"You don't make friends with salad, you don't make friends with salad!" is the tune which keeps repeating itself in my head as I write this post. The thing is, this couldn't be further from the truth when it comes to this fresh, earthy Wintery salad. In our household, it takes a lot to put a meal on the table which doesn't hero a piece of meat or seafood, but we promise you, this won't fail to impress. Say hello to #MeatFreeMonday. The global Meat Free Monday movement was revived in 2003 by health advocate Sid Lerner & the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. It is a public awareness campaign not only for personal health but for the health of the planet. Personalities like Jamie Oliver, Paul McCartney, Sir Richard Branson & Gwyneth Paltrow to name a few are all proud supporters of this initiative. Veggies really don't have to be the poor second cousin to meat. Sourced seasonally & cooked with some creative imagination, you won't even realise that you're much loved piece of meat is missing. Now please don't misread this post & think I'm turning my back on my long standing affair with meat (ok, mostly pork). I will still continue to enjoy heavenly Australian free range pork, however I do believe balance is the key to a healthy & happy lifestyle and this most definitely applies to what I put in my mouth. With such a easy challenge, will you jump onboard? Kale, Chickpea, Honey Roasted Dutch Carrots, Dukkah & Labneh

• Kale 4 leaves, washed, cut into bite sized pieces (stems trimmed & removed)
• Dutch Carrots 4, washed & scrubbed
• Honey 1 tsp
• Thyme leaves 1 tsp
• Chickpeas 1 can, rinsed & drained
• Dukkah 1 heaped TB (easy homemade recipe here)
• Pepitas 1 TB toasted
• Labneh - 2 TB
• Olive Oil 1 TB
• Lemon juice 1 TB

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius. Place the carrots in a small roasting tin. Drizzle with a little olive oil, honey & thyme leaves. Season with salt & pepper. Roast in the oven for approx 20-25 mins until tender & golden brown. In a large pan over a medium heat, gently warm through the chickpeas. This will take approx 2 mins. Add the chickpeas to a large mixing bowl. Add the kale, olive oil, lemon juice & dukkah to the chickpeas. Season with salt & pepper. Mix thoroughly. To plate, halve the chickpea & kale mixture onto two plates. Sprinkle with the toasted pepitas. Finally top with the roasted carrots & a generous spoonful of labneh. Serve with a wedge of lemon. Serves 2 If you'd like to read more about Meat Free Monday's click on any of the below links:

• Meat Free Monday
• Meat Less Monday's
• Foodwise