Whether you’re having a dinner party, or simply feel like making your evening meal that bit more special, starters are a great way to pique interest and get the meal going. Lots of starters revolve around bread, crackers, and other products containing gluten, so if you need starter recipes to suit you or your gluten-free friends, look no further.
Mozzarella With Homemade Pesto
Ingredients:
- 1 ball of mozzarella
- 1 cup of olive oil
- 1 cup of basil
- 1 cup of wild garlic (if you can’t find this, 4 cloves of garlic will do)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup of pine nuts
- 1/2 cup parmesan (or similar hard cheese)
Instructions:
Using a pestle and mortar (or blender if necessary, although this will result in a less authentic texture), blend the pine nuts into the olive oil. Finely slice the garlic and add this to the mix, then add the lemon juice, blend well. Grate in the parmesan cheese and add the finely sliced basil. Blend until smoother, it’s fine for some lumps to remain. Slice the mozzarella, and then present each diner with some slices of cheese drizzled with your homemade pesto.
Anchovies and Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of good quality anchovies
1 cup of beef tomatoes
1/4 cup of olive oil
Black pepper
Instructions:
Slice the tomatoes thinly, and season with the pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Slice the anchovies into thin strips, layer a few of these strips over each tomato.
Broad Bean Salad
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of cooked broad beans
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 cup of mixed seeds (such as pumpkin, sunflower and flax)
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 cup fresh green herbs (such as dill, parsley and cilantro)
Instructions:
Finely chop the green herbs, mix these in a bowl with the beans and seeds. Mix the oil and lemon together until it emulsifies, use this to dress the salad. You could also add some pieces of goat cheese to the salad, to make it more substantial.
