10 Easy Lunches to Impress Your Friends

10 Easy Lunches to Impress Your Friends

There are certain times when we don’t really feel in the mood to cook, and one of those times is in Summer when we are feeling hot, bothered and lethargic, but fancy something tasty for lunch. But with a little imagination even the laziest cook can come up with something more inviting than the usual ham salad.

Below are 10 ideas to get both your imagination and your taste buds into gear. They are more suggestions that actual recipes, a few simple ingredients to make a delicious meal for two.

1. Eggs with asparagus

Simmer eggs gently for six minutes, run under cold water until cool, then peel. Serve over steamed asparagus.

2. Herby pasta

Toss a couple of handfuls of fresh chopped herbs with a few tbs of olive oil in a hot pan. Serve over angel-hair pasta (capellini, a very fine spaghetti), diluting the sauce if necessary with pasta cooking water.

3. Scallop with lime

Cut eight raw scallops into four horizontal slices each. Sprinkle with lime juice, salt and crushed chillies; serve after five minutes.

4. Prawns with white beans

Open a tin/jar of white beans and combine with olive oil, salt, prawns, minced garlic and thyme leaves in a pan. Cook, stirring, until the prawns are done; garnish with more olive oil.

5. Mussels with basil and tomato

Put 1.4 kilos of washed mussels in a deep pan with 250ml white wine, garlic cloves, basil leaves and chopped tomatoes. Steam until mussels open – just a few minutes.

6. Sole on bread

Heat 1 cm of olive oil in a pan. Dip sole fillets in flour and fry until crisp, about 2 minutes a side. Serve on bread with tartare sauce.

7. Clams with garlic

Put a few dozen washed clams in a large, hot frying pan with olive oil. When the clams begin to open, add a tbs or 2 of chopped garlic. When most or all are opened, add some chopped parsley. Serve alone, with bread or over angel-hair pasta.

8. Steak and salad

Pan-fry a steak for three or four minutes on each side. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, slice and serve on romaine/cos lettuce, drizzled with olive oil and lemon.

9. Baked mackerel

Smear fresh mackerel fillets with mustard, sprinkle with chopped herbs (fresh tarragon is good), seasoning and breadcrumbs. Bake for eight minutes at 220C/gas 7.

10. Paprika prawns

Warm olive oil in a pan with at least three cloves of sliced garlic. When the garlic colours, add at least a tsp each of cumin and paprika. A minute later, add a dozen or so prawns, salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley.

I hope you find at least some of the above both helpful and delicious. If you try any of these, do please let me know which ones and how they went down.

Until next time………………

Mr. Paul

Category: Blog, Recipes