Nice and easy does it for sunny day dishes that look as good as they taste
There's nothing better than a long, lazy summer lunch, eating and drinking until the sun goes down and the stars come out. But for my boyfriend and me, summer lunch is also about minimising effort and maximising flavour. We're both professional cooks - Neil's head chef at Merchants Tavern - and rarely get the time to entertain friends at home. So when we do, the last thing we want is to spend the whole time beavering away in the kitchen (talk about a busman's holiday). Rather than the fancy stuff we cook at work, these occasions are all about cooking smart; it's always good to be reminded that you don't need a kitchen brigade to come up with a meal that looks as good as it tastes.
Peach and Parma ham
Summer on a plate - and not really cooking at all. The only effort here is tracking down some properly ripe and fragrant peaches. Serves four.
75ml olive oil
15ml white-wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
250g french beans, tailed - I keep the tops on, because I like the way they look on the plate (or a mixture of french and yellow beans, to add another colour to the dish)
250g runner beans, destringed and cut into 2cm lengths
4 ripe peaches
1 small handful basil, leaves picked
100g gorgonzola
4-6 slices prosciutto crudo (allow at least one slice per person)
Whisk together the oil and vinegar, and season to taste. Cook the beans in plenty of salted boiling water for eight to 10 minutes, until properly cooked (I hate beans with a bite, plus they soak up more of the vinaigrette when they're good and soft). Drain and leave to cool.
Cut the peaches into thin slices, add to the cold beans with the basil and vinaigrette, season to taste and toss gently. Spoon on to a large plate, dot with little chunks of gorgonzola, tear the ham (or leave the slices whole, if you prefer), lay it on top, and serve at room temperature.
And to drink... Go for an aromatic white such as the Wine Society's fragrant, floral Caves de Pegoes Dry Muscat 2013 (£5.75; 12% abv). That, or white port and tonic all round.
Roast tomato with deep-fried mozzarella
Remember deep-fried camembert with redcurrant sauce? Well, this is a thousand times better. To make it even more lush, use a creamy burrata instead of mozzarella. Serves four.
12 San Marzano tomatoes
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 small bunch basil, leaves picked
Olive oil
Sea salt
2 x 125g mozzarella
300g plain flour
1 egg, beaten
300g panko breadcrumbs
Vegetable or groundnut oil, for deep-frying
Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds, then transfer to a bowl of cold water and peel. Put the peeled whole tomatoes in a baking tray, scatter over the crushed garlic, a few basil stalks, a good glug of olive oil and a little salt, and bake for 15 minutes. The tomatoes will shrivel and dry a little, intensifying their flavour. (They keep well in the fridge, so make more than you need for this dish.) Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, cut each mozzarella into four roughly equal pieces. Put the flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs on three separate plates, then coat the cheese first in flour, then in egg, and finally in breadcrumbs. (If the coating seems thin, repeat the process, more than once, if need be.) Deep-fry the breaded cheese in vegetable oil until golden brown. Put the roast tomatoes - they should be just warm or at room temperature - on a plate, top with the crisp cheese, scatter over some basil and serve.
And to drink...A crisp, fruity southern Italian white such as the Triade Fiano/Falanghina/Greco 2013 (£8.99, Waitrose, but down to £6.74 from next Wednesday; 12.5% abv) would be spot on here.
Herring Waldorf salad
This works with any firm oily fish, so use mackerel if it's easier to get hold of where you live. Serves four.
2 granny smith apples, cored and diced
100g toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
1 stick celery, stringy bits peeled off, cut into thin rounds
4 herring fillets
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the dressing
100ml olive oil
20ml white-wine vinegar
½ tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp chopped dill
Grated lemon zest, to taste
Put the apple, walnuts and celery in a bowl. Whisk the dressing ingredients, then dress the apple mix and set aside.
Heat the grill to high. Season the herring on both sides, then lay them skin-side up on a lightly oiled oven tray. Grill for three to four minutes, until the skin crisps and colours, then flip over and cook for up to a minute on the other side. Keep an eye on it, because there is nothing worse than overcooked fish.
Spoon a little salad on to a big sharing plate, top with the fish, and dribble any pan juices on top.
And to drink... You want a bone-dry white with this, such as a Picpoul or the whistle-clean Contesa Pecorino 2013 (£7.98 if you buy two or more, Majestic; 12.5% abv).
Lamb chops with courgettes
One of my favourite summer dishes - there's not much work, plus you can eat it straight out of the pan. Serves four.
3 courgettes (or a mixture of green and yellow, for prettiness' sake)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 small handful mint leaves
1 small handful basil leaves
4 lamb chops (or 8 if you're hungry)
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 sprig rosemary, leaves picked
1 baby gem lettuce, shredded
100g feta
50g roasted hazelnuts, skins removed and roughly chopped
100ml classic vinaigrette (80ml extra-virgin olive oil whisked with 20ml white-wine vinegar and seasoned)
Cut the courgettes lengthways into 0.5cm-thick slices, season with salt and brush with oil. Put a griddle on a medium-high flame and, once hot, char-grill the courgettes (in batches, if need be) until they have good char marks on one side. Flip and repeat on the other side - this takes about five minutes in all - then put in a bowl and stir in the mint and basil.
