Notes about Recipes in this book

• Pickled beetroot with Puy lentils, baby spinach and cheddar

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    A delicious dish that I will definitely repeat. I didn't use the dill but thought there were enough fresh herbs despite this. I liked that the beets were lightly pickled.

• Beetroot and dill with creme fraiche and walnuts

  • e_ballad on October 31, 2016

    Tasty, though needs some sharpness against the sweetness of the beetroot & the heaviness of the creme fraiche. Could probably double the amount of lemon juice.

• Za'atar-roasted carrots with kale, freekeh and blood orange-maple dressing

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    Delicious. Worked well for work lunches - added nuts and dressing at the last moment. I used the orange & grapefruit substitute for the blood oranges.

  • MmeFleiss on September 21, 2015

    I thought this was great, but was a lot better without the parsley.

  • e_ballad on April 29, 2017

    Really tasty & easy to get on the table.

• Spiced roasted carrot with fennel, caramelised onion and hazelnuts

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    This tasted best when freshly made, the flavours aren't as pronounced once it cools down. Good mix of textures. The colour of the carrots was slightly muddied due to the spice mix.

  • e_ballad on July 25, 2019

    Very tasty, with plenty of textural variety.

  • anniecc on June 30, 2024

    This was excellent, we loved the caramelised taste of the veges… although onions definitely don’t caramelise in 10-15 minutes as the author suggests, more like 30-40. I served it warm on a bed of rocket, which was a great addition. I also added the chickpeas to the roasting tin in the last 5 minutes of cooking, so they were warm and coated with the spice mix, and used lemon juice rather than lime. Would definitely make it again. I think it would work well with different herbs too, such as parsley and mint.

• Spiced sweet potato, Puy lentils and rocket with honey-roasted walnuts

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    This is a really delicious salad! The honey roasted nuts really help to seal the deal!

  • Cati on September 08, 2017

    First recipe I tried from this just purchased book. Easy and delicious. Page 61.

  • e_ballad on November 01, 2017

    A very tasty salad, though I’d reduce the oven temperature for the honey-roasted walnuts & start checking at the 10 min mark, as mine were slightly scorched.

• Chargrilled broccoli with chickpeas, almonds, lemon and chilli

  • Dishyrishie on July 19, 2015

    Try grated Parmesan or marinated feta.

  • Melanie on October 12, 2015

    Really enjoyed this salad. Used shaved Parmesan but far less than indicated in recipe. Also, only used a small amount of mint - would not use full amount.

  • e_ballad on June 22, 2017

    A great salad, though you would have to be an enthusiastic caper fan for the quantity used. For ease, I would imagine that oven-roasting the broccoli (12 mins at 220oC from other recipes) would be a less labour-intensive option.

• Broccoli and orecchiette with yoghurt and peas

  • DKennedy on October 28, 2017

    Made this as one of a trio of salads I will be serving tonight for the first course of our community progressive dinner. I blanched the broccoli, refreshed the peas, cooked the pasta, whizzed up the sauce and toasted the pine nuts all early in the day. I will combine and plate just before guests arrive. I just tasted a sampling and I think the strong garlic flavor in the sauce invites parmesan cheese or another bold flavor to act as a contrast. I added some parm and tiny gold tomatoes to my second taste and it seems much better balanced. I will probably include both when I serve this tonight.

  • DKennedy on October 28, 2017

    Cut sauce recipe for this dish in 1/2-it makes way too much.

• Smashed chickpeas with broccoli and dukkah

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    I made the smashed chickpeas and served with the dukkah as a dip, although I think this would make for a delicious meal with the broccoli. I added extra lemon juice to help brighten the flavour. I liked the contrast of the creamy chickpeas to the crunch of the dukkah.

  • saarwouters on October 14, 2018

    I didnt have a mortar so it was a bit tricky to get the chickeas to a creamy texture. I also added a bit more salt and lemon juice to give the chickpeas more flavour. The dukkah makes the dish!

  • e_ballad on July 10, 2019

    Agree with @saarwouters that the dukkah makes the dish. Liked the idea of the smashed chickpeas/hummus, but was underwhelmed by the flavour. Will repeat this using a preferred hummus recipe next time.

