Quinoa Salad with Avocado and Kalamata Olives

Quinoa Salad with Avocado and Kalamata Olives

 

This recipe comes from the New York Times online.

I thought it sounded like a good way to eat quinoa (keen-wah), which is high in protein and a nice alternative to rice.

 

Before you cook quinoa, you need to rinse and drain it a few times to get the soapy residue off.  It cooks quickly.

When the little white string in the seed is present, you know it's done.  It's as easy as making rice according to the packaged directions.

After making the quinoa you toss it in a bowl with a seeded & diced cucumber, Kalamata olives (I halved mine), and chopped fresh mint and parsley.  I seasoned it with sea salt and black pepper.

 

Then I whisked the dressing ingredients together - lemon juice, vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil, and either buttermilk or plain yogurt.  I used plain Greek yogurt with a Tbsp of water to give it a dressing consistency.

 

 

You toss half of the dressing with salad greens of your choice (I used romaine), and the other half of the dressing with the quinoa salad.  I served the greens and quinoa separately, but you could combine them.

Top with diced avocado and Feta crumbles (optional).

 

I really loved this salad - I would do it again even without the dressing.  The boys were neutral, but David liked it too.  The quinoa salad portion was great the next day with new greens.

 

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Enjoy!

Tomato Salad

Tomato Salad

The farmer's market had some great looking tomatoes on Saturday, so I picked up some to take to the lake.  They disappeared!  David said they may have been his favorite food that he ate at the dinner!

I made a vinaigrette by whisking together olive oil, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, and fresh basil. I added a little sea salt and pepper.

 

I cut red, orange, and yellow tomatoes into 8 wedges in and tossed with the vinaigrette.

I let it chill until we were ready to eat.



 

Once we were ready to eat, I tossed the tomatoes again, drained off the excess vinaigrette, and added some more fresh basil and parsley.

 

Then I topped it off with feta cheese crumbles, and we served it with dinner.

 

(no need to drain the excess vinaigrette if not adding feta)

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Enjoy!

 

Lentil Salad

Lentil Salad

I found this recipe in the April/May 2013 Vegetarian Times.  I thought it sounded like a great dish to make ahead of time and take to the lake this weekend.  It was really great - I will make this again and again!

I started by cooking a bag of lentils in broth.  They only take about 15 minutes.  I drained them and scooped out 4 cups worth, keeping the rest for another use.

While the lentils were cooking I asked Brennan to make up the vinaigrette of Dijon mustard, white wine vinegar (you could also use red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar), olive oil, Kosher salt, and pepper.

This recipe calls for 2 cups of chopped vegetables like carrots, fennel, celery, or radishes.  I went with carrots and radishes, dicing them somewhat.

Add the lentils, vegetables, diced cucumber, fresh parsley, and season with Kosher salt and pepper.  Refrigerate for up to a day and top with more fresh parsley before serving at room temperature.

 

It was a great accompaniment for the brats, sweet corn, fruit salad, tomato salad, chips, and Gouda and apple appetizer that Brennan made for us! 

 

 

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Enjoy!

Massaged Kale Salad

Massaged Kale Salad

 

I read a review of a restaurant's Massaged Kale Salad online and wondered what in the world this is.  I had never heard of a "massaged salad" so Googled it.  I read several recipes on various websites, combined them all and made my own this week.

 

The various online recipes called for different versions of kale like dinosaur kale and black kale.  I used Kroger Kale - what was available to me without much research! 

 

I understand from Mary that Russian Kale is delicious fresh.  I don't normally think of kale as something I would eat raw.

 

But a massaged kale salad is raw, and is very tasty.

This will be a staple recipe in my house.

 

You start by washing and trimming the stems off of a large bunch of kale.  Then cut the kale into 2 inch pieces (bite-sized pieces).

 

Place them in a large bowl and sprinkle on Kosher salt and the juice of an entire lemon.

 

 

 

Then massage the kale with your hands vigorously for 3 minutes.

The salt and lemon juice will start to wilt the kale.

