8 Great Summer Salads

Summer may not be the best time to cook, but it’s certainly among the best times to eat. Ditch pre-made supermarket salad bags and get stuck into our fresh and light summer salad recipes, perfect for al fresco dining or a healthy lunch. Toss fresh ingredients like watermelon and pears with some ingredients you have picked up from the local farmers markets, and you can produce a salad that’s delicious, unusual, fast and perfectly seasonal. These 8 quick and easy salad recipes will prevent the Galley from heating up and will be a great addition to the BBQ.

1. Pear, Blue Cheese and Walnut Salad .... This is a lovely combination of flavours and textures - sweet pears, tart blue cheese, creamy Avocado and crunchy toasted walnuts. Perfect elegant salad for a dinner party. 



Pear, Blue Cheese and Walnut Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients 
2 generous handfuls rocket (or leaves of your choice)
2 pears, sliced thinly
1 Avocado sliced
150g blue cheese, broken into chunks
50g crushed walnuts for sprinkling (I like to lightly toast them)

Dressing
60ml olive oil 
30 ml red wine vinegar 
20ml maple syrup 
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
salt

Let's get Cooking 
Place the salad ingredients in a bowl or arrange on a platter.
Mix the vinaigrette dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake well before drizzling over the salad.
NOTES…. Its best to make the salad just before serving as the pears go brown very quickly

2. Roast Pumpkin Feta and Chickpea Salad ..... A great way to make a mid-week meal interesting, this vibrant Roast pumpkin, chickpea and feta salad is also high in fibre. The Preserved Lemon Dressing gives a citrus zing to this family favourite.


Roast Pumpkin Feta and Chickpea Salad

Serves 8

Ingredients
1.3kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, chopped coarsely
1 tbs Extra Virgin olive oil
400g Can Chickpeas, rinsed, drained
100g baby spinach leaves
¼ tsp dried oregano 
150g  Fetta, crumbled

Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette 
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tsp finely chopped preserved lemon rind
2 tbs Extra Virgin olive oil
1 ½ tbs White Wine Vinegar

Let's get Cooking 

Preheat oven to 200°C (or use the BBQ)
Combine pumpkin and oil in a large roasting pan; season. 
Roast for about 20 minutes or until tender.

Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette 
Place all the ingredients in stick blender jar and blend well.
Place pumpkin in a large bowl with chickpeas, onion, spinach leaves and vinaigrette; toss gently to combine. 
Serve salad sprinkled with dried oregano and feta.

3. Orange Pomegranate Avocado Salad .... Hooray for pomegranate season! I honestly think I love eating pomegranates on my salads more than anything else. This Orange Pomegranate Salad is the perfect easy holiday side dish. Layered with sweet pomegranate arils, avocados, fresh oranges, pecans and feta cheese. 


Orange Pomegranate Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients
3 heaping cups baby arugula
3 heaping cups baby spinach
2 oranges
1 cup pomegranate seeds arils
1/3 cup pecans!
1 large avocado peeled, seeded and sliced
1/2 cup feta cheese

Dressing
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs honey
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 green onions minced
Juice from 1 medium size orange
salt and ground pepper to taste

Let's get Cooking 

Add all of the salad dressing ingredients to a blender and pulse a few times until smooth. Taste and adjust as needed—more vinegar, orange, or honey, depending on your preference. 
Refrigerate until ready to use. 
This may be made a few days in advance.
Meanwhile prepare the salad ingredients.
Deseed the pomegranate 
To slice the oranges, cut a slice off the top and bottom of each orange to expose the flesh. Place the oranges upright on your cutting board and, following the contour of the orange, slice the peel off to expose the flesh. 
Then cut thin rounds..
Rinse and pat dry the lettuce and add it to a large mixing bowl.
Drizzle the chopped avocado with a little lemon juice to keep it from browning.
Add remaining ingredients and gently toss to combine. 
Drizzle desired amount of dressing on top and toss to evenly coat. Serve immediately.

4. Fig, Rocket and Feta Salad .... Summer means delicious fruits like figs are in season. Try them out in this beautiful Fig, Rocket salad with creamy Feta cheese for a beautiful summertime side - perfect at barbecues. 


