English summer

We have had our first peek of summer with sunshine for 4 days in a row (I say this with my fingers and toes crossed)!!  Having cleaned our barbecue last week I decided to grill some chicken for dinner tonight and served it with some roasted green peppers, mushrooms and a simple baby mixed leaf salad.  It was an opportunity to try out the apple balsamic vinegar which I picked up from Waitrose earlier.

The marinade for the chicken was dead simple – six de-boned chicken thighs, 3 tbsp of Scwartz blackened cajun seasoning and 2 tbsp of olive oil.  For the veggies I drizzled a little olive oil and sprinkled some garlic salt over them before grilling.  The salad was baby mixed leaves with olive oil and apple balsamic vinegar dressing.  Looking forward to more sunshine over the next few weeks to get the maximum out of the Weber grill.

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Salad Therapy – Moroccan sunshine

Cooking just for one has not been very enjoyable without hubby around and I must say I find it quite an arduous task to rustle up something interesting just for myself.  This evening, I felt like a salad.  I wish Shiv was here to share my salad because it tasted lovely (if I can say so myself).  I have been using a lot of Moroccan flavours in my preparations these days and quite like one brand called Al Fez that I buy from Waitrose.   http://www.alfez.com.

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What do I need to make it?

  • 150 gms salad leaves ( I used lettuce, pea shoots, rocket and lamb’s lettuce)
  • 1 red pepper sliced
  • 1 yellow pepper sliced
  • 1 potato boiled and cubed
  • 1 sweet potato boiled and cubed
  • 100 gms pomegranate seeds-
  • 3 sprigs salad onions
  • 3 tbsp yoghurt
  • 1/2 tsp Al Fez Spicy lemon tagine paste
  • 1/2 tsp Al Fez harrissa paste
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds roasted
  • Salt and pepper to taste

How much will I make?

A hearty big portion for a single meal or two moderate  portions if it is a side.

How do I make it?

Line your salad bowl with the salad leaves.  Layer it with the cubed cooked potatoes and sweet potatoes.  Cut the red and yellow peppers into long strips and place on top of the potatoes.  Add the chopped salad onions and the pomegranate seeds.  To make the dressing, whisk the yoghurt with the spicy lemon tagine paste and the harrissa paste and add the roasted cumin seeds to it.  Season the salad with salt and pepper, toss lightly and drizzle liberally with the yoghurt dressing before serving.

The vivid shades of  green of the leaves, red and yellow translucent peppers and  ruby red pomegranate seeds make the salad visually very appealing.  This salad is a textural treat, beautiful to behold and truly tasty, making it an all round winner.