Beetroot Buckwheat Salad

Taken from my current favourite healthy food site, Scandi Foodie (whose photos are far superior to mine) this salad is a great addition to a meal, providing crunchiness, vibrant colour and a unique flavour.

~ 3/4 cup buckwheat (I used a variety that was already toasted and I re-toasted it in a pan for a few minutes)
~ 1 tsp caraway seeds (I didn’t have any of these on hand so just used fennel seeds, which were a bit too strong but still nice)

Toast buckwheat and caraway seeds in a pan for a few minutes until you can smell the caraway

~ 1 med-large beetroot, grated
~ juice of half a lemon
~ drizzle of olive oil
~ salt and pepper

Mix the above in a bowl, add the toasted buckwheat and caraway seeds.
Serve with the rest of your meal.
I served it with Thai Chicken Patties, Broccoli Salad and Tomato Basil Salad

Quinoa Cauliflower Salad

This is a cut down version of a Caroline Velik salad I made for Christmas Day which everybody loved.  It can be a little more time consuming than the other salads, but it’s worth it in the end!

Quinoa Cauliflower Salad

~ 1 cup dry quinoa – boiled in salted water for 10 minutes then drained and set aside
~ 1/2 cup brown rice – boiled in salted water for 20 mins, drained
~ 1/2 cup french green lentils – boiled in salted water for 20 mins, drained
~ 1/4 or 1/2 a cauliflower (depending on how much you like cauliflower!)
~ 1 tsp ground coriander
~ 1 tsp ground cumin
~  2 tbsp plain flour
~ olive oil
~ couple of handfuls of pistachios
~ handful of cranberries, soaked in the juice of 1 orange (while prepping the rest of the dish)
~ handful of chopped coriander leaves
~ handful of chopped parsley leaves
~ juice of 1/2 a lemon
~ salt and pepper to taste

Place the cooked quinoa, rice and lentils in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
Cut the cauliflower into small florets and place them in a bowl with the ground coriander, cumin and flour – toss to coat.  Fry in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes until tender but still a little crunchy. Add to the bowl with the quinoa.
Add the pistachios, cranberries and herbs to the bowl and mix thoroughly.
Squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lemon over the top and mix through.  Add olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Also served with the steak on the plate is Tomato Basil salad and Watercress Pomegranate salad