Working from home several days a week I have the pleasure of quite frequently cooking lunch for myself. And I don’t mind. I actually enjoy it.
I never use a recipe for my lunches. They just come out naturally from what happens to sit in the fridge at the moment – or if I find a great seasonal ingredient that I really like to use. Some days I put more effort into it than others. And if you follow me on Instagram you’ve probably noticed that my ‘work-from-home-lunches’ often appear as iPhone snapshots on my account.
So if you’re looking for lunch inspiration you might find some there. And if not, you should try some other lovely IG-accounts that I often turn to for inspiration, such as Elenore of Earthsprout, Luise of Green Kitchen Stories, Ditte of The food club, Kimberley of The year in food, 3191 miles apart or the brilliant Nathalie of Vanille Verte.
Just look at the photos and get inspired.
Salads are the perfect summer food – don’t you agree? And I adore the idea of incorporating fruit and berries into savoury salads. So today I wanted to give you a recipe for a salad inspired by just that – seasonal fruits and berries. The Swedish strawberries have just made their appearance on markets and in supermarkets and everyone rushes out to get hold of the red berries…
For this salad I also used some tender kale leaves from the garden. They are of the variety Tuscan Kale which is better suited for salads than e.g. Curly kale. And when picking the leaves at a very tender stage (I had sown too many and had to thin out my beds) you can even eat them raw. However, to be on the safe side I marinated them for a while in the lemon dressing before adding them to the salad. And if you don’t have kale you could substitute it for any other green leaves that you have at hand.
Quinoa is one of the most delicious, fast-cooking lunch staples I know (not to mention healthy) and I use it all the time. Haloumi is fantastic with sweet and sour flavors and paired with red fruits/berries this makes a salty/sweet luscious and filling salad for warm summer days.
Although the haloumi is best served hot as soon as possible after it’s come out of the pan, this would also work for a summer picnic or a long car drive where a lunch stop is needed. Just bring the fruit and dressing in separate containers and assemble the salad just before eating. That way you also ensure that picky kids who might not want to eat the entire salad stay happy. My kids for example love quinoa with just olive oil and some sea salt and they would probably prefer their fruits and haloumi on the side.
I haven’t been frequent here on the blog lately, but I hope to be back soon again. Until then – I hope you try this salad and that summer is good to you!
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Printable recipe
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Black quinoa summer salad with baby kale, haloumi, red berries and watermelon
serves 4-6
1 cup black quinoa + 2 cups water + pinch of salt
1/4 cup beluga lentils + 3/4 cups water + pinch of salt
250 g haloumi + olive oil to fry
4 small spring onions or baby leeks, thinly sliced
1 cup tender baby kale or other green leaves of your choice
1 cup watermelon, cubed
1 cup strawberries, halved
a good handful of cherries, halved and pitted
2 tbsp mint, finely chopped
4 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
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juice and zest of 2 small organic lemons
3 tbsp olive oil
garlic according to taste, grated
sea salt + pepper
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pistachios to sprinkle, roughly chopped
1) Rinse the quinoa, bring the water to a boil and then add the quinoa. Cook on low to medium heat for about 15 minutes. Add salt towards the end of the cooking time. Drain from any excess water and leave to cool in the pot.
2) Bring beluga lentils, water and salt to a boil and cook for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the lentils to cool in the cooking water. That way they hold their shape + they taste better. Drain before adding to the salad.
3) Cut the haloumi into small cubes, or simply crumble it, and fry in olive oil until golden in color.
4) Whisk together the lemon juice + zest, olive oil, garlic (if desired) and salt+pepper to taste. If using baby kale, marinate the leaves for 5-10 minutes in the dressing.
5) Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently until mixed. Garnish with roughly chopped pistachios.
TIP! Cook the quinoa for a little shorter than the manufacturer’s instructions if using it for a salad. 15 minutes is usually enough. This ensures that the quinoa keeps its shape and still has a little bite. The salad can be served lukewarm if assembled when the quinoa/beluga/haloumi are still warm. If so – make sure you eat it immediately. Or you could prepare the ingredients, refrigerate in separate containers and assemble just before serving.
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