Strawberry Salad and Strawberry Fizz

IT'S summer (a bit soggy here in Britain at the moment but the sun is trying to peek through the clouds) and many of us will be planning long, lazy days in the garden.

No fruit says "summer" more than plump, juicy strawberries.
This versatile fruit not only tastes delicious but is full of goodness too. It's low in fat and calories and high in fibre, vitamin C, folate, potassium and antioxidants.

Strawberries are wonderful with nothing more than a dollop of clotted cream but there are lots of wonderful recipes you can try too - fruit salads, strawberry fool and strawberry shortcake are just a few.

But below I have two more unusual dishes for you to try. The first is a savoury strawberry salad with the fruit giving a fresh and tangy flavour and the second is a wonderful cooling and refreshing Strawberry Fizz by that great advocate of British food, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

Strawberry Salad
Serves 8

Ingredients
8 oz of mixed lettuces (try to include a red leaf lettuce for contrast)
8 oz fresh spinach, torn into bite size pieces
1 medium avocado, peeled and sliced or chopped
Half pint strawberries, halved or sliced if they are large
Half a cantaloupe melon, scooped into balls
Half pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cucumber, peeled and sliced
4 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced

Method
Combine the lettuce, spinach, avocado, strawberries, cantaloupe, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and mushrooms in a large salad bowl. Add your favourite dressing and toss lightly. Below is a poppy seed dressing that goes very well:
Dressing:
Half cup vegetable oil
Half cup tarragon vinegar
Half cup sugar
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
Half teaspoon salt
Half teaspoon dry mustard
Half teaspoon grated onion
Quarter teaspoon onion salt
Place all of the ingredients in a jar and shake vigorously to mix. Pour enough over the salad to coat the leaves when ready to serve.


Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Strawberry Fizz
Preparation time less than 30 mins

Ingredients

4 strawberries
icing sugar, to taste
1 glass sparkling wine (champagne, cava or prosecco)

Method

Crush some strawberries and rub them through a sieve. Sweeten with a little icing sugar, mixing thoroughly to dissolve. Fill one champagne glass a third full with the strawberry juice and top up with ice cold sparkling wine. Drink quickly and pour yourself another one.

Take a look at these websites for more kitchen information and pictures:
Country Kitchens
Kitchen Gallery
Kitchen Talk

Subscribe to Kitchen Cook and we'll email you every time the website is updated. All you have to do is pop your email address in the 'subscribe' form in the panel on the right.