From cocktails to cake: eight recipes for a Mediterranean summer feast

Marianna Leivaditaki of Morito Hackney Road treats friends to lamb and baked aubergines in a spread inspired by the food she ate as a child on Crete

This menu was created on a sunny day while sitting in the garden,” says Marianna Leivaditaki, head chef at Morito Hackney Road. “I wanted icy drinks and lots of punchy salads and vegetables. It’s the perfect feast to share with friends and family. I felt as if I was back in Crete.” Crete was where 36-year-old Leivaditaki grew up, spending her childhood gutting fish, peeling potatoes and taking orders at her parents’ restaurant Akrolimano in Chania. “In the summer, we finished at three or four in the morning,” she says. “When we got tired, we put three chairs together to sleep and used tablecloths for a blanket.”