As soon as my winter coat comes out of the cupboard I begin, like most people, to focus on stodge. But I will concede that it’s advisable to intersperse the pies and crumbles with the odd seasonal salad ...
If you want something as suited to your lunchbox as your dinner table, then look no further than Catherine Tennant’s hearty-but-virtuous kale and roasted root salad bejewelled with cranberries and pistachios. If you have some leftover meat, Tricia Mack’s pumpkin, cabbage, fennel and chestnut salad is the perfect partnerClaire Tweet’s somewhat indulgent potato and chorizo offering is probably just about as comforting as “salad” can get. DetoutcoeurLimousin’s Polish-inspired fish and carrot salad was simple to assemble and extremely moreish, and indeed, even better on top of a little rye once the aromatic allspice and bay really settle in. If warm lentils are the closest you’ll get to salad on cooler evenings, then LeftoverLiz’s trois vallees is the one for you – topped with a poached egg and bacon, what it lacks in greenery it makes up for in elegance on your plate.
But the winner was a salad that I could happily munch throughout the eat all year. John Loydall adds croutons and raisins to the classic combo of stilton, celery and walnuts.
The winning recipe: autumn to winter salad
This recipe contains everything I like to see in a salad for this time of year – strong earthy and fruitful flavours with warming chunks of toasted sourdough bread and salty Stilton. A sharp apple twang and acidity from the cider vinegar balances the bitter and peppery leaves making a comforting, flavoursome and well-rounded dish.
John Loydall, via GuardianWitness
Serves 2
2 slices stale sourdough, torn to pieces
Olive oil
2 tbsp walnut pieces
1 apple, sliced
1 head of chicory, leaves separated
1 stick celery, finely sliced
Mustard leaves (optional)
2 tbsp raisins
75g stilton, crumbled
For the dressing
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp clear honey
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tbsp cider vinegar
A squeeze of lemon juice
Salt and black pepper
1 Preheat your oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Put the bread on a tray and give them a little drizzle with oil. Bake for 10 minutes. Add a handful of walnuts to the tray and bake for a further 5 minutes.
2 Next, make the dressing; combine the honey, mustard, vinegar and lemon, then stir while adding the oil. Season to taste.
3 Arrange the chicory and celery in a bowl. Sprinkle with raisins and stilton. Add the apple and mustard leaves, if using. Finish with bread and walnuts. Drizzle over the dressing. Serve.
Roasted root, kale, pistachio and cranberry salad
Roasting and frying the veg in coconut oil gives this autumnal salad a real warmth and depth of flavour. I haven’t given rigid quantities as you can add more or less of each element according to taste. I roast the beetroot separately so it’s colour doesn’t leech into the other veg, although this is not strictly necessary.
Catherine Tennant, Blackheath
Serves 2
2 tbsp coconut or olive oil
2 large beetroot, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
½ tsp cumin seeds
2 fennel bulbs, cut into 5mm slices
3 medium parsnips, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
2 sweet potatoes, washed and chopped into bite-size pieces
1 tsp fennel seeds
Salt and black pepper
A pinch of chilli flakes
For the salad
4 handfuls of kale
Coconut oil or olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted pistachio kernels
2 tbsp dried cranberries
A squeeze of orange juice, to taste
1 tbsp fennel or dill, chopped
Salt and black pepper
75g feta or goat’s cheese, crumbled
1 Put 2 trays in an oven preheated to 200C/400F/gas mark 6 with 1 tbsp of coconut or olive oil on each. When the oil is warm, toss the beetroot, cumin seeds and salt and pepper in one tray and the remaining root veg, spices and seasoning in the other. Roast, turning the veg over in the oilonce or twice, for about 45 minutes or until tender and beginning to caramelise around the edges. Drain on kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.
2 Fry the kale in a pan with a little oil on a medium heat for about 3 minutes; you want it to retain some bite and if it browns a bit round the edges this is a good thing.
3 Toss the kale and the roasted veg in a bowl. Scatter with pistachios kernels and dried cranberries. Add a squeeze of orange or lemon juice and stir in the chopped herbs. Season, then serve as it is, warm or cold, with feta or goat’s cheese on top.
