Aside from being incredibly delicious, what we love most about both of these recipes is how impressive they look, with minimal effort.
We love starting a summer meal with something fresh and moreish, and these beautiful prawn salad cups with chipotle and lime are just that. Fresh baby gem lettuce cups are topped with flavourful chipotle mayo, juicy poached prawns, creamy avocado, plus lime and coriander for a fresh finish.
You can also take this idea and make it into a salad - layer a salad bowl or platter with cos leaves and sprinkle over avocado (cut into larger chunks) and prawns (cut into thirds). Thin down the chipotle mayo with lime juice and drizzle this over as a dressing. Sprinkle with chilli and coriander and serve.
Our second recipe is a family favourite we come back to time and time again - festive roasted salmon with cherry tomatoes and green summer sauce - a stunning centrepiece for a special occasion menu. Plus, it comes together in 20 minutes! We love serving this alongside sauteed asparagus and boiled new-season potatoes for a simple, balanced spread.
To take the stress out of Christmas lunch, you can prepare this dish in advance. The green summer sauce can be made up to 5 days ahead and kept in a jar in the fridge. The salmon and tomatoes can be arranged on the tray, then covered and chilled for up to 12 hours. If you’re cooking for a smaller household, you can also make this with individual fillets of salmon (they will only take 6–8 minutes to cook, depending on size).
One of the easiest ways to take the stress out of entertaining is to keep things simple and prepare as much as possible ahead of time. And don’t forget to delegate! That way, you can spend your time enjoying the company of your friends and family, which, at the end of the day, is what the holiday season is all about!
Wishing you all a very merry Christmas.
With love,
Annabel and Rose xx
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Festive roasted salmon with cherry tomatoes
and green summer sauce
Serves 6-8
Ready in 20min
Suitable for DF GF RSF
1 whole side of salmon, skin on, bones removed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 lemons
1 punnet cherry tomatoes
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Baby rocket leaves, to serve
Green summer sauce
2 cloves of garlic
2 packed cups of rocket
½ cup parsley leaves
1 cup neutral oil
2 Tbsp capers
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
½ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Method
Place fish in a large, shallow oven dish lined with baking paper for easy cleanup. Finely grate the zest of 1 lemon over the top. Finely slice the other lemon and arrange slices down the centre of the fish. Arrange tomatoes around the fish.
When you’re ready to cook, preheat your oven to 240°C fanbake. Season the fish and tomatoes with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
Roast until just cooked through (about 12 minutes, depending on size). The flesh should give and not bounce back when gently pressed, or a skewer inserted into the thickest part should meet no resistance.
While the fish is cooking, make green summer sauce by whizzing all ingredients in a hand blender or food processor until smooth.
Remove cooked fish from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before sliding on to a serving platter with the tomatoes and pan juices.
Squeeze the juice of the zested lemon over the fish. Drizzle with a little green summer sauce and serve the rest in a bowl with a spoon on the side.
Garnish the platter with additional rocket leaves.
Prawn salad cups with chipotle dressing
Serves 10 as a starter
Ready in 20min
Suitable for GF RSF
10 large prawn tails
20 baby gem or baby cos lettuce leaves
¼ cup chipotle mayo
Flesh of 1 large just-ripe avocado, cut into 20 wedges
Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To garnish
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander
1 tbsp finely diced chilli
Lemon or lime cheeks, to serve
Method
To poach prawns, remove shells and devein. Place in a pot with well-salted water to cover and bring to a gentle boil. Turn off the heat, and leave the prawns in the water for 1 minute. Drain, and cover with ice-cold water to stop further cooking.
Halve the prawns lengthways. Arrange lettuce leaves on a large platter.
Top each with ½ tsp chipotle mayo, a slice of avocado, and then a prawn half.
Season with salt and pepper, squeeze with lime or lemon juice, sprinkle with coriander and chilli and serve.
