Cous Cous Salad

Serves 4

240g cous cous
25g butter, cut into cubes
240ml veg stock
handful raisins
fresh mint, finely chopped
fresh chives, finely chopped
200g feta cheese, crumbled

Place cous cous in shallow dish/salad bowl. Add the raisins and mix through. Dot the butter around the cous cous and then add the hot veg stock. Cover the dish and leave for 5 mins. Fork through the cous cous. Once loose throughout, add the chopped herbs and crumbled feta and combine.

I often serve this with spiced courgette and merguez sausages. Or try adding diced cucumber for a refreshing edge.

Ham and Egg Salad

Serves 6

125g lambs lettuce
2 hard boiled eggs
handful of shredded smoked ham
honey and mustard dressing

Create a bed of lambs lettuce on a large serving platter. Dice the boiled eggs and scatter over the lambs lettuce. Scatter the ham over the egg. Drizzle with the dressing.

Fennel, Apple and Rocket Salad

Probably my fave salad right now...I literally cannot get enough! And its my own creation!

Serves 6-8

1 fennel, thinly sliced

1 bag of rocket leaves (125g)

1 lemon, zest and juice of half

2 eating apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp creme fraiche

2 tsp runny honey

salt and pepper

2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Layer a large platter with the rocket, then the fennel, then the apple.

Toast the pumpkin seeds with some salt on a griddle/dry frying pan and set aside to cool.

Mix together the lemon zest and juice, olive oil, creme fraiche and honey, season to taste, then drizzle over the salad. Top with the toasted pumpkin seeds and serve.

Grated Carrot, Pine Nut and Raisin Salad

by Sarah Raven

Serves 6 as a side dish

4 large carrots, peeled

1 tbsp poppy or cumin seeds

1 tbsp pine nuts or sunflower seeds

2 tbsp raisins

salt and black pepper

Really large bunch of fresh coriander, chopped

for the dressing:

juice and grated zest of 1 lemon

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp runny honey

Grate the carrots on a medium-grade grater. Set aside in a large bowl.

Now make the dressing. Put the lemon juice and zest and olive oil in a small bowl and mix together. Add the honey. Pour the dressing over the grated carrot.

Toast the poppy seeds and pine nuts in a dry frying pan, then scatter them, and the raisins, over the carrot. Season with salt and pepper. Stir everything together well, really mixing in the poppy seeds, and leave to marinate for a couple of hours. Mix in the coriander before serving.

Courgette and Lemon Salad

A great Sarah Raven recipe in those summer months when you are overwhelmed with courgette from the patch!

Serves 6-8

3-4 courgettes

grated zest of 1 lemon, and juice of half

grated zest of 1 lime, and juice of half

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp chopped tarragon

1 tsp runny honey

salt and black pepper

Cut the courgettes very thinly lengthways with a potato peeler and put the slices in a shallow dish. Grate over the zest of the lemon and lime.

Make a dressing by mixing together the olive oil, lime and lemon juice, tarragon, honey, salt and pepper.

Pour the dressing over the courgettes and toss gently. Toss with your finger tips, twisting your wrists at the same time so the courgette ribbons stand in curls rather than just flat on the platter.