Potato and chorizo caesar salad
This salad came about one day when we fancied a Caesar salad but didn’t have any bread to make croutons. Crisp potato and chorizo make for a much more delicious and hearty salad that is a meal in itself.
ClaireTweet, via GuardianWitness
100g chorizo, diced
2-3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 spring onions, sliced
1 garlic clove, sliced
2 little gem or 1 romaine lettuce, leaves separated
Parmesan shavings, to serve
For the dressing
60g mayonnaise
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tinned anchovy fillets, minced
Salt and ground black pepper
1 Gently fry the chorizo in a frying pan until it’s yielding lovely bright red oil, then add the potato and cook until softened on the inside and crisp on the outside. Drain on kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.
2 Whisk the dressing ingredients together, then use to dress the salad leaves. Divide between plates, then sprinkle over the chorizo and potato, followed by shavings of parmesan.
Ryba po Grecku (Greek fish)
Greek fish, or Ryba po Grecku in Polish, is a family favourite. My gran never shared her recipe but this tastes pretty close to the original and the flavours I grew up with. This is a handy make-ahead light fish dish, great served cold as a salad starter or lunch dish or warm with a simple side dish of boiled or mashed potatoes. Smacznego!
detoutcoeurLimousin, via GuardianWitness
Serves 6-8
1 tsp paprika
Salt and black pepper
6 tbsp plain flour
500-750g skinless and boneless sustainable white fish fillets
4 tbsp oil
2 tbsp butter
2 large onions, sliced into thin rings
5-6 bay leaves
1 tsp allspice berries
4 large carrots, grated
3 tbsp tomato puree
1 Mix the paprika, salt and pepper with the flour. Coat the fish fillets in the flour mix, the shake off any excess.
2 Add half the oil and butter to a hot pan and fry the fish on both sides, until lightly golden and cooked through. Drain on kitchen paper. Set aside.
3 Clean the pan. Heat the remainder of the oil and butter. Add the sliced onions, bay leaves, allspice berries, and some salt and pepper. Cook gently until the onions are well softened and translucent. Add the carrots and tomato puree, then cook for a further 5 minutes.
4 To serve, roughly layer up the fish with the carrot and onion mix. It’s ready to eat now, but I think it’s so much better the next day served cold when all the flavours have had a chance to mix and mingle. It’s particularly good with a slice of buttered rye and caraway bread.
Fennel, cabbage and pumpkin salad
I think this looks lovely served in a big, bright orange bowl.
Tricia Mack, Leeds
Serves 8
2 fennel bulbs, sliced
1 small white cabbage, thinly sliced
250g dried apricots, chopped
4 oranges, peeled and segmented
100g brazil nuts, roughly chopped
A bunch of chives, snipped
1 small pumpkin, peeled, cubed, roasted
250g cooked chestnuts, chopped
For the dressing
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp mustard
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp orange juice
1 Combine the salad ingredients. Mix the dressing ingredients, then add to the salad. Mix and serve. Great with cold roast meats, such as ham, chicken or turkey.
Salade des trois vallees
I’ve named this salad after the auberge in the Auvergne where we ate it. Puy lentils are dressed in vinaigrette, then crisp bacon and a poached egg rounded it all off. It was delicious – and very easy to recreate at home.
LeftoverLiz, via GuardianWitness
Serves 4
250g dried puy or green lentils
1 litre cold water
1 large onion, peeled and pierced with 2-3 cloves
1 bay leaf
8 slices of streaky bacon
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
4 eggs
For the dressing
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and black pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 Bring the lentils and cold water to the boil with the whole onion and bay leaf, then reduce to a simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until they are tender.
2 Meanwhile, lay the streaky bacon on a baking sheet. Bake at 200C/400F/gas mark 6 for 15-20 minutes until crisp.
3 Soften the chopped onion, carrot and celery in a frying pan with a little oil.
4 Once cooked, drain the lentils, discard the whole onion and bay leaf. Add the chopped cooked vegetables. Mix the dressing ingredients and combine with the salad. Season well.
5 Bring another pan of hot water to simmering point, then gently poach the eggs – around 2-3 minutes.
6 To serve, divide the lentils between plates, then top with the poached eggs and bacon.
