RECIPES, STYLING AND FOOD STYLING GEORGINA HAYDEN
GEORGINA’S TABLE
Herby gooseberry focaccia, p46
PHOTOGRAPHS LAURA EDWARDS
While I love the fresh spring days of May, it’s June I get most excited about. In the past few years it’s felt like peak summer, with the added bonus of the longest days of the year. Cue lots of socialising and eating outside. If I’m just at home, I’ll drag furniture and cushions into the garden – everything tastes so much better under a blanket of sunshine. Eating outside and barbecuing is great fun, but there’s something extra-special about an away-from-home picnic.
It takes a bit of planning, but that makes it feel like an event – there’s a real sense of occasion. It might seem daft, but when I was small I’d wait all year for picnics in the park and I dreamed of owning one of those Sixties-style picnic hampers with Bakelite containers inside. I bought a pistachio green one as soon as I had my first job and it felt like a rite of passage to adulthood.
There’s something endearing about the odds and sods that everyone brings: the family-size bags of crisps and packets of scotch eggs, an array of dips that look a little congealed after an hour or so in the sun, a pudding that’s nearly dissolved and the obligatory couscous salad. But with a little thought you can make food that’s convenient and tastes great. GEORGINA HAYDEN
Crispy noodle, watermelon and peanut salad
Crispy noodle, watermelon and peanut salad
SERVES 4-6. HANDS-ON TIME 35 MIN
I love eating outside, and when the weather is glorious I crave refreshing, crunchy, zesty food. While leafy salads aren’t ideal picnic fare in hot weather, this spicy watermelon salad is just the ticket. Layer it up in a container, with the dressing at the bottom, and keep the fried noodles in a separate bag or food container. Then toss together at the last minute.
MAKE AHEAD
Fry the noodles up to a day ahead and keep in an airtight container until ready to eat.
FOOD TEAM’S TIP
If you don’t want to deep-fry the noodles, heat a generous splash of oil until hot in a heavy-based frying pan, roughly break up the noodle nests and fry in batches until puffed, draining on plenty of kitchen paper to soak up any excess oil as you go.
• Vegetable oil for deep frying (around 1 litre – see tip)
• 150g vermicelli rice noodles
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 100g unsalted peanuts
• 2 tbsp caster sugar