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Cottage Cheese, Mixed Bean and Tomato Salad
This is one of my favourite healthy salad recipes ideal for weight loss (or if you increase the service portions also ideal as a post-workout meal); it takes less than two minutes to knock together, provides a source of lean-proteins, complex carbohydrates, plenty of minerals, vitamins and with the addition of the walnut vinaigrette; polyunsaturated fats.
Sweet!

Serves 4

Recipe Ingredients
340g / 12oz cottage cheese
4 tomatoes
2 spring onions
A couple of parsley leaves
225g / 8oz mixed beans (or 110g fresh lentils, 110g cannelloni beans)
Cracked black pepper and salt

For the walnut vinaigrette:
3 Tblsp walnut oil
2 Tsp balsamic vinaigrette
1 Tsp lemon juice

Mise-en-Place:
Chop the tomatoes into a fine dice, slice the spring onions, chop the parsley.
Wash the mixed beans
Measure the vinaigrette ingredients

Cooking Method:
Mix the tomatoes and the spring onions together. Season with the salt and pepper.
Either toss all the salad ingredients together or arrange in a mould (as per photos)
Make the vinaigrette by whisking all the ingredients together
Pour the vinaigrette over the salad
Serve

Adjust:
The vinaigrettes should be balanced.
Too acidic: Add more oil
Too mellow: Add more vinegar or lemon juice

Presentation:
To plate using a mould:
First garnish the plate with the vinaigrette
Wet the mould
Begin to arrange alternate layers of the salad in the mould.
(Avoid the temptation to pile the salad too high, it will collapse when freed from the mould!)
Finish with a layer of tomatoes
Release the salad from the mould by pressing down firmly with the fingers from one hand (or by using a slim jim glass / rolling pin) and lifting the mould free with the other.

Chef Tip:
Use a squeezy bottle to toss the vinaigrette ingredients together for a quick emulsification and an easy means of pouring the dressing onto the plate

Chef Insight:
The bulk of the proteins in this dish comes from the cottage cheese and also the beans. However the cottage cheese provides the king's share of essential amino acids whilst the mixed beans provides complex carbohydrates, essential minerals and vitamins.
Of note out of all the beans the lentil has been cultivated the longest and has a widespread history initially originating in Asia.