This recipe from Fine Cooking magazine was delicious, fairly simple t execute and hearty enough to satisfy EVERYONE (the vegetarian, the carnivores AND the omnivore) in my house.
Category: Salad
Spiced Pumpkin, Lentil and Goat Cheese Salad
I adapted this recipe from the October (2009) issue Bon Appetit. I added about 1/2 cup of toasted pecans and one chicken breast (grilled and then sliced) for the carnivores in the household to add into their salad. This recipe needed a bit of extra balsamic vinaigrette to really finish it, so I’d plan on adding a bit of extra, if you plan to make this.
This salad is very adaptable. You could substitute blue cheese, if you prefer. This could be a fabulous first course, or, if served in larger portions, it’s a great entree salad. Toasted pumpkin seeds would be nice, too. Substitute lettuce or spinach if you’re not a fan of arugula.
Grilled Apple and Chicken Salad with Cider-Maple Vinaigrette
this salad on Serious Eats, it looked like something that everyone in my family would eat, with a few minor adaptations.
First off, Vegetarian Girl left the chicken off her salad, of course, but I figured that with the cheese and the nuts, she would still be getting plenty of protein.
Secondly, I used toasted pecans instead of the almonds, because we like them better and it’s what I had in the house.
Thirdly, I omitted the raisins, because most of my family believes, like Lilly, that raisins taste like dirt.
This salad was QUITE yummy. It never would have occurred to me to grill apples, but they were tasty and we all liked them. I know that safflower oil might be difficult for some people to find, but it’s worth the effort, because it is MUCH lighter than other oils and keeps the dressing from being too greasy on the delicate ingredients.
Pioneer Woman’s Simple Scrumptious Caesar Salad
Wow. Really, just wow. This salad (recipe here) is awesome. Make it NOW; just trust me.
I added some grape tomatoes, because I love them, even though they’re not “officially” a part of Caesar salad. Seriously, this salad is just SO good. I’m craving it right now, just looking at the photo.
Warm Butternut Squash and Chickpea Salad (with BBQ chicken thighs and sauteed spinach)
I recently discovered “Smitten Kitchen“, a cute little food blog that I HIGHLY recommend that you check out right away. When I read Deb’s rave entry about this salad, I knew that I had to try it right away. She’s definitely right; we loved it and it’s absolutely a keeper. It’s delicious right after it’s made, piping hot, but it’s, unbelievably, even better the next day, when the flavors have had a chance to meld. I cooked the squash a little more, so that it was a bit softer and took on an almost potato-salad texture. The leftovers are delicious re-heated, but are also wonderful when eaten cold (like a potato salad). Hubby and I both LOVED it.
NOTE: use good-quality, freshly made tahini; you’ll definitely taste the difference (sorry, Trish!). Lots of gourmet food stores or health stores actually make/grind it right on the premises. Look for it in the refrigerated section.
Ina Garten’s Asian Salmon and Crunchy Noodle Salad
Asian Salmon and Crunchy Noodle Salad
These two recipes are from Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa show on Food Network. I LOVE watching Ina’s show, but I am actually pretty surprised to admit that this is the first time that I’ve tried one of her recipes. For as many time as I’ve watched her show, that really is kind of unbelievable.
So, the salad was an absolute success. I substituted whole wheat udon noodles for the spaghetti because, well…just because and I substituted black sesame seeds for the white ones because I think they’re prettier. I left out the parsley because it just didn’t seem “right” to me. If I had had some cilantro in the house, I would have added that, but I (strangely, for me) didn’t have any in the house, so I just left the chopped herb garnish off. Cilantro would have been really nice. This salad could easily adapt to whatever Asian (-ish) veggies you might have on hand: broccoli, water chestnuts, bok choy, snow peas, edamame, etc. It was delicious, as is, but wouldn’t have to be made exactly the same way. I also cut the amount of vegetable oil to 3/4 cup because 1 cup just seemed like SO much. I don’t like things that are really oily. My dressing may have been a little richer as a result (higher percentage of peanut butter), but it was perfect. Another 1/4 cup of oil would have been too much. If you’re calorie conscious, you could probably get away with leaving off the last 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the dressing (add some vinegar and a bit more oil and the remaining dressing would be GREAT on an Asian chicken salad). It was plenty “saucy.”
The salmon? Well…I think I did something wrong. I’m used to thinking of panko as being crunchy and this salmon, after being doused with the (delicious but waaaaaay too salty for my taste) sauce, was just, well…soggy. The flavors were still good and the amount of sauce that soaked into the fish itself was perfect, but the sauce-soggy bread topping was just too wet and salty for me, but Hubby loved it, so make of that what you will. Boy loved it, but he, too, scraped off the breadcrumbs.
So, the salad? A make-again. The salmon? Probably not in its current incarnation, but with some adaptations, maybe.
Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (and fresh pomegranate arils)
My salad, the same but with orange supremes (I told you that it was becoming an unhealthy obsession!) This was SO yummy! A great way to take advantage of the last of the pomegranate crop and can be varied to include whatever strikes your fancy. Here’s how: Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette and Fresh Pomegranate Arils … Continue reading “Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (and fresh pomegranate arils)”
My salad, the same but with orange supremes
(I told you that it was becoming an unhealthy obsession!)
This was SO yummy! A great way to take advantage of the last of the pomegranate crop and can be varied to include whatever strikes your fancy.
Here’s how:
Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette and Fresh Pomegranate Arils
(makes 4 small servings or 2 large-ish ones)
(adapted from this recipe by Earthbound Farm)
for the dressing:
1/4 cup pomegranate juice
(squeezed from one fresh pomegranate, or you can use Pom or another bottled pomegranate juice)
1 Tbsp finely minced shallot
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
small squeeze fresh lemon juice (1 teaspoon?)
