I eat a lot of salad, varying ingredients according to the season. In Summer I particularly like to add berries, going for a sweet-savory taste. This particular salad was inspired by the delicious salads I had on our trip to Riga. The combination is not a new one to me. If “salade de chèvre chaud” is on the menu, I’ll often order it. There was also one one memorable meal at Sooke Harbour House which began with a green salad served with roasted nuts and a blackberry vinaigrette. So when I saw these salads combining goat cheese and berries, I knew I had to order it.
I decided on a maple vinaigrette as I like the rustic and warm taste of maple syrup and think it complements the berries and cheese. Any berries can be used and I picked what was in our garden which happened to be blueberries, blackberries and the odd strawberry. I can see raspberries and the addition of roasted nuts also being delicious in this salad.
Summer salad with berries
- small head of lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces.
- mixed berries
- soft goat cheese, crumbled
Vinaigrette (adapted from Rebar cookbook)
- 2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbs maple syrup
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 120 ml olive oil
- fresh pepper
Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together. Place the lettuce in a large bowl, scatter berries and crumbled cheese over the top and drizzle with the dressing.
Serves 4
