Easy Spring Cooking with Donna Hay

Fresh flavours, simple techniques, and the dishes in rotation at home

There are some names in food you feel like you already know, and bestselling author Donna Hay is one of them. For years, her world has been instantly recognisable. Fresh, relaxed, confident, and full of the kind of food you actually want to cook.

Her latest book, Sunshine, Lemons and Sea Salt, leans into that way of living, and cooking, even more. It’s built around easy spring and summer recipes, simple seasonal cooking, and those moments where food brings people together in the most natural way. Think long lunches, citrus on everything, and meals that feel generous and easy to share.

We had the chance to speak with Donna about how she really cooks at home, the ingredients she always has on hand, and the small tips that make simple food taste better. From building flavour quickly to easy, relaxed entertaining, it’s a glimpse into the thinking behind the recipes, and the kind of advice you’ll actually use.

There’s a real sense of ease to it. Everything thoughtfully put together, with just the right balance of flavour, colour, and texture. Quality ingredients, a few clever touches, and a way of cooking that fits beautifully into everyday life.

In the conversation below, she shares the small details that shape how she cooks, from everyday habits to the ingredients she reaches for without thinking.

This is your most personal book yet. What does a typical day of cooking at home actually look like for you?

Cooking at home is quite relaxed. I tend to cook around what’s happening on the day, and what we all feel like eating in the moment.

My boys are obsessed with my recipe for tomato toasts with sesame and haloumi fried eggs, for their breakfast. By late lunch or evening food becomes a little more about something to share. It’s never overly structured, just a natural way of cooking that fits in with sun-kissed everything else.

 Your recipes feel very unfussy. What are the few things you always do that make simple food taste better?

It’s all about fresh produce and not doing too much. Good olive oil, a pinch of salt in the right place, and a squeeze of lemon at the end can make all the difference.

I also love balancing flavours - something fresh with something rich. It keeps dishes feeling light and considered.

The idea of food for sharing runs through everything. What makes a meal feel generous without becoming overcomplicated?

For me, generosity is about how a dish is served. It’s placing a big dish of something inviting in the centre of the table and letting everyone help themselves.

A dish like honey-fried chorizo with mozzarella and tomatoes does that so naturally. It’s simple, but it brings people together, and that’s what really matters.

Citrus runs through so many dishes. What’s your favourite way to use lemons that people might not think to try?

 I love using the whole lemon - it gives you a softer, more rounded citrus flavour. In something like the zesty whole lemon cake, it becomes almost mellow and fragrant rather than sharp. My other favourite thing to do is to use a fine grater and grate a touch of lemon zest over a dish as you would season with sea salt. It gives a bright and summery finish to any dish.

A lot of your recipes are quick but still feel like “proper” meals. What’s your approach to building flavour without spending hours in the kitchen?

I think it’s about letting simple techniques do the work for you. Roasting, in particular, brings out so much flavour with very little effort.

Something like crispy lemon and garlic roast chicken is a good example, it feels generous and full of flavour, but it comes together quite easily. The marinade is mustard, honey, lemon, garlic and white miso and it just works.

What’s your go-to menu for an easy dinner with friends that always works?

I like to keep it simple and a little bit relaxed. When entertaining its more about spending time with friends than stressing over the food so I often skip the starter and go straight to mains. In the book I have some menu and styling ideas. I keep going back to the Sailing into Lunch menu. I love the recipe for Grilled chilli honey salmon- so simple yet looks stunning and tastes even better. The sides of Cucumber celery and dill salad plus Radicchio and pickled nectarine salad are the perfect accompaniment. Finishing with a zippy lemon sorbetto makes for the most perfect sunny afternoon. 

Your carbonara is a twist on a classic. When you break the rules, what are you trying to improve or change?

Sometimes that means simplifying it or adding a little freshness. I always try to keep the spirit of the dish, just with a slightly lighter, more relaxed approach or a twist on a technique or ingredient. My spin on the classic carbonara is topped with a crunchy pancetta crumb and its oh-so-delicious.

What are the three ingredients you always have in your kitchen that make everything easier?

Lemons, parmesan, and fresh herbs.

They’re simple, but they have a way of making everything taste brighter and more complete.

Entertaining in the book feels very relaxed. What’s the one thing you always do to make hosting feel easy rather than stressful?

 I try to do as much as I can ahead of time or choose dishes that don’t need too much attention once guests arrive.

That way I can step back and enjoy it as well, which always makes everything feel more relaxed. It doesn't always go to plan, so I often get my guests to help me in the kitchen which we all love. 

The book has such a strong sense of place. How does cooking near the coast change what and how you cook?

