Preceding our aliyah, we lived in Johannesburg where going for a walk necessitated either driving to the gym and standing in line for a treadmill, or doing laps around the inside of a shopping center.

I'm therefore especially grateful for the freedom to walk freely in Hod Hasharon's lush farmlands, and for the company of wonderful walking partners.

Time and weather permitting – though in Israel virtually every day delivers sunny skies – we meet on a designated corner and plot our route.

Some days we stick to the network of suburban streets and marvel at the new building projects springing up virtually before our eyes. Other days we head off the beaten path, and take a detour through a veritable maze of orange groves laden with fragrant fruit.

And on especially ambitious days we embark on our all-time favorite “cemetery walk”. You'll have to forgive the macabre name which came about not because this lengthy trail is overly taxing, but because this most scenic route takes us right to the gate of Hod Hasharon's picturesque countryside cemetery.

The scenery along the way is especially spectacular at this time of the year as we meander past shaded olive groves, vast tracts of lettuce crops in jewel-like shades of green and purple, well tended citrus trees, sharply scented spring onion plantings, and Hod Hasharon's famed organic strawberry fields.

It's easy to resist the lure of a ripe orange, and I'm yet to be tempted to reach down and pluck a head of lettuce, but I have to admit that I find the rows of plump, ruby-red berries most distracting.

Fortunately the freshly picked fruit is available for sale at rustic, roadside farm stalls, and I am never short of ideas on how to include these winter gems in a variety of winning salads and desserts.

DELICIOUS! STRAWBERY FIELDS, AVOCADO AND SPINACH SALAD
1 packet mixed lettuce leaves/baby spinach leaves
2 cups large strawberries, halved
1 avocado, cut in strips
1/2 cup chopped spring onion
150 g goat's cheese/soft feta (optional)
1/3 cup Chinese pecans

DRESSING

1 /4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons poppy seed
1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper

METHOD
1. Mix dressing ingredients together, pour over strawberries and allow to stand for at least 15 minutes.
2. Arrange salad leaves and avocado on platter, add strawberries and cheese if using and top with Chinese pecans.

COOK'S NOTES: As an alternative dressing, process 1/3 cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon honey, pinch of dried chilli flakes, 1/3 cup strawberries, 1/4 cup lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste to make a chilli-strawberry dressing. You can caramelize your own nuts by melting 2 tablespoons of butter/margarine and 2 tablespoons of soft brown sugar in a small pot, add walnuts or pecans and toss a few minutes till well coated then allow to cool.

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