Summer dips – beetroot and aubergine/ eggplant

Here are two of my favourite dips to make with Greek yoghurt on a summers day. The beetroot dip was shown to me by a Russian, it contains a hefty amount of raw garlic for such a small dish but he insisted this was how it was made in Georgia. The garlic fest. adds a hot tang to the earthy flavour of the beets, yum.

The aubergine dip is traditionally made by searing a plump, fresh aubergine over flame to give it a smoky flavour. When made like this (rather than in a conventional oven) I would not add the Greek yoghurt but leave the vegetable to star. This has always been known in our household as “poor man’s caviar.”

CDC beets (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Beetroot Dip

4                         medium beets, stalks and root    removed, scrubbed thoroughly

6 large                garlic cloves, peeled and chopped finely

6 heaped tbsp   Greek yoghurt

1/2tsp                  salt or to your taste

sprinkle of           paprika

Steam the beetroot for about 30-40mins or until soft enough for a knife to cut through with ease. On no account boil them or you will lose the fabulous colour. Mash the beets or use a food processor, mix in the other ingredients and serve with tortilla chips.

Aubergine dip

1                        large aubergine/egg plant

1                        lemon , juice of

3 tbsp heaped  Greek yoghurt

2 tbsp                chopped flat leaf-parsley or mint leaves

salt                     to taste

Prick the aubergine with a fork and bake in a fairly hot oven for about an hour until the skin is crisp, or better still barbecue it and scorch the skin.

Scoop out the soft flesh, chop with a knife then mash with a potato masher. Squeeze in the lemon juice, stir in the yoghurt. Add the chopped herbs and serve. Excellent on toast or eaten with crisp flat bread.

Wild Garlic Flower Tempura

Wild garlic, also called ramsons or wood garlic, form fragrant spring carpets in woodland areas. We picked bagfuls yesterday and then made a feast of garlic flower fritters followed by garlic pesto pasta. They are easy to find, just follow the smell of garlic in the air and look for their shiny ovate leaves and white balls of little star-shaped flowers.

Wild Garlic Flower Tempura

The plant is related to chives, and the leaves are much milder than bulb garlic and can be eaten raw. The flowers are also edible and have a peppery flavour.  For these fritters, I like to enrich my batter with a bit of coconut milk but you can make the batter without it.  Wild garlic has a short season, so we like to make the most of them. I’ve listed more ways to use them below this recipe.

Tempura paste  

150g plain flour

100ml coconut milk (use water if you prefer)

100ml ice cold water

1 egg

1 tsp salt

a dash of soy sauce

Heat vegetable oil in a wok or deep pan to sizzling hot while you mix the batter.

Just before serving, beat the egg thoroughly in a bowl, add the coconut milk and the iced water and sift in the flour, salt and soy. Stir gently, then dip the flower heads one or two at a time into the batter.  Shake off excess batter.

Wear rubber gloves or an oven glove, hold the end of the stem and dip the flower head in the hot oil (being careful 180C!) until lightly browned. Remove to a paper towel to drain for a moment. Then place on a platter and serve with dipping bowls of soy, sweet chilli sauce or garlic mayo.

Wild Garlic pasta pesto

Seasonal and delicious, here are some other ideas on how to eat wild garlic:

Pesto – Whizz the leaves with pine nuts, grated Parmesan and olive oil to make pesto. Or add pancetta, egg  to make  a variation of wild garlic carbonara.

Rice – Wild garlic risotto

Mash – Chop the leaves and mix them into mashed potato.

Fish – Wrap the leaves around fillets of buttered trout and bake gently in the oven. They also work well with smoked fish.

Mayo – Chop the leaves into sour cream or fresh mayonnaise and use as a dip

Salad – Use whole leaves in salads and decorate with the flowers.

Sandwiches – Add the leaves to cheese or ham and mustard sandwiches.

Soup – Wild Garlic and potato soup.

Spinach – steam with spinach they can be a bit watery steamed alone.

Puree – puree with oil and use as a drizzle or dressing.

Scrambled eggs – chopped into creamy scrambled eggs, divine.

Butter – flavour butter with chopped leaves.

Frittata – one of the best

Hummus – tahini, chickpeas, wild garlic

Keep a jar of lovely green pesto in the fridge to extend the season

Cream cheese – chop into cream cheese, reform and wrap the cheese in the leaves. Slice.

Bluebells and wild garlic (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The origins of many place names such as Ramsey Common, Ramsdale and Ramsbottom are derived from this old English word, Ramson and were named for their abundant growth of wild garlic.  It’s a sign of our times  that so many are now covered in concrete.