Spring Salads with a Variety of Dressings

Quinoa and Barley Salad with Ratatouille and Roasted Nuts

Ratatouille is so simple to make, and I love putting it in salads. Add it to quinoa or barley, mix in some chopped coriander and a few squeezes of lemon juice, then top it with roasted nuts for a yummy alternative to standard salads. 

Cucumber and Pomegranate Salad with Mixed Nuts and Seeds

Pomegranates add that extra sweetness to salads, and if matched with a sour lemon dressing, you can't go wrong. Mix 2 tsp mayonnaise with 2 tsp dijon mustard, then add the juice or half a small lemon. Gradually pour in good quality olive oil until it reaches a good consistency.

Seafood Salad with Chicory, Grapes, Tomatoes and Fresh Coriander

Seafood mixes are a great way to bulk up salads and make them look and taste exotic. Use the dressing mentioned above, and add some honey to sweeten it up a little.

Mushroom and Pomegranate Salad with an Assortment of Nuts

Match the sweet pomegranate seeds with a balsamic dressing. Shake up 4 tbsp good quality olive oil with 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, half a garlic clove (crushed), 1 tsp dijon mustard, a few dashes of worcester sauce and a pinch of sugar in a jam jar. If you shake it well, the ingredients won't separate. Add another sprinkle of vinegar if you want it extra tangy.

Homegrown Roasted Beetroot with Runner Beans, Almonds and Chilli

Winter doesn't scare me when it comes to salads, I eat them all year round. This is a very late post as I actually concocted it up in September, before I went to India. There's something very therapeutic and rewarding about picking your own vegetables. Last year, we had masses of runner beans - I think I picked them at least 6 times. 

Ingredients (serves 3-4)

- 4 baby beetroot, chopped into quarters

- 10 runner beans, chopped

- a handful of almonds

- a sprinkle of chilli flakes (I used a grinder and ground a pinch in)

- 1 tbsp good quality olive oil

- juice of 1/4 lemon

1. Start by heating the oven to 200c. Once the oven is hot, put the chopped beetroot quarters into an oven tray and coat with vegetable oil. Cook them for 40-45 minutes, until soft and tender. (N.B. I cooked my beetroot the day before, thus giving me leeway to experiment).

2. Boil some water for the runner beans, and cook them for 3-5 minutes until tender and light green in colour.

3. Add the beans, beetroot, lemon juice, oil and chilli flakes to a bowl, and toss a few times. Finally, sprinkle over the almonds and season with salt and pepper. 

Serve this salad on it's own, with cheese and biscuits, or with a selection of other salads.

Paprika Potato Salad

Ingredients (serves 4)

- 8 potatoes (I used homegrown ratte potatoes), cut in half or quartered

- 2 tbsp mayonnaise

- 2 tsp paprika or smoked paprika

- juice of half a lemon

- a handful of mixed seeds

- 4 spring onions, chopped

- 1 handful of chopped parsley or coriander

 - 1/2 tsp ground chilli flakes 

- pepper

1. Start by mixing the mayonnaise, lemon juice, paprika and seasoning together in a bowl. 

2. Add the potatoes, mixed seeds and spring onions to the bowl and stir well. 

3. Finally, sprinkle over the seeds and top with the chopped parsley.

A Delicious Lunch - Peanut Butter Houmous, Mixed Salad with Lemony Mustard Dressing, and two special girls

For me, the whole enjoyment of cooking boils down to who you're cooking for. I would cook for these two any day of the week, this was such a good day! A delicious selection of cheeses brought back from France, homemade houmous and a mixed surprise salad - what more could you want on a weekend?

Peanut Butter Houmous - serves 4/6

This is my own recipe using peanut butter instead of tahini. I find tahini too bitter, and peanut butter always makes this houmous taste superb. The right type of chickpeas are also very important, try buying some already boiled chickpeas as they are very soft, light and give a great texture. 

- 400g can of boiled TRS chickpeas with 1/3 chickpea juice
- 1 medium clove of garlic
- 1 dessert spoon of peanut butter
- juice of 1/2 a lemon
- roughly 3-5 tbsp good quality olive oil
- salt and pepper
- mixed seeds to garnish (can be roasted)




1. Simply place all the ingredients into a food processor (except the oil) and whizz up. Slowly add the olive oil to form your preferred consistency. Adding a bit of juice from the chickpea tin makes this dip smoother.

http://instagram.com/p/d9OVRMOkni/

Mixed Summer Salad

The thing I love about salads is that you can use all sorts of bits and pieces from the fridge to make them more exciting. I usually make dijon or balsamic dressings, but thought I'd try something different - it's my divine dressing. 

For the Mixed Salad - serves 3

- 3 handfuls mixed leaves

- 3 small cooked cold potatoes, chopped

- 3 radishes, sliced

- 4 tomatoes, chopped

- 1 baby cucumber, chopped

- 3 gherkins, chopped

- 1/2 avocado (optional)

- 1 handful pumpkin seeds

- 1 handful sunflower seeds

- a sprinkle of sesame seeds

http://instagram.com/p/d9fIpGukqk/

For the Divine Dressing

- 1 tsp mayonnaise

- 1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

- 3 good squeezes of fresh lemon

- good quality olive oil, roughly 2 tbsp

- salt and pepper

1. Place the mayonnaise and mustard into a jar or cup and mix thoroughly with a fork. 

2. Add the lemon juice and stir well. Gradually pour in the oil very slowly, continuing to beat with a fork. 

3. Finally, season with salt and pepper and drizzle over the salad. 

Gherkin, Date and Broad Bean Salad with Goji Berries and Seeds - Vegan and Dairy Free

Picking and podding broad beans is so satisfying. Although it takes a while, and you're left with very little; what you get is so delicious and precious, that you cherish every bite. I love them in salads.