1/2 tsp sugar
3 Tbsp olive or canola oil or a combination of the two
Whisk together all ingredients EXCEPT the oil. Slowly pour the oil into the vinegar mixture, whisking until thoroughly incorporated.
for the salad:
4 cups baby salad greens
1/2 of a Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced (pear would be good, too)
1/4 cup pecan halves, toasted at 350 degrees for about 3 minutes until fragrant and then cooled thoroughly
(Watch them very carefully so that they don’t burn!)
arils (seeds) removed from one fresh pomegranate (you’ll have some left over)
optional: a few Cara Cara orange supremes
Assemble salad, sprinkling nuts and pomegranate seeds on top. Drizzle with dressing.
This is super flexible: change the nuts, add some cheese, substitute in different fruits, etc.
Chicken Shawarma with Fattoush Salad
Chicken Shawarma with Fattoush Salad Yummy and VERY easy. I didn’t put the tomatoes on our pitas, because we were already having a lot of tomatoes in the salad, in fact, Girl dumped her bowl of salad ONTO her pita and ate it that way. For the fattoush, I adapted a recipe for “chopped vegetable … Continue reading “Chicken Shawarma with Fattoush Salad”
Chicken Shawarma with Fattoush Salad
Yummy and VERY easy. I didn’t put the tomatoes on our pitas, because we were already having a lot of tomatoes in the salad, in fact, Girl dumped her bowl of salad ONTO her pita and ate it that way.
For the fattoush, I adapted a recipe for “chopped vegetable salad” that was in the same issue of Cooking Light, but changed it around so much that it really wasn’t the same, so here’s my version:
Fattoush
2 cups chopped cucumber
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
(The original recipe also called for some chopped green bell pepper, but I didn’t have any on hand. It would have been a nice addition, so I’ll add some next time. Maybe some garlic, too?)
Gently fold all above ingredients to combine. In a small, separate bowl, whisk together:
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Pour over salad and toss gently to combine.
Toss in 2 cups coarsely crushed pita chips (recommended: Stacy’s brand, from Costco) and 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp of ground sumac powder (If you can find it. Try Kalustyan’s, if you’re determined to find some.) and toss salad gently again to combine. Sprinkle a little more sumac on top. Serve immediately, before the pita chips get soggy. If you’re not serving it right away, reserve the pita chips separately until ready to serve.
My Mother’s Salad Dressing
This was my very favorite salad dressing when I was a kid. I haven’t made it in ages, so I don’t have a photo, but it’s really yummy and is a perfect dressing to use when you have kids around and want to encourage them to eat their greens! I’ll be making a batch for … Continue reading “My Mother’s Salad Dressing”
This was my very favorite salad dressing when I was a kid. I haven’t made it in ages, so I don’t have a photo, but it’s really yummy and is a perfect dressing to use when you have kids around and want to encourage them to eat their greens! I’ll be making a batch for Boy and Girl soon.
Mom’s Salad Dressing
(sort of a sweet, Catalina-ish dressing)
1 cup oil, your choice
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup vinegar (your choice)
(maybe start out with apple cider for kids and then work your way up to balsamic)
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. paprika
dash of onion and/or garlic powder
(you may prefer to use some – maybe 2 Tbsp – finely chopped, fresh shallot instead)
sprinkle (1/2 tsp?) of your favorite dried herb, optional
optional: a dash of celery seed and/or prepared mustard
Penzey’s Sunny Paris seasoning is also great in this dressing (omit the onion, garlic, shallots, and herbs)
Whisk together all ingredients, EXCEPTING THE OIL, into a medium-sized bowl. Slowly pour the oil into the mixture, whisking constantly to blend and incorporate.
UPDATE:
Here’s a photo!
Grilled Romaine Salad with Buttermilk-Chive Dressing
I saw this recipe in Southern Living magazine last year and thought that it looked good. We added some Baby Bam croutons and it was pretty yummy, although the photo on Southern Living’s site is better than mine. We also sliced up the onions after grilling them, because the kids aren’t into big chunks of … Continue reading “Grilled Romaine Salad with Buttermilk-Chive Dressing”
I saw this recipe in Southern Living magazine last year and thought that it looked good. We added some Baby Bam croutons and it was pretty yummy, although the photo on Southern Living’s site is better than mine. We also sliced up the onions after grilling them, because the kids aren’t into big chunks of onion (although cutting them was difficult, because the olive oil made them slippery!).
My brother was the first person to tell me about grilling romaine. He saw Alton Brown make this recipe on his show and said it looked good, so I’m going to give that one a try soon. All in all, this salad was good (the grilled onions were deliciously sweet) and the dressing was yummy, but it would have been equally good with plain, ungrilled romaine. The grilling is just kind of a novelty. The Alton Brown recipe, however, adds a crunchy, grilled parmesan crustiness that might make the grilling worthwhile (and that whole “frozen vinegar crystals” thing sounds really cool).
We served this salad with Sweet and Sour BBQ chicken tenders and some “Parisian” carrots. The carrots are odd and have a long (and a bit embarrassing) explanation. Every year, I make a big lunch for Boy and Girl’s teachers. One of the dishes that I make is a green bean and yellow wax bean salad. Fresh green beans and especially the yellow wax beans are hard to come by, so I buy a frozen yellow and green bean blend (HEB’s “Prince Edward Medley), which also happens to contain the little, round “Parisian” carrots. So…in order to make the bean dish, I have to sort out the carrots (Girl helped this year) and I save them for future use, like tonight, when I micro-steamed them in some chicken stock and sprinkled them with….you guessed it….Baby Bam.