Warm lamb salad with a pea, mint & feta cheese dressing

A fabulously summery recipe from the very appealing Great British Farmhouse Cookbook - perfect for this time of year.

Unusually it's sponsored by a company - the enterprising Yeo Valley dairy in Somerset - but you don't find their branding all over the recipes which have been put together by Sarah Mayor, the Cordon-Bleu trained daughter of the company's founders Roger and Mary Mead and a farmer's wife herself.

Sarah writes: "We’re not normally huge fans of frozen veg, but with peas we make an exception. They’re normally frozen within minutes of being picked, so they’re actually far tastier than fresh peas that have been hanging around in the fridge for a while."

SERVES 6

1 x 2.5kg leg of lamb, butterflied

2 little gem lettuces, broken into leaves, washed and dried

1/4 cucumber, halved and thinly sliced

salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE MARINADE:

6 tbsp olive oil

the leaves from 2 rosemary sprigs, finely chopped

the leaves from 2 large thyme sprigs, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, crushed

finely grated zest and juice of 1 small lemon

FOR THE PEA, MINT AND FETA CHEESE DRESSING:

3 small shallots, very thinly sliced

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/4 tsp caster sugar

250g frozen peas

8 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

the leaves from a 20g bunch fresh mint, chopped, plus extra

whole leaves for garnish

200g feta cheese, crumbled

FOR THE GARLIC AND MINT YOGURT:

250g wholemilk natural yogurt

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a large shallow dish with 1 teaspoon each of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the lamb and turn it over in the mixture a few times until it is well covered. Cover and leave to marinate for at least 4–6 hours, ideally overnight.

2. To make the dressing, put the sliced shallots into a mixing bowl and stir in the vinegar and sugar. Set aside for at least 30 minutes so that the shallots can soften. Cover the peas with warm water and leave them to thaw, then drain well and set to one side. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6.

3. Pop a ridged cast iron griddle over a high heat until smoking hot, then lower the heat to medium-low. Lift the lamb out of the marinade, shaking off the excess, then place it on the griddle and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side until well coloured*. Transfer to a roasting tin, spoon over any remaining marinade and roast for 20-25 minutes. Transfer the meat to a carving board, cover with foil and leave to rest for 5-10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, tear the lettuce leaves into smaller pieces and scatter them over the base of a large serving platter along with the sliced cucumber. Mix the yogurt ingredients together and season to taste.

5. Add the oil to the shallots and swirl together. Stir in the peas and mint and season to taste.

6. Carve the lamb across into thin slices and pop it on top of the lettuce. Spoon over the pea and mint dressing, scatter over the feta and sprinkle with a few more small mint leaves. Eat straight away with the garlic and mint yogurt.

* the recipe doesn't state this but you could cook the lamb on a barbecue if you had a kettle-style barbecue

Suggested wine match: You could go several ways with this - a light red, a crisp white or a strong dry rosé. Red-wise that could be a Saumur Champigny or another Loire Cabernet Franc, a pinot noir or a juicy red like Mencia from the Bierzo region of northern Spain. Because of the yoghurt and spring vegetables a crisp white such as Sauvignon Blanc would work for those who prefer a white or a crisp dry rosé like Bandol from the South of France would also be delicious.

Extracted from Yeo Valley: The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook by Sarah Mayor (Quadrille £20). Photograph: Andrew Montgomery.

Spinach & goat’s cheese croquetas

Of all the things I eat at Jose Pizarro's lovely tapas bar José, the croquetas are my favourite. Here's a recipe for the spinach ones from his brilliant book Basque.

"Croquetas, croquetas, croquetas. Many people tell me that they make a beeline to Spanish restaurants for the croquetas and the tortilla, and we are very proud of ours. This is one of the most popular flavours at the restaurant; they are so creamy and moreish. You can freeze them ahead of time, and then just defrost before frying."

Makes 32–34 croquetas

500g (1 lb 2 oz) baby leaf spinach

400ml (13 fl oz) full-fat (whole) milk

100ml (3½ fl oz) strong fresh vegetable stock

80g (3 oz) butter

125g (4 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour

80g (3 oz) goat’s cheese, crumbled

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

freshly grated nutmeg

2 large free-range eggs, beaten

125g (4 oz) dry breadcrumbs

olive oil for deep-frying

Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high heat and add the spinach with a tiny splash of water. Cook for 3–4 minutes or until completely wilted, then run under cold water. Once cold, squeeze out all the water. Chop finely and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat the milk and the stock together. In another saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat, add the flour and cook for 2–3 minutes. When the mixture starts to turn brown, begin adding the milk and stock very slowly until you get a really silky-smooth mix. This will take approximately 10 minutes.