Ingredients (serves 4)

for the salad -

 - 5 handfuls of chopped lettuce

- 3 gherkins, chopped

- 4 dates, pitted and chopped

- 1 handful of broad beans (cooked like peas for a few minutes and left to cool)

- 1 handful of goji berries

- pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, linseeds and sesame seeds to sprinkle

for the dressing -

- 170ml olive oil

- 50ml balsamic vinegar 

- 1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

- a pinch of sugar

- 1 tsp worcester sauce

- salt and pepper

1. Shake all the ingredients for the dressing in a jam jar until fully mixed and pour it over the scrumptious salad. 

http://instagram.com/p/b8q1ZfOkhg/

It's all about the French Dressing - Mushroom, Date and Roasted Seed Salad - Mackerel, Apricot and Walnut Salad

This is the easiest dressing and it never fails in taste. It also keeps well in the fridge for a long time.

Ingredients for the dressing

- 1 tbsp good quality Dijon mustard

- 3/4 tbsp balsamic vinegar

- good quality olive oil

1. Start by mixing the mustard and the balsamic vinegar in a jam jar or suitable container with a fork. 

2. Add the olive oil very slowly while constantly beating with the fork. Continue this until the dressing is runny enough to pour. It's as easy as that!

Simply add some chopped mushrooms and dates to your salad and top with a handful of roasted pumpkin and sunflower seeds. Finish off with the french dressing for a quick and easy lunch.

http://instagram.com/p/bQ8HqCukkG/

Try this dressing on some mixed lettuce leaves with olives, dried apricots, walnuts and tinned mackerel. Extremely healthy, delicious, and packed with omega 3.
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Bruschetta and Philadelphia Nibbles

Sadly I can't claim this recipe as my own. My wonderful friend Florence Clark makes these ten times better than me. They are so easy, but still sophisticated and delicious.

Ingredients (makes about 60 nibbles)

for the topping - 

300g of philadelphia cheese

100g basil, chopped

6-8 tomatoes, finely chopped (less tomato juice is better)

1/2 red onion, chopped finely

2 small cloves of garlic, crushed or finely chopped

1 tbsp good quality olive oil

2 tsp lemon juice

salt and pepper

for the base -

2 large french baguettes, sliced quite thinly

olive oil to drizzle (I used vegetable oil, student luxuries)

1. Start by pre heating the oven to 200°c. 

2. While the oven is warming, cut up the baguettes and arrange the slices face down on baking trays. Drizzle with oil and place in the oven (once it is warm) for roughly 8 minutes, until golden and crispy.

3. Add all the topping ingredients, apart from the philadelphia, to a bowl and mix thoroughly. 

4. Once the baguettes are cooked, leave them to cool before spreading with philadelphia cheese. Then top with the tomato mixture to make a delicious bruschetta nibble to munch on.

You can also make bigger versions of these nibbles on ciabatta bread to eat as an open sandwich. 

Or spice up your salad using the tomato topping.

Marinaded Garlic and Mint Courgette Salad with Cheat Aberdeen Beef

I was so happy to find some reduced off cuts of Aberdeen beef on the meat counter in Waitrose. Reduced by £7, at a whopping value of £1.50, it will probably last me for three or four meals! Don't let these bargains pass you by, I always buy reduced items as it is a great way to save money and buy things you wouldn't normally look at. 

This is a super easy recipe and the courgette salad can be eaten with just about anything. Some people might be skeptical about trying raw courgette, but once marinaded, you won't be able to tell the difference. Use some of the same garlic, mint dressing to coat the rest of the salad.

Ingredients (serves 2)

1 courgette, sliced thinly using a peeler or cheese slicer

leaves off 4 sprigs of mint, finely chopped

6 tbsp good quality olive oil

3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 clove of garlic, crushed

salt and pepper

Crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar and then add the oil and vinegar. Marinade the courgette in this mixture along with the chopped mint and let the courgette soak up all the goodness. It lasts for a good while in the fridge, and is great as a substitute for salad.

Tuna, Chilli and Ginger Filler

Ingredients (serves 2)

160g tinned tuna, drained

a few slices of chilli, chopped

1cm piece of ginger, grated

1 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp lemon juice

1-1/2 tsp worcester sauce

pepper

sesame seeds

1. Mix all the ingredients together and serve with salad, pitta, or in a sandwich. Add some sun-dried tomatoes for extra yumminess. 

Artichoke and Trout Salad with Chilli and Garlic Dressing

Ingredients (serves one)

for the salad - 

2 handfuls of mixed lettuce leaves

cucumber slices

1 celery stick, chopped

artichoke hearts from a jar (these are cheap and good in Lidl)

olives

1 radish (optional)

1 trout fillet (Lidl again!)

sesame seeds

for the dressing - 

1 small clove of garlic

2 slices of chilli

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp oil from the jar of artichoke hearts

1. Crush the garlic and chilli in a pestle and mortar, then add the vinegar and oil. It will separate but it still tastes good. Pour over the salad for a spicy kick.