Recipe of the month: Summer Salad

Gone are the days when Salads used be boring with just a bunch of lettuce and tomato. Today anyone can create an exquisite salad with tangy vinaigrette and dressing that is a meal by itself or even a respectable stand-alone entrée, just like soup. It’s so versatile and you could serve a different one every day!  And more importantly it’s the best way to make sure that we eat vegetables, whole grains and fruits on a daily basis.

 Today’s recipe is a summer salad that is cool, hydrating and simple to make. And this recipe is contributed by Mrs. Shantha Thomas, a cookbook author and an ardent advocate for healthy food and lifestyle. Her love for healthy, fresh, organic food and her travel experiences around the world has influenced her recipes in her book 101 Salad Delights for Health and Vitality. Shantha Thomas, wife of a renowned plastic surgeon, Dr.C.Thomas, has been in Oman for more than 35 years, has embraced different cuisines from all over the world and experimented as she travelled along with her husband. Her inspiration to write her book is her love for food, cooking and her family who encouraged her as she experimented with her recipes.

I have personally tried out her recipes and I can vouch that her recipes are low fat, high on fiber, low on sodium, definitely nutritional and high on flavour. If you want to try out her healthy salad recipes grab a copy of her book as it is available in most of the bookstores here in Oman. Her dream is to publish more books that focus on soups, pickles, vegetarian and non-vegetarian recipes and I personally hope to see more in the near future.

 So here is the recipe for a perfect summer meal…..
 

SUMMER   SALAD (serves four)

 

Ingredients:

 Dragon Fruit Balls - ½ cup

Any melon balls     - ½ cup

Ripe Mango chopped    - ½ cup

Kiwi Fruit chopped         - ½ cup

Mixed salad leaves – 1 cup

(rocket leaves, iceburg lettuce, romaine lettuce, lollo rosso etc )

Cherry Tomatoes – a handful

Scallions chopped – 2 tbs.

 

Dressing:

1 tsp. lime juice

2 tsp. olive oil

2 tsp. Thai chili sauce

Salt a pinch

 

Method:

Place all ingredients in a bowl. Whisk the dressing ingredients separately and pour over the ingredients in the bowl. Mix it very slowly. Cool it for half an hour and serve in separate small bowls.

It is perfect for a hot summer day! Enjoy the salad!

 

 

 

If you have any enquiry or wish to get in touch with Shantha Thomas, please email her at shanthathomas@hotmail.com


Images are clicked by me