Salads

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Nothing is simpler, tastier and healthier than a bowl layered full of happy homemade salad; especially when it’s tossed with a few twists, including your own secret “house dressing.”

Sometimes the best thing you can do in a kitchen is get out and go for the grill. Here’s how to create a simple bed of grilled goodness to anchor a warm salad. All with an easy twist to create a double duty marinade/dressing and jazz it all up.

I love salmon. I love its flavor, I love how healthy it is, and I love how easy it is to cook. I especially love it grilled, then tossed into a simple salad. And since the grill is already on, why not grill the whole salad?

This is one of Gabe’s favourite snacks. He loves fruit so we play around in the kitchen and see how many different kinds of citrus fruit, melons, tree fruit, grapes, berries and tropical fruit we can toss into one salad bowl. Our record is 32!

It’s easy to make your own personalized salad dressings. The basic ratio of sour, sweet and oil is easily modified and infinitely variable. This recipe makes enough for several salads because it’s just as easy to make a lot as a little and, once you taste your own dressings, you won’t be able to get enough.

This salad features one of my all-time favourite flavour combination: peppery, nutty arugula leaves tossed with sweet, fragrant strawberries, mellow balsamic and sweet pine nuts. Together these ingredients are far more than the sum of their parts.

This is one of my favourites because its flavours are exotic yet still very familiar and comforting.

Bean salads are excellent stick-to-the-ribs fare, especially when they’re jazzed up with the bright flavours of the Southwest, where beans have long been a staple food.

One of the best ways to add flavour to any ingredient is to roast it, especially the humble potato. That simple twist elevates this classic salad into something memorable. Add in the sharp flavours of capers, mustard and vinegar, and you’ll have a new family classic.

This is my all-time favourite summer salad. It’s amazing how much savoury flavour your grill can add to a simple pineapple and some red onion. Next time you fire up the works try this salad and you’ll have a new favourite for your repertoire too!

This classic salad has come a long way because its 1924 invention by Caesar Cardini at his Tijuana restaurant. It’s now found on virtually every menu in the country at home and in restaurants. Because there are as many ways to make it as there are cooks, I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about authenticity, just flavour. My version includes the wonderfully aromatic addition of whole basil leaves.