vegetarian salad – Daily Gluttony

Served on its own as a lunch, or as a side, this is one of those nourishing salads that is simple to prepare yet big on wow factor, perfect for lazy weekend entertaining.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups of McCain Peas – cooked as per packet instructions
¼ cup of tricolour quinoa
¾ cup of water
150g sweet berry truss tomatoes
½ cup of fresh mint leaves – loosely packed
¼ cup of shallots – sliced
100g haloumi – sliced
2 cups of mixed baby salad leaves
1 tbs garlic infused olive oil
1 tbs olive oil
The juice of 1 lemon
Salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Place quinoa and water in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes, or until quinoa absorbs water. Transfer to a large serving bowl.
Place McCain Peas, shallots, tomatoes, mint leaves and baby salad leaves into a bowl with the quinoa and fold through to combine well. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and dress with the juice of ¾ of the lemon and garlic infused olive oil.

Meanwhile, slice haloumi into approximately 5mm thick pieces. Heat olive oil in a small non-stick frying pan over high heat and cook haloumi with the remaining lemon juice for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until golden. Remove from pan and serve immediately a top quinoa salad mixture.

This is a quick, easy salad that is tasty, refreshing and the perfect vegan option to serve at Christmas. But don’t stop there, take this along to BBQ’s as it pairs perfectly with chicken or lamb.

Serves – 6

Prep Time – 15 minutes

Cooking Time – 5 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup of McCain Peas – cooked as per packet instructions
1 ½ cups cous cous
1 cup hot vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup boiling water
1 tbs butter – melted
¼ cup flaked almonds – lightly toasted
1 cup fresh mint leaves
¼ cup dried cranberries
1 pomegranate – seeds (arils) only, membrane discarded
2 shallots – ends trimmed and finely sliced
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tbs fresh lemon juice
2 tsp ground cumin

Method

Place melted butter and cous cous in a medium heatproof bowl, add liquid, cover and let sit for 2-5 minutes or until liquid is fully absorbed. Remove cover and use fork to fluff and separate the cous cous grains.
Meanwhile, place olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice and cumin in a small bowl and mix well to combine.

Place McCain Peas, almonds, mint leaves, cranberries, shallots and pomegranate seeds into a large mixing bowl, add cous cous and dressing, toss gently to combine. Refrigerate until ready to serve