Lemon, mint & tzatziki salad

This one is inspired by a recipe at

http://www.biggestloserclub.com.au/recipe/379/lemon+and+thyme+lamb+cutlets+with+tzatziki+cucumber+salad

half cup of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of olive oil
2 teaspoons of honey
sea salt to taste
2 cucumbers, sliced into ribbons with a vegetable peeler
2 carrots, sliced into ribbons
4 handfuls rocket leaves
1 small red onion, finely sliced
6 tablespoons fresh mint
4 tablespoons tzatziki

Put cucumber, carrot, salad leaves, onion and mint into a salad bowl. In a screwtop jar, combine lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, honey and salt. Give it a good shake, shake, shake baby! Now pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently.

To serve, add a teaspoon-sized dollop of tzatziki on top. Have more tzatziki on the table so diners can add more as they much!

Rainbow Veg and Cous Cous Salad

This started from a meal Ann-Elise brought to a picnic, and has developed extra ingredients and seasonings over time.

You will need:

half a pumpkin
2-3 lebanese eggplants
300g green beans
1 punnet cherry tomatoes
2 cups (dry) cous cous
balsamic vinegar for dressing
400g lamb or chicken, stir fried (or you can omit these for a vegetarian option)

set oven to preheat to 180 degrees

chop the pumpkin into 1cm cubes, brush/spray with oil and sprinkle chicken salt over the top
chop the eggplants into 1cm pieces, brush/spray with oil and sprinkle garlic salt over the top

roast these veg in the oven until soft (about 20 mins)

200g of green beans chop them in half, then plunge them in boiling water for 2 mins, then move them into ice water to keep them green and crisp

Cook up your cous cous, following the instructions on the packet

Chop the cherry tomatoes in half

Combine all ingredients together and dress with balsamic vinegar to taste

Panaeng Marinated Steak & Minted Noodle Salad

Our first published recipe is a great all-rounder: simple to make, healthy, and of course it tastes DELICIOUS! Also, because it is served cold it’s a great option for picnics and hosting guests (just in case they are held up in traffic, or even if they aren’t, you can prepare it in advance so you can spend your time being with them rather than popping in and out of the kitchen). Inspired by Company’s Coming Healthy Recipes “Minted beef & noodles” but we have added and substituted several ingredients and quantities.

Combine the following ingredients to make a marinade:

1 Tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 Tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp panaeng curry paste
1 tsp grated ginger
2 minced garlic cloves
400g beef steak, cut into 5mm slices

Leave the steak to soak up the marinade a few hours or overnight (in the fridge, unless you live in a very cool climate).  Then stir fry the steak and allow it to cool while you prepare the following:

200g Hokkien noodles – soak in boiling water then rinse in cold water and allow to cool.
2 continental cucumbers, halved lengthwise then in 5mm slices
2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
1 cup bean sprouts
half bunch mint leaves, finely chopped
400g can of corn kernels (drained of course!)
5 green onions, in 5mm slices

and put the following ingredients in a screwtop jar that you can shake to make the dressing (this will make plenty of dressing, you might adjust the quantities depending on how much of a flavour kick you like):

half cup of lime juice
quarter cup of sweet chilli sauce
2-3 Tbsp of panaeng curry paste (amount depends on how hot you like your food)
1 Tbsp peanut oil

To serve, toss the veg and noodles together, then top with steak, dressing, and chopped peanuts. Yum!!

We’d love to hear your comments on how you go making this, and also any suggested tweaks.