 

Then add in olive oil and massage for another 2 minutes.

(I think this is a great job for a junior chef who might be hanging around the kitchen wanting to help mom).

 

Then toss in fruit and raw seeds or nuts.

Diced apple and mango were the most recommended fruits.

Raw sunflower seeds and pepitas were recommended as well.

 

I went with apple and pepitas for this salad.

After the photo I decided to mix in the apple so that it wouldn't turn brown on me.  I wanted to save the leftovers in the fridge because it will apparently keep for several days.

The kale is very lemony, but I like it a lot.  A chunk of apple with a piece of kale cuts the lemon flavor down.  I think this is a great way to serve this super nutritious veggie!

 



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Enjoy!

 

 

Delish Summer Salad

Delish Summer Salad

 

This salad comes from my friend, and chef and wellness coach Sandy Thomas.  She shared this recipe with us in a cooking class I took with her last year.  I took this salad to a party for the 4th of July, and made it again for the family last night. 

 

It's really delicious!

 

Cook frozen edamame according to package directions.  I used frozen sweet corn, so I cooked that as well.  Grilled fresh sweet corn would be great!

 

Then I rinsed a can of black beans and a can of cannelini beans and drained them well.  I tossed together the corn, edamame, black, and cannelini beans with grape tomatoes.

 

I mixed up the quick vinaigrette of olive oil, rice vinegar, sherry vinegar, and Dijon mustard.  Once it was emulsified, I tossed it with the vegetables.  Before serving I added ribbons of sliced fresh basil and seasoned with sea salt and pepper.

 

Of course, I made a tomato-less version for my no-tomato eaters. 

 David let them know that our version was not only prettier, but tastier.  They still declined the tomato version :)

 

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Enjoy!

Texas Caviar Rice and Beans

Texas Caviar Rice and Beans

 

This recipe comes straight from the July 2013 Southern Living, and is a really good recipe for a Meatless Monday, or if you want leftovers for a couple of lunches.  David really liked this dish, which always helps :)

 

My very quick iPhone photos don't do the beauty of this dish justice, but here they are.

 

 

Start by mixing up a Texas Vinaigrette of olive oil, fresh lime juice, chopped fresh cilantro, hot sauce of your choice, minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, Kosher salt, and black pepper. 

 

Then drain and rinse a can each of black-eyed peas and black beans.  Place in a bowl (or a saucepan like I did) and add 1/3 c finely chopped roasted red bell peppers, and 1/4 c finely chopped poblano pepper (I skipped this).  Add half of the vinaigrette and let sit for awhile (20 minutes or so).

 

 

 

Make up Basmati rice.  I had brown Basmati so I followed the direction, but any rice would work well in this dish.

 

Heat the beans on the stovetop (the recipe suggests doing it in the bowl in the microwave - either way), then serve.

 

 

 

Options for serving with this rice and bean caviar:

Chopped Romaine

Warmed Tortillas

Shredded Cheese

Tortilla Chips

Remaining Vinaigrette

Halved Grape Tomatoes

Chopped Cilantro

Thinly Sliced Celery

Thinly Sliced Green Onions

Salsa

Pickled  Jalapeño  Peppers

Guacamole

Sour Cream

Lime Wedges

 

 

 

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Enjoy!

 

 

Endive Avocado Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

Endive Avocado Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

 

So first off I have to ask - what is a salad dressing that is made from herbs, citrus, & oil but contains no vinegar?  Is it still a Vinaigrette?  Let's go with that for now, OK?

 

I saw this delicious salad on Andie's blog Can You Stay for Dinner? 

 

And because I had most of the ingredients on hand, I decided to make it to go with pasta and basil marinara I was already planning last night.

 

It was so, so good, and fresh.

And a very simple recipe, perfect for the spring with all the great produce out.

 

Whisk up the Vinaigrette of fresh lemon juice, a minced garlic clove, olive oil, shredded Parmesan, salt, & pepper.  Then toss the lettuce with the dressing and plate it for each person.  I used endive because it's what I had and was tired of romaine.  Andie's original recipe calls for arugula.  Your pick!

