This is a delicious salad bowl which is perfect for the summer months, and really easy to make. It’s easy to take to work and has lots of different elements which can be interchanged with whatever vegetables and ingredients there are in the house. The principle is the same though- roast polenta and colourful veg, add a bean/ pulse (I prefer tinned chickpeas!), fresh leaves (some kind of lettuce or spinach) and something with crunch (raw cabbage, carrot, cucumber etc)- and bring together with a drizzle of zesty dressing. Ready-made polenta can be found in larger supermarkets, and comes in blocks which you can slice up. I like it as a lower carb alternative to pasta. Don’t add any more salt during the cooking process- it’s salty enough as is.

Serves 2:

Prep: 5 minutes

Cooking: 15 minutes roasting

Ingredients:

10 thin slices ready-made polenta (1-2 cm thick)- I buy this from the pasta section of my local supermarket.
Olive oil
1/3 white cabbage
2 handfuls of leaves- i.e. lettuce, kale, spinach
Vegetables to roast- I used sweet potato, courgette, and aubergine here
400g tin chickpeas
2 whole tomatoes
Hummus
1 tbsp za’atar (to sprinkle on top)
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Dressing:
2 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp lemon juice
4 tbsp water

Method:

1. In a hot oven, bake the vegetables and slices of polenta with a little olive oil
2. (Optional) Cover the chickpeas in hot water for 5 minutes to make them more tender
3. Finely slice the white cabbage and lettuce leaves and place in a large bowl, then place chickpeas alongside them
4. Dollop some hummus in the centre of the bowl, and sprinkle on some za’atar to enhance the flavour
5. Mix the tahini, lemon, and water together, and season to taste with salt and pepper
6. When the vegetables and polenta are cooked through, place them in the bowl, and drizzle everything with the tahini dressing
7. Enjoy in the sun, preferably with a glass of wine