Summer Lamb & Fig Salad

It's been a crazy time for all of us here at PSS. Lately, most of our interaction has taken place over the interweb, text messages and hour long phone calls into the wee hours of the morning. So last week when I finally had an opportunity to catch up with Elaine and Rindala, I didn't let it go past me to prepare something that was perfect for Sydney's albeit strange summer heat.

We originally set out to to have a little debrief about a few exciting plans for 2014. This quickly turned into photographing and sampling a few exciting products that have landed at Project Sweet Stuff HQ over the past few weeks. One of these seasonal deliveries included an organic alternative to nasty soft drinks, Bionade.

While I got cooking, I served up some Lychee Bionade with fresh mint leaves and berries on ice. Bionade is a delicious fermented beverage (thats a great non alcoholic option for the non drinkers like me) thats made with 100% certified organic ingredients. Free of colorants, preservatives and artificial flavours, these bad boys didn't stand a chance and made a refreshing addition to our summer dinner spread.

Summer Lamb & Fig Salad

You will need 600 grams of Australian lamb leg steak 4 large figs cut into quarters 160 grams of rocket (arugula) salad mix 120 grams of greek feta 1/4 cup fresh pomegranate 1/2 cup coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley 8 medium mint leaves chopped 4 large rounds of Greek pita bread 1 fresh lemon, salt and extra virgin olive oil for dressing

Season the lamb with sea salt, fresh ground pepper and drizzle with olive oil, and set aside.

Layer your salad on a platter starting with the rocket, adding the chopped parsley and mint. Roughly crumble the feta, and sprinkle the pomegranate on top of the salad. Let chill in the refrigerator while you get cooking.

Lightly spray a large pan with Rice Bran oil and over medium heat, grill the figs for at least one minute on each cut side. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Using the same pan with all it's caramelised fig deliciousness, grill the lamb to your preference - I always cook red meat medium well. Once cooked to your preference remove from heat, cover loosely with foil and allow the lamb to rest for at least three minutes.

In the meantime, drizzle olive oil over a fry pan (or crepe pan if you have one) and lightly grill both sides of each piece of Greek pita bread. Cut into quarters, and wrap with a tea towel to keep warm.

Once rested for 3 minutes, carve the lamb steaks into thin strips and place on top of the salad with the grilled figs.

Dress the salad with fresh lemon, and a generous drizzle of olive oil. Finish with a good sprinkling of sea salt flakes, and serve with warm Greet pita. Yum!

Serves 4 and takes no longer than 30 mins to prepare, that is if you don't dordle like I did.