Spinach, mango and mint salad

I was in Beachport almost two weeks ago, delivering thank you letters to businesses who'd donated to our recent gym club super raffle. I don't get to Beachport a hell of a lot, but when I do I like to pop by and have a quick look out the front of the National Trust museum in the main drag.

They have a little stall with second hand books, plants, garden produce and a bit of bric a brac. Nothing too fancy, but worth a sticky beak. I found some Bromeliad plants and a cute little pocket size Christmas cook book. Lots of good little recipes in it, including a salad recipe. It basically called for tropical fruit, and what better tropical fruit at this time of year, than mangoes! When I think of mangoes, I immediately think of the juice running down my chin while I get every last bit off the pit in the middle.

While I was doing exactly that standing over the sink, I said, out loud, to myself, "Where's a teething baby when you need one!" They would LOVE that shit!

Back to the Christmas recipe book, and I would love to share the salad that I made from it. Perfect for Christmas lunch! It would go great with prawns and ham.

You will need:

• 60 gram bag of baby spinach
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced in half moons
• 2 sticks celery, sliced

Mix these ingredients together and then toss with a vinaigrette. You can make your own vinaigrette by mixing 

• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar, or any vinegar you have
• 3 teaspoons of olive oil, or vegetable oil
• salt and pepper

Finish the salad, by garnishing it with

• 1 sliced, or diced, mango
• a handful of mint leaves
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries

I love the colours of this salad, so Christmassy!

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Seven salads to make this season

One of the local pubs has just opened up suggestions from patrons, for the salad bar. They've even asked for recipes and created a little competition around it.

I haven't put forward a recipe, quite frankly, I hardly ever go that pub, but it has made me wonder what salads I have in my arsenal, that I could put forward.

It took me to the recipes section of this blog, which if I have to be honest, I hadn't visited for a long time. I was pleasantly surprised. I am reminded of good food memories and stories, and loads of recipes I'd forgotten about. I seriously have a decent cook book full of recipes there.

One of my goals, which I haven't fulfilled (one of these days), is to make a series of ebooks or a cook book. I just have to work out how to get started, which is the key I guess. JUST GET STARTED!

So to jog my memory, and yours. Here's seven salads to joosh up your mealtimes this spring and summer.

Pea and fennel salad

Spanish Prawn salad

Watermelon Salad

Broad bean salad

Roast pumpkin and capsicum couscous salad

Green bean salad

Orange salad

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Roasted pumpkin and capsicum couscous salad

Cous cous is something I forget I have in the pantry. It gets pushed to the back, but I am always glad to see it when I go looking hard enough. It's like finding a long lost friend. I fondly speak to it, "Oh cous cous. Hello. Where have you been?". Yes I am a weirdo.

Here's what I did with my long lost friend. This salad is great warm or cold.

1 cup couscous
1/4 of a butternut pumpkin, diced
1 capsicum, chopped into large dice ( I used a bit of yellow, red and green)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup sliced black olives
1/4 preserved lemon, finely sliced
A few finely sliced mint leaves

Place pumpkin and capsicum on a baking tray. Drizzle olive oil over and sprinkle with salt. Bake in a 180 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

Put a cup of cous cous in a large heatproof jug. Pour 1 cup of boiling water over the cous cous and leave for five minutes.

Stir the cous cous to break it up. Add in the pumpkin, capsicum, olives, preserved lemon, mint and stir to combine.

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Brown rice and quinoa tabbouleh

I always hear about how good quinoa is for my health, and I should be eating it. But dang, it costs an arm and a leg!

Whenever I see it at the supermarket, I look at it and think I should buy some of that. I then look at the price and think, nah, fuck it.

I am however happy to buy Sunrice's Brown rice and quinoa. For around four dollars, I get the health benefits without the price sting.

My mum is a gun at growing herbs and veggies, and her parsley plants are so big. Lately when I go visit her, I pick a big bunch and keep them in a vase in the kitchen. Not only does it look good, I love using it and this is what I love to use it for, amongst other things.

A delicious and healthy tabbouleh, not made with the traditional bulgur, but with brown rice and quinoa.

It is a fantastic way to reap the health benefits of parsley, including vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, iron and a treasure trove of other vitamin and minerals. It's also a fabulous antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.

Brown rice is a much healthier choice, as it hasn't been processed as much as white, therefore retaining more nutrients. Quinoa is a little grain that packs a big punch in health benefits including all nine essential amino acids(making it a complete protein). It's a shame it costs so much!

