green; party

Time to leave winter behind for a clean, crisp start to the salad days of summer. Peter Gordon comes out of hibernation H

ERE is a feast for the vegetarians or those of you, who, like me, need to start the summer in a meat-free zone. I like to serve a lot of vegetable courses in a buffet-style meal, lunch or dinner. Place some great cheeses and pickles on the table to round it off and you're all set.

The orange cake is on the slightly healthy side of decadent and is best made a day or two in advance. If you can't find rose water, don't despair. It will work fine without it. Roast vegetable salad with mint and thyme THIS makes a fantastic starter, served warm with generous amounts of freshly-grated parmesan on top. It also makes aterrific side dish to accompany meat or fish as a main course. Serves six to eight 2 courgettes, cut on an angle into 1cm pieces 2 heads of fennel, cut into eighths 2 white onions, peeled and sliced into 1cm rings half a cauliflower, cut into florets 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and halved 200ml extra virgin olive oil 2 lemons, zested and juiced 1 cup loosely packed mint leaves 2 tablespoons fresh thyme salt and pepper Preheat the oven to 220C. In a large roasting dish, drizzle in a quarter of the oil. Scatter the vegetables and garlic over the top, then pour over the remaining oil. Place the dish in the top third of the oven and roast for 30 minutes. Stir well, then roast another 30 minutes, making sure nothing is too well browned. Remove from the oven and stir in the lemon juice and zest, then add herbs and seasoning. Pumpkin and spinach tortilla A TORTILLA is also known as a Spanish omelette or fritatta. But don't confuse a Mexican tortilla with a Spanish one. The former is made of flour and the latter, as in the following recipe, is made from eggs. Tortillas are best made at least six hours ahead of time and are even better eaten the day after you make them. The flavours just seem to get better and better. The amount of olive oil and eggs used here may seem excessive but what you're after is an oily, delicious treat. Trust me. Serves eight as a starter 250ml extra virgin olive oil 3 white onions, peeled and finely sliced 14 large eggs, lightly beaten in a large bowl 600g roasted pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2cm dice 300g spinach, blanched and drained, all excess water squeezed out half cup finely sliced spring onions quarter cup oregano leaves salt and freshly ground pepper, about one and a half teaspoons of each Heat up a 30cm deep-sided fry-pan on a high flame. Pour in half the oil and, when it's hot, add all the white onions. Stir well and cook until golden brown. Add to the eggs with the pumpkin, spinach, spring onions and oregano. Season with the salt and pepper and mix well. Put the pan on full heat again and, when smoking, add the remaining oil. Once it's hot, quickly but carefully pour the omelette mixture in. Watch out for splatters. After 20 seconds, give it a gentle stir. Bring the cooked "outside" into the centre and take the raw centre to the outside. Do this a few times and turn the heat down. You can now either finish it in the oven (at 200C), under the grill or on top of the stove with a lid on, on medium heat. It is cooked when it is almost totally firm, overcooked eggs go tough. Leave it to to cool for ten minutes then give the pan a gentle shake to loosen. Run a blunt knife around the outside and invert the tortilla on a large plate. Spicy baked auberginewith lemon roast olives SERVED with crisp, toasted pita bread and hummous, this is a wonderful start to any meal. The aubergines also go well with roast red meat and the olives are good tossed into a mixed salad. Serves six as a starter for the olives: 300g best quality green olives1 lemon, cut in half, seeds removed and finely sliced, skin and all - cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped 2 teaspoons fennel seeds quarter cup olive oil Preheat the oven to 200C. Put all the ingredients into a roasting dish just large enough to hold everything and add two cups of hot water. Roast for 35 minutes, until the olive skins are beginning to shrivel and most of the water has evaporated. Stir every ten minutes. for the aubergine: 2 large aubergines, cut into 1cm discs 80ml olive oil 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground fennel 1 teaspoon ground coriander quarter teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon sea salt 2 teaspoons brown sugar Brush both sides of the aubergine with the oil and lay the slices on a baking tray. You may want to line the tray with baking parchment first. Mix all the other ingredients together and sprinkle it over the slices. Cook for 20 minutes then test the aubergine rounds. They are cooked when a knife goes easily through them. Move them on to a platter and pour the olives and their juices over the top. You can also add generous amounts of chopped fresh parsley, mint and coriander if you want. Boiled orange, almond and rose water cake THIS is a version of the orange cake in The Sugar Club Cookbook. Here it has a little more of a Middle Eastern flavour, with the addition of the rose water. Serves eight to ten 3 small or medium oranges 250g caster sugar 350g ground almonds 6 eggs 2 teaspoons baking powder 100ml rose water 150ml orange juice 150g white sugar Preheat the oven to 180C. Wipe the oranges and place them in a pot with enough cold water to cover, bring to the boil and cook with a lid on for 20 minutes. Remove and cool for 20 minutes. Cut the oranges in half and remove any seeds, then place in a food processor, skins and all. Add the caster sugar and process for 30 seconds. Then add the almonds, eggs, baking powder and half the rose water and puree for ten seconds. Wipe the side of the bowl back into the mix and puree for a further 20 seconds. Pour the mixture into a spring-form cake tin lined with baking paper and bake for 50-60 minutes. Check after 45 minutes by inserting a skewer into the centre of the cake. It should come out slightly moist but not covered with gooey batter. If you think it needs more time, then cover the tin with foil and cook until done. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 30 minutes in the tin before removing. Place on a plate and prick the top 20 times with a skewer. Once the cake is out of the oven, bring the orange juice and white sugar to the boil, simmer until syrupy, then remove from the heat and add the remaining rose water. Once the cake is on the plate, spoon the syrup on. The skewer pricks will help it absorb the syrup. This is good to eat with cream and a strong espresso.

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