At The Sharpham Park Pantry This week

Spelt with Pomegranate, Almonds, Feta and Mint
By Xanthe clay

This salad has some vaguely Middle Eastern flavours, with the tang of salty feta as well as the juicy crunch of pomegranate. I like it with bitter-sweet chicory leaves (the red ones look pretty) but rocket would work too.

INGREDIENTS:

Serves 4-6

150g Pearled Spelt

1tbsp olive oil

2tsp lime juice

1tbsp pomegranate molasses (or extra lime juice) 50g blanched almonds, toasted in a hot pan until golden.

A small bunch of mint

Arils from half a pomegranate - about a teacupful 100g feta cheese A head of red chicory

METHOD:

Put the spelt in a large pan of water with a fat pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and cook for 10 minutes, until tender but with still a little bite.

Drain well in a sieve but don’t run it under a cold tap. Instead, tip it into a bowl and add the olive oil, 2 tsp of lime juice, and pomegranate molasses, plus a pinch of salt. Stir well, cover with a plate and leave to cool.

Heat a frying pan and add the almonds. Cook over a medium heat, turning often, until golden on both sides. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn! Tip on to a plate to cool, then cut each into three or so with a sharp knife (a heavy chef’s knife is better than a serrated knife here). Try to cut the almonds lengthways into long slivers, which look better.

Strip the leaves from the mint and chop the bigger leaves roughly. Mix the mint, pomegranate and almonds into the spelt. Crumble the feta and add that too. Taste the mix: it may need a little more olive oil or even a splash of water to loosen it a little, plus salt and pepper.

Separate the leaves of chicory and spread them on a plate. Scatter over the spelt mixture. Serve as a first course or with grilled lamb. 

Optional; Mix with a spoonful of cream. Grate in lots of Parmesan and the grated zest of a large lemon. Add lots of tiny fronds of dill, folding it in carefully. Taste and season with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Serve on a buffet to go with poached salmon or other cold meat, instead of rice salad. I'd be tempted to add a handful of those tiny "nonpareille" capers too.

www.greatbritishspeltrecipes.com 

Bowl Cancer UK and Sharpham Park have joined forces to help raise awareness and save lives from bowel cancer with The Great British Spelt Recipe collection.