Brown rice and quinoa tabbouleh

2 cups cooked Sunrice brown rice and quinoa
2 tomatoes, diced
1 small onion, finely diced
1/2 large cucumber, diced
2 cups firmly packed parsley, chopped
juice of a lemon

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and serve. Voila!

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Pea and fennel salad

We've had one of the coldest winters here in a while, but rainfall has been down on previous years. I don't remember seeing so many rainbows ever, so it means there was some drizzle about.

It seemed ironic that the first morning of Spring, there was frost on the ground. It was bloody freezing that morning.

I am so glad the warmer days are on their way, and more than happy to have the longer days of daylight savings return in a month.

I have been eating so much healthier of late. I've been reading lots about foods and how they heal, including herbs and spices. So I have made an effort to eat more fruit and veggies and I hardly eat anything from a packet, which is a good thing!

Fennel is a fabulous food to include in your next shopping trip. It is packed with vitamins and minerals and generally really good for your health. I found this salad really comforting for my tummy too.

I used half a fennel bulb in this recipe. It also goes well with radish or oranges in a salad too, if you want to swap out the peas.

It is nice cut up and baked with other veggies, or cut in chunks and placed under a roast lamb or beef with carrots and onion to lift the roast off the bottom of the pan, and add flavour.

I ate this with frittata for lunch, and it was exceptionally delicious with fish for dinner. A really simple salad with a fresh taste, to keep in your summer repertoire to impress your dinner guests. 

Pea and Fennel salad

1/4 cup mint leaves, torn
1 tablespoon chopped chives
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/2 a fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Pea shoots, optional (I just happened to have them growing in the garden, so nipped a few tops off)

To cut the fennel, chop of the stalks and fronds where they meet the bulb.

Cut in half, then cut the core out in a v shape, it should be easy to see where.

Thinly slice one half for the salad.

Mix oil and lemon juice together, then combine all ingredients in a bowl, and serve up :)


It is worth growing your own herbs in a few pots at the back door, so you can just pop out and pick them for salads just like this :)

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Papaya Marinated steak w/ papaya salad

This may sound like a papaya overload, but it's not. There's other flavours going on, and if you didn't know the marinade had papaya in it, you wouldn't realise.

Little Summer loved the papaya raw, couldn't get enough. Izzy is my fussy, nose screwer upper and wouldn't have a bar of it. She did eat the marinated steak though.

I actually like eating the raw red papaya as my morning fruit. They are packed with vitamins and minerals. So good for you. 

I use the peels on my face. The flesh is actually really great at getting rid of dead skin and healing, I love how it improves my complexion. 

Papaya contains an enzyme called Papain that breaks down protein. So it works well as a marinade on tougher cuts of meat. I used rump steak in this instance, but I've also used the marinade with pork fillet and it was awesome. 

You'll need half a red papaya, which will cost you from $2.50 to $3. I was surprised it was so cheap, considering it is a tropical fruit. 

This recipe also uses kaffir lime leaves. If you aren't lucky enough to know someone with a tree, you can buy them in the herb section of the supermarket. It freezes really well so I doesn't go to waste. I just pull out the leaves I need, when I need.

Papaya marinade
1 kaffir lime leaf, sliced thinly
1/4 red papaya, mashed with a fork
1/2 teaspoon chinese 5 spice
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon chilli oil
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar

Mix together. Pour and massage into 500 grams(or up to 1 kg) of rump steak.

Leave for 1/2 hour to 1 hour.

Take steak out of marinade and grill as you normally would. Serve with salad.

Papaya and avocado salad
1 spring onion, sliced
1/4 papaya, sliced
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/4 capsicum, sliced
1 kaffir lime leaf, sliced thinly
1 Tablespoon toasted pine nuts 

Place all in a bowl and gently toss together.

Dressing
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp brown sugar

Mix all together and drizzle over salad.

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Potato, pea and mint salad

My mint, growing in a half barrel near the chook house, is flowering right now. I love the smell as I brush past to open the gate.

The purple potato plant is flowering now too. I have them growing in a pot by the veggie patch. Next time I'll put them in a bigger pot I think, it's as easy as tipping out the pot when they are ready and not digging to look for them. I've just topped up the pot with some composted sheep poo.

Potato, pea and mint salad

1 kilogram of pototoes, chopped into 2cm chunks, with the skin still on(you could use baby ones here.
3/4 cup frozen peas

Dressing
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup greek yoghurt
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 good tablespoon finely chopped mint

Cook the potatoes in salted water, for about 10 minutes or until are just soft enough to get a knife through. Leave to cool.

