Not Greek Salad with sardines and chickpeas

Based on a Greek Salad this has sardines, chickpeas & pepper added to it. These additional ingredients really help with providing nutrients for the brain. As I don't like raw red onion I used spring onion, but pick your preference. No cooking means it's super quick to make!

The sardines are packed with over 100%* B-12, 60% Omega 3s, 48% Vitamin D and some B-6 too. The chickpeas contain 28% magnesium and 25% B-6. For a high vitamin C kick the bell pepper, tomatoes and coriander contribute over 200% Vitamin C, plus some help from feta cheese that also contains 28% B-12 and 20% B-6.  This dish should really help with dizziness, emotional issues, insomnia, fatigue, memory and to some extent confusion and light sensitivity. 

* Percentages are of your Recommended Daily Amount (RDA). 

Serves 4 or 2 giant lunches

Ingredients

1 x Red bell pepper, diced
1 x Spring onion (or red onion), diced
1 tin x chickpeas (pre-cooked), drained
1 tin x sardines (pre-prepared), roughly chopped
8 x cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp x coriander, chopped
1/2 x cucumber, skinned & diced
100 g x feta cheese, cubed
75 g x olives (green or black as you prefer)

Instructions
1. Compile all in a bowl & enjoy!

Beetroot, Feta & Lentil Salad

Another salad for a busy day moving around & a standard salad recipe that is nutritious for the brain!

Serves 2

Ingredients
4 x beetroot bulbs aka beets (pre-cooked in vacuum sealed pack), chopped into cubes
170 g x feta cheese, cut into small cubes
1 cup x raw spinach
1/2 cup x green or brown lentils (pre-cooked in a tin saves you boiling them)
Squeeze x lemon juice
Pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Boil lentils in water for 20 minutes until tender (unless pre-cooked in a tin, then just combine with 2). 

2. Combine beets, feta, spinach lentils into bowl. Squeeze lemon juice & season with pepper. 

Broccoli, Green Bean & Cherry Tomato Salad

Veg salad to accompany the crustless tofu quiches.

Serves 3

Ingredients
1 x Broccoli head, chopped into mouth sized chunks
50 g x Green beans, ends removed & chopped in half
12 x Cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp x Sesame seeds

Instructions
1. You can have this all raw, so combine all ingredients into a bowl & enjoy OR

2. Steam the broccoli & beans for 5-8 minutes. Then combine with cherry tomatoes & sesame seeds. 

Broccoli, Artichoke & Sardine Salad

This recipe doesn't require too many fresh ingredients, so can be quite good if you're on the move. 

Ingredients
1 x broccoli head, chopped into mouth sized chunks
1/2 jar x artichoke hearts in olive oil, chopped into quarters
1 tin x sardines in tomato sauce, chopped
10 - 15 chilli olives (plain if you prefer is fine), chopped in half
Handful x lettuce leaves (optional)
1/2 lemon, juice
1 tspn x paprika

Instructions
1. Combine broccoli, artichoke hearts, sardines, olives & lettuce leaves into a bowl.

2. Pour over lemon juice, paprika & olive oil from artichoke hearts. Mix in well. 

Mackerel & Quinoa Salad

My boyfriend invented this salad & it's yummy!

Ingredients
1 red pepper, chopped into short strips
1.5 inch x cucumber,  cubed
1 avocado, stone removed & cubed
250 g x smoked mackerel
250 g x pre-cooked quinoa (or cook your own)
2 cups x mixed salad leaves
1 tbsp x Sunflower seeds
1 tbsp x Pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp x olive oil
1/2 tsp x balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper to season

Instructions
1. If cook your own quinoa, follow instructions on package.

2. Combine pepper, cucumber, mackerel, salad leaves, seed into a bowl. Cover in olive oil & balsamic vinegar. Season to taste & mix all thoroughly. 

Blueberry, Kale & Quinoa Salad

The last day of my course & I made this salad. It's a bit fruity!

Ingredients
1/2 cup x blueberries
1/2 cup x quinoa
1 cup x water
50 g x kale, shredded & spines removed
75 g x feta cheese, cubed
1/2 lemon juice
1 tbsp x olive oil
1/2 cup x sliced almonds (I only had whole ones but flaked is better)

Instructions
1. Boil 1 cup of water in saucepan & add quinoa.  Cook according to instructions on packet. 