Living near the coast naturally makes everything feel lighter, brighter and more simple. You’re drawn to fresh sun-kissed ingredients, from in-season tomatoes, to citrus and herbs. There’s less structure, and more ease to it. It’s really about cooking in a way that suits the surroundings.

What’s a simple dish from the book that you think people will come back to again and again?

I have found that my recipe for Crispy Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken is an early favourite with people. I think it’s the simplicity of the ingredients that combined make such a great flavour and it’s so easy to make. It’s been on high rotation in my house also.

What are the few things you always do that make simple, everyday food taste better?

You can’t go wrong by starting with fresh herbs and seasonal produce.

My new favourite thing to do is to finish a dish with a fine grating of lemon rind - it brings a freshness to any dish and makes it shine. It’s like a grating of pepper only sunnier.

How do you make a table feel special without it becoming a big production?

I like to forage on my own garden for some herbs or foliage - flowers if I have them. To make things feel special and interesting go through your cupboards and reimagine something that you have and use it as a vase. Think about that vintage sauce boat your grandmother gave you or a soup tureen that’s never used for soup. It will add a beautiful touch of specialness and thoughtfulness to your table. 

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Relaxed, seasonal, and designed for sharing. The grilled chilli honey salmon is a perfect example of Donna’s approach. It looks impressive and delivers on flavour, while coming together with ease. Alongside it, the radicchio and pickled nectarine salad brings contrast and brightness. Crisp, slightly bitter leaves, creamy goat’s cheese, and nectarines gently steeped in a spiced dressing create something fresh, vibrant, and memorable.

Grilled chilli honey salmon 

This grilled salmon will deliver all the wow without the fuss! It’s the perfect shared lunch for a hot summer’s day. 

Serves 6

1.2kg sustainably-caught salmon fillet, skin removed and pin-boned
½ cup (180g) honey
2 teaspoons dried chilli flakes
cracked black pepper
Curing mix
1 cup (300g) rock salt+
1 cup (220g) caster (superfine) sugar
2 teaspoons dried chilli flakes, extra
12 long sprigs dill
Horseradish crème fraîche
1¼ cups (300g) crème fraîche
1½ tablespoons grated horseradish
1½ tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained and finely chopped
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind

To serve
grilled lemon halves 

To make the curing mix, combine the salt, sugar and extra chilli in a bowl. Place half of the mix onto a large glass dish and top with the salmon. Place the dill sprigs and remaining curing mix on top of the salmon and refrigerate for 1–2 hours to lightly cure. 

Rinse the salmon to remove the curing mix, then pat dry with absorbent kitchen paper.

Preheat the oven grill (broiler) to medium–high. 

Place the cured salmon on a baking tray. Combine the honey, chilli and pepper and brush over the salmon. Grill for 6–8 minutes or until the salmon is caramelised and cooked to your liking.

To make the horseradish crème fraîche, combine the crème fraîche, horseradish, capers and lemon rind in a small serving bowl.

Serve the salmon with the horseradish crème fraîche and a squeeze of grilled lemon.

Cook’s note:
+ The type of salt used for curing is important. Use rock salt, rather than a finer salt, as its coarseness cures the meat without imparting too much saltiness.

Photography: Chris Court
Recipe and styling: Donna Hay 

Radicchio and pickled nectarine salad

Nectarines are the star of this super fast salad featuring crisp, slightly bitter radicchio, creamy goat’s cheese and a zingy juniper-spiked dressing. 

Serves 6 as a side

1 large radicchio, trimmed and leaves separated 
200g soft goat’s cheese 
Pickled nectarines
⅓ cup (80ml) extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup (60ml) white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed
sea salt and cracked black pepper
3 nectarines, thinly sliced

To serve
micro (baby) mint leaves (optional)

To make the pickled nectarines, place the oil, vinegar, honey, juniper berries, salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk to combine. 

Place the nectarines in a shallow dish. Pour the pickling liquid over and allow to stand for 5 minutes.

Place the radicchio on a serving platter. Top with the nectarines, goat’s cheese and mint leaves, if using. Serve with the pickling liquid drizzled over.

Photography: Chris Court
Recipe and styling: Donna Hay 

What makes Donna Hay’s cooking so appealing is how naturally it fits into real life. It’s food that looks beautiful, tastes even better, and feels as good to make as it does to share.

Sunshine, Lemons and Sea Salt captures that beautifully. It’s full of easy, seasonal recipes and simple entertaining ideas that you’ll find yourself returning to, whether you’re cooking for friends or gathering everyone around the table at home.

And if nothing else, it might just have you reaching for a lemon and a bottle of good olive oil a little more often.

  Sunshine, Lemons and Sea Salt by Donna Hay (£28, Fourth Estate).