Neven Maguire: salad days are here again!

We’re home from Portugal, and the restaurant is back in full swing at MacNean. Our annual closure has become one of the best decisions we’ve made – for our staff, our families and the soul of this place. It gives us time to rest, recharge and reconnect, allowing us to all return with fresh energy and gratitude for what we do.

Some of the team opt to go travelling during this time, or have a family holiday, while others simply enjoy a good staycation. There’s a lot to be said for travelling right here in Ireland, if you don’t mind packing for all four seasons in a single day. I mean we’d have no reason to leave at all if the sun could just guarantee it would be on its best behaviour.

Still, we’re always excited to come home and welcome you back to the table.

And this time alongside our fresh ideas and happy hearts, we also brought you back some nice weather – for a little while anyway. But it’s always nice to come back to enjoy a good stretch of sunny Irish summer after being away. And our dinner guests are making great use of our outdoor area for their pre-and post-dinner drinks. I love seeing it get so much use. It has a great buzz outside as guests mingle and chat.

While the sun is out – and the rain because it’s Ireland – there’s something unmistakably summery about an Irish strawberry at its peak and this week I had the opportunity to visit one of my food heroes with the Simply Better team.

I know I’ve mentioned him before –but he never ceases to amaze me – owner and director Pat Clarke, of Clarke’s Fresh Fruit.

A second-generation farmer, he started out picking fruit locally in Stamullen, Co Meath for pocket money in the 1960s – so he knows a thing or two about fruit. He has been growing strawberries for the best part of 50 years and Clarke’s Fresh Fruit is credited with excellence in fruit growing.

And it’s easy to see why, hand on heart his strawberries are the best I have tasted for consistency and sweetness. I am proud to serve them on our seasonal menu.

Savoury and sweet

This week I have two nice light summery dishes bursting with flavour. To start, we have grilled chicken salad, which is a great starter or main course. The marinade is one to remember. It is very versatile and I have used it with pork, turkey, duck, beef and fish. You could double the quantities, as it will keep in a jar in the fridge for two weeks.

The red pepper dressing is a real family favourite in our house and it is beautiful with fish, goats cheese or pasta. And remember strawberries are great in summer salads as well, bringing a surprising and elegant twist to savoury dishes.

Next up is something to refresh the palette – cheesecake with macerated berries. This flavourful medley of fresh blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries creates the perfect light syrup to dress up any summer dessert.

I created this dessert with the strawberry king’s (Pat Clarke) produce in mind and we’ve served it over the years at the restaurant, much to the delight of our guests. There’s a simple pleasure in something grown close to home and the beauty of this recipe is – you can use the frozen mixed berries from the Simply Better range.

However, if you prefer to strip it all back to basics and simply serve up a bowl of nostalgia – fresh strawberries and cream will never disappoint.

As long as the sun lingers we’ll savour every bite – but don’t be surprised if you find yourself singing Strawberry Fields Forever!

Ingredients: Serves 4

4 chicken breast fillets, skin on

2 heads of romaine lettuce, separated into leaves and roughly cut or torn

For the marinade:

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

1 garlic clove, crushed

For the roasted red pepper dressing:

1 tbsp rapeseed oil with lemon

1 small red onion, finely diced

1 small roasted red pepper, finely diced (from a jar is fine)

5 tbsp extra virgin rapeseed oil

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

Finely grated rind of ½ lemon

2 tsp caster sugar

2 tsp snipped fresh chives

1 tsp chopped fresh basil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1 To make the marinade, place the soy sauce in a shallow non-metallic dish with the honey, sweet chilli sauce and garlic and mix well to combine. Make three shallow, diagonal slashes into each chicken breast and place them in the dish, turning to coat. Cover with cling film and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least two hours (or overnight is perfect, if time allows).

2 When ready to cook, preheat the grill to medium. Arrange the marinated chicken pieces and cook under the grill for seven to eight minutes on each side, until cooked through. Brush regularly with any remaining excess marinade. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly, then cut into slices.

3 To prepare the roasted red pepper dressing, warm the lemon rapeseed oil in a small pan. Gently fry the onion and roasted pepper for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in the extra virgin rapeseed oil and vinegar, then add the lemon rind and sugar. Cook for another two to three minutes, until bubbling and warmed through. Season to taste and stir in the herbs. Keep warm.

4 To serve, arrange the lettuce leaves around large bowls or plates, scatter the chicken over the salad and drizzle with enough of the roasted red pepper dressing to nicely coat.

Any remaining dressing can be served in a small bowl at the table.

Ingredients: Serves 2-4

200g cream cheese

Finely grated rind and juice of ½ a lemon

½ vanilla pod, split in half

and seeds scraped out

100g white chocolate, broken into squares

100ml cream

4 shortbread biscuits, finely broken up

White chocolate curls

For the macerated berries:

300g mixed berries (strawberries,

raspberries, blueberries)

2 tbsp crème de cassis

1 tbsp chopped basil/mint

1 tsp vanilla extract

To decorate: (optional)

Dried raspberries

Maltesers

Spun sugar

Method

1 In a large bowl mix the cream cheese, lemon rind, juice, and vanilla seeds until smooth and light.

2 Melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.Remove from the heat and set aside to cool a little.

3 Whip the cream in a separate bowl and whip until stiff.

4 Fold the melted chocolate into the cream cheese mixture and then carefully fold in the whipped cream.

5 Transfer to a piping bag (if desired) and place in the fridge until needed.

6 To make the macerated berries, pour the crème de cassis and vanilla extract over the mixed berries.

7 Add in the basil, mint and cover with cling film and shake.

8 To assemble, divide the macerated berries among the martini glasses and crumble the shortbread biscuits on top.

9 Pipe the cheesecake mixture right up to the rim of the glasses and decorate with raspberries, white chocolate curls, dried raspberries, Maltesers, spun sugar (optional) and mint sprigs.