Preheat the oven to 200 °C (180 °C fan). Wash or peel the sweet potato, cut it into small cubes and toss it on a baking tray with olive oil and salt.
Roast the sweet potato at 200 °C for 25–30 min, until soft and coloured at the edges. Turn it once halfway through so it cooks evenly.
Meanwhile, rinse the quinoa thoroughly under hot water in a fine sieve. Then cook it in lightly salted water until the grains are soft.
For the dressing, whisk the olive oil, cider vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper until smooth. It should taste punchy but balanced.
Mix the quinoa and warm sweet potato in a large bowl. Gently fold in the rocket, walnuts and pomegranate seeds.
To serve, pour the dressing over the warm salad and serve straight away. It also tastes very good cold the next day.
Good to know
A salad like this feels like proper cooking: warm, fresh and hearty. I especially like it when things need to stay simple but there should still be something going on on the plate.
Swaps
Quinoa → millet (gluten-free, provides minerals) | walnuts → pecans (similarly nutty, provide unsaturated fats) | rocket → lamb's lettuce (milder, also with fibre and folate) | pomegranate → blueberries (fruity, with polyphenols)
Allergens
Contains tree nuts (walnuts) and mustard. Fine for children if the nuts are chopped or replaced to suit their age; in pregnancy, wash the rocket thoroughly.
