Posted on by Myfrenchkitchen

Tomato salad with onions,walnuts,seeds and labneh with sumac.

Nothing beats simplicity on life. A simple tomato salad. Full of flavour and a taste of summer. A salad only to be eaten in season when the tomatoes are local and fresh and in abundance. I love labneh and with the added sumac, it adds a mediterranean flavour to the salad.

Recipe:

  • A variety of tomatoes in colour and size
  • A handful of mixed seeds, pumpkin seeds, lin seeds, sunflower seeds, and dried black currants
  • A few walnuts, roughly crushed
  • 1 large spring onion, diced on the diagonal
  • Plenty of fresh basil leaves
  • Labneh, torn in chunks
  • Sumac
  • Salt
  • Olive oil
  • Balsamic vinegar
  1. Labneh: Place a piece of muslin, or clean cotton towel over a sieve over a bowl. Scoop about two heaped TBSP of greek joghurt, or Skyr, onto the muslin. Add one heaped teaspoon of salt to the joghurt. Pull the ends of the muslin together and twist to form a ball of the joghurt. Put in the fridge and let it drain overnight. Remove the ball of joghurt(labneh) from the muslin and place in a separate bowl. Sprinkle liberally with sumac.
  2. Cut the tomatoes in different sizes and slices for interest. Add to a large bowl.
  3. Add the slices onion, sprinkle with salt and pepper some more sumac and mix the salad gently.
  4. Transfer to a large platter .
  5. Sprinkle the nuts, seeds and currants without mixing the salad.
  6. Add the torn labneh chunks.
  7. Liberally add some basil leaves.
  8. Drizzle lastly with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  9. Serve with crusty bread and some more labneh and sumac on the side.

Serves 4

Pinch of salt:

  • Use goats cheese instead of the labneh.
  • Use seeds or nuts of your choice.
  • Add slices of peach to the salad.
  • Use Skyr, zero percent fat joghurt instead of fullfat greek joghurt for a healthier version, you won’t even know the difference!
  • Omit the onion if you have small children who dont eat onion, it won’t change the salad.
  • dont hesitate to mop up the tomato juices with your country bread!

Labneh: Place a piece of muslin, or clean cotton towel over a sieve over a bowl. Scoop two heaped TBSP of greek joghurt, or Skyr, onto the muslin. Add one teaspoon of salt to the joghurt. Pull the ends of the muslin together and twist to form a ball of the joghurt. Put in the fridge and let it drain overnight. Remove the ball of joghurt(labneh) from the muslin and place in a separate bowl. Sprinkle liberally with sumac.

Save any leftover labneh in a bowl with olive oil.

Posted on by Myfrenchkitchen · 1 Comment

Marinated radishes

Everybody knows marinated red onions, which is very popular. So lets make some marinated radishes. The same principle, the same method. I keep it in the fridge and we eat it within 3 days. Delicious on sandwiches, an aperitif platter with ham or in a salad.

Recipe:

  • A small bunch of radishes, washed and dried
  • 250 ml white vinegar, or cider vinegar, or rice vinegar
  • 4 TBSP white sugar or honey
  • 1 tsp salt
  • peppercorns, red and black

  • Slice the cleaned and dried radishes into rings, not too thin.
  • Place the sliced radishes into a medium mas jars. Add some peppercorns to the jar.
  • Bring to the boil the vinegar, salt and sugar.
  • Pour the vinegar over the radishes and fill to the top. Leave to cool down a bit and cover with lid.
  • Set aside to cool down completely and store in the fridge for up to three days.

Pinch of salt:

  • Use within three days. I find that hey lose their flavour and colour after three days.
  • Add a galic clove to the radishes.
  • Add a little water if you dont want just vinegar.
  • Use honey instead of sugar to make it healthier.
  • Try the same recipe with slices of raw beetroot.