Looking to make your summer vegetables more exciting? Chef Josh Katz, celebrated for his big, bold flavours, is your guy. Here, he uses chilli honey to spice up a courgette tart, blackens aubergine for a thick, flavoursome soup and adds green-herb zing to cheesy Turkish pizzas
PHOTOGRAPHS JAMES MURPHY FOOD STYLING AYA NISHIMURA STYLING LYDIA MCPHERSON
Three-cheese pides with egg and salsa verde
“This is a decadent pide (a kind of oval Turkish pizza) that does your waistline no favours, but it does fill you with the rich joys of life. The acidity in the salsa verde will cut through the richness.”
Makes 3 large pides (serves 6) Hands-on time 45 min Oven time 12 min
MAKE AHEAD The dough can be made 36 hours ahead (see recipe overleaf). Prepare the sauce up to 48 hours ahead, pour into a sealable container and lay cling film directly on the surface to stop a skin forming. Chill until needed, then warm through in a pan or microwave.
KNOW-HOW This recipe makes 3 large pides. You can make 4-5 smaller ones and simply use 4-5 eggs as required. →
• Plain flour to dust
• 3 pide dough balls (see right)
• 3 medium free-range eggs
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 1½ tbsp za’atar
• Extra-virgin olive oil
For the salsa verde
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• Juice 2 lemons
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 120ml extra-virgin olive oil
• Large handful each parsley, mint and tarragon, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 40g capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
For the cheese sauce
• 75g unsalted butter
• 75g plain flour
• 750ml milk
• 75g cheddar, grated
• 75g parmesan or a vegetarian alternative, grated
• 90g halloumi, grated
1 For the salsa verde, combine the mustard, lemon juice and vinegar in a bowl and slowly whisk in the olive oil to thicken. Stir in the remaining ingredients, season, then set to one side.
2 For the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a heavy-based pan over a medium heat, then whisk in the flour to form a paste (or roux). Slowly pour in the milk, roughly 100ml at a time, whisking continuously. Turn down the heat to low-medium and simmer for 10-15 minutes until thickened, then stir in the cheeses and season with salt to taste. Set aside, keeping warm until needed.
3 Heat your oven to its highest possible setting. (If you have a pizza oven, heat it to 350-400°C.) Put a pizza stone or large baking sheet in the oven to heat up.
4 Lightly flour a work surface and roll out a dough ball to an oval shape, about 35cm x 15cm. Spread the cheese sauce down the length of the base, leaving a 2.5cm border. Use a spoon to indent a small well in the middle for an egg yolk. Fold the sides of the pide inward, crimping the
