The right foods can evoke the taste of summer, writes Catherine Cleary.
Is there a culinary version of that matronly fashion advice about not casting clouts till May is out? How about "ne'er eat a broad bean till June is seen"? Seasonal appropriateness has been passe ever since the first sugar snaps were cling-wrapped and packed into the chilly atmosphere of an airplane hold. Everything is available all the time, but we all know that only the genuine summer foods taste summery.
So these are the months that food lovers love with all the jewels of the summer food calendar spread out ahead of us. We have had the first mouthful of new potato with butter and salt. We have relished the greenness of a just-picked asparagus spear. But what do you cook when the black clouds gather and a Novemberish chill empties the beer gardens and blows the umbrellas over?
Even in summer we need the food equivalent of a warm cardigan to fall back on when our weather does its unpredictable worst. We may not quite need the winter warmers with their stewy depths and lashings of creamy carbs to line the ribs. But these warmer dishes should be spicy and piquant and perfect for serving with a bowlful of salad so that if things pick up again between the preparation and the eating stages it can feel like summer again.
Recipes serve four
CHICKPEA & APRICOT TAGINE
Olive oil for frying
One onion
One red pepper
Four tomatoes, peeled and deseeded
Two vegetable stock cubes or 500ml home-made stock
A pinch of saffron
A dozen dried apricots
Two cans of chickpeas
The zest and juice of one orange
Large handful of fresh coriander leaves
Salt and pepper
Small pot of natural yoghurt
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion and chopped red pepper for five minutes, stirring well until the onions start to soften. Plunge the tomatoes into boiling water for a moment and remove the skins and seeds. Add the tomato flesh to the pan for a couple of minutes.
Mix the stock cubes with 500ml of boiling water or heat the home-made stock, adding the saffron. When warmed through, add to the pan with the apricots, chickpeas, orange zest and juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to the boil and simmer until the liquid reduces down. Finish on the hob for about 20 minutes until the sauce is thickened, or transfer to an oven dish with a lid and put in the oven at around 110 degrees for up to 40 minutes.
Serve with couscous or a leafy summer salad and crusty bread. When you are ready to serve, stir the coriander into the yoghurt and stir it through or leave it as a garnish or dip on the side.
CUMIN & GINGER LAMB BURGERS
500g minced lamb
Half thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger
A clove of garlic
Two shallots
A teaspoon of cumin seeds
A tablespoon of olive oil
The juice and zest of a lime
Place the garlic, shallots, cumin seeds, ginger, olive oil and lime juice and zest into a blender and blitz into a rough paste. Add a drizzle more oil if you have not managed to get a lot of juice out of your lime. Put the minced lamb into a bowl and mix the paste through the meat well. Form into balls and then flatten into burgers and put between pieces of parchment paper into the fridge for 30 minutes. You can bake these in the oven on a tray covered in foil or throw them on the barbecue.
