This can take 30-40 minutes so keep an eye on the pan and top up with more water as needed.
  2. Once they are cooked (you can test this by inserting a small sharp knife into the beetroots), drain and cover with cold water. Then using your hands, rub the skin off. Use a knife for any tough bits.
  3. Allow the beetroots to finish cooling while you get on with the rest of the salad.
  4. Separate the bright stalks from the green leaves and chop them into bites. Sauté with a tbsp of olive oil and a tiny pinch of salt and pepper until soft. Then roughly chop the leaves and add them to the pan to cook for just a few minutes. Then set to one side to cool while you make the yoghurt dressing.
  5. Stir the yogurt and tahini together with a tbsp of olive oil. Grate or crush in the clove of garlic and add the zest of 1/2 the lemon. Stir and taste. Add a touch of salt and pepper if needed.
  6. Then plate up the salad. Spread 1/3rd of the yoghurt dressing on a platter and scatter over the sautéed beetroot leaves. Drizzle with more dressing, then slice the beetroots and add them to the platter. Drizzle with the remainder of the dressing, then scatter over the toasted pumpkin seeds, chopped herbs and the zest of the other half of the lemon.
  7. Enjoy with some good bread or as a side to a BBQ.

Russian-Style Potato Salad

by Liz Child

If you like a classic potato salad with mayonnaise, you’ll love this one. The added extras like tangy sauerkraut and pickles and earthy-sweet carrots and beetroot make it a step up from the norm. What’s a barbecue or buffet without a bowl of potato salad? Try this one with our fresh-from-the-fields new potatoes, carrots and beetroots. You could even make your own vegan mayo, fermented cucumbers and sauerkraut using our farm produce and groceries too if you like! Otherwise we stock mayonnaise, pickles and sauerkraut in our grocery section.

Liz x

Ingredients

  • 12 new potatoes
  • 1 beetroot
  • 2 carrots
  • 3 tbsp aioli/mayonaise
  • 2 tbsp sauerkraut
  • 4 tbsp chopped fermented/pickled cucumbers 
  • large handful of dill/fennel fronds (or chopped chives)

Method

  1. Halve the new potatoes and dice the carrots, then boil together until tender. Drain them and allow to cool.
  2. Boil the beetroot in its skin in a separate pan until tender. This takes around 30 minutes. Then run the beetroot under cold water and rub the skin off and dice into 1 cm pieces.
  3. Dice the fermented/pickled cucumbers.
  4. Chop the dill or fennel fronds.
  5. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
  6. Gently stir the ingredients together then taste and add salt or pepper if needed.

Smashed Cucumbers

by Liz Child
Photo from our farm photographer Simone last week.

Our farm grown cucumbers, fresh out of the warm, sun kissed polytunnels, are mind-blowingly delicious! Nothing like the almost tasteless supermarket ones, these are the real deal. If the kids don’t get to them first as a snack, this is one of my favourite things to do with them. Smashing the cucumber before dressing it really opens it up and makes more craggy surface areas for the dressing to cling to. We often eat this summery side dish with simply boiled rice, some baked or fried tofu and spicy kimchi. 

Liz x

Ingredients

  • 1 large or 2 small cucumbers
  • 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
  • 1/2 a lime – juiced (or 1 tbsp apple-cider/rice-wine vinegar)
  • 1/2 a garlic clove – crushed or finely grated
  • 1/2 thumb of fresh ginger – finely grated
  • 2 tbsp sesame seeds – toasted
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes – optional
  • 2 sliced scallions – optional

Method

  1. Give the cucumber a rinse, then place it on a chopping board and cover it with a clean tea towel to prevent bits of cucumber flying around your kitchen in the next step.
  2. Bash or crush the cucumber with a something heavy or blunt. Rolling or bashing a tin of beans or a wooden rolling pin along its length with a fair bit of weight behind it will crack open the insides beautifully. Or you could press a heavy saucepan over it or whack it gently with a mallet. You don’t want to smash it into mush, rather crack and break it open and lightly crush it so that there are lots of wild, craggy shapes inside.
  3. Remove the tea towel then break and slice the cucumber into bite sized pieces. Place the pieces in a bowl and make the dressing.
  4. Stir together the toasted sesame oil, soy sauce, lime/vinegar, garlic and ginger. 
  5. Pour the dressing evenly over the smashed cucumber, give it a quick stir, then top with toasted sesame seeds, chilli flakes and sliced scallions.
  6. Serve with rice, tofu, kimchi…or as a side to a barbecue!

I used the same dressing to marinade a romanesco cauliflower before roasting it as another side to this meal and it was absolutely delicious! Highly recommend!