Coconut grain salad

Ingredients 1 can chickpeas, 1 cup pearl cous-cous, 150ml coconut cream, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1 can puy lentils.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 20 minutes

It is a truth universally acknowledged that coconut is one of the best things ever. In a world where I do not give my family refined sugar and limit dairy products; coconut palm sugar, coconut blossom syrup and coconut oil, water and milk are constantly on our grocery list. When I was pregnant I consumed so much coconut water that I am not remotely surprised that my son is hopelessly addicted to it. That and it tastes like breastmilk.  
ANYWAY! This salad is subtle and lovely, an extremely lazy nod to rice and peas (one of my favourite dishes at Soul Kitchen - my review here) and super quick to make. Do excuse the slight grey tone of the picture, it was a VERY gloomy day!

1) Add the pearl cous-cous to a pan along with the coconut milk, cumin and thyme.

2) Bring to the boil and after about 8 minutes, turn off the heat, stir through and add the drained puy lentils and chickpeas.

3) The liquid should have cooked off, leaving just a gloss of coconut but if not, drain through a sieve before serving. I like to add a little black pepper and salt 

Quinoa, chickpea, pomegranate & artichoke cream salad

Ingredients Quinoa, jar of marinated artichokes, pomegranate, can of chickpeas.

Serves: X Preparation: X

Once upon a time, I was completely obsessed with artichoke cream. From slathering it on bread to swirling linguine into it, it could do no wrong as far as I was concerned. This creation was born of "oh no, lunch is in 15 minutes and all I have is a pomegranate until the market delivers my fresh produce!" panic. I always have cans of chickpeas in the cupboard (there is no emergency that cannot be fixed with hummus. It is the new cup of tea) and jars full of different grains and with this satisfying salad, I'm very glad that I do!

1) Soak the quinoa for 5 minutes and rinse well in a sieve. Depending on where you buy it, it naturally has an acrid coating called saponin which you don't want flavouring your food!

2) Cover the quinoa in slightly salted water or stock if you wish and bring to the boil for about 15 minutes, stir continually as it soaks up the water and fluffs up, then remove from the heat. Drain the chickpeas and add to the mix. 

3) Pour the jar of artichoke into a blender. Personally I prefer to drain away the oil it's marinated in first and just add a little of it, but you can in fact use all of the oil if you wish. Blitz thoroughly until a smooth, emulsified cream forms.

4) Stir some of the cream into the quinoa - just enough to dress it rather than turn it into soup! 

5) Slice your pomegranate in half, hold it over a bowl (cut side down...) and them smack it repeatedly with a wooden spoon or ladle until all of the beautiful jewels have dropped out. Sprinkle onto your salad and serve, hot or cold.

Protein pesto salad

Ingredients 1 can cannellini beans, 250g red & white quinoa (Merchant Gourmet), 250g beluga lentils (also Merchant Gourmet), 100g fresh basil, 1 clove garlic, 50ml basil oil, parmigiano, 1/2 lemon, 50g pine nuts.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 5 minutes (+ 20 if using dried lentils and quinoa)

I always have a kilner jar of pesto on the go in the fridge so that in a rush for a quick meal I can chuck some pasta or gnocchi or buschetta together in about 5 minutes flat. I was recently asked for a recipe for a healthy, satisfying salad packed with protein and this is one of my favourite picnic staples. Merchant Gourmet make fabulous little pouches of cereals and grains which seriously cut down on prep time, but Quinoa and lentils are quick enough to cook from scratch using the instructions below.

1) If using raw quinoa and lentils: Soak for 5 minutes and rinse thoroughly in a sieve before transferring to a pan. Depending on where you buy it, quinoa naturally has an acrid coating called saponin which you don't want flavouring your food! Cover with lightly salted water and bring to the boil for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently as it soaks up the water and fluffs up, then remove from the heat, add the drained and rinsed cannellini beans and set aside to cool.

2) To make pesto: add the fresh basil leaves to a mortar bowl and grind to a fine pulp. Sautee 1 crushed clove of garlic in the basil oil and add to the mortar bowl along with a pinch of salt and a handful of pine nuts. Grind thoroughly, adding lemon juice, basil oil and parmeggian to taste.

