Skinny Summer Salads

It’s a myth that eating salads will help you to lose weight. A salad can be more fattening than a big Mac and chips if the vegies are swimming in a gluggy sea of greasy mayonnaise or oily vinaigrette. A small splash will do. Then a salad can really be health in a bowl.

We’ve been surviving on salads for much of the summer. On our skinniest days a crisp wedge of iceberg lettuce, some ripe red tomatoes and sliced cucumber taste good by themselves. Here are some of our other favourites: dressed barely with oil or not at all.

Tzatziki :

To make tzatziki peel a telegraph cucumber. Scoop the seeds out and discard. Grate the cucumber coarsely into a strainer.Salt lightly and leave for half an hour to let the liquid drain out. Squeeze it by hand to dry it out further. Then stir it into a cup or so of thick greek yoghurt . Add a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of olive oil, a crushed garlic clove and a squeeze of lemon juice. Finally stir through some chopped mint.
Tzatziki can be a light lunch scooped up with triangles of pita bread which have been brushed with oil and baked briefly in a moderate oven until crisp.

Tomato salad:

For this thickly slice ripe tomatoes, season with salt, grind over black pepper, drizzle with a splash of balsamic vinegar and little olive oil and sprinkle with torn basil leaves.

Beetroot, mint and pomegranate salad:

This ruby red salad is delicious. Peel and grate a couple of large beetroots. Stir in about two tablespoons of pomegranate molasses. You may like to add more but add small amounts at a time as its sweetness can overwhelm the salad. Stir in plenty of chopped mint.
Alongsideserve some slices of grilled haloumi and some toasted sourdough bread. This makes either a starter or a light meal

Nick’s Couscous Salad

For the carnivorous this salad goes well with some barbecued chicken. And for the vegetarians, falafel patties (made with a tub of falafel mix from the supermarket)
Leftovers will last in the fridge for a few days.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of couscous
1 1/2 cups of boiling water
Olivani /butter 1 teaspoon
½ cup of craisins
1 packet of sliced almonds (lightly toasted)
2-3 spring onions
½ cup of chopped herbs (choose from parsley, mint, coriander or a mixture)
2 cups of roasted pumpkin ( cubed)
Juice of one orange
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste.
Method:
1. Pour boiling water over couscous. Stir in 1 teaspoon of olivani/butter.
2. Cover and leave for a few minutes until the couscous has absorbed the water.
3. Stir it lightly with a fork until fluffy.
4. Stir in the remaining ingredients and season to taste.