With the arrival of summer holidays, it's time to consider easy breakfasts and cool drinks.
Now that all the celebratory cooking is done, the kitchen is tidy again, my guests have gone and the holidays have truly begun, I can relax and breathe a sigh of relief. A light summery cocktail does not feel too ridiculous to start the day. There is still some leftover ham to deal with, and it is best suited to breakfast, mixed into the kind of hash that has a crispy crust and is perfect with a poached egg. My days are lazy, but I like to go to a bit of effort for breakfast because who knows what will happen by lunchtime. These are the types of generous breakfasts to cook for family, friends or lovers after you get up early to surprise everyone with a little holiday luxury.
This is slightly indulgent, a little exotic and possibly a bit too Martha Stewart, but it is the perfect tonic for any day that starts with a headache and a bout of nausea. Serve with poached fruit and granola.
Lychee L’Amour
2 apples, such as braeburn or gala
4 lychees
crushed ice
100ml ginger ale
100ml soda water
2 tbsp lychee syrup
2 sprigs of mint
Cut the apples into quarters, then core. Put the apples and lychees through a juice extractor. If you don’t have one, replace the apples with 200ml of apple juice and blend with the lychees in a liquidiser. Place the crushed ice in 2 tall glasses and pour in the apple juice. Top up with ginger ale, soda water and lychee syrup, then push the mint sprigs down into the glasses. Serve immediately.
Enough for 2.
For Sunday breakfast, a mimosa, made with freshly squeezed orange juice, is the perfect accompaniment for a crab omelette. The bellini, with its base of puréed fresh white peach, is possibly one of the most romantic drinks you can ever serve someone you love. It’s the perfect accompaniment to a healthy breakfast of fresh berries, mascarpone and french toast. The french 75, with its mix of gin and lime, was made famous by Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca and is probably not great as a breakfast drink but could be consumed with a plate of mushrooms served on toast and accompanied with cooked leftover leg ham.
My restaurant manager, John-Paul, is in charge of our wine lists. As he was named after a Pope, much confusion surrounds the pronunciation of his name, with many guests assuming he is French and referring to him as “Jean-Paul”. He isn’t French, he is from Paeroa and a keen drinker of cocktails. This is one of his favourites for an easy start to the morning. He recommends using a lighter-style champagne, but notes the drink also makes good use of leftover bubbles.
John-Paul Special
3 lychees
30ml lychee syrup
champagne or sparkling wine
2 sprigs oregano
Put the lychees and syrup in a liquidiser until purée smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of the mixture to each of 2 champagne flutes. Top up with champagne, then pick 3-4 oregano leaves from the tops of the sprigs for a garnish. Serve immediately.
Makes 2.
THIS IS A refreshing drink and a great way to ease into a day that starts about lunchtime, which gives me a time to slowly absorb the sounds and smells of summer.
Sea Breeze
crushed ice
30ml vodka
120ml cranberry juice
30ml grapefruit juice
vlime
Place the crushed ice in a tall glass. In a cocktail shaker mix the vodka, cranberry and grapefruit juices, then pour the mixture over the ice. This will give it a lovely foam. Garnish with a thick slice of lime and serve immediately.
Makes 1.
THIS traditional Chinese-style omelette, is a blissful way to start the day, but could just as easily be served for lunch or dinner.
Crab and Bean-Sprout Omelette
4 free-range eggs
1 tbsp fish sauce
200g crabmeat
a handful of bean sprouts or snowpea shoots
a small bunch of chives
2 tbsp vegetable oilv
150ml chicken stock
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
pea shoots, to garnish
Beat the eggs in a bowl, then add the fish sauce. In another bowl mix the crabmeat and bean sprouts. Chop the chives and mix in. Heat a small frying pan over a low heat and add the oil. Pour in half the egg mixture, cook for 3 minutes, then place half the crab mixture in the middle. Cook for a further 3 minutes until pale gold then remove from the heat. Fold the omelette over and drain any excess oil from the pan. Transfer the omelette to a clean tea-towel, roll it up like a sausage and set aside for 2 minutes. Return the frying pan to the heat and repeat with the remaining eggs and crabmeat.
In a small saucepan heat the stock, oyster sauce and sesame oil. Slice each omelette in half and arrange on 2 plates. Pour a little stock over the top, then serve garnished with pea shoots.
Serves 2.
Mushrooms seem to taste better if left in the fridge for a couple of days to get slightly damp and funkier. Preparing tender mushrooms for breakfast can be as simple as frying them in butter with garlic and lemon juice then serving on fresh white bread, or baking them before tossing through a salad of green leaves and summer tomatoes.
Mushrooms on Toast with Ham and Sage Tomatoes
125g unsalted butter
juice of ½ a lemon
salt and black pepper
4 large portobello mushrooms
olive oil
50g unsalted butter
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Mix the butter and lemon juice and season with a little salt and pepper. Trim the mushrooms, discarding the stalks, and place them in a baking dish. Spread the butter thickly over the top and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with tinfoil and bake for 30 minutes until tender. Remove from the oven and set aside while the tomatoes and ham cook. Thickly slice the mushrooms and arrange on 2 serving plates with the ham and some apple sauce, tomatoes and herbs. Spoon any mushroom juices over the top and serve.
For the tomatoes
2 tomatoes
salt and black pepper
4-6 sage leaves
a few sprigs of thyme
olive oil
Cut the tomatoes in half around the middle and place them cut-side up in a roasting dish. Season with salt and pepper, then tear up the sage leaves and sprinkle with the thyme over the top of the tomatoes. Season with olive oil. Cook the tomatoes under a preheated grill until slightly charred on the edges and -softened in the middle.
For the ham
100g unsalted butter
4 thick slices of ham
100ml apple juice
Melt the butter in a large frying pan. When it starts foaming, add the ham and cook for 4 minutes on each side until crispy on the edges. Pour in the apple juice and simmer for 2 minutes.
Serves 2.