When it comes to the weather, I'm unashamedly British. We've enjoyed just one day of sunshine and I'm immediately declaring the arrival of summer, donning my sarong and flip flops, making outdoor-based plans for the foreseeable future, and digging out my favourite summer recipes. As I am (of course) optimistic that the summer weather will continue for a good couple of months yet, here is a delicious salad recipe to whet your appetite for the many picnic, BBQ and light lunch recipes to follow! 

I love this interesting, crunchy salad and the tangy dressing. It takes just a couple of minutes to make and, if you're super organised, you can prepare a pot of pomegranate seeds, some crushed pistachios, and a tub of the dressing to take to work and add to salad for a healthy, summery packed lunch. 

Ingredients (serves 1 as a main dish or 2 as a starter or side salad)

1 tbsp orange juice

1.5 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 tbsp runny honey 

small handful of chives - I used a mixture of garlic chives and plain chives from my herb garden

small handful of mint leaves - picked from the herb garden and roughly torn into pieces 

1 spring onion

Mixed salad leaves 

Pomegranate seeds (I use half a pomegranate) 

50g pistachios, shelled 

1. First, mix the orange juice, red wine vinegar and honey in a bowl to make the dressing and season well.

2. Roughly chop the chives and tear the mint leaves and add to a bowl of mixed salad leaves (I usually go for baby leaf or herby salads with this recipe). 

3. Thinly slice the spring onion, gently bash the pistachios in a pestle and mortar, and firmly tap the pomegranate seeds out of the halved fruit. Add to the salad. 

4. Finally, drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat. 

Enjoy! :-)

P.s. I have the fabulous Plate Lickers Supper Club to thank for getting me back into pomegranate juice and seeds. The chefs served refreshing pomegranate vodka cocktails and an array of Middle Eastern-inspired salads. Read about it all here.