Buffalo Chicken Wings with Blue Cheese Dip

Crispy chicken wings make a great pre-feast nibble and this is a tasty way of turning what is often thought of as an off-cut into something scrumptious. They are cooked until the skin is quite crisp and then tossed in a tangy tomato sauce and served with a creamy dip and crunchy sticks of celery. My children love them and because they’re so cheap to buy it’s a very affordable barbecue feast.

Serves 6

24 large chicken wings

1 onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

40 g (1½ oz) butter

1 tablespoon light soft brown sugar

2 teaspoons English mustard powder

2 teaspoons chilli powder

250 ml (8 fl oz) tomato ketchup

120 ml (4 fl oz) red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 celery hearts, cut into chunky sticks

For the blue cheese dip

100 g (4 oz) Danish Blue

1 garlic clove, crushed

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

4 tablespoons soured cream

a little chopped fresh parsley to garnish

12 long, flat metal skewers

For the blue cheese dip, put the cheese, garlic, mayonnaise and lemon juice into a food processor and blend until smooth. Stir in the chopped onion and soured cream.

Spoon the mixture into a bowl, sprinkle with the chopped parsley and set aside in the fridge until needed.

For the sauce, fry the onion and garlic in the butter for 5 minutes until soft. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients and simmer for 3 minutes until thickened. Keep warm.

Cut the tips off the chicken wings and then thread them on to pairs of parallel skewers, so that they rest across the two like the rungs of a ladder. This makes it easier to turn them during cooking.

Barbecue the wings over medium-hot coals for about 20–25 minutes, turning regularly, until golden.

Slide the wings off the skewers into the pot of sauce and toss together well. Lift them out on to a plate and serve with the dip and celery sticks.

Parker’s Pear and Parma Ham Bruschetta

I cooked these in the middle of a fruit farm in Paarl, South Africa. Often the simplest recipes turn out to be the most spectacular and by the look of the crew’s faces after tasting them, I knew I was on to an absolute winner.

Serves 4

2 large ripe pears

4 slices rustic white bread

about 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

8 thin slices Parma ham

175 g (6 oz) Gorgonzola

100 g (4 oz) mixed green salad leaves

about 2 tablespoons Best Ever Mustard French Dressing (see here)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the pears into slices about 5 mm (¼ in) thick and then cut out the core from each piece.

Place the pears onto the rack of the barbecue over medium-hot coals and cook for 2–3 minutes, turning once until they are heated through and lightly charred. Remove and set to one side.

Place the bread onto the barbecue and toast for 1–2 minutes. Turn over, drizzle with a little of the oil and then arrange 2 slices of the Parma ham on each piece. Top with a couple of pieces of the pear and then crumble the Gorgonzola on top.

Toss the salad leaves with the French dressing and some seasoning.

Divide between 4 shallow dishes, top with a piece of bread and serve at once, preferably with lots of sunshine and a glass of bubbly. Hmmmmm.

Fire-roasted Red Pepper Guacamole

Here’s my version of that creamy Mexican avocado dip, which makes a great summertime starter with some crunchy tortilla chips. I’ve added a roasted red pepper to the mixture but you can leave it out if you wish.

Serves 6–8

1 large red pepper

3 large ripe avocados

1 small onion, very finely chopped

1 tomato, skinned, seeded and diced

2 green chillies, seeded and very finely chopped

4–5 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander

juice of 1 lime

salt and cayenne pepper

tortilla chips to serve

Barbecue or grill the red pepper for about 20 minutes, turning now and then until the skin is really quite black. Drop it into a plastic bag, seal and leave to cool.

Remove the pepper from the bag, peel off the skin and discard the seeds. Very finely chop the flesh.

Cut the avocados in half, remove the stones and scoop the flesh into a bowl. Mash with the back of a fork into a smooth purée.

Stir in the roasted red pepper, onion, tomato, green chillies, coriander, lime juice and some salt and cayenne pepper to taste and serve with the tortilla chips.

TIP Leave the stone in the dip to prevent it from discolouring.

Dream Stuffed Mild Anaheim Chillies

Believe it or not these chillies are actually not that much hotter than the average green pepper and they take on a lovely sweet flavour when they are cooked, much like a pepper would. These are stuffed with a soft goats’ cheese but a harder goats’ cheese or an ordinary Cheddar will be just as tasty. Just cut the harder cheese into sticks about 10 cm (4 in) long and 1 cm (½ in) thick, ready for stuffing. When the locals tasted these chillies in Jamaica they said, ‘Boy, dem chilli, dem taste wicked’.

Serves 4

8 large Anaheim chillies

100–175 g (4–6 oz) soft goats’ cheese

½ tablespoon olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Barbecue the chillies over medium-hot coals for 10–15 minutes, turning now and then, until the skin has blistered and charred and the flesh is just soft. Remove and leave to cool slightly and then carefully scrape off the skin with a small, sharp knife.

Make a cut lengthways down one side of each chilli and scoop out the seeds and the membranes with a teaspoon.

Spread a couple of tablespoons of the cheese into the centre of each one and then push them back into shape.

Brush the outside of the chillies with a little more oil, season well with salt and pepper and return them to the barbecue. Cook them for a few more minutes on each side until they are heated through and the cheese has melted. Serve straight away with perhaps some fresh crusty bread.

Mamma Tahsia’s Baked Greek Olives

I first ate these when I visited a Greek friend’s house, and that delicious taste has remained with me forever. Olives marinated in olive oil along with some other flavourings is nothing new, but this idea of serving them slightly warm is a little different and very tasty. All you have to do is ask Mamma Tahsia.

Serves 4

100 g (4 oz) pitted black, Greek Calamata olives

100 g (4 oz) pitted green olives

1½ tablespoons crushed coriander seeds

2 strips pared lemon zest, halved

2 strips pared orange zest, halved

2 small bay leaves, halved

2 cloves garlic, sliced

the leaves from 2 sprigs of fresh thyme

175 ml (6 fl oz) olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons orange juice

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and set aside to marinate for at least 2 hours.

Shape 4 x 30 cm (12 in) squares of foil into little bowls and divide the olive mixture between them, making sure that each one gets a strip of lemon and lime zest and half a bay leaf.

Pinch the edges together to make well-sealed parcels and place to the side of the barbecue for 5 minutes until heated through. Remove, leave to cool slightly and serve with plenty of fresh crusty bread and wash down with chilled spicy white wine.