LENTIL SALAD WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND FETA

I have made this salad a number of times. The recipe, copied from the Almost Vegetarian cookbook, is safely embedded in a plastic sleeve inside my “do-over” 3-ring recipe binder. But, each time I make it, I ask myself, “Lentils…do I really like you?”

I really WANT to like lentils, which is why I keep making lentil recipes, I am just not sure how much I do. I have a little test for just these cases. It goes something like this…If lentils were as bad for you as custard filled donuts or red velvet cake, would you ever eat them again?

Probably I am just being bratty towards lentils because I am trying to take a little hiatus from baked goods and sweets while I trim off a few unwanted pounds this summer. The poor lentils shouldn’t have to take the heat!

This is a good summer recipe, stays in the refrigerator for days if not a week and has made many a picnic-goer happy. Next time, I think I will try it with red lentils or French lentils which I find more flavorful.

Lentil Salad with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Feta
2 whole cloves
1 white or yellow onion, peeled and halved
2 cups uncooked lentils, picked over and well rinsed
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
1 large Belgian endive, cored and leaves separated
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon walnut oil
6 large sundried tomatoes (dry packed, minced)
1 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 cup minced celery or fennel
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Stick a clove in each half of the onion. Put them in a saucepan with lentils, sliced garlic and bay leaf. Add water to cover by 2 inches.

Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low to let the mixture simmer, covered until tender but not mushy, about 20 minutes. Check and add water as needed.
When lentils are cooked, take the pan off heat and remove onion, cloves and bay leaf. Transfer lentils to large bowl and let cool. Meanwhile, set out 4 plates and arrange endive leaves in a star pattern.

Whisk togeterh vinegar, oil and stir into lentils. Toss in tomatoes, feta, onion and celery or fennel. Season with pepper. Spoon onto plates in middle of endive.

Comments: I have used olive oil in absense of walnut oil. And, I prefer the fennel to the celery. Finally, as you can see from the photo, I skipped the endive as well.

taken by: http://whippedtheblog.com/2007/06/14/lentil-salad-wtih-sun-dried-tomatoes-and-feta/

Tortilla Chopped Salad with Black Bean Salsa and Ranch

Does it mean you’ve unlocked some sort of adulthood merit badge when you can say with all seriousness that you totally love salads? You would have almost never caught me ordering a salad in a restaurant when I was in high school or college or heck, even a few years ago. But now, I make a beeline for the salad section of the menu whenever I’m out. Especially if they offer big, beautiful bowls of dinner salads.

I love salads that are hearty, filling, and delicious—and creative! I’m not interested in a bowl of iceberg lettuce with some pink tomatoes. Give me interesting, complicated layers of flavor in that salad bowl! With my newish-found love of salads, I’ve been really working on upping my at-home salad making game.

I have to be honest, a lot of my at-home salads in the past years have been solely utilitarian. A dinner needed some veggies, so I tossed some greens in a bowl and threw some dressing on top of it. Then I hurry up and scarfed through it first so I could get to the really good stuff. What a sad state of salad affairs.

Now I know that homemade salads can be so much more than just obligatory. They can be complex and hearty and satisfying and totally worthy of the limelight. Man, I love me a good salad. I think the key to making a main stage salad is all about finding balance. Balance in flavors. Balance in textures. Balance in nutrition. You want every bite to be full of interest—and a salad done right can provide that kind of interest unlike any other type of dish.

This tortilla chopped salad was inspired by one of the first salads I actually learned to love—a giant Latin-flavored salad from a little restaurant across the street from my dorm in college. It was probably the first time I realized that salads can be so much more than just something my Mom put on the table at dinner (and that I didn’t eat).

That salad was impossibly huge (as restaurant portions tend to be) and came with roasted turkey breast. I’ve scaled down the size of my salad—it’s still huge, but you’ll be able to conquer it without unbuttoning your pants. And I left off the turkey. I love meat as much as the next omnivore, but I feel like this salad really doesn’t need any meat. It’s packed full of healthy plant-based fats and protein, and it’s got enough heft on its own so that you’ll feel satisfied after eating it—even without the meat.

I know ranch dressing’s reputation has taken a hit over the past few years (what, with people drowning their pizza-wrapped cheeseburgers in the stuff), but cool, creamy ranch is such a wonderful flavor complement to spicy foods—it really is a perfect way to dress a Latin-flavored salad like this one. The keys to doing ranch right—use it in moderation and find a dressing that is made up of real ingredients. Some of the bottles of ranch on store shelves have ingredients that are barely recognizable as food, if at all. Read your ingredients, people!

