Salads For Dreary Winter Days

The middle of January is not the greatest time of the year. We’ve just passed that January Monday when we are said to be collectively as a people in the Northern hemisphere at our lowest. We can remedy this with some delicious winter coming into spring salads. They not only taste great but seem to hint at warmer times ahead.

I always find reproducing some of the commercial salads interesting to attempt because they should be simple. Marks and Spencer (M&S) have a Super Green Salad which has the legal description of ‘Cucumber, edamame soybeans, apples, sugar snap peas and coriander with an apple, soy and ginger dressing.’ This seems a really nice salad to try and so it proved. Undoubtedly high in protein and suitable for vegans as well.  A 200g serving for 2 might seem a bit small so I’ve upped the amounts to a 400g salad as some of the lesser ingredients would be difficult to use without wasting.

The M&S Super Green Salad

serves 2

Ingredients:

Salad

• 80g cucumber -some peeled and cut into batons and cubes
• 60g edamame soybeans
• 44g apple – unpeeled but cut into small cubes
• 40g sugar snap peas – cut on the diagonal into segments
• 20g raw broccoli – cut into florets and some chopped up
• 20g raw courgette – coarsely grated
• 15g fresh peas
• 15g fresh spinach – slightly chopped up
• 2 tsp coriander
• 2 tsp golden linseeds
• 2 tsp hemp seeds
• 2 tsp sunflower seeds
• 2 tsp pumpkin seeds

Apple & Ginger Dressing

• 80g apple juice
• 120g/½ cup sunflower oil or rapeseed oil
• 120g vinegar
• 2 tsp dried mustard
• 30g spinach – finely chopped
• 50g ginger paste/puree
• squeeze of lime juice
• 1 tsp fresh mint – finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic – chopped
• lime leaves – chopped
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• black pepper to taste
• salt to taste

Preparation: 

1. Cut and peel the cucumber into cubes and batons. Add to a large bowl.
2. Add the edamame beans, cubes of chopped apple, chopped sugar snap peas, broccoli florets, cubed courgette, peas and spinach. Mix these all together.
3. Add the coriander, seeds and a pinch of black pepper. Mix into the salad.

For The Dressing:

1. In a bowl, mix the oil, apple juice, vinegar thoroughly to create the dressing
2. Add chopped spinach, mustard, ginger, lime juice, garlic, mint, allspice and turmeric to the dressing and mix thoroughly until the colour is dark green. Add salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Liberally coat the salad – its about 25g of dressing per 100g of salad. Make sure all the leaves and cubes are well coated.

The M&S Edamame Rainbow Salad might suit some and this has a lime, ginger and miso dressing.

The M&S Edamame Rainbow Salad with Lime, Ginger and Miso dressing.

Ingredients:

Salad

• 120g edamame soybeans
• 80g fresh spinach – chopped
• 40g baby red lettuce
• 40g red and yellow peppers – chopped into cubes
• 30g spring onions – chopped
• 20g carrots – sliced into thin strips
• 20g beetroot – sliced into strips
• 20g cabbage – chopped into strips
• 20g rocket – chopped

Lime, Ginger & Miso Dressing

• 50g/2oz Tamari soy sauce
• 50g/2oz Sunflower Oil
• 50g/2oz rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp Lime juice
• 2 tsp Ginger puree/paste
• 2 tsp red miso paste
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp cornflower
• 1 tsp red chilli puree or just red chilli – finely chopped
• garlic clove – finely chopped

Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl to make the salad.
2. For the dressing, mix the soy sauce, oil and vinegar vigorously to create an oil emulsion.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly to create the rest of the dressing
4. Coat the salad by adding about 25g per 100g of salad.

The Tesco Quinoa, Avocado And Almond Salad

Ingredients

For the salad

• 125g (4oz) quinoa
• 50g (2oz) blanched whole almonds
• 1 large avocado, halved, stone removed, peeled and cubed
• 75g (3oz) rocket leaves
• 4 spring onions, sliced thinly on the diagonal
• 1 courgette, coarsely grated
• 4 tbsp chopped parsley leaves
• 6 tbsp chopped mint leaves

For the dressing:

• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• juice of 1 small lemon
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped

Preparation:

1. Put the quinoa in a saucepan and cover with water, stir and bring to the boil over a medium-high heat. Turn the heat down to a simmer, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 15 minutes until tender. Drain and leave to one side.
2. Meanwhile, put the almonds in a large, dry frying pan and toast over a medium heat for 5 minutes, turning once, until slightly golden. Remove from the pan and leave to cool.
3. Squeeze a little of the lemon juice over the avocado to stop it turning brown, then put the rest of the juice, along with the remaining dressing ingredients, in a bowl, season, then whisk until combined. Set aside.
4. Put the rocket in a large serving bowl with the spring onions, courgette, herbs, avocado and cooked quinoa. Pour on the dressing and combine gently. Scatter with the almonds before serving.