Ah, summer. A stretch of cherished long days beneath warm sunshine, when we embrace every opportunity to enjoy beautiful weather and wonderful food with family and friends. It’s a season of simple pleasures, of lazy indulgences and, of course—of eating outside. Here, you’ll find a spread of iconically summer offerings suited for just that.

RECIPE

Mango, Orange and Passionfruit Iced Tea

A refreshing orange, mango and passionfruit iced tea is an essential ingredient of every outdoor gathering.

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1 liter boiling water
• Several bags of your favorite black tea
• 1 mango, peeled and chopped
• Juice of 1 orange
• The pulp of 2 passionfruits
• To serve: Orange slices, Mint, Ice cubes

Directions

Brew 1 liter of your favorite black tea. Allow to cool and place in the refrigerator. Place mango with orange juice in a blender and mix until smooth. Mix with the tea, add passionfruit pulp and orange slices. Serve with mint leaves and ice.

RECIPE

Delicious Potato & Leek Pasties

Potato, leek and turkey pasties are a quintessential combination of buttery pastry and subtly seasoned filling, and taste best on lush grass in good company.

Serves: 6

For the pastry:

• 180 grams plain flour
• 2 pinches of salt
• 110 grams butter, cubed
• 60 to 85 millileters (or 4 to 6 tablespoons) cold water

Filling:

• 200 grams potatoes
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1 small knob of butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 leek, finely sliced
• 250 grams turkey breast, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 2 to 3 tablespoons cream
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• A few pinches of sesame or poppy seeds

Additionally:

• Egg for brushing

Directions

Put the flour and salt in a large bowl and add butter. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until you have a mixture that resembles coarse breadcrumbs with no large lumps of butter remaining. Stir in just enough of the cold water to bind the dough together. Add more flour if it becomes too damp. Divide the dough into 6 equal parts, shape them into bowls and flatten into discs, then wrap each one in a cling film and chill for 15 to 20 minutes before using.

Steam the potatoes and carrot until tender, but still holding their shape. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the leek and soften for 10 to 12 minutes. Once the potatoes cool, cut them into small cubes and add to the leeks along with carrot slices, mustard and plenty of seasoning. Stir in the cream and leave to cool completely.

Heat the oven to 350°. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to the thickness of a coin. Pile a mound of the filling onto the centre of each pastry circle. Brush around the edges with a beaten egg, then bring edges together and crimp with your fingers to seal.

Place pasties on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, brush with the remaining egg and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake for 40 to 45 mins until golden brown. Serve warm or leave to cool.

RECIPE

New Potato Summer Salad with Pesto

It’s especially rewarding to make a batch of new potato and pesto salad to share—a seasonal, vibrant dish that’s a total crowd-pleaser.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 700 grams new potatoes, peeled and cooked
• 200 grams small mozzarella balls
• 350 grams plum tomatoes
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 200 grams green olives
• Fresh basil

For the pesto

• Large bunch of basil
• 30 grams pine nuts
• 1 garlic clove
• 20 grams parmesan cheese, grated
• 60 milliliters olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

To make the pesto, chop finely the basil, pine nuts and garlic. Stir in the cheese and olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Alternatively, throw all the ingredients into a food processor and whizz until smooth.

To make the salad, place potatoes, mozzarella, chopped onion and olives in a large bowl. Cut tomatoes in half, place them in a smaller bowl, then squeeze them between your hands lightly to release the juices. Add to the rest of the ingredients. Stir in pesto, add more olive oil if needed, and add fresh basil leaves.

RECIPE

Blueberry Buns with Almond Crumble

For guests who fancy a morsel of something sweet, blueberry buns are the essence of the season—each one oozing with fresh berry filling.

Serves: 10

For the pastry:

• 300 grams bread flour plus 50 grams for kneading
• 80 milliliters tepid milk
• 30 grams sugar
• 2 eggs
• 60 milliliters rapeseed oil
• 35 grams fresh yeast or 12 grams dry yeast
• Pinch of salt, to taste

Filling:

• 250 grams blueberries
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornflour

For the crumble:

• 50 grams ground almonds
• 3 tablespoons plain flour
• 35 grams butter
• 30 grams caster sugar

Additionally:

• Egg for brushing

Directions

Crumble fresh (or dry) yeast into a bowl, add a pinch of sugar, lukewarm milk, and 3 tablespoons of flour. Mix until smooth and let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes, after which the mixture should be bubbling and foamy.

Sift the flour with a pinch of salt into a large bowl and add yeast mixture; combine using a wooden spoon. Add the rest of the ingredients: eggs, oil and sugar. Mix until the dough comes together, then add a dash of flour onto a flat surface and knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes, incrementally adding flour. The dough should not be sticky, but quite pliable.

Cover the bowl with a cotton tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for around 1 hour to 1 ½ hours.

In the meantime, prepare the filling. Mix all ingredients together and set aside.

For the crumble, place the ground almonds, flour and sugar into a medium bowl. Add the butter, then rub into the flour using your fingertips to make a light breadcrumb texture.

Preheat oven to 375° and line a baking tray with a parchment paper. When the dough doubles in size, punch it down and place on a lightly floured surface. Knead for 2 to 3 minutes and pull apart into 10 equal parts. Flatten each part with hands and put blueberry filling in the center of each, sealing it through and forming a ball, then arranging on a tray.

Let buns rise for 30 minutes and just before placing them into the oven, brush each bun with a beaten egg and sprinkle with crumble.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.