 

Top with halved cherry tomatoes, sliced avocado and a sprinkling of Sea Salt and black pepper.

 

I had a big avocado so we all got generous portions of sliced avocado.  Win-win.

 

Brennan and David felt like it might be a little too lemon-y so you can play with the flavor as you're making up your dressing. 

 

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Enjoy!

 

Mediterranean Grain Salad

Mediterranean Grain Salad

I really love the versatility of a grain salad.  This version comes from Sandy who taught me the yumminess of this kind of dish.  It's great as a side dish, a main dish, to take to a pot luck, and keeps for a couple of days easily in the fridge.  This version was especially yummy!

 

You start with 6 cups of cooked grains - whatever you might have on hand.

I had made couscous (not actually a grain) and brown Basmati rice before and froze them to use later.  So I pulled out some of each and defrosted them.

 

But you could use any grain, or combination of grains including rice, quinoa, barley, couscous, etc.

 

Once I was ready to make this dish, I heated the rice and couscous in the microwave for a couple of minutes to take the chill off and combined them in my large mixing bowl. 

 

To my mixed grains I added a can of chickpeas (rinsed & drained), a jar of Kalamata olives (drained), chopped scallions, a chopped cucumber and fresh basil.  I mixed it all up together and seasoned with garlic powder, Kosher salt, and black pepper.

 

Because I wanted the boys to eat this dish as well, I didn't add tomatoes to the dish, but halved some cherry tomatoes for David and me to top ours with.  If you have tomato lovers at your house, you can incorporate the fresh or sun-dried tomatoes in your grains with the other ingredients.

 

Then I added bottled Balsamic vinaigrette, tossed the salad together, and served it alongside my other dishes for dinner.

 

The grain/vegetable/herbs/vinaigrette combinations are endless, but I liked this Mediterranean flair.

 

If you wanted to, you could also add any additional protein like other beans, meat, cheese, tofu, fish, or shrimp.

 

 

 

 

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Enjoy!

Tunisia Meets Provence Salad

Tunisia Meets Provence Salad

 

I found this wonderful grain salad recipe in Vegetarian Times and tried it out last week with cooked barley I had in the fridge.  You could use any cooked grain though - brown rice, quinoa, couscous (I know, not a grain, but still...).

I really liked the sweetness that comes from the apple and the saltiness with the olives.

Everyone in the family liked this recipe.

 

I'll certainly make it again.

 

The recipe calls for 12 Kalamata olives.  I'd use the whole jar next time.

And I didn't peel the green apple as the recipe suggests, but you certainly could.

 

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Bon Apetit!

 

Bulgur Salad with White Wine Vinaigrette

Bulgur Salad with White Wine Vinaigrette

A dish that I make often because it's so versatile and easy is a Grain Salad. 
I have lots and lots of recipes for these great dishes and they go by many names.

Grain Salads
Rice Bowls
Veggie Grain Mixes

It depends on the cookbook author or chef as to what they're called.
I learned more about these dishes when I took cooking lessons with Sandy this past spring.

I've come to trust my instincts on what would work well together, so I thought I'd share the latest salad I assembled.

These salads have 3 components:

A Grain
Chopped Vegetables and Herbs
A Vinaigrette

The possibilities really are endless!

I wanted to try a white wine vinaigrette that I jotted down when watching Food Network many months ago.  I don't remember who the chef was who prepared this - sorry!.  It's a simple vinaigrette that worked well with the bulgur (a.k.a. bulgar and bulghur) and vegetables that I chose.

You can use any grain in a Grain Salad.  I happened to have bulgur that I cooked up so I planned to use it.  You could also use cooked brown rice, barley, couscous, millet, quinoa...  I've made many varieties.

You can also use any vegetables.  I chopped up cucumber and carrot, and added chopped fresh parsley.

I tossed the bulgur, vegetables and herbs together, then made the vinaigrette in a container with a tight lid. 

