Tangerine, Avacado and Feta salad

Dear Rushina,


The rains in Mumbai are glorious to watch, especially when they keep you from leaving a fabulous house with an even more fabulous kitchen. I had been making the most of D’s kitchen, roasting, braising, broiling and cooking all manner of meat! But then I started my yoga classes and learnt about sattvic, rajasic and tamasic foods. 10 minutes into my guru’s lecture and I knew I had built my castle in rajasic terrain. His gentle advice that we should try to avoid non-vegetarian food went in one ear and came out the other. This is one sacrifice I am not willing to make yet. But as I gazed at the shameless amount of meat I had stashed in the freezer one rainy afternoon, his lecture suddenly appeared on one shoulder, complete with halo and wings. So I reluctantly shut the freezer door and looked instead for healthy vegetables and fruit. I was soon glad the angel prevailed, as I saw the avocado I bought a few days ago. Neglected due to my meat eating frenzy, it was almost overripe. Then there was the left over feta from a week ago, the lettuce that I bought to atone for the basket of meat, a tangerine minus its skin which I had grated over my beef roast and beans I forgot I bought. Rationalizing this salad as a great way to compensate for the near absence of vegetables and fruit in my previous days’ meals, I went to work.You'll probably guess from my pictures that I had a lot of time on my hands.

Ingredients,
3 boiled eggs, quarter
1 cup of green beans, string and cut and microwave for two mins

1 tangerine, quarter and slice cross-sectionally

1 zucchini, halve and quarter each longitudinally, microwave for two mins

1 large white onion, cut into six pieces and separate
1 avocado, cut into cubes

1 large iceberg lettuce, tear into bite sized pieces

1/2 cup of feta cheese, cut into cubes


For dressing,
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1tbsp of EVOO
1 tsp rosemary
1tbsp of white wine vinegar
1 tsp white pepper
In a large salad bowl, place ingredients. Mix dressing ingredients well and pour into salad bowl. Toss well and serve.