Salad Love by David Bez

I want to introduce you to a book, which the author himself says is not a cookbook, that has 260 crunchy, savory, filling meals you can make every day.  It says so - right on the cover.  It's called Salad Love and the author is David Bez.  Now David is very upfront about the fact that he is not a chef - he's an art director.  However, he is a man who wanted to eat in a healthier manner.  He wanted to be energized in the afternoons and not droopy.  He wanted to prepare his own lunch every day at the office.  And he wanted his meal to be both fresh and tasty.

Salad Love is the result of David Bez's experiment.  A whole book of maybe the most beautiful salads I've ever seen in my life.  Art director, remember?  They are lovely and very much a feast for the eyes.  When I first opened this book, I was amazed at page after page of luscious looking salads.  I thought, I'll never be able to make my salads look like this.  And that's probably true.  However, each salad page contains a beautiful photo and a detailed recipe of 5 or 6 ingredients for the salad and 3 or 4 ingredients for the dressing.  Simple.  Really.

The book begins with some instructions on how to assemble a salad.  There are then some components like vegetables, fruit, protein and fresh herbs.  There are something like 30 dressings listed - with recipes.  There are the tools David used - with pictures.  And then there are the salads themselves - divided into the 4 seasons.  That's it.  Simple.  Beautiful.  Healthy.

Some of the ingredients are a little exotic for me - quail eggs, salmon caviar, and squid.  Others are very familiar - avocados, blackberries, hazelnuts.  Some I don't like - kale and goat cheese.  Mostly, the salads are interesting and unique combinations that look really appealing.  And, yes, I could find many that I'd like to try.

So, here are a few that are on my list (2 for each season):  Summer - Strawberries, Melon & Almonds and Oak-Smoked Cheddar, Peaches & Blueberries.  Fall - Hot-Smoke Salmon, Corn & Broccoli and Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Zucchini & Pine Nuts.  Winter - Celery, Chickpeas, Pumpkin Seeds & Mint and Roasted Potatoes, Black Olives & Capers.  Spring - Roasted Chicken, Avocado & Croutons and Cauliflower, Hazelnuts & Dried Apricots.

What do you think?  Does Salad Love sound like a winner?  It does to me.  Now, where did I put my chickpeas?

Linking this review to Weekend Cooking on Beth Fish Reads.  And thanks to the folks at Blogging For Books and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book.