Cosgrave Kitchen - Salad

Salads, the last great hill to conquer on being able to eat like an actual person, and not someone who gets their carbs in the form of fermented barley. I haven’t done this before, because mostly everything was out of season and would actually be a bit ‘eh’ but now that we’re hitting spring, and I can put fresh ingredients on this list without laughing to myself, I think it’s time to show you guys a tasty bit of green. I’m going to give you the vegan version here, to commit to the healthy factor, and also because I have been informed by someone that I need to rep the vegans a bit more. I don’t really know about that, but if people actually have feelings on it I suppose I’ll go for it. If you don’t want this to be Vegan, just eat a block of cheese while you go (though that may not be in keeping with the ‘healthy’ vibe).The recipe will be split into the basic salad I use and a couple of dressings. If you like croutons that’s cool, but I’m not a big fan. Italian-ish salad. Or Insalata ‘Not Actually at all’ CapreseItaly is just the culinary gift that keeps on giving. Serves; If you eat an entire bowl of salad no one can judge you because it’s healthy. Even if it’s covered in mozzarella and dressing. What you need.A knife and Board.Three forks. (Two of these are for using as tongs)A big mug/JugA big bowl. SaladIngredients50g Of rocket.50g Of Baby Spinach50g Of Baby Tomatoes.A half dozen sundried tomatoes.Four/Six Leaves of fresh basil (Boom Boom). Optional extra. Mozzarella! Fresh stuff is the way to go here.

1. Wash everything that needs washing.
2. Quarter your tomatoes. You want them in cute little wedges.
3. Finely chop your Basil and Sundried tomatoes. (As fine as you can, sundried tomatoes can be a bugger to cut)
4. Look at your spinach and rocket. Do the individual pieces look a bit big to you? Well give em a rough tear with your hands. I don’t like eating giant pieces of green, and while some people might start complaining about the structure of the salad being damaged, well… Fuck ‘em.
5. Toss your rocket and spinach together. Then sort of sprinkle the tomato, basil and Mozzarella (If you’re using it) over the top. Add your dressing.

Vegan dressingIngredients4 tablespoons of olive oil.1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar1 teaspoon of mustard, (Grainy is best, but that’s usually got honey in it, so the Lidl Dijon is a good shout instead)Juice of half a LemonSalt & Pepper.

1. Juice your lemon.
2. Add all your ingredients together in a cup or something. Mix. Taste it and add a little salt and pepper to your liking.
3. Drown that salad in it. Or elegantly toss it in it. Whatevs.

‘Super Awesome’ Creamy Dressing.Ingredients4 Tablespoons of yogurt.1 Tablespoon of decent mayo2 teaspoons of Pesto.Juice of half a lemon.A big sprig of fresh parsley.Parmesan.Black Pepper.Maybe a dash of Tabasco, if you like your dressing to pop.

1. Juice that lemon. Finely chop your parsley.
2. Toss everything except the parmesan into a jug like object you can mix in. Proceed to mix ingredients in said jug.
3. Taste it. It’s pretty good? If it’s a bit too thick, add some more lemon, or a dash of olive oil. If you think it could be zingier, add some tabasco here.
4. Drench the salad in it. Just pour it everywhere. Then proceed to grate shitloads of parmesan over the top. If you look at it and aren’t 100% convinced that you have enough parmesan, if you have one shred of doubt about the parmesan quantity, just keep grating those doubts away.
5. High Five yourself because you’re eating a salad.

Pro Tip; You can get chopped pancetta in Tesco for a quid. If you desperately need some meat in your salad, that would be a good choice, fried up crispy, or even some chopped chorizo that’s been crisped up.