6 fast & delicious salad ideas with 5 ingredients or less

I’m often asked for ‘recipe’ ideas but the truth is I’m not much of a recipe cook, more of an assembler of ingredients. Having said that I very much want to eat food that is quick, easy and tasty – the holy grail of food prep! So here are six salad staples that I regularly ‘throw’ together…

1) Fabulous feta salad

Ingredients:

• A large handful of mixed salad leaves
• 5 cherry tomatoes
• 4 pre-boiled new potatoes
• 1/2 standard block of feta cheese (about 100g)
• Dressing (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper)

Feta is a good choice if you love cheese as it’s low in fat – choosing one made from sheep or goat’s milk will be lower in fat than one made from cow’s milk.

 2) Silky smoked salmon salad

Ingredients:

• A large handful of spinach leaves
• 1 tablespoon of butter beans
• 2 beetroots quartered
• 1 packet of smoked salmon (about 100g)
• Dressing (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper)

Spinach is a good source of iron and folic acid – baby spinach leaves have 90% more antioxidants than iceberg lettuce.

3) Rome inspired mozzarella & tomato salad

Ingredients:

• 8 vine ripened tomatoes halved
• 1 ball of buffalo mozzarella (tastes much better than the cow’s milk version)
• A handful of torn basil leaves
• Dressing (olive oil, salt & pepper)

Tomatoes get their colour from the antioxidant lycopene and studies have shown that the higher the levels of lycopene in your blood, the lower your risk of heart disease and stroke.

4) Smooth smoked mackerel salad

Ingredients:

• A handful of mixed salad leaves
• 1 tablespoon of butter beans
• 1/2 chopped ripe avocado
• 2 fillets of smoked mackerel
• Dressing (olive oil, salt & pepper)

Avocados a high in ‘good’ monounsaturated fat and are a great source of vitamin E – an antioxidant and apparently smoother out of wrinkles!

5) Cool cucumber & cottage cheese salad

Ingredients:

• A large handful of wild rocket leaves
• 7cm length of cubed cucumber
• 1/2 tub of cottage cheese (about 150g)
• 2 teaspoons of capers
• Dressing (olive oil, salt & pepper)

Cucumbers are 80% water and a good source of vitamin C – be sure to eat the skin too, it’s rich in fibre and silica (essential for healthy skin, hair and nails).

6) Plump prawn salad

Ingredients:

• A handful of mixed salad leaves
• 3 beetroots quartered
• 7cm length of cubed cucumber
• 100g prawns
• Dressing (olive oil, salt & pepper)

Beetroot is high in antioxidants and increases the uptake of oxygen into our cells – the more oxygen they get, the healthier we are.