Our clean-eating columnist Nourishing Amelia recommends delicious salads, lots of citrus fruits and aromatic herbs. She shares her current favourite salad – a quinoa dish with pomegranate, rocket and lemon that’s perfect for summer

Quinoa makes an amazing base for this dish, the slight nuttiness and delicious texture goes so well with the other flavours in the salad and it’s packed full of goodness. Quinoa is bursting with heart-healthy fibre, lots of iron and it’s easy on digestion too. I’ve added fresh parsley and mint which just go together like a dream and help to create those mouthwatering summer flavours. Parsley is rich in antioxidants and has been shown to prevent cell damage. it is also an excellent source of vitamin C and folic acid. Mint is high in antioxidants and aids digestion, as well as being a natural breath-freshener. I’m including pine nuts and pomegranate seeds in this salad which are a great pairing. The pine nuts add a crunch and the pomegranate brings a delightful sweetness. As you can tell, this salad is bursting with plant power as well as tasting absolutely heavenly.

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 120g quinoa

• 1/2 red onion

• 10 cherry tomatoes

• 25g rocket

• 50g pomegranate

• 40g pine nuts

• 1 clove garlic

• 8g fresh parsley

• 6g fresh mint

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• Juice of 1 lemon

• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Rinse the quinoa and place in a pan with 250ml water. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed.

2. Dice the onion, cut the tomatoes into quarters and finely chop the parsley and mint. Put to one side.

3. Place a dry frying pan over a medium heat and gently toast the pine nuts for a couple of minutes.

4. Once the quinoa is cooked drain any remaining liquid. Add the onion, tomatoes and herbs along with the crushed garlic, rocket, pomegranate seeds and toasted pine nuts.

5. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, lots of black pepper and a little salt. Mix everything together well.

6. Serve and enjoy!

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