Summer Salad 2: Broccoli and Roast Garlic

A quick and low-calorie side salad that goes great with pasta salads, cold meats, or couscous salads.


1 head of Broccoli, cut into small florets
6 cloves of garlic, skins still on
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil


Pre-heat oven to 180 degree celcius (200 if it's not a fan oven)

Roast garlic in 2 tbsp of olive oil for 20 minutes.

Blanch broccoli in boiling water for one minute. Drain and immediately drop the broccoli into cold water.

Drain and place in a salad bowl. Stir in the roast garlic cloves and serve.

Summer Salad 1: Beetroot and Walnut Salad

A light and nutritious side salad perfect for picnics or summer lunches.

Walnuts were recently declared the King of Nuts for their top-notch nutritional value. So it's always good to find new ways to incorporate superfoods into your diet. With summer now here, salads become more appealing in the warm weather. This salad is a real superfood salad, packed with goodness.  I use pre-cooked beetroot in this recipe. This means minimal preparation time and the vinegar beetroot are traditionally stored in adds a nice zing to the salad.

For a real low-calorie alternative, omit the walnuts.

4 cooked beetroot
1 small red onion, sliced into thin rings
2 handfuls of baby leaf spinach
25g walnuts
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper

Cut the beetroot into roughly 1-2 inch sized chunks. Place in a salad bowl and add the onion and spinach, and the balsamic vinegar. Mix together.

Break the walnuts into small pieces and sprinkle over the salad.

Season well with freshly ground black paper.

Honey and Mustard Dressing

With new year's resolutions abound, one common meal is now the salad - a pile of green leaves on a plate and maybe some tomatoes for colour...But it does not have to be such a dull affair. Not only can salads cram in a delicious range of fruit and vegetables, but a good dressing can add taste and life to the plainest of salads. Honey and mustard dressing is probably one of the more popular dressings seen in the supermarkets and cafes and restaurants. But it is very easy to make at home. I really like serving this with a side salad served alongside lasagne.

In order to get a consistent and creamy texture you need to use a blender but if you don't have access to a blender just mix the ingredients and best you can with a teaspoon and chop the garlic finely or use a garlic crusher.

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 clove garlic
Salt and black pepper

Put the olive oil, honey, and mustard in a blender.

Cut the clove of garlic in half and add the pieces to the blender.

Season the mixture.

Turn on the blender and mix to a creamy texture. check to make sure that the garlic has been blended as well. Taste to check for flavour. If you would like the dressing to be a bit sweeter add some more honey and blend again.

Serve with a side salad of iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and spring onions.