SALADS & HONEST CONVERSATIONS

23 May SALADS & HONEST CONVERSATIONS

If you don’t like salad, I don’t get you. But I still love you enough to get in the kitchen and develop a few recipes that will make you happy. Happy with your salad that is.

Unsalady salads,perfect for packed lunches, even more perfect for small gatherings,great background music,hungry friends,honest conversations, where you get to bond over a big bowl of boiled potatoes drizzled with mint dressing.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm. Drain, cool, peel and chop roughly. Symmetry is not important at this point, we are going rustic.

Make the dressing:  Shimmer the wine with a pinch of salt and pepper and reduce it to the point where it looks like a semi-thick glaze. Allow to cool, add the olive oil and vinegar and give it a good whisk. Add the dressing to the warm potatoes and toss to coat.

Garnish with sliced radishes,onions and chopped herbs of your choice. I used dried mint and lemon balm to enhance the acidity and bring all the flavours together.

Unplug the devices and pour a glass of wine. When I was a kid, my family and I used to play cards with beans instead of money..We had more beans to go around than money. So I’ve learned to utilize what was available and make the most of what we had. In that case beans. Frugal, but amazingly filling,wholesome without weighting you down.So good, you won’t even care about money.

If you have plenty of time start from scratch and boil the beans. If you can’t be bothered, we are not going to judge, get a couple of cans. I used black-eyed peas and kidney beans,I find that they go perfectly well together because that’s what I had in my pantry, yes this is how we roll. Use a large bowl to mix the beans, chopped roasted peppers,capers and chopped avocados.

Whisk the dressing: Vinegar, oil,dill,a pinch of sugar or (non-vegan) honey, mustard, garlic powder,salt and black pepper.Add some greens to your salad to make it nice and healthy. Share a glass of white wine with someone and talk about what was the best part of your (plural) day.

On sunday mornings my kitchen feels quiet and unrushed.Undisturbed I’m free to ponder over the though of cooking an elaborate 3 course meal for myself, and I always end up having a simple salad,along with a bottle of beer,soaking up the yellow sunlight that comes through my kitchen window at five.

Grab a few firm tomatoes, cut them in half, heat some good olive oil into a frying pan and dip your tomato halves into a bowl of sesame seeds. Saute them to seal in the flavours. I like mine charred,sprinkled with a heavy dose of coarse salt a big chunk of toasted bread on the side.

These tomatoes would be perfect as a side dish as well. No dressing needed here, just some good old olive oil to dip your bread and to enhance the richness of the juicy tomatoes. Black olives and parsley if you have them. I turn the radio on. I always listen to BBC radio and pretend I’m back in the U.K.

A bottle of Brewdog PUNK IPA helps as well. Bottoms up.

A lovely mix of textures and colours, bitter greens, sour purples,crispy yellows, nutty ivories. Whichever wild greens happen to be in season at the moment, mineral-rich romaine lettuce, frisée,mesclun,tangy apples,juicy blueberries,bell peppers and homemade croutons.Each bite brings out a different, fruity combination of ingredients.

This refreshingly versatile salad makes for an excellent summer lunch or super quick light dinner.Big chunky croutons are brushed with garlic oil and then baked in the oven until crunchy. Give it a good toss and if you are a purist like mychelf and happy with the understated juices that squeezed from your fruit, you are good to go. If you are after a more decadent version a tahini dressing would be indescribably delicious.

Happy with your salads? You’ll find all the recipe cards below,save, download, print or pin them as you wish and please make sure to share your recreations and ideas on my social media using the #chelfrecipes or simply by tagging me  on Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, follow my food board on Pinterest and don’t forget to join the Chelfdom.