12€ plus tip

If this was on a restaurant menu, I would order it 100%.

A summer salad of peach and beef tomato, with a basil and cherry vinaigrette.

It sounds so delicious!

And it was!

But it also was just exactly what it was… beef tomatoes, peaches, basil and a cherry infused vinegar.

I made it at home for lunch today after opening the fridge and thinking that I didn’t have any food in, so closed the fridge but then decided I was definitely hungry and needed to look harder!

With a little bit of effort in the arrangement, the joy of growing your own herbs and picking up some especially tasty pantry items when you see them, this beautiful plate of food was created from what initially appeared to be nothing.

The only thing that it was missing was burrata…. But who just keeps one of those in the fridge?!

Top tip!

• Grow herbs in a pot plant on your balcony or window sill. It’s so easy and you reap the rewards. A sprinkle of fresh herbs in any dish takes it from average to incredible.

• Buy special ‘cupboard’ ingredients. Delicious vinegars, chutneys, pickled vegetables. They elevate a dish with minimum effort.