Credit: Kate Crouch, DipION, mBANT, CNHCreg | Yum Alert Nutrition and Wellbeing | www.yanutritionludlow.com

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Kate says: “I created this dish during the summer of 2020, when staying home meant a bit more time for gardening and a lot of courgettes appearing! You will need a griddle pan, or you could take advantage of the great weather and use your barbecue! It is super simple but delicious as a base to a lunch or a side dish to a main meal.”

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Ingredients:

• 2 courgettes, different colours are great and add flavour and interest to the dish (I used 1 green and 1 yellow)
• Sun dried tomatoes, approx. 8
• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• A handful of fresh mint
• 1 lemon
• Olive oil
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

For the courgettes

1. Top and tail courgettes, then thinly slice them lengthways, approximately ½ cm thickness, or whatever you can safely manage with a large knife!
2. Heat your griddle pan – I like to get it really hot to prevent sticking, then reduce the heat a little so as not to burn the courgettes.
3. Brush one side of the courgette slices with olive oil.
4. Place the slices of courgette oil side down and griddle for approximately 4 mins.
5. When the courgette slices begin to soften and begin to turn a little translucent, brush the up-facing side with oil and turn over to griddle for another 2 mins. Try to avoid fully cooking through as it is nice to keep some firmness and crunch to the courgettes in this salad. Also, they will be marinated which will further soften the courgettes.
6. Continue to cook all the courgette slices in batches. They should have a lovely stripy griddle-pattern on them.

For the marinade

1. Whilst griddling the courgette slices, prepare the rest of the salad.
2. Finely chop the onion and gently sauté it over a medium heat in a little olive oil. 
3. Finely chop the garlic and add to the onions. Gently cook for 1-2 mins until soft, then remove from the heat. Add to a large bowl for your salad.
4. Roughly chop the sundried tomatoes into chunks and add to the salad bowl.
5. Pick the mint leaves from the stalks and tear the leaves into pieces. I prefer to do this rather than chopping with a knife as this looks much more rustic! Add to the bowl. 

To combine

1. Once all the courgette is griddled, allow to cool for a couple of minutes so they are still warm but easier to handle. 
2. Add the courgette slices to the salad bowl with the marinade.
3. Season generously with ground black pepper and a large pinch of sea salt. 
4. Squeeze over the juice of half or the whole lemon, depending on the size of your lemon and how much you like a lemony flavour.
5. Gently toss the courgettes into the dressing. 
6. The courgettes will already be coated in oil, so you may not need to add any more. If you would like a bit more oil, add a small drizzle here or just before serving.

To serve: Leave to marinate for 10 mins if you wish to eat the dish immediately whilst still warm. Alternatively, you can marinate for a few hours or overnight and serve cold, at room temperature (i.e. bring out of the fridge for a while prior to serving). Add a few freshly torn mint leaves to serve.

Add-ons such as toasted pumpkin seeds, crumbled feta cheese, 2 chopped anchovies, or a sprinkle of sumac can be used, if desired. 

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