In the same pan, cook the chops for three minutes a side; add the garlic and rosemary for the last two minutes. Just before the end of cooking, so the fat gets good and crisp, hold each chop fat-side down with a pair of tongs. Finish the courgettes with the lettuce, feta, nuts and vinaigrette, spoon on to a big plate and top with the lamb.
And to drink... A light Italian red such as Tesco Finest Teroldego 2012 (on offer at £5.99; 12.5% abv), with its appealing, bitter cherry twist, would work brilliantly here.
Salmon, soy and chilli
Sweet, sour and salty, with a decent kick from the chilli and an aniseedy undertone from the fennel: that's a great backdrop for a good piece of fish. Serves four.
600g piece salmon (wild, ideally)
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and shredded
2 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
1 jalapeño chilli, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
1 tsp peeled and chopped fresh ginger
2 tsp chopped preserved lemon
Groundnut oil, for frying
2 tbsp chopped coriander
For the marinade
200ml soy sauce
100ml sesame oil
50ml rice vinegar
1 tsp honey
Juice and grated rind of 1 lemon
2 tbsp chopped coriander
Cut the salmon into four pieces. Mix together the marinade ingredients. Heat a griddle pan, then char-grill the fish for a minute or so on each side - you want it nice and pink inside, because it will "cook" further in the residual heat and also in the vinegar and lemon marinade. Remove from the heat, pour over the marinade and set aside for five minutes or so.
Meanwhile, stir-fry the fennel, spring onion, chilli, garlic, ginger and lemon in a little oil for a minute or two, to soften, then pile on a big plate (or plates), top with the salmon, spoon over the marinade and serve with some plain boiled rice.
And to drink... Although this sounds like a white wine kinda dish - a riesling, say - personally I'd go for a chilled red such as the Co-op's Truly Irresistible Casablanca Valley Pinot Noir 2012 (£7.99; 14% abv).
Raspberries and ricotta
A great summer pudding, not least because there's next to no work involved - it's basically just an assembly job. It looks gorgeous, too. Serves four.
50g golden raisins
2 tsp honey
1-2 drops vanilla extract
250g ricotta
50g caster sugar
Squeeze of lemon juice, plus the grated rind of 1 lemon
500g raspberries
Put the raisins in a pan and add just enough water to cover. Add the honey and vanilla, then bring to a boil, remove from the heat and set aside to cool and rehydrate.
In a bowl, whip the ricotta with the sugar, lemon juice and rind.
To serve, put the raspberries into a big shallow bowl (or individual bowls), top with blobs of ricotta here and there, and scatter over the soaked golden raisins. Spoon over a little of the raisins' vanilla syrup and serve.
And to drink... Try the gorgeous Sticky End Noble Sauvignon Blanc 2011 from Marlborough (£12.74 a half-bottle if you buy two or more, Majestic; 10.5% abv). It's a touch pricey, yes, but stretch it by serving it (well chilled) as shots.
Madeleines and lemon curd
If you don't already have one, you'll need to invest in a 12-madeleine mould to make these. Serves four.
300g flour
70g ground almonds
10g baking powder
330g butter
335g caster sugar
20g demerara sugar
100g honey
Grated rind of 2 lemons
8 eggs
Butter, for greasing
Icing sugar, for dusting
For the lemon curd
300ml lemon juice, plus the grated zest of two lemons
200g caster sugar
150g unsalted butter, cut into cubes
4 whole eggs plus 1 extra yolk (use the white for making meringue - in my book you can never have too much meringue to serve with summer berries and lots of rich cream)
First make the curd. Put the lemon juice, zest and sugar in a saucepan, bring to a boil, then whisk in the butter bit by bit, until it has melted. Now whisk in the eggs one by one, and finally the egg yolk, and cook over a medium-low heat, stirring continuously so the eggs don't scramble, until the mix is smooth, glossy and thickened. Pass through a sieve into a bowl, then chill over a second bowl filled with ice.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, almonds and baking powder. Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Melt the butter in a pan, add the sugars, honey and lemon rind, and add to the flour mix. Beat in the eggs until well incorporated, then set aside. Butter and flour the madeleine moulds, spoon in the mix and bake for eight to 12 minutes. Remove the madeleine tray from the oven and dust the madeleines with icing sugar. Pop them out of the mould and serve warm with the cold lemon curd.
And to drink... Not an easy recipe to match with wine - I'd be tempted to have these with a cuppa - but the light, fragrant Gemma Moscato d'Asti 2012(£8; 5% abv) should do the job.
• Angela Hartnett is chef/patron of Merchants Tavern, Murano and Cafe Murano in London, and of Holder Hartnett & Co at Lime Wood hotel in Lyndhurst, Hampshire.
Wine recommendations by Fiona Beckett
Angela Hartnett's salmon, soy and chilli: sweet, sour and salty. Photograph: Colin Campbell for the Guardian