Cook the peas(you could do this in a steamer while the potatoes boil).Let cool.

Mix the dressing ingredients together and stir through the cold potato and peas.

You could add other ingredients like radishes, carrot,celery or ham of you like, even swap out the spuds for pasta to make your own version.

Added to flaunt your flowers at Tootsie Time

Green Bean Salad

I love this salad, it brings back great food memories from my mums kitchen and the spreads she put on our kitchen table. I could eat a whole bowl full of this stuff.

I have just started getting beans aplenty from the garden, this is the first thing I have done with them. We had them cold, but makes an good warm salad as well.

I made this using a couple of handfuls of fresh green beans straight from the garden, boiled for about 5 minutes, not even that. You can leave the beans whole or cut in half.

I finely chopped up a small clove of garlic and threw it on top of the drained beans, in a bowl.

Glugged about 1-2 tablespoon of olive oil on top and a dash of vinegar(maybe a teaspoon), and mixed it all up.

  Love, love, love it!

Spanish Prawn Salad

This salad is delicioso.

A perfect prawn dish for a christmas feast on a hot summers day.

2 large oranges

1 cos lettuce

500gr cooked prawns with tails

1 red onion, finely sliced

2 Tblspn red wine vinegar

4 Tblspn olive oil

1/2 tsp finely grated orange rind

1 clove garlic

Cut orange into segments.

Arrange lettuce leaves on a serving platter.

Top with prawns, orange segments and onion.

Place vinegar, oil, garlic and orange rind in a jar, shake well.

 Drizzle over salad.

Serve with crusty bread.

Orange Salad

It's as simple as

4 oranges, sliced into rounds

1 small onion, thinly sliced

you can add 

 100gr olives

or pistacchio nuts

try this dressing

  1/2 cup olive oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1/2 tspn cumin

1/2 tspn sweet paprika

  

*****or*****

Orange and Beetroot Salad 

8 baby beets (canned), cut into wedges

2 oranges, segmented

1/2 onion, sliced thinly

 

with this dressing

1 Tblsp balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

2 Tblsp olive oil

2 Tblspn fresh mint

Watermelon Salad

With the warmer weather heating us and our houses, as we get outdoors for dining, entertaining and cranking up the barbie, it's time to turn to salads instead of veggies for our dinners. Using whatever's on hand, in the pantry or fridge, the garden even, I love mixing it up and having something different besides the normal coleslaw and tossed salads, which there is nothing wrong with, they are reliable standards and we love them.

1 kilo watermelon flesh, cut in chunks

1/2 onion, sliced thinly

Mint leaves, about 40, torn

If you want it a little fancier, add

100gr pitted olives

200gr feta cheese, sliced and broken

Besides the mayo (sometimes homemade) for the coleslaw, and tangy tomato dressing for pasta salad, I don't usually dress salads. I like them au naturale. If I do I only use lemon juice and olive oil. I can't stand the plastic bottle stuff, the supposed "italian/french dressing", I don't live in the same universe as the makers of that stuff. Blerk!

You could use lime juice and olive oil as a dressing, but for an adults only salad, try whisking up these ingredients for an ouzo dressing

    2 tbs red wine vinegar
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs ouzo
Salt & ground black pepper

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Broad Bean Salad

2 cups broad beans

2 tomatoes, finely chopped

1onion, sliced thinly

about 20 mint leaves

1 Tblsp olive oil

1/2 tspn sumac

Cook beans in boiling water for a couple of minutes. Drain and refresh under cold running water. Place in a bowl with tomato, onion and mint. Drizzle oil over and toss. Sprinkle with sumac.

Mums broad beans were small ones, so I didn't worry about peeling them as the skins weren't tough, and well, the Queen wasn't coming over for tea(I didn't deseed the tomato either!). Bigger, older broad beans have tougher skin, so you will have to pop them out of their shell. Just break the skin and squeeze the beans out.

My mint in the garden is growing in a half wine barrel. If you're thinking about planting mint, it is better to put in a container as it can go crazy and take over a garden patch.

I bought Sumac a while ago and hadn't used it, because I really didn't know what to use it for. It has a tart, tangy flavour and is used in the place of lemon juice. So if you haven't got any try a bit of lemon zest or juice, I suppose it works for the reverse. I'm going to use Sumac in more of my salads from now on and try it on fish. We haven't had fish for ages.

Salad was very nice, makes a change from serving
broad beans hot with other veg.