SALAD SEASON

After a long hard winter of storms and snow the sun is finally shining!!  I’m sure everyone has welcomed the bit of heat on the bones with open arms.

If we’re meant to eat according to the seasons then sunshine has to mean salads, and lots of them.  Salads don’t need to be boring.  In fact you can do so much to make them interesting.  The only limit is your imagination J

For me, eating healthy and staying on track with my nutrition is all about being organised.  I start to get nervous when I see my stocks of plastic containers stacked up in the fridge depleting.  No matter what I make I make a big batch in one go.  That way I have a few days where I don’t have to cook a thing and I’m less likely to find myself getting hangry which is always a good thing.  I divide each dish into (carefully measured) individual portions so that I can take it with me wherever I go.  So I thought it would be a good idea to use this week’s article to share some of my favourite meat free salads with you and hope that they will inspire you to put a little twist to your salads this summer.

COUSCOUS WITH ROASTED VEGGIES

Couscous is such a handy lunch to make ahead of time that you can easily bring with you to work or eat on the go.
These are the veg I use most often but don’t be afraid to experiment.  You can change the spices around too depending on what you like.
The sky’s the limit!
Ingredients
200g couscous
1 red onion diced
1 courgette diced
1 aubergine diced
1 red pepper diced
16 white mushrooms diced
2 cloves garlic diced
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
Juice 1 lime
1 tin chickpeas
40g sultanas
1 large orange cubed
40g cashews
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
Place the couscous, sultanas and spices in a bowl stir well and cover with boiling water
Place a lid on the bowl and set aside while you prepare the veg
Place all the diced veg in an oven dish and bake at 150 for 20 minutes
Mix the roasted veg with the couscous fruit and lime juice
Mix in the chickpeas
Season to taste
Top with some homemade hummus


This makes 4 big portions and will keep in the fridge for 3 days.  This salad would be great with some feta crumbled on top.

HOMEMADE HUMMUS

I started making my own hummus after attending a cookery class with chef Paul Power and I haven’t had store bought hummus since.
It’s so much tastier and healthier.
Give it a go, I promise it’s worth it.

Ingredients
1 tin chickpeas rinsed
2 tbsp tahini
2 cloves garlic
Juice of ½ lemon
¼ - ½ cup chickpea juice
1 tsp paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
Drain the chickpeas but keep the juice as I use this instead of oil to get the right consistency
Add all the ingredients (except the chickpea juice) to the food processor
Blitz and add chickpea juice as needed until you get a lovely smooth, creamy texture
Season to taste
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days if it lasts that long!!

QUINOA SALAD

They say you should never eat anything you can’t pronounce except for quinoa; you should eat lot’s of quinoa.  Quinoa is so versatile.  I have quinoa porridge, quinoa chilli and quinoa salad.
Did you know that quinoa is a super grain?
This recipe makes 4 portions and like most of the dishes I make will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days.  You can use absolutely any salad veg you like in this dish, a little bit of what you fancy at the time.



Ingredients
200g quinoa
1 red onion
1 yellow pepper
16 cherry tomatoes
½ cucumber
200g cooked beetroot
200g frozen corn defrosted
200g petit pois defrosted
1 tin mixed beans rinsed
Salt and pepper

Method
Cook the quinoa according to the packet and allow to cool
Defrost the corn and petit pois
Dice all the veg
Mix everything together and add a little beetroot juice to keep it moist
Stir in the beans and season to taste

I like to have this salad with some hummus on top.  It’s so fresh and hearty!

FALAFEL WRAP

This wrap is a real treat.  You can eat it like a flat bread like I did or you can put in a little less filling and wrap it up so you can take it with you.  Again, you don’t need to be rigid with the ingredients.  Use whichever salad veg you like the best.


Ingredients
1 wholemeal wrap or pitta bread
Iceberg lettuce
Red onion
Yellow pepper
Cucumber
Beetroot
Avocado
Beetroot falafels (Aldi)
Hummus or pesto

Method
Bake the falafels for 20 minutes at 200
Warm the wrap
Assemble the wrap and enjoy with a nice cuppa

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