Add the cheese to the mixture slowly, then add the spinach and stir constantly until it is well combined. Season with salt, pepper and a grating of nutmeg.

Spread the mixture onto a shallow tray and press a sheet of cling film (plastic wrap) over the top. Cool then place in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours.

Put some oil in the palm of your hand and roll the mixture into 30 g (1 oz) balls. If they are a little soft, pop them on a tray in the freezer to firm up for 30 minutes.

Place the beaten egg and the breadcrumbs into two separate bowls. Dip the croquetas first into the beaten egg and then into the breadcrumbs.

Heat the oil to 180°C (350°F) and fry the croquetas for around 2 minutes or until golden. Drain on paper towels, then eat straight away.

From BASQUE: Spanish Recipes from San Sebastián and beyond by José Pizarro (Hardie Grant, £25.00) Photography © Laura Edwards

What to drink:
In no particular order 1) cava 2) fino sherry 3) albarino, I'd suggest. Sauvignon Blanc would also work.

Buttermilk, Cheddar and Chive Bread

If you fancy baking something easy for the family this weekend try this delicious savoury bread from Claire Thomson's just-published National Trust Family Cookbook.

Claire writes: I enjoy the incremental hike of a bread dough made with yeast, but with alchemy on your side a loaf can easily get to the table in under an hour. The trio of bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and egg works wonders in this recipe. Mixed with the dry ingredients, they elevate the loaf as it bakes. Eat hot from the oven with salted butter or pack for a picnic or lunch.

Makes a 900g loaf

300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

1½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

80g Cheddar cheese, grated

Small bunch of chives, chopped

40g butter

225ml buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp Dijon mustard

Preheat the oven to 200°C (190°C fan). Line a 900g loaf tin with greaseproof paper.

Put the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cheese and chives in a large mixing bowl.

Melt the butter and add it to a jug with the buttermilk, egg and mustard. Give the mix a good whisk.

Swiftly add the wet mix to the dry ingredients and combine with a fork. Do not over-mix the dough – it should be a cohesive, sticky mass in well under a minute. It shouldn’t need any shaping so just fit it snugly into the prepared tin.

Dust the top of the loaf with a little flour and bake for 40–45 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out. Serve warm or leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

From the National Trust Family Cookbook by Claire Thomson, published by National Trust Books. Photo © Jill Mead.

Carrot pie with apple and goat cheese

This unusual recipe from Dutch cookery writer Yvette van Boven's lovely Home Made Summer is a great way to kick off National Vegetarian Week.

It's well worth getting the book for the other recipes too - including an imaginative range of drinks.

Carrot pie with apple and goat cheese

for 6 to 8 servings

8 carrots, peeled

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 fresh, tart apple, peeled, cored, and sliced as thinly as possible

4 oz (100 g) soft goat cheese

½ cup (100 g) crème fraîche

½ cup plus 2 tbsp (150 ml) carrot juice

3 large eggs

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Boil the carrots in salted water for 8 minutes, until just tender. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Halve them lengthwise and set them aside.

Grease a 9-inch (24-cm) tart pan with a removable bottom with a little butter.

On a well-floured counter, roll out the puff pastry into a nice round slab the size of the pie plate. Press the dough firmly into the plate and trim the edges neatly. With a fork, stab some holes in the bottom, then cover the dough and place the pie plate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Arrange the onion and apple over the bottom of the pastry in the pie plate and place the halved carrots on top in a spoke pattern. Crumble the goat cheese over the pie, somewhat in between the carrots.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the crème fraîche, carrot juice, and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the mixture over the carrots and sprinkle everything generously with pepper.

Bake the pie on the lower rack of the oven for about 35 minutes, until golden brown.

What to drink: Almost any crisp fresh white or rosé would work with this. I'd probably go for a smooth Italian white like a Soave, an unoaked Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc or a Provencal rosé. Verdelho would be nice too. Or cider . . . yes, cider would be lovely.