Denise says:

Ever since I was a little girl, I have always loved cherries. In fact my parents bought me a gold necklace with a charm in the shape of a bunch of cherries. So this salad is my idea of heaven; all the flavours of summer packed into a delicious fresh dish.
Cherries have a magical history - the Romans discovered sweet cherries in Asia Minor in about 70 BCE and introduced them to Britain in the first century. Although the fruit has always been popular for dessert and culinary purposes, cherries were used during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries for their medicinal properties. Hot cherry stones were once used in bed-warming pans and Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream associates cherries with love and romance.

Option: If the cherries are too expensive use large black seedless grapes instead!

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6 people

Ingredients:

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
100ml white wine
450g fresh cherries – de stoned
250g mixed bag of lettuce
Bunch of spring onions – trimmed and cut on a diagonal

For The Dressing
1 - 2 tablespoons mild curry powder
1 teaspoon clear honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Bunch of fresh mint – remove the stalks
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 tablespoons Mint jelly
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1) Pre-heat the oven to 200 C/400 F/ gas mark 6.
2) Place the chicken in an ovenware dish. Cover with white wine and 100ml water. Season with salt and pepper.
3) Bake for 30 minutes or until cooked.
4) Stone the cherries. Do this by cutting the cherries in half using a sharp knife and easing out the stones ( or use a cherry stoner if you have one!)
5) Mix all the dressing ingredients in a food processor until the dressing is fairly smooth, but with flecks of mint, rather than a puree. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
6) Tear the cooled chicken into bite sized pieces.
7) Spread the salad leaves over a platter, scatter over the chicken pieces, followed by the cherries and spring onions.
8) Just before serving drizzle the dressing in thin lines over the prepared salad platter.

To serve the stylish way: Garnish with sprigs of mint