Mrs Crunch shares three classic salad recipes to help ensure your suppertime stays seasonal and tasty

EATING food in season makes sense because it is fresher, so tends to be tastier and more nutritious.

Cos, also known as Romaine lettuce, is in season in August and is surprisingly versatile.

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It is the essential ingredient in many salads and tastes great.

Here are some nutritious, light and tasty recipes that family and friends will love. Enjoy.

Caesar Salad – £1.58 per serving

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SERVES FOUR

Preparation time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: 15 minutes. One serving contains 436cals (22 per cent of recommended adult daily intake), 16.3g fat (23 per cent), 4.5g sat fat (22 per cent), 2g sugar (2 per cent), 1.5g salt (25 per cent)

YOU NEED:

1 small ciabatta loaf

1 tbsp olive oil

1 clove of garlic

Sea salt

2 small cos lettuce, washed

50g parmesan shavings

4 chicken breasts

1 x 50g anchovy fillets (save the drained juice for the dressing)

For the dressing

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

60ml yoghurt

Dash Tabasco sauce

Freshly ground black pepper & salt

METHOD: Make the croutons: Preheat the oven to 180C. Cut or tear the bread into 2.5cm pieces.

Put into a baking tray, sprinkle with sea salt, olive oil and garlic. Cook for ten minutes and cool. Put a small amount of oil into a non-stick frying pan and saute the chicken until it is cooked, which should take about ten minutes. Leave to rest.

To make the dressing, whisk all of the dressing ingredients together in a bowl.

Arrange the lettuce in a shallow bowl, tearing any of the larger leaves in half. Toss the leaves with the dressing.

Slice the chicken breast and lay over the salad leaves, sprinkle over the parmesan, anchovies and croutons.

Serve in a large bowl or individually.

TIP: For a lighter meal simply leave out the chicken. You could also try slices of steak or prawns.

Lemon chicken salad– £1.60 per person

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SERVES FOUR

Preparation time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: 15 minutes. One serving contains 359cals (18 per cent of recommended adult daily intake), 16.4g fat (23 per cent), 2.3g sat fat (11 per cent), 2.1g sugar (2 per cent), 0.9g salt (15 per cent)

YOU NEED:

120g low fat mayonnaise

1 lemon, zested and juiced

2 tbsp chopped chives

1 tbsp chopped mint

Salt and pepper to taste

4 roasted chicken breasts, skinned and torn into strips

1 whole romaine lettuce

1 bag watercress

2 to 3 tbsp French dressing

METHOD: Mix together the mayonnaise, lemon zest, juice of half a lemon, chives and mint and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the chicken.

Separate, wash and trim the romaine leaves and use to line the edges of a deep glass salad bowl so they stand upright.

Place the watercress in the bottom of the bowl and drizzle over the French dressing. Spoon the chicken on top.

Serve immediately.

TIP: Swap the chicken for four poached salmon fillets for a twist.

Cos salad with blue cheese  –  96p per portion

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SERVES SIX

Preparation time: 45 minues. Cooking time: 10 minutes. One serving contains 360cals (18 per cent of recommended daily adult intake), 34.4g fat (49 per cent), 12.5g sat fat (62 per cent), 1.1g sugar (1 per cent), 2g salt (33 per cent).

YOU NEED:

For the dressing:

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp sherry vinegar

1 tsp capers

1 tsp salt

6 cloves garlic, peeled

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp Tabasco

6 anchovy fillets and 1/2 tsp of their oil

125 ml olive oil

For the salad:

250g crumbled blue cheese

3 Cos hearts, halved lengthwise, washed and dried

Olive oil, for tossing

Pinch salt

1 lemon, juiced

20 fresh basil leaves, washed

METHOD: Preheat the grill to medium, put a griddle pan on the hob or light the barbecue.

For the dressing, in a blender, combine the lemon juice, vinegar, capers, salt and garlic. Blend until smooth. Add the Worcestershire and hot sauces, anchovies and ½ the olive oil and blend until smooth. Taste for seasoning. Add a little extra olive oil if needed. Set aside. In a large bowl, toss 4 of the romaine halves in a little olive oil and then season them with salt.

Put them in a single layer under the grill/in the pan/on the barbie and cook for 3 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side for 3 additional minutes – the cos should feel slightly warm and tender.

Transfer the halves to a large serving plate. Spoon a little dressing on each.

On a flat surface, finely chop the rest of the lettuce and add it to a medium bowl. Add the remaining vinaigrette, a touch of lemon juice and the basil leaves. Toss to coat the lettuce.

Top the grilled cos with some of the chopped, dressed cos and the crumbled blue cheese.

TIP: If you don’t like blue cheese, use any cheese you do like!