2. Meanwhile, steam kale for 5 minutes.

3. Mix feta, kale, almonds, blueberries & quinoa in bowl. Drizzle lemon juice & olive oil over the salad & mix. 

Tofu, Tomato, Flower Sprout Rice Salad

Flower sprouts are not commonly found, but are a cross between broccoli and kale - so a dream super brain food! They taste a little nutty and look like flowered sprouts of mini kale bunches. If you can't get flower sprouts you can substitute with kale. 

Serves 2 

Ingredients

200g flower sprouts (200g kale as alternative)

50g silken tofu, cubed

2 tomatoes, chopped into cubes

1/3 cup basmati rice

1 tbsp sunflower seeds

1 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Piri piri lemon sauce: 

1/2 red onion

2 cloves x garlic

1 bird's eye chilli (remove stalks)

1 tbsp x sweet smoked paprika

1 lemon, juice

2 tbsp x white wine vinegar

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

1. In boiling water, boil the rice for 20 minutes or until soft depending on the packet. 

2. Meanwhile, steam flower sprouts/ kale for 5 minutes and drain. 

3. Mix all piri piri sauce ingredients into blender & whizz until smooth. If you don't have a blender you can cheat with a pre-made piri piri lemon sauce. 

4. Combine tomatoes, tofu, flower sprouts/ kale, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds & rice in a bowl. Mix in piri piri lemon sauce. 

Warm Broccoli & Mackerel Quinoa Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients
1 x broccoli head, chopped into small florets
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
50 g feta, cubed
2 x tinned mackerel fillets, chopped into bite sized chunks
1 tbsp x pine nuts, toasted
1 tbsp x walnuts, roughly chopped
1/4 cup x sun blushed tomatoes
2 x spring onions, chopped
1 tbsp x French vinaigrette dressing

Instructions
1. Heat water until boiling & add quinoa for 10 minutes. Then turn off heat & leave to stand until all the water is absorbed.

2. Steam broccoli florets for 5 minutes. 

3. Lightly toast pine nuts in frying pan on dry heat until golden brown & slightly fragrant. 

4. In salad bowl, mix together spring onions, sun blushed tomatoes, walnuts & mackerel. Add quinoa and broccoli when cooked. 

5. Add vinaigrette to salad & mix in. 

Salmon & Kale Quinoa Salad

My next packed lunch this week was another salad. It's a bit more pricey because of the salmon, but I reckon it can survive tinned salmon as a cost saver.

Serves 4 (or 2 big lunches)

Ingredients
200 g kale, chopped & big spines removed
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 x can artichoke hearts
1 salmon fillet, cubed (tinned or sheets work fine)
1 cup dried quinoa
2 cups water
1/2 cup parmesan, large shreds
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
Salt & pepper to season

Dressing:
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp honey

Instructions
1. Heat water in pan until boiling, then add quinoa to boil for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat & leave for 10 minutes to allow quinoa to absorb all the water. 

2. Meanwhile, toast pine nuts in deep frying pan on dry heat until golden colour & fragrant (4 mins). 

3. Leave pine nuts on plate and re-use the deep frying pan to heat 1 tbsp olive oil on medium heat for 2 mins then add garlic & leave to warm until fragrant (2 mins). 

4. Add kale to garlic & stir in. Leave it to wilt in pan (2 mins). Keep turning the leaves to make sure that they all wilt. 

5. Turn off heat under frying pan & add artichokes, fish, pine nuts, parmesan & quinoa (when ready). Season with salt & pepper. 

6. Make dressing - add honey, vinegar & oil into a jar and shake/stir if no lid until combined. Pour over salad & mix together. 

Tofu, Kale & Avocado Salad

For the next 2 weeks I am doing a course, so I need some packed lunches to feed my brain! 

Serves 4 (or 2 big lunches)

Ingredients
2 x avocados, cubed without skin
325g silken tofu, drained & cubed
1 tsp x sesame oil
2 tsp x sesame seeds
1/2 lemon, juice
1 spring onion, chopped 
200g kale, rinsed

1 tsp x salt
Pepper to season
Optional: 
50 g brown rice

Instructions
1. Boil brown rice for 30 minutes until soft. Make sure that there is plenty of water in the pan so it does not dry out and burn (today's lesson for me)!

2. Meanwhile, break kale into smaller chunks and steam it for 15 minutes. 

3. Whilst the rice and kale are cooking, if you haven't chopped the other ingredients then chop them into large cubes and mix all together in a big salad bowl (avocados, tofu, spring onion, sesame seeds, sesame oil & lemon juice). 

4. When the kale is cooked drain it off & chop off the spines of the leaves and then cut the leaves into smaller slices. 

5. Add the rice when it is cooked and mix all the ingredients together thoroughly.