It’s the summer solstice today, which is also known as midsummer. It marks the day when the Sun appears to reach its highest point in the sky and gives us the ‘longest’ day of the year.
What a great excuse to throw a big summer bash and invite everyone round for a barbecue. Amanda’s parents are visiting us at the moment so we’re going to cook Monday’s tuna steak recipe on the BBQ tonight and make the most of the daylight!
Monday: Tarragon tuna steak with green beans and cherry tomato salad
Aniseed is such a refreshing summer flavour, which is why I’ve used tarragon in this recipe. You can use tarragon or basil to accompany the tuna steak. I like the nice chargrilled flavour of the green beans in this recipe. The combination of ingredients is very fresh and fragrant. I prefer my tuna cooked but Amanda loves it when it has literally touched the pan to sear it and completely raw inside.
Tuesday: Sweet and sour vegetables with rice
For tonight’s recipe on my meal plan, I needed to have something vegetarian so opted for a classic; sweet and sour vegetables with rice. I design the meal plans so that they are balanced with lots of veg that’s in season. Since doing this, I am discovering lots of new vegetarian dishes but it’s always nice to have a classic every now and then.
Wednesday: Thai chicken salad leaf wraps
This is a fun and exciting way to eat, and way more interesting than a salad. I love the idea of using the salad leaf as a wrap and combining it with my favourite Thai flavours: ginger, garlic & lime. It’s also a carb free meal and it smells absolutely amazing when it’s cooking. Amanda could not wait to eat this that I almost didn’t get a chance to take the photo!
Thursday: Tomato, feta cheese and black olive penne
It’s the season for tomatoes and there is nothing better than a fresh tomato sauce when the tomatoes are at their best. So, tonight’s recipe is a fresh tomato, olive and feta cheese sauce with penne pasta. If you’re planning on making this, use really ripe tomatoes so that they add a lovely sweetness to the sauce.
Friday: Lentil stuffed summer vegetables
This is a dish that can fool any meat lover as it looks like mincemeat but is totally vegetarian. I really love using lentils to stuff the vegetables as they are so tasty. When I tried this out with Amanda, we were discussing which vegetable we thought was the tastiest. It was a tough decision but we both agreed that the pepper is our favourite. What’s your favourite? Please do share with us as we’d love to hear from you.
