Despite a few cool, misty mornings we have been enjoying a bit of an Indian Summer recently, my children were swimming in the sea three times last week (and even I joined them on one occasion…) and there are still shorts and summer dresses being sported in the playground. We expect (and hope) July and August will be hot for the school holidays but September heralds a return to work so to have fabulous balmy weather always feels like a treat, a bonus, a little extra.
As such I like to eke out the summer feeling with barbeques and eating in the garden whenever possible. If, however, you’ve had enough of those leafy green salads then try this for your lunch – smooth, creamy herb flecked ricotta which is unbelievably quick and easy to make (yes make yourself!) accompanied by sweet and sour crunchy cucumber. The latter is a riff on my quick pickled onion and you could of course use that instead.
I like the ricotta spread on slices of baguette, topped with the tangy fresh cucumber slices, a little more substantial than lunches in the height of a hot summer but not yet a headlong dive into the autumnal soups yet to come.
Herby Ricotta with Pickled Cucumber
You can use whichever soft herbs you like, I use parsley, chives and dill because that is a combination I love. The dill along with the pickled cucumber give a bit of Scandanavian vibe and go together perfectly. The ricotta would also be fabulous on little crispy toasts topped with chopped cucumber as a canapé and of course, prior to the herbing this ricotta is perfect for any other sweet or savoury recipe you have up your sleeve (so much better than supermarket ricotta and I struggle to find fresh around here).
300ml pot single cream (you can use double if that is what you have)
600ml whole milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
A handful of chopped herbs of your choice
Put the cream into a pan and fill the empty pot twice with milk and mix this into the cream along with the salt. Bring to the boil and them remove from the heat and add the vinegar and give it a stir. You will see the mixture separate, pour into a muslin lined colander and leave to drain for an hour or so until you have a crumbly creamy cheese. Mix in the herbs and check the seasoning, you may need a little more salt and some pepper. Heavenly.
Pickled Cucumber
Half a cucumber
1 tablespoon caster sugar
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Salt
Put the sugar and vinegar into a shallow bowl with a pinch of salt and leave to dissolve. Using a vegetable peeler, take long slices of cucumber avoiding the watery seeds in the middle and add to the bowl. Leave for at least half an hour, stirring occasionally, for the cucumber to “pickle”.
This amount would serve two for lunch or more along side other dishes.