Whether you’re planning a laid-back summer supper or hosting your mates in the garden, these new recipes from The Groovy Food Company tick all the boxes: easy, affordable and properly good. Designed for warmer evenings and priced at under a tenner, they prove that you don’t need to splash out to make something special.
There’s a fiery hot agave pizza that comes with just the right balance of heat and sweetness – think crisp crusts, molten cheese and a final drizzle of Groovy’s hot agave for that irresistible sticky kick. Then there’s the aubergine tacos, a plant-based take on taco night that doesn’t skimp on flavour, thanks to smoky jerk seasoning, silky grilled aubergine and a hit of chipotle agave. Add pickled onion and guac and you’ve got a winner.
Lastly, for something a little more comforting (but still sunshine-ready), there’s aubergine parmigiana orzo – a twist on the Italian classic with tender chunks of aubergine, garlicky tomato sauce and gooey mozzarella stirred through chewy orzo, then finished with a crunchy basil crumb.
These are the sort of dishes that feel like a treat but come together with minimal fuss – perfect for those evenings when you want something a bit more exciting than your usual midweek rotation. Plus, they’re all made using Groovy’s clever range of agave and organic oils, so you can cook well without overcomplicating things.
Hot agave pizza
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
4 8-ounce balls of pizza dough
1 cup pizza sauce (shop-bought or homemade)
16 ounces of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup pepperoni
¼ cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp The Groovy Food Company Hot Agave
Method:
1. Stretch your dough onto a well-floured pizza peel. Spoon your sauce onto your dough, circling out until you have a nice, even layer.
2. Sprinkle a thick layer of shredded mozzarella cheese, and then top it with a single layer of pepperoni slices. Optionally, sprinkle on some minced garlic as well.
3. Drizzle olive oil on your pizza and then sprinkle some Kosher salt.
4. Slide your pizza into your oven. Bake at 315-340F, rotating every 1-2 minutes.
5. After removing your pizza from the oven, allow it to cool for 2-5 minutes. Slice, sprinkle on red pepper flakes, drizzle The Groovy Food Company Hot Agave, and enjoy.
Aubergine tacos
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
For the tacos:
2 large aubergine, pricked all over with a fork
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
1-3 heaped tbsp jerk seasoning paste (to taste)
1 x 400g tin black beans, drained
Salt and ground black pepper
Drizzle of The Groovy Food Company Chipotle Agave
For the quick pickled onion:
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 limes, juice only
Large pinch sea salt
To serve:
Corn or wheat flour tortillas
Guacamole
Finely shredded little gem lettuce
Method:
1. To make the quick pink pickled onion, mix the onion and the lime along with a good pinch sea salt, for 10 seconds or so until all well combined. Leave to steep for an hour or so – the mixture will turn bright pink.
2. Preheat your grill to hot, then cook the aubergine under the grill until blackened and soft all over, about 20-30 minutes. Set aside to cool.
3. In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof pan over a medium heat. (You can always use a standard frying pan and transfer to a roasting dish for the oven.)
4. Fry the onion until softened and golden-brown, about 10 minutes.
5. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Pull the flesh from the cooled aubergine, discarding the skin. Add the aubergine flesh to the pan with the onion, then add the jerk marinade or paste and The Groovy Food Company Chipotle Agave. Give it a stir until the aromas hit you, then add the black beans and some salt and pepper. Stir again and pop into the oven to cook for about 10-15 minutes until rich and thickened.
6. Serve piled into warmed tortillas, topped with pink pickled onion, shredded little gem and guacamole.
Aubergine parmigiana orzo
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
75g stale bread
Bunch of basil
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
2 aubergines
500g cherry tomatoes
½ tsp chilli flakes
2 tbsp tomato purée
400g orzo
50g parmesan
200g mozzarella
Salt
Pepper
The Groovy Food Company Organic Olive Oil Spray
Method:
1. Heat your oven to 170C.
2. Thinly slice your bread, then spray it with a little olive oil. Bake in the oven for 15 mins until crisp.
3. Break your bread into a food processor or blender and add your basil leaves. Pulse until you have crispy green breadcrumbs. Set aside until later.
4. Finely dice your onion and garlic. Then chop your aubergine into 2cm chunks. Halve your cherry tomatoes.
5. Apply roughly 10 sprays of our organic virgin olive oil to generously cover the base of a large sauté pan. Add your onions and cook over a medium heat for 15 mins until soft.
6. Add your aubergine chunks and turn up the heat. Fry for another 10 mins until they are tender, stirring frequently so that all the chunks cook evenly.
7. Add your garlic, chilli flakes and tomato purée, then cook for another 2 mins. Tip in your cherry tomatoes and turn down the heat a little. Cook down for 5 mins, stirring occasionally to combine to a sauce
8. Get a pan of water on to boil. Add a good handful of salt, then tip in your orzo. Cook for 6 mins until tender.
9. Add a mugful of pasta water to your aubergine pan, then drain your orzo. Tip the drained orzo in with the sauce and give it a good mix. Grate in your parmesan, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
10. Spoon your orzo into bowls and top with chunks of mozzarella (a grating of parmesan and a sprinkle of your basil breadcrumbs). Serve and enjoy!
Recipes from The Groovy Food Company. Visit groovyfood.co.uk/recipes for more