  • anniecc on July 27, 2022

    I made a bunch of modifications to this recipe: halved the quantities and used tenderstem broccoli, which I cooked under the oven grill/broiler rather than in a griddle pan. I used the food processor to make the dukkah which I would definitely recommend (just remember to start with the nuts and then add in other ingredients for just a brief pulse so you keep the chunky texture). I felt the seasoning in the chickpeas needed more oomph so I doubled the quantity of lemon juice and added a fair bit more salt. With those modifications, this was a great recipe!

• Roasted cauliflower with caper vinaigrette and lemon-parsley pangrattato

  • RosieB on June 15, 2015

    A really nice salad. Pretty easy to prepare. Will make again.

  • aargle on August 22, 2018

    Really enjoyed this salad which I served with pan fried barramundi. A definite repeat. I used one large cauliflower which was ample.

  • christineakiyoshi on March 14, 2025

    Absolutely delicious! I didn’t have spinach on hand so omitted it. Also subbed regular tomatoes for cherry. Left out the walnuts. 5 stars!

• Chargrilled cauliflower with fried butter beans and pumpkin hummus

  • e_ballad on November 28, 2016

    Very tasty, though I did need to add a splash of water to the cauliflower as it just wasn't cooking using just the BBQ only. I also used lime juice instead of lemon juice (using up what I had on hand) - think it would have been better if I'd kept to the recipe. Went really well with lamb cutlets.

• Smoky baba ghanoush with roasted cauliflower, lentils and pomegranate

  • e_ballad on October 24, 2018

    A rare ‘meh’ for a Hetty recipe. It’s ok, but fails to reach ‘interesting’ territory.

• Turnips, Dutch carrots and cannellini beans with sunflower seed pesto

  • e_ballad on May 07, 2018

    Really enjoyed this - definitely more than a sum of its parts. Unlike other recipes in this book, the quantity of dressing does not overwhelm the other ingredients.

• Ginger-peanut kale with tofu and quinoa

  • aargle on August 17, 2015

    This was really yummy and a meal in itself. Made the sauce in a wok and could then add everything into it which saved on washing up. A definite repeat. Used organic soy instead of tamari.

• Cavolo nero and borlotti beans with tomatoes, croutons and basil cream

  • MmeFleiss on June 26, 2018

    Delicious, but also really high in fat.

• Vietnamese cabbage salad with tofu, rice vermicelli and peanuts

  • ethacher on January 30, 2026

    Used more as inspiration than anything, but turned out great! Blanched cabbage, used whole wheat spaghetti, baked tofu, and added a variety of seeds and cashews instead of peanuts. Overall combo of flavors with herbs, dressing, and seeds + varies textures was great

• Thai kohlrabi and cabbage slaw with apple and crushed peanuts

  • Melanie on December 11, 2016

    Substituted carrots for the kohlrabi and made a 1.5 time quantity salad to take to a party. I really liked this salad, great dressing flavour.

• Winter tabbouleh with quinoa, sumac cauliflower, pomegranate and feta

  • Hellyloves2cook on October 19, 2015

    A good option for those that are gluten free as quinoa is used to replace the traditional bulgar wheat in this tabbouleh. I followed this recipe pretty much as was but a few changes just because I was using things up. For instance I had some plain cooked quinoa leftover ( I always make a big batch) which was not cooked in stock as the recipe calls for. I used red onion in place of the Chinese shallots and my tomatoes were not Roma ( not in season here in NZ at time of making). All in all a good recipe with flavour...although the tomatoes I managed to obtain were not flavoursome at all. Im sure that would have had an affect on the final dish. Some prep required before assembly.. roasting of caullflower and rinsing and cooking the quinoa and cooling these too. So it is a salad to prepare in advance. Will definitely make again.

• Pearl barley with pistachios, rocket and basil oil

  • e_ballad on November 10, 2016

    This was perfectly fine, but I think we've been spoiled by Hetty's other recipes that typically elicit a whole heap of 'wows'. Comparatively, this was ok, but nothing particularly exciting.

• Balsamic-roasted pears with lentils, Gorgonzola and sage

  • aargle on January 04, 2015

    We all thought this was sensational. Used a very special white balsamic from South Australia.