That’s why I’m totally loving the Marzetti® Simply Dressed^® line of salad dressings right now. They have no preservatives, no high fructose corn syrup, no artificial colors or flavors. They are made with 100% “real” ingredients. Basically, they are pretty much what you’d make in your own kitchen if you made your own salad dressing—except more convenient because, you know, they’ve already made it for you.



Just a little drizzle of the Simply Dressed Ranch on top of this chopped salad is all it needs to really set off the flavors. It’s not about covering up the flavor of vegetables, it’s about adding another wonderful layer of flavor and texture to your salad. It’s about taking your salad to the next level (I can’t believe I just typed that). This is a salad that I will happily eat even if I don’t have any veggie quotas to fill.
Enjoy!

Tortilla Chopped Salad with Black Bean Salsa and Ranch

Prep time

10 mins

Total time

10 mins

 

Tortilla Chopped Salad is a hearty, vegetarian salad that is filling and satisfying enough to have for dinner.

Author: Cassie Johnston

Makes: 2 Salads

Ingredients

For the Black Bean Salsa

• 2 cups frozen corn
• 1–14 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1–10 ounce can tomatoes with chilies
• 5 green onions, diced
• 1 red onion, diced
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• ½ cup finely minced cilantro

For the Salad

• 2 heads romaine, chopped
• ½ cup sliced black olives
• 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, sliced into matchsticks
• 1 avocado, diced
• ½ cup Marzetti® Zesty Jalapeno Tortilla Strips
• ¼ cup Marzetti® Simply Dressed® Ranch Dressing

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, combine all the salsa ingredients and toss until well-combined. Set aside while you assemble the salads.
2. Divide the salad ingredients between two large salad bowls. Add a big scoop of the salsa on top of each salad, and then drizzle half of the salad dressing onto each salad. Serving immediately.

Notes

You’ll probably have extra Black Bean Salsa leftover. Serve it up with tortilla chips for a snack the next day!

taken by : http://backtoherroots.com/2015/04/01/tortilla-chopped-salad-with-black-bean-salsa-and-ranch/

Cajun Shrimp Salad with Homemade Cilantro Lime Dressing

This salad is a lightened up version of the amazing Cajun Shrimp and Vegetables Pasta recipe. I was inspired to make this salad when I had leftover Cajun Seafood seasoning from the Healthy Solutions Spice Blends Recipe Challenge.

I used regular large shrimp for the pasta recipe, so they would blend in and be part of the dish. But for this salad, I wanted the shrimp to be the main attraction, so I used the biggest jumbo shrimp I could find. I LOVE biting into a large piece of shrimp, and then having more to go back for, instead of being able to finish a shrimp in one bite. You see how each shrimp is the same size as the avocado? Yum! But you can use whatever size shrimp you want for this salad. It’s all delicious.

Cajun Shrimp Salad

Makes: 2 large salads. Total time: 15 minutes.

• 4 cups spinach
• 10-15 grape tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1/2 avocado, sliced or cut into chunks
• 3 slices bacon
• 6 jumbo shrimp (or 10 large shrimp), thawed, cleaned, and de-veined
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• 1 teaspoon shaved Parmesan
• 1/4 – 1/2 lime, for juicing
• Optional: 1 tablespoon olive oil (see note below)

Homemade Cilantro Lime Dressing

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro leaves
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For this salad, you have two options for how to cook the shrimp and the bacon. You can (1) Cook the bacon first and then cook the Cajun-seasoned shrimp in the bacon grease. Or (2), you can cook the seasoned shrimp first, and then fry the bacon in the Cajun seasoning that remains in the skillet. If you choose to do this, you’ll need to add a tablespoon of olive oil to cook the shrimp. As you can see, there are no bad options here. Either way is a winner. This is like a choose your own adventure recipe.
1. Option 1: Add the diced bacon pieces to a hot skillet, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the bacon is cooked and crispy. Drain the bacon fat into a heatproof bowl (reserve for other recipes!). Remove the crispy bacon bits into a place with a paper towel to absorb the extra fat.
Toss the shrimp with the Cajun seasoning in a small bowl, and add to the heated skillet which still has a bit of bacon grease remaining. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until the shrimp is fulled cooked. Squeeze some lime juice over it. Set shrimp aside.
Option 2: Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet. Toss the shrimp with the Cajun seasoning in a small bowl. