In a few short weeks, most of us students will be done school until September. It’s finally time to start thinking about summer and the possibilities of warm weather. Most of all, it is time to undo the damage of months of grabbing whatever terrible fast food we can shovel down our throats while finishing copious assignments.

Inevitably, when the weather gets hotter, we crave lighter and fresher foods, no longer desiring the heavy and warm comfort foods that we relish in the winter. Barbecue and patio season kick in, and it becomes all about what meals can convert from indoor dining to outdoor dining and what might pair well with a cold beer or some sangria. This is where salads become a fantastic option for any meal.

This apple mango salad has the perfect combination of sweet and savoury and is simple enough to go well with anything or stand on its own. If you are vegan, you can eat the salad alone or add one of your favourite sides, and you can substitute the honey in the dressing with maple syrup. For everyone else, you can choose to have the salad as a side or add your favourite grilled protein to it and make it a meal.

This recipe does make quite a large amount, but the salad holds up well in the refrigerator for a few days. So, you can have some for lunches over the days to come or add it to your dinners to make sure you get your greens in.

There are a few things in this salad that can be harder to find at certain times of the year, mainly the radicchio and endive. If this becomes an issue, you can replace it with any other leafy greens such as arugula or spinach. In the end, the choices in any salad should always be yours. Feel free to play around with it and see what combination of greens you like most. Although salads are usually the easiest things to make, don’t forget that having fun in the kitchen is far more important than the result.

INGREDIENTS

1 head of green leaf lettuce
1 head of radicchio
1 head of endive
1 apple (whichever variety you prefer)
1 mango

Dressing

1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey (liquid)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Chop all the greens and place them in a big bowl.

Peel and cut the mango and apple into desired sized pieces — I like to julienne them — then place them in the bowl as well.

Toss the salad to mix all the ingredients.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing, or if you have a blender, you can use that as well. Once the dressing is well-blended, put it into an easy to pour container. Serve the dressing on the side so that the lettuce doesn’t get soggy.

Any leftover salad can be stored without dressing in the refrigerator for a few days, and the dressing can be stored in the refrigerator for later use on any salad of your choice.