Healthy, tasty and satisfying

This salad is as delicious as it looks & satisfying. You have the sweetness of the roast vegetables & sun-dried tomatoes, freshness from fresh parsley & mint, earthiness of the beetroot, pepperiness from the rocket & heat from the spices.

I love roasted vegetables; the natural sweetness of the vegetables comes through & it is so simple to do (just toss  veg in a little rapeseed or coconut oil & maybe & bung in the oven for about 40mins!).

I like to roast a batch of roast veg at the beginning of the week so that I can toss the cooled vegetables into a salad for the working week. Simply mix together the cooled roasted veg with some pulses (chickpeas here), rocket & a salad dressing & you have a quick healthy supper &/ or packed lunch packed with flavours, textures & goodness.

This dish is low in carbs, gluten free & great for the health conscious, coeliacs & also vegans, vegetarians & great for meat-free days!

Serves 2

Preparation time: 20 mins

Cooking time: 40mins (but you can roast your vegetables in advance)

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp coconut oil or rapeseed oil
• 3 beetroots (raw)
• 1/2 squash
• 2 small sweet potatoes
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp chilli powder
•  1 X 400g can of chickpeas (drained weight about 234g)
• 40g rocket leaves
• 35g sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil

Salad dressing

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp honey or agave
• 20g fresh parsley, chopped finely
• 10g fresh mint, chopped finely
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder (3/4 if you like it hotter!)
• Ground black pepper, to taste

Method

Preheat oven to 180ºC. Line a baking sheet with a little coconut spray oil.

Peel the beetroots, sweet potatoes & squash & dice into about 2cm cubes. Toss in 1 tbsp melted coconut oil or rapeseed oil along with the spices. Coat evenly.

Tip into the prepared baking sheet. Spread vegetable chunks out to form an even layer.

Roast for 40mins.

In the meantime, make the dressing: Combine all ingredients tother in a small bowl. Season to taste.

Once roasted, allow the roasted veg to cool.

Slice up the sun-dried tomatoes. Combine with the cooled roasted veg, rocket & chickpeas.

Coat with dressing & serve. If taking for packed lunch, I like to keep the dressing separate in a little tupperware pot, & mix just before eating.

Variations:

Roasted aubergines & courgettes also work well.

For non-vegans, crumbled feta cheese or mozarella works well with this salad

Kidney beans, canellini bean, black beans & black-eyed bean also work well

A  garnish of a sprinkle of ground flaxseed & whole chia seeds bumps up the nutritive value

Don’t forget you can find my favourite recipes in my FREE eBook here.

Makes a delicious dinner or portable packed lunch

Multi-colours & textures makes this salad a winner!