Vegetarian Dinner Salad

I really don't know what to call this salad but it came about the other night when i was feeling vegetarian and wanted a complete full meal salad, some thing healthy and vegetal with plant based protein.   

serves 4.

Vegetable Barley Lentil Salad

1 cup pearl barley

1 cup french lentils

1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, halved lengthwise

5 carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise

olive oil

s + p

1/4 lb peashoots, rinsed and dried (salad spinner is great for this)

1 tablespoon champagne vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon squash seed oil  

1 tablespoon olive oil

pinch of cayenne pepper

about 12 cilantro leaves, chopped

4 teaspoons pepitas

4 teaspoons roasted sunflower seeds (salted or not is up to you)  

Cook barley in a small pot with 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 45 minutes.   Fluff with fork and set aside.

Cook lentils in another small pot by covering lentils with water, no salt, and simmering for 30 minutes.  Drain lentils and set aside. 

Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees.  Toss carrots with a splash olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Place on baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.  Add asparagus to the sheet, toss with a splash of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast, carrots and asparagus for another 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and set aside.

Make vinaigrette by whisking together champagne vinegar, lemon juice, squash seed oil and olive oil.  Add cilantro leaves, pinches of cayenne and s + p to taste. 

Toss carrots, asparagus and peashoots in vinaigrette.  

To serve, portion barley into 4 dishes, top with portion of lentils, then veggies.  Top each dish with one teaspoon pepitas and sunflower seeds.   

Chickpea Salad

My husband, Cameron, is very good at making smart, healthy things to eat and I wanted to share this tasty chickpea salad he made. 

I wouldn't tell anyone else to do this but after the chickpeas were cooked I went through and removed what I call the 'pants' off almost each individual chickpea.  The 'pants' are the soft, clear skins.  I hate them so I remove them (do you do this?)  but feel free to leave them with their pants on.  

Chickpea Salad

12 oz dried chickpeas

several sprigs fresh thyme

zest of 1 orange

1 teaspoon mustard seed

1 teaspoon caraway seed

1 bay leaf

2 shallots - one, peeled, ends trimmed and one diced

3 cloves garlic, peeled, lightly crushed

1 carrot, peeled, halved

small bunch fresh mint, chopped

small bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

juice of 1 lime

drizzle olive oil

1 shallot, minced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 carrot, blanched, peeled, diced

s + p

Soak dried chickpeas over night in plenty of water.  Drain and transfer to a large pot.  Create a bouquet garni by tying thyme, orange zest, mustard, caraway and bay up into a cheese cloth pouch.  Place in pot along with peeled shallot with ends trimmed, garlic cloves, and carrot halves.  Cover with lots of water (chickpeas will soak up a lot of water while cooking.  Bring to a boil and simmer mostly cover with lid slightly ajar for about 1 hour until cooked through and soft but still with some firmness.  Drain and discard everything but chickpeas.

Toss chickpeas with mint, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, shallot, bell pepper and carrot.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

A Very Fruity Salad + Pomegranate Vinaigrette

This past Christmas we served this salad with pasta and a hearty bolognese meat sauce.  So for me, it will always be called the 'Christmas Salad' but for everyone else this can be an anytime salad.  Or maybe a fruity salad to eat in winter?  

There's a good thing happening in this salad between the fruit and the bitter raddichio and the crunch from the pomegranate seeds and jicama.  

Jicama is an odd little root vegetable.  Super crunchy and similar to a very starchy apple or pear but only a hint of sweetness.  Peel of its thick skin with a knife and chop it up.  It's also a great snack drizzled with lime, sprinkled with salt and chili powder or a vehicle for dips and salsa.  

Christmas Salad

2 baby romaines or 1 head of romaine lettuce, rinsed, dried and chopped

1 raddichio, halved, cored and sliced

1 blood orange, peeled and cored and sliced into half moons

1 navel orange, peeled and cored and sliced into half moons

Seeds of 1/2 of a pomegranate

1 small jicama, peeled and sliced into sticks

Pomegranate Vinaigrette

1 tablespoon pomegranate juice

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

4 tablespoons olive oil

s + p

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon brown mustard

For Salad:  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Right before serving toss or drizzle with vinaigrette.  

For Vinaigrette:  Pomegranate juice can be freshly made by squeezing pomegranate seeds through a citrus press.  It will take about 1/4 of a fruit or slightly less.  (Or if out of season, bottled juice may be used but look for ones without added sugar.)  Set aside.  

In a small bowl, mix lemon juice and vinegar, add salt pinch by pinch until well balanced.  It shouldn't taste too salty or too sharp.  Add a couple turns or black pepper, olive oil and pomegranate juice.  Whisk vigorously.  If it doesn't come together add a bit of brown mustard.  Whisk more and make any final adjustments.  (more salt, more lemon, more pepper...)

Cameron's Bowl of Health

If you ate as much as I did over the thanksgiving holiday you might be craving healthier fare.  My husband makes this often as something healthy to have for lunch.  

Bowl of Health Salad

4 beets

1 medium shallot, minced

1 bunch kale, or mustard greens, swiss chard, collard greens...

juice and zest of 1/2 an orange

juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon

red wine vinegar

olive oil

s + p

1 cup toasted pecans

1 bunch fresh parsley

2 large carrots, sliced thin

2 - 3 celery sticks, sliced thin

1 large apple, cored and chopped

5 radishes, sliced thin

Goat Cheese (optional)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.   Roast the beets whole in a dish, covered with foil, with 1/4 inch water, a drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of juice from the orange.  Roast for 1 hour or until tender.

In a small dish, combine shallots, a pinch of salt, dash of pepper and a teaspoon of red wine vinegar.  Set aside.  

While the beets are roasting, blanche the kale by bringing a pot of water to a boil over the stove.  Submerge kale for 1 minute.  Transfer kale from boiling water to an ice bath.  Once kale is cool, ring it out in 2 or 3 separate bunches, squeezing into tight rolls.  Chop rolls into 1 inch rounds.  Place in large bowl and set aside.  

Remove beets from oven, once cool enough to handle rub off skins, halve lengthwise and slice thinly.  Toss beets in a couple tablespoons of red wine vinegar and let rest for 10 minutes.  

Combine beets, shallot mix, kale, pecans, parsley, carrots, celery, apple and radishes.  Season to taste with citrus juices, zest, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.  Top with pinches of goat cheese if you like.  Serve cool.