Marinated Vegetable Salad

My favourite salad a pile of green vegetables, marinating in a perfect dressing.

This recipe has been adapted from the original "Fit for Life" book by Marilyn Harvey Diamond - it is a book which has lived on my bookshelf for a good number of years and I still remember when I first bought it and how exciting it was to have found a book offering great ideas about food combining and new recipes to try. Come to think of it, that was a very long time ago, must of been the late 80's when I first started eating in the 'fit for life' manner!!

Anyway, let's talk food. This recipe was originally a pasta recipe but I prefer it without the pasta (because pasta doesn't like me) so vegetables it is.

This salad can be served with a good portion of protein - salmon is good, lamb chops or chicken will do just as well!

Ingredients:

1-2 cups x Broccoli - small florets
1-2 handfuls x String Beans AND/OR
Asparagus (keep the length or cut in half)
1-2 x medium Zucchini/Courgette OR
7-10 x baby zucchini  - cut into rounds
1 x Red Capsicum/Pepper AND/OR
1/2 cup x Sun-dried tomatoes - cut into strips
2-3 x Spring Onions
2 cups x Mushrooms - sliced - if small cut into quarters
Green or Black Olives (Optional)

Dressing:

Olive oil
Lemon juice
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
Sugar/Honey (optional)
Oregano fresh or dried
Basil fresh or dried
Parsley fresh
1-2 cloves x Garlic

METHOD:

Steam broccoli, zucchini, beans (or asparagus)

- just enough to be tender but still a bit crisp.  You can cool the vegetables in cold icy water to stop the cooking process.

Place in large salad bowl.

Cut the red pepper into strips and toss in the fry pan with a little bit of olive oil - cover and steam for a few minutes then remove lid and let the red pepper brown a little bit for a chargrill flavour.

Add to salad bowl.

In fry pan add a bit more olive oil and toss in chopped spring onions and mushrooms; saute for a few minutes but keep the mushrooms crisp, then add the lemon juice.  Pour the lot into salad bowl.

Prepare the dressing:

This dressing is more than you will need for the salad - keep the remainder for use on other salads.

1 cup olive oil, juice of half lemon, 2-3 tspns fresh oregano, 2-3 tspns fresh basil, 1-2 cloves crushed or sliced garlic, pinch sea salt, cracked black pepper and a pinch of sugar.  Mix well.  Adjust seasoning to taste.

Add enough dressing to salad to coat the vegetables and gently toss.

Cover the salad bowl and leave to marinade in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

Before serving sprinkle with handful fresh chopped flat leaf parsley and olives and toss again to stir through the dressing.

Note:  This salad is also very tasty served up straight away whilst the vegetables are still warm.

Bon appetit!