I married a mint hater. That was hard for this Lebanese woman who grew up loving mint! (I am happy to announce that, despite what the clever people say, you can in fact change your husband - he is loving his mint now!)
Having been a dentist all his life, I guess one can understand his aversion to mint - he used to tell funny stories about patients who, after a night of garlic and wine, would try to conceal the evidence by sucking on breath mints, and how much more unbearable it would make matters. Also, his theory used to be that mint belongs in toothpaste…
I also married an Aquarian, a mild, even-tempered character, slow to anger, always avoiding a fight, keeping the peace, enhancing every get-together…and in a way, he is so much like mint! A great companion to many flavours, enhancing a dish, not causing too much drama (despite what one expects), a breath of freshness…
Mint pesto
We know that mint often features in Middle Eastern cuisine, and we know that mint and watermelon, mint and chocolate, mint and peas, and mint and lamb make wonderful companions. We know that the Italians make basil pesto, but did you know that mint pesto is a thing too?
Perfect drizzled on chicken, salmon, prawns, pork, cheese and many other things! Here’s how:
Ingredients
3 cups of lightly packed mint leaves
125ml extra virgin olive oil
¼ tsp fine salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Method
Bring a medium-sized pot of water to the boil and blanch the mint leaves for 40 seconds. Drain and rinse well in cold, running water. Drain well and squeeze out as much of the liquid as you can, using your hands.
Blanching the leaves helps contain the flavour, colour and nutrients. Loosen the leaves and spread out onto a dish towel. Roll the dish towel to drain the last of the liquid.
Place the mint on a cutting board and chop it very finely. Transfer to a bowl, add the oil and season. Stir well to combine, and if needed, you can add a little more oil to get the consistency just right.
Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated. It will keep for up to 10 days if stored correctly.
For my very first cookbook, Season’s Bounty (which is sadly out of print), I created a lemon panna cotta with a sweet basil pesto - methinks I should go back to the drawing board and try it with this!
My mother’s simple tomato and mint salad
My precious mother had a way of preparing a fabulous meal and making it look so effortless – I am often told that I inherited this from her. She would instinctively know which flavours would be perfect together and just quickly put things in one bowl, tossed and served…it was always something memorable. This is one such salad, except in those days when she was still around, we would pick the sun-ripened tomatoes from her garden, and somehow, they just tasted so much better. My city life dictates that I frequent greengrocers and supermarkets and make use of products that have travelled for days and have been refrigerated – all of which seems to rob them of some of their unique flavour.
When I was planning my Lebanese cookbook, the photographer and his partner came to dinner one evening. I served this salad, and David exclaimed that this just had to find its way onto a page of the book. It was added as an afterthought, and I am so happy it was.
Serves 6
Ingredients
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
60ml olive oil
salt flakes to season
750g small tomatoes of different colours, halved lengthways
½ small red onion, peeled and sliced thinly
handful of fresh mint, chopped
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Method
Place the crushed garlic in bowl and mix the olive oil into that. Place the tomatoes in the olive oil mixture, toss and season with the salt. Add the onion, mint and lemon juice, toss and serve.
Seared Norwegian salmon served with fresh granadilla and mint
When I was finishing Season’s Bounty, this was the very last recipe I came up with…and over the years, it has become my favourite way of preparing salmon - which I find very rich, so to balance matters, I have added mint and granadillas, both adding freshness and cutting the richness…
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
2 x 300g salmon fillets, skin on
salt to season
pulp of 4 granadillas
a bunch of mint, finely chopped
Method
Heat the oil in a fish pan until the pan is very hot. Place the fillets of salmon in the pan, flesh side down, and sear for a few minutes before turning them onto the skin. Cook for a few minutes more, about 7 minutes in total, season with salt and remove from the heat.
Scrape the pulp from the granadillas onto the salmon and top with the mint.
Serve warm or at room temperature with a steamed potato and avocado pear or for a carb free option, just with a fresh, green salad.
Remember…
A bad mood is like bad breath - both are wrong to inflict on others!
Until next time, plant some mint in your garden, make mojitos, and have some fun. Or, enroll in the last few cookery classes for the year… There are a multitude of ways in which I use mint in my kitchen and I’m happy to share ideas. Or, if you have FOMO and live far away, no worries! You can find me online, and invite me into your kitchen, as often as you want!
With love from my kitchen to yours xxx
Baie dankie liefste Bella! Dis so lekker om jou boodskap te lees! Waardeer, en waardeer jou. Hoop om jou binnekort te sien. Stywe drukke xxx
Lees altyd so lekker aan jou nuusbriewe. Vanoggend 'n mandjie suurlemoen beetgekry... geskil vir limoncello... en in kwarte gesny en gesout vir 'preserved lemons' en aan jou gedink. Ekstra spesiaal toe ek my epos oopmaak en daar is n nuusbrief van jou ♥️