Colourful, Quick Summer Salad

If you're like me, sometimes on a hot day a hot side dish of rice or potato just doesn't work.

This is quick, easy and delicious and allows you to focus your energy on what's important - the main.

When it comes to salad it's really important to learn to make it not just for the sake of having your vegetables - you should really enjoy it. This starts with making your own dressing, which actually usually only takes two or three minutes - about the same amount of time it takes to peel the sticky label off a bottle of the fatty, overly-salted, chemically-preserved, nasty store-bought goup.

For a basic salad like the one above, you're looking at just a few essentials - things you likely have on hand anyhow.

STRAWBERRY-MANGO SUMMER SALAD

Dressing: Juice and rind of a large (or two small) lemon; olive oil (a little more than the amount of lemon juice); three or four big pinches coarse salt; five or six turns fresh black pepper; 1/2 tbsp sugar

Salad: Green-leaf lettuce (your favourite); a chopped mango; 10-15 sliced fresh strawberries; 5-6 sliced button mushrooms; half of a chopped bell pepper (red, yellow or orange)

Combine dressing ingredients. Tip - Lemon rind actually contains more lemon flavour than the juice itself, so this really gives an awesome kick to your dressing. After you zest off the rind, to get all the juice out of your lemon, roll it with your weight on it on a flat surface, then cut it in half and sqeeze (using the zester or your hand to catch the seeds). Use a hand juicer or a big wooden spoon to get the last of the juice out. Whisk all the ingredients and set aside.

A lot of people seem to have trouble with mango but once you get the hang of it it's quite easy. Peel the entire mango first with a vegetable peeler. Stand it vertically and then cut thin chunks downward all the way around until you find the flat husk. Then cut the flesh on the sides parallel to the husk. Toss all the ingredients together and add the dressing just before serving.