Summer is so much fun when it comes to food. I love light, fresh and healthy food that doesn’t compromise on flavour and summer definitely allows that.

This is a sensational summer salad is perfectly balanced with sweet, tart, creamy, and the fresh clean taste of the pesto oil. This would go well with anything, steak, chicken, fish, even on its own. We had it with a bucket of KFC would you believe. Deep frying chicken can be messy and smelly and can also be quite dangerous, I have many war wounds from when the hot oil won. So with KFC nailing it with its 11 secret herbs and spices, for a quick midweek meal, why bother armouring up to fry a bit of chicken, just get KFC on the case and lighten it up with a couple of fresh salads. I can hear you all reeling, but KFC doesn’t have to be the devil.

Serve 4 as side salad
Inspired by a salad on the Stringray Bar menu at QT Gold Coast

3 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 red onion, sliced into rings
1/4 vinegar
2 tbs sugar
1 ball of buffalo mozzarella
Salt and pepper

Pesto
1 bunch of basil
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1 glove garlic
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp salt

First get your onion pickling. Stir vinegar and sugar until it dissolves add onion rings and leave to pickle for at least an hour.

Place all ingredients, except for the oil and a few basil leaves reserved for the salad, in a food processor, with the motor running slowly add the oil in a steady stream until well combined. Set aside.

To prepare the salad, scatter platter with pesto and pesto oil, add tomato wedges, tear up and scatter mozzarella, top with pickled onion rings and basil and serve with some salt and crack pepper.