 

The White Wine Vinaigrette was very easy - I included olive oil, white wine vinegar, salt & pepper, fresh parsley & basil, Dijon mustard, and garlic. 

 

Tip:  I would use garlic powder in place of chopped garlic next time.  It was a little bitter.

 

Toss and serve.

This is great at room temperature alongside a couple other dishes (I made tilapia and bread this night).  It's also great as leftovers.

 

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Enjoy!

 

Watermelon Salad with Jalapeño and Lime

Watermelon Salad with Jalapeño and Lime

 

I saw this salad in the Vegetarian Times Farmer's Market Cookbook and I've been meaning to try it all summer.

We love sweet watermelon and I almost always have some cut up in the fridge that we eat at most meals.

 

This recipe can be made ahead of time or right before serving.

 

You whisk together lime juice, lime zest, and olive oil and pour it over 3 cups of cubed watermelon.

Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

 

When you're ready to serve, place some jalapeño rings in each serving dish and mound watermelon on top.

The original recipe calls for garnishing with sea salt, black sesame seeds, and thinly sliced basil.

We served ours without the garnish, but I think the black seeds and basil would make it extra pretty.

 

It's a zesty, only hint of hot at the very end, version of plain watermelon.

I like it, but don't think the oil was necessary at all.

I think watermelon by itself, or with a little lime and lime zest, works just fine!

 



 

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Enjoy!

 

Black Bean and Rice Salad

Black Bean and Rice Salad

 

Last week I had friends over and served some light southwestern-y style snacks.

I felt like I didn't have quite enough, so I decided to make a rice salad to go with it.

I used what I had on hand, then topped it with a vinaigrette and it was great!

 

I had leftover brown rice so started with that, heating it up just a bit in the microwave to take off the chill.

Then I rinsed & drained a can of black beans and a can of corn and combined with the rice.

I added a chopped scallion and chopped fresh cilantro.

 

I topped the salad with Honey Lime Vinaigrette that Sandy shared with me.  I had not made it before, but it was really great - and a perfect complement to this rice/bean salad.  I have learned a lot from Sandy during her cooking classes - and I now firmly believe everything tastes better with fresh citrus and herbs!

 

The salad disappeared. 

Brennan even had 3 helpings.

 

 

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Buen Provecho!

 

Lime-Marinated White Bean Salad

 

Lime-Marinated White Bean Salad

 

This delicious salad recipe comes from Robin Robertson's Vegan Fire and Spice cookbook that I reference often.

 

This recipe is Peruvian and is normally made the exact same way, but with scallops or white fish in place of the white beans for a ceviche salad.  I'm not a big ceviche fan (raw fish "cooking" in lime), but I did like this salad quite a bit.

 

You start by rinsing and draining well a can of white beans.  I used white cannellini beans.

Toss the beans with lime juice, salt and cayenne.  Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

 

Make up a dressing by combining parsley, scallion, capers, and olive oil.

If you want to use tomato as well, add in 1 chopped tomato at this point.

 

Place salad greens in a serving bowl, or on individual salad plates.

Top with un-drained marinated beans, and then drizzle the dressing on top.

 

Tangy, a touch spicy, fresh and delicious.

This salad disappeared quickly with the rest of our dinner!

 

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Buen Provecho!

Classic Israeli Salad

Classic Israeli Salad

 

This is a delicious summer salad that comes from the June 2012 Vegetarian Times. 

I would like to tell you that it tastes great served the next day, but we ate it all in one meal, so I just don't know. 

 

I loved the freshness and flavors of this salad. 

You could serve it as a side dish, or even as a salad topping on a sandwich.

 

And it couldn't be easier. 

I used small Persian cucumbers.  If you're going to use a large one, you may only need 1/2.  The recipe calls for 4 small Roma tomatoes, but I only had 3.

 

Toss chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow pepper, and lots of parsley together.  Season with chopped green onion, olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and salt & pepper if needed.

 

Fresh and delicious!

 

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בתיאבון

(Hebrew for Bon Appetit!)