  • anniecc on December 18, 2023

    Delicious salad. Made half the quantity and used Roquefort instead of Gorgonzola, otherwise followed recipe. Author says to use any lentils but you really need Puy or similar firm variety, not the ones that cook into a mush. The quantity of sage used seemed enormous, can easily get away with less. With crusty bread made a satisfying supper.

• Puy lentils with balsamic-soaked figs, watercress and walnuts

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    This tasted good but wasn't a wow of a dish. Better when freshly made with the newly toasted walnuts.

• Peas and mint with quinoa, feta and almonds

  • aargle on March 18, 2015

    This was very nice but not sensational however definitely worth repeating as it's extremely easy. Also want to repeat when mint is in abundance - didn't have quite enough.

  • e_ballad on June 22, 2017

    Utterly delicious. Loved this. And it's so quick & easy. Winner.

• Miso eggplant with soba noodles and walnuts

  • fibarr on February 23, 2017

    Slightly too salty for me - less or no veg stock, substitute for water. Could be the miso I used was a bit stronger. Seriously yummy though and not as complicated as some of the other recipes in the book.

  • catherinew on January 16, 2023

    Slightly too salty for me too, it was less salty the next day. Didn't use the dashi, just a bit of water to loosen the sauce. Did it as eggplant and added boiled edamame beans, as I don't like it with walnuts.

• Pumpkin with chickpeas, toasted coconut and lemon tahini

  • Hellyloves2cook on October 19, 2015

    I love pumpkin in salads and so this is what drew me to the recipe when flicking through this book. I was interested to see how the amalgamation of different flavours would taste in this fusion oriented salad. There is the distinct Thai influence of the basil, coriander, kaffir lime leaves and coconut together with the distinct middle eastern dressing. Hmm... very interesting. There is quite a bit of prep work before final assembly of ingredients, so its not something that can be whipped up in 20 mins. Roasting of pumpkin, seeds and coconut plus cooking of the beans. Was it worth it... In some ways yes. But I couldn't get my head around the shredded kaffir limes leaves, coconut and the tahini. My husband thought a lovely tangy lime based dressing would have been nicer and I think I would have to agree with him. Don't get me wrong it was quite nice and I liked the concept but wasn't convinced it was a marriage made in heaven. A few members of my family were not overly impressed.

• Pumpkin with burnt butter, poppy seeds and crispy sage

  • saarwouters on October 14, 2018

    Pumpkin and sage are a classic combination and they went really well with the feta and walnuts. Loved this and will definetely make again!

• Cinnamon pumpkin with chickpeas, tahini and candied pumpkin seeds

  • Melanie on June 14, 2015

    Loved this salad - delicious dish that's perfect for winter. Instead of using egg white to help bind the candied pumpkin seeds I used some water, which worked perfectly.

• Barbecued corn and roasted butternut pumpkin with black beans and jalapeno sour cream

  • Melanie on March 08, 2015

    Really easy to make. I didn't add all the suggested delicious toppings but will next time - already a great dish so it would be good to see what the full picture tastes like.

  • Suzamo on February 11, 2016

    Easy and tasty...another great recipe from this book

  • e_ballad on January 06, 2019

    Absolutely fantastic. Makes a massive amount, but holds up well as leftovers. Highly recommend!

• Fried zucchini with green couscous

  • e_ballad on October 27, 2016

    As a herby couscous, this is fine, but for all the faffing, there's a lot simpler recipes out there that deliver similar outcomes.

• Chargrilled zucchini and pearl barley with whipped feta and dill

  • aargle on January 04, 2015

    This was delicious and greater than the sum of its parts. My carnivore loving family (all male) happily demolished this and were full of complements.

  • e_ballad on November 22, 2016

    This was ok, though the feta dressing did dominate. Great balance of textures.

• Nasi goreng with Asian greens

  • e_ballad on October 24, 2016

    Love Hetty's recipes but this was lacking any zip & turned out rather stodgy.

• Laksa Hokkien noodles with green beans, Chinese broccoli and tofu

  • FieryFantail on October 01, 2025

    The second time I made this I added thinly cut lime leaves, for the curry powder used a pad thai spice blend and a madras curry blend from Gewurzhaus, and reduced the amount of stock. Would maybe add fish sauce next time.

• Brassica kimchi bowl with sesame-miso dressing

  • Suirauqa on January 19, 2024

    This is a delicious dish, great for crowd entertaining.