3) Stir 2 tablespoons of the pesto into the quinoa, beluga lentils and beans and either serve or refrigerate for up to 5 days for lunch. If you want to vary this a little from day to day (I liked to make a batch on a Sunday and portion it out for the week) it's nice to sprinkle pomegranate jewels though it, or add some salad leaves, or chopped cherry tomatoes or bell peppers (raw or roasted) and I especially love blitzing up some spinach or kale in the blender and stirring that through)

Carrot, apple & cardamom salad

Ingredients 1 Carrot, 1 apple, 1/2 tsp freshly ground cardamom, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 orange.

Preparation: 5 minutes

To say a salad is supposedly a simple affair for lazy Summer days, the majority that I make involve very little of the "chuck it in a bowl and scoff it" mentality. But whilst life is too short for artfully decorating a plate with blobs of apple gel and dill emulsions at home, I do believe a little marinating goes a long way.
This salad is breathtaking in its simplicity - shaved apple and carrot with a gorgeous, zingy orange and cardamom dressing to bring out the flavour of the carrot and stop the apple from browning (should you wish to brown bag it.)

1) Peel the carrot and apple, discard the skin and then simply carry on peeling! Transfer the slivers of fruit and vegetable flesh into a bowl and set aside.

2) Combine the olive oil with the juice of the orange, season with a tiny smigdeon of salt (no, not a pinch - a smidge!), black pepper and the cardamom.

3) Pour the dressing into the bowl, toss the carrot and apple until the cardamom and pepper is evenly distributed and either serve or set aside until required.

Fine bean & beluga lentil salad

Ingredients 400g spinach, 100g garden peas, 1 tbsp almond butter, 200g fine beans, 200g beluga or puy lentils (I loveMerchant Gourmet's ready to eat pouches), 1 tbsp butter.

Serves: 4 Preparation: 30 minutes

After the excesses of Christmas, I always veer towards clean, green food. Lentils need not be boring however - this steamy hot salad has an irresistible gloss of silky almond butter, meltingly soft spinach and a crisp crunch of fine beans.

1) Roughly chop the spinach and fine beans and add to a pan with 1 tsp butter and 1 tbsp almond butter. Stir until the spinach has just begun to wilt.

2) Simmer the peas in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain and add to the pan along with the lentils. Add a little extra almond butter if you wish, season with black pepper and serve hot or cold.

Almond buttered bean salad

Ingredients 2 tbs almond butter, 1 tsp truffle oil, 1/4 cup peas, 1/2 courgette, 1 avocado, 1 can cannellini beans.

Serves: 4 (or two as a side dish) Preparation: 10 minutes

Winter to me (like every other season as a vegetarian I suppose!) is somewhat bean-centric. Soups and stews galore are packed with the wonderful range of colours and textures that these little nuggets of protein provide. This salad combines the delicate flavour of courgette and cannellini beans with gutsy almond, earthy truffle and sweet, fresh peas. The dressing is slick and silky with avocado.

1) Rinse the beans and bring to the boil in a pan of salted water for 5 minutes.

2) In a separate pan, warm the almond butter and truffle oil, stirring until a runny dressing has formed, then take off the heat.

3) Slice the avocado in half and use a tablespoon to scoop it from the shell. If the avocado is ripe enough the stone will pop out with a spoon but another good method is to prick it with a knife and pull it out. For the purpose of this dish, roughly dice it into centimetre thick pieces and stir gently into the almond and truffle dressing along with the peas. Some of the avocado will melt to form a thicker sauce and the remains will add texture.

4) I like thin slices of raw courgette in this dish, but you can roast chunks of it if you prefer. Add to the pan of dressing then drain the beans and stir through before serving warm or cold.

Carrot & Wensleydale salad

Ingredients Carrot, Wensleydale, pistachios, clementine.

Preparation: 5 minutes

I know, I know I only posted a carrot salad recipe the other day but with flavours this wonderful, can you blame me for sticking with a good thing? This salad is so quick to make, travels well and with a double hit of protein from the cheese and pistachios it's satisfying too. Tangy sweet clementine juice goes perfectly with carrots but the peppery pistachio and sharp cheese contrast beautifully.

1) Grind the pistachios in a mortar and pestle with a pinch of sea salt and black peppercorns. I like the nuts to be mostly powder with a few bigger chunks but if you prefer a completely fine powder, go for it!

2) Peel the carrot and grate into a bowl. Add 3/4 of the pistachio powder and stir through before squeezing in the clementine juice

3) Grate or crumble through the Wensleydale and the remainder of the pistachio powder to season and either serve or save!