Fig, Rocket and Feta Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients
50g or 2 handfuls of rocket (or mixture of baby spinach, Raddichio and rocket, washed and dried well)
2 figs cut in 1/4
20g feta cheese
1 tbs pomegranate seeds
Dressing:
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp pomegranate molasses (or just use all balsamic vinegar and 1 tsp of honey)
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil

Let's get Cooking

Sprinkle rocket onto serving plate
Cut figs into quarters and place on top of rocket
Sprinkle pomegranate seeds over rocket and figs
Sprinkle with crumbled feta cheese
Into a small jar pour the vinegar, molasses and olive oil
Place lid on jar and shake well
Pour evenly over salad
Get tucked in and enjoy

5. Easy Summer Salads ... The Greek salad is known and loved around the world; use the ripest tomatoes, Greek olive oil, beautiful marinated Kalamata olives, creamy feta and lovely herbs, perfect! 


Greek Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients 
1 cup mixed Lettuce
1 Tomato diced
1 small continental cucumber peeled and diced
1 pieces Marinated Feta cut in half
10 Marinated black Olives
1/2 Spanish Onion sliced thinly
Olive oil to dress, seasoned with dried oregano and salt

Let's get cooking

Combine all ingredients and mix well in bowl, place Feta cheese on top and dress with a drizzle of Olive oil and season with dried oregano and salt

6. Beetroot and Feta Salad ..... Prepare to have one of the best combinations for a salad – beetroot and feta cheese. Beetroots have this sweet flavour and it's perfectly balanced by the feta cheese – SO good! 


Beetroot and Feta Salad

Serves 4

Ingredient
2 medium beetroot
1tbs Olive oil
1 tsp of YIAH Beetroot dip mix.
50g baby spinach
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
75 grms Fetta, cubed
1/4 cup walnuts 

Dressing
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard

Let's get cooking

Preheat oven to 180°C (or use the BBQ)
Wash beetroot! Peel, cut into 1/4. (Take the easier option by buying ready cooked baby Beets in their juice)
Toss in Olive oil and salt to taste
Place on a baking tray.
Roast for 1 hour or until tender.
Cool for 15 minutes. Once cooled cube.
Meanwhile prepare remaining ingredients.
Combine spinach, onion, feta, Walnuts and beetroot in a bowl.
Toss to combine.
Place orange juice, oil and mustard in a screw-top jar.
Season with salt and pepper.
Secure lid.
Shake to combine.
Add to beetroot mixture.
Toss to combine.
If you have YIAH Beetroot dip mix sprinkle over other wise use a mixed herb blend.

7. Watermelon and Feta Salad ...... This salad is jam packed with everything cheesy, salty, juicy sweet and more – sweet watermelon, creamy/salty feta and fresh mint.


Watermelon and Feta Salad

Serves 8

Ingredients

4 cups of chopped Watermelon 
200 grams of Feta Cheese diced
Hand full of mint leaves torn
Caramelised Balsamic Vinegar 



Let's get cooking

Combine first three ingredients on a serving platter
Drizzle Balsamic Vinegar over salad
Great served accompanying any BBQ meats.


8. Rustic Chickpea Salad ..... I'm always a fan of chickpeas, both for their flavour, easy for provisioning on the boat  and overall tummy filling satisfaction. No meat needed in this Rustic Chickpea Salad recipe. Chock full of summer goodness. 


Rustic Chickpea Salad

Serves 2

Ingredient

1 small cous lettuce chopped roughly
1 carrot peeled and thinly sliced with peeler to form ribbons
1 small Lebanese cucumber peeled and thinly sliced with peeler to form ribbons
1/2 can of chickpeas drained and rinsed
2 hard boiled eggs cut into 1/4
1 tbs of Sour Cream


Dressing
1 tbs of Sour Cream
1 tbs of  Balsamic Vinegar
Combine the dressing ingredient until smooth.

Let's get Cooking

Layer the salad ingredients with chickpeas and eggs on top.
Serve salad in bowl and dressing on the side.











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