/ 22 July 2025

Alexandra Dudley’s Working Lunch

We’ve all been there – stuck for weekday lunch inspiration the moment Monday morning arrives. In her monthly column, SheerLuxe contributor Alexandra Dudley is serving up fresh, easy ideas – whether you work from home or like to take a lunchbox into the office. For her latest instalment, she’s sharing a quick and healthy summer salad…

Alexandra Dudley

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STAYING IN

Summer Greens Salad With Roasted Almond & Lemon

This is exactly the sort of thing I crave during the warmer months. Fresh, crunchy and with a good punch of flavour – this time from grated grana padano, but some chopped anchovies wouldn’t go amiss here either. This makes enough for two to three, some shredded chicken or soft-boiled eggs are a good addition too.

Serves

2-3

Ingredients

Ingredients:

150g of peas

300g of green beans

One medium-sized courgette

30g of roasted blanched almonds, roughly chopped

1 bunch of basil

Zest of 1 lemon, juice of ½

1 small garlic clove

Olive oil

50g of grana padano or parmesan, finely grated

Method

Step 1

Blanch the peas for three minutes then refresh in ice cold water and drain.

Step 2

Chop the green beans into roughly inch sized pieces and blanch for just 60-90 seconds to keep them crunchy. Refresh in ice cold water and drain.

Step 3

Add the peas and beans to a large bowl and use a vegetable peeler to peel in thin strips of courgetti. Tear in the basil, add the zest of the lemon, half its juice, finely grate in the garlic, the chopped roasted almonds, add a good pinch of salt and a generous amount of olive oil (more than you think). Finely grate in the cheese and toss everything together.

Step 4

Adjust the seasoning to taste adding more salt, olive oil or lemon juice as necessary.

GOING OUT

ABC Kitchens, Knightsbridge

I was celebrating a win last week and manged to get a table at ABC Kitchens. It’s been on my list since it opened its doors at The Emory hotel. The food is a medley of everything I like to eat. I had three recommendations to order the guacamole which I’m glad I followed through on. I don’t know how they do it but it’s the best I’ve ever eaten. The house-made corn chips were so good that we ended up ordering more for the table. Other favourites were the spicy prawns and crispy fish tacos but the standout for me was the tuna tartare – perfectly executed and full of zing. If you can, make sure you go for an aperitivo at the Emory rooftop bar. With 360° views that stretch all the way over Hyde Park and round to Big Ben, there is no bar with a better view over London.

Visit THE-EMORY.CO.UK

For more from Alexandra, follow her @ALEXANDRADUDLEY or visit ALEXANDRADUDLEY.COM