Apple, Fennel & Mozzarella salad

Ingredients 1 Apple, mozzarella, 1 fennel bulb, pork loin, bread, balsamic vinegar, cucumber

Serves: 2 preparation: 10 minutes

First things first - do not even attempt this recipe if you have chilled mozzarella. I know that I say this every time, but mozzarella needs to be at room temperature - chilled mozzarella is rubbery and flavour impaired - room temperature mozzarella is yielding, meltingly perfect and tastes wonderful. This salad works really well with layers of seared pork medallion but I went for layers of lightly toasted bread being a vegetarian and it worked beautifully. The sweetness of the apple, the fragrance of the fennel... gorgeous. This also works really well with a good sharp goats cheese.

1) Remove the core from the apple and slice finely with a mandoline. Mine allows me to slice straight into matchsticks, but if yours does not - slice the slices into matchsticks! Repeat for the fennel and the cucumber and toss together in a bowl.

2) Layer in a circle mould with the cheese and meat/bread - packing the salad down quite tightly.

3) Serve with a drizzle of balsamic glaze

Roast peppers with lavender goats cheese

Ingredients 1 Bell pepper, lavender goats cheese, lavender vinaigrette, spinach, rocket, watercress

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

This recipe uses two of my recent lavender recipes - lavender goats cheese and lavender vinaigrette. It might sound like a whole lot of lavender... but you can never have too much. This is absolutely delicious, and such a lovely twist of the classic roast pepper and goats cheese combination.

1) Slice the tops from your bell peppers, remove the core and seeds, then slice between the membranes to leave 3 or 4 slices of pepper flesh. Discard the core, seeds and membranes. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes at 180 degrees.

2) Top a slice of bread with the roast pepper, and add the lavender goats cheese balls. Roast in the oven for a further 5 minutes, then dress with the salad and eat hot.

Lavender vinaigrette

Ingredients 1 tsp grainy mustard, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 lemon, 1 tsp lavender, 1 tsp honey (or agave syrup)

Serves: 4 Preparation: 5 minutes

It's no secret that I love lavender, or that this Provençal glory features heavily in my cooking. The vinaigrette is one of the best loved French influences and adding lavender and lemon in place of herbs and vinegar gives this a really wonderful twist. Perfect with peppery salad leaves like rocket and watercress.

1) Add the honey into the lemon juice and whisk together - the fruit acid should help even crystallised honey break down and integrate well.

2) Grind the dried lavender in a mortar and pestle and add to the honey and lemon along with the olive oil and whisk thoroughly.

3) Toss your salad leaves in the dressing and serve.

Potato & halloumi salad

Ingredients Exquisa potatoes, halloumi,  Rachel's Organic Greek Yoghurt  cucumber, mint, spinach, rocket,

Serves: 2 preparation: 30 minutes

Since doing a pregnant, I have had to stop making my own mayonnaise and buy some Hellman's instead and for the most part, I just can't bear the thought of it. As a result, this mint & cucumber yoghurt dressing was born! It's perfect with the salty tang of halloumi and some crisp salad greens.

1) Boil the potatoes in hot salted water for 20 minutes, run under the cold tap for a minute, then slice in half and set aside to cool.

2) As the potatoes are cooking, slice your halloumi and grill for a couple of minutes until one side turns golden and the other remains gorgeously gooey.

3) Peel about an inch and a half of a cucumber and slice the flesh from the juicy seeds in the centre. Discard the seeds and pop the flesh into a blender along with 3 or 4 mint leaves and 3 tablespoons of Greek Yoghurt. Pulse until combined, then stir in the potatoes and halloumi and serve.

Quinoa & aubergine salad

Ingredients 1 cup Quinoa, 1 aubergine, 1 bell pepper, 4 baby plum tomatoes, paprika, kamalata olives, salt, rapeseed oil

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

I love aubergines, simply love them. They soak up flavour like majestic sponges and when cooked well, just melt in your mouth. This salad can be served hot or cold and is simply fabulous.

1) Remove the top and core from a bell pepper and shake out the seeds. Slice finely, drizzle with a little rapeseed oil and roast in the oven along with the baby plum tomatoes for 20 minutes.

2) Slice your aubergines and lay the slices in a colander. Sprinkle salt on the aubergines and set aside.

3) Soak the quinoa for 5 minutes and rinse well in a sieve. Depending on where you buy it, it naturally has an acrid coating called saponin which you don't want flavouring your food!

4) Cover the quinoa in salted water and bring to the boil for about 15 minutes, stir continually as it soaks up the water and fluffs up, then remove from the heat and set aside to cool

5) The salt will have drawn the bitter liquid from the aubergines, rinse the liquid, pat the aubergines dry and brush with rapeseed oil. Dry fry in a very hot pan for about 5 minutes per slice, turning frequently. When the aubergines are ready the skin will have turned violet and the flesh will have darkened in colour and become meltingly soft.

