Your festive braai menu sorted

Make a fruity mozzarella salad on a skewer: take 6 nectarines or dessert peaches (peel if they are  the fuzzy kind). Halve, remove the stones, rub the cut sides with olive oil and grill until tender. Cut into bite size chunks and thread onto skewers with bites of bocconcini, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil leaves. Drizzle with balsamic reduction and serve. 

For the meat-lover: we all have our favourite recipe for a lamb tjop. But, for something new, try to get your hands on some lamb steaks. Rub with a bit of olive oil, season simply with salt, black pepper and chopped fresh thyme, and grill to your preference.

For the vegetarian: time to try out that hot new favourite, the cauliflower steak. Cut 2 big cauliflowers into thick 2.5 cm slabs. Combine olive oil with salt, pepper, ground cumin, ground coriander, and a pinch of chilli flakes. Coat the cauliflower in the mixture and grill until tender; keep basting as you go. Serve with charred lemon halves cut-side down on the grill.

Grilled aubergines: Take three large aubergines and cut into thick slabs. Rub with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and grill until tender and charred. Serve with a splash of lemon juice, toasted pine nuts and a dollop of Chevin goat’s cheese.

Grilled tomatoes on the vine: shortest recipe ever … seek out some ripe but firm small tomatoes on the vine. Place on the grill as they are and leave until the tomato skins just start to pop. Remove and serve as is.

Grilled corn on the cob: brush parboiled corn with a mix of butter and seasoning (like salt, pepper, ground cumin and cayenne pepper). Grill until sweet and charred. Remove and drizzle with fresh lime juice.

Take 6 medium bananas and place them on the grill in their skins. In the mean time, take one tub of mascarpone and mix with the seeds of one vanilla pod and a little bit of honey. When the banana skins have blackened, slice them open and serve each with a dollop of the sweetened cream, sprinkle with Woolworths edible gold dust for a bit of merry, and dig in!

Menu serves six.

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