We became fans of this dish when we were on holiday at the beginning of July – it was a real thirst quencher in the Bulgarian summer heat.

As city-loving people we had decided to book an overnight stay in Varna as we thought that the holiday resort of Sunny Beach might not keep us occupied – there is only so much sunbathing and swimming a girl can do! So we went off in search of bars and restaurants in the beautiful seaside city. When the receptionist at the boutique ‘Hotel Hi’ asked us if we wanted a local restaurant booking for lunch we jumped at the chance of her recommendation.

In the humid restaurant garden at lunchtime we ordered this chilled Tarator soup.

This is a popular appetizer in Bulgaria combining finely diced cucumber, yogurt, water and crushed walnuts, seasoned with garlic and dill. I guess it has the equivalent flavours of Greek tzatziki or Turkish Cacik but not as thick and most definitely a soup. It was really refreshing and light. I don’t usually cook with dill, if I make a cacik salad I would be more likely to use fresh mint but it worked really well and would be a lovely starter before a fish main course. I was surprised by the addition of walnuts, but again these tasted really fresh rather than the old musty flavour of the obligatory xmas offering.

As the Olympic summer has arrived in London and we are glimpsing sunny days, Tarator Soup will be on the menu for the walthamstowfoodies. Now I’ve said that it will probably rain!