6) Stir the tomatoes and peppers into the quinoa, seasoning well with salt, black pepper and paprika. I also like to add some finely diced black kamalata olives but this is entirely to taste.

7) Layer the aubergine and quinoa mixture using a circle mould, pressing each layer firmly. Serve hot or cold.

Quinoa & cucumber salad with watermelon vinaigrette

Ingredients Quinoa, watermelon, mint, red wine vinegar, rapeseed oil, cucumber

Preparation: 15 minutes

This salad is magnificent in its simplicity, but utterly delicious. Watermelon vinaigrette represents everything that is wonderful about summer to me - fresh, sweet and tangy. It's quick to prepare and really brings quinoa to life.

1) Soak the quinoa for 5 minutes and rinse well in a sieve. Depending on where you buy it, it naturally has an acrid coating called saponin which you don't want flavouring your food!

2) Cover the quinoa in salted water and bring to the boil for about 15 minutes, stir continually as it soaks up the water and fluffs up, then remove from the heat and set aside to cool

3) Juice the watermelon if you have a press juicer, or crush it in a jug with a pestle and pass through a sieve to release a smooth juice. Mix about 100ml watermelon juice to a tablespoon of red wine vinegar and a tablespoon of rapeseed oil. Add chopped mine and stir through the quinoa. 
Add chunks of cucumber and serve!

Strawberry & white stilton salad

Ingredients   Spinach, salad leaves, cucumber, strawberries, white stilton, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin oil

Serves: 1 Preparation: 5 minutes

White stilton and strawberries are a wonderful combination - sweet and creamy. This salad is perfect drizzled with pumpkin oil.

1) Slice your strawberries (don't keep them in the fridge, they should be at room temperature or the flavour will be impaired), silton and cucumber into chunks.

2) Toss the salad leaves in a little pumpkin oil and mix with the rest.

3) Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and serve.

Carrot, feta & spiced apple salad

Ingredients  1 Carrot, 1 apple, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, muscovado sugar, feta cheese, watercress, pea shoots, ginger hummus

Serves: 1 Preparation: 10 minutes

I never understand why people think that salads are boring, or somehow something to be endured. For me they're one of the only types of food that one can put just about any other type of food into. Bread, potato, pasta, cheese, fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs, eggs, flowers... you name it!
This is a rather new concoction of mine to showcase the spiced apple slices and ginger hummus that I have quickly become very fond of.

1) Core the apple and slice into crescents. Sprinkle the crescents with a dusting of brown sugar, cumin, allspice and cinnamon and toast under the grill for 5 minutes, turning half way through.

2) Peel the skin from the carrot, then peel the carrot into ribbons. Toss with the watercress and peashoots, and crumble over the feta.

3) Add the apples and drizzle with ginger hummus before serving.

Butterbean & feta salad

Ingredients 1/4 Cucumber, 1 tin butterbeans, 100g feta, mint leaves, butter, 1/2 lime.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 10 minutes

I'm back! After almost a month off due to wedding/honeymoon madness I have woefully neglected you all. Hopefully this lunch idea will get me back in your good graces... the combination of lime and mint is always a winner with me - whether a cocktail, a pudding or a salad dressing, it never fails to add a fresh, exciting twist to a dish. This butterbean and feta salad is a great combination of melting soft cheese and beans with crunchy cucumber - great in a wrap, on bread or just on its own.

1) Drain the can of butterbeans and rinse in cold water. Bring to the boil in a pan for 4 minutes, then drain and set aside.

2) Slice and quarter the cucumber and cut the feta into equal chunks.

3) Zest the lime and squeeze the juice from one half. Finely chop the mint leaves and stir into the lime juice and zest.

4) Melt a knob of butter in a pan and add in the beans. Sizzle for a 30 seconds before adding the lime and mint, then fry off for a further 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

5) Take off the heat and stir through the feta and cucumber to dress it before serving.

Cucumber, fennel & feta salad

Ingredients 1/4 Cucumber, pumpkin oil, 1/2 fennel bulb, 75g feta

Serves: 1 preparation: 5 minutes

OK, I confess, I constantly pair fennel with cucumber. Oh I might add melon into the mix, or a variety of salad leaves but every time I buy a bulb of fennel I feel myself drawn to the cucumbers like a moth to a flame. There's just something about the delicate freshness of cucumber and the heady fragrant fennel that WORKS. Paired with the tang of feta and the rich nuttiness of the pumpkin oil this salad is absolutely glorious.

1) Wash the cucumber to ensure there are no traces of wax on the skin. Slice into thick discs and then quarter each disk.

2) Slice and dice the fennel, removing the outer layer if it feels tough or scarred.

3) Toss together along with the cubed feta and drizzle with pumpkin oil.

Emerald salad

Ingredients2 tsp grainy mustard, 4 eggs, lemon juice, salt, pepper, 1 pint rapeseed oil, 1 tablespoon pumpkin oil, green beans, exquisa potatoes, 2 avocados, goats cheese.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 30 minutes

I can scarely believe that it's been less than a week since I discovered Pumpkin Oil but in these last few days it has been a major source of foodspiration for me! I knew the stunning nutty flavour would make the most unbelievably rich mayonnaise but I was worried it would be too light to "take". A combination of Yorkshire rapeseed oil and pumpkin oil later, I had a dish of vibrant green mayonnaise and couldn't wait to smother it on waxy, exquisa potates, silky avocado, tangy goats cheese and the fresh green crunch of fine beans. With a little mustard for added piquancy this really is a stunning salad.

1) To make your own mayonnaise - separate 4 egg yolks from the whites (discard the whites) and put in a large clean bowl to whisk (or use the whisk attachment on your blender if you have one). Add the lemon juice/vinegar, salt and pepper and whisk thoroughly, adding the rapeseed oil ONE DROP at a time until the mayonnaise is thick and glossy. When the mayonnaise has started to thicken, begin adding the pumpkin oil. You can always alternate if you wish but do remember you don't have to use all the oil - I like it quite thick but if it's too thick you can always add a little warm water to thin it back down again. Don't be afraid to stop whisking and keep checking. Once it coats the spoon without dripping it's mayonnaise, you won't get it wrong!

2) Prick the potatoes and put them on to boil for 20 minutes. Put the fine beans in with the potatoes for the last 2 minutes, then strain and run under cold water to bring them down to just above room temperature.

3) Stir the mustard in with the mayonnaise and spoon over the potatoes and green beans, stirring until they are evenly coated.

4) Slice the avocados in half, scoop the fruit from the shell (discarding the stone) and cut into chunks. Add to the salad with crumbled goats cheese and serve!

Ruby salad

Ingredients Rocket, radish, pomegranate, red bell pepper, feta, beetroot, lime, basil oil, pumpkin seeds.

Serves: 1 Preparation: 35 minutes

This salad is not only absolutely beautiful to look at, it's marvellously healthy and absolutely delicious. The peppery hit of radish and rocket, the sweet juicey pomegranate and the sharp tang of the feta and lime really does make this one of those salads that can't quite ever be boring. Should you be in the mood for red-themed valentines treats, this should get you in the mood for love.

1) Wash the beetroot and slice off the stalks and leaves. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. Carefully peel the beetroot with the nick of a knife, then once it's cool slice thinly.

2) Slice the top from the bell pepper and remove the core and seeds. Slice between the membrane segments (usually leaves 3 or 4 slices of pepper) and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until slightly blackened.

3) Slice the pomegranate in half and hold over a bowl, fruit side down. Bang sharply with a wooden spoon to release the jewels. Alternatively, if the pomegranate is very ripe, it's sometimes as quick to just break it in half and peel off the membrane.

4) Finely slice the radish and add the rocket to a bowl and squeeze over the juice of 1 small lime and a drizzle of basil oil. Toss and transfer to your serving dish.

5) Dice the feta and layer with the beetroot and roast pepper, then sprinkle over the pomegranate and sunflower seeds.

Carrot & mozzarella pesto salad

Ingredients Carrot, mozzarella, basil, basil oil, lemon, garlic, pine nuts, parmigiano.

Serves: 2 Preparation: 10 minutes


I love to make pesto, it's not only delicious it's versatile so leftovers are never a problem! The crisp sweetness of the carrot is the perfect contrast to the grainy, savoury pesto.


1) To make the pesto - add a good handful of fresh basil leaves to a mortar bowl and grind to a fine pulp. Sautee 1 crushed clove of garlic in basil oil and add to the mortar bowl along with a pinch of salt and a handful of pine nuts. Grind thoroughly, adding lemon juice, basil oil and parmeggian to taste.


2) Grate the carrots and mozzarella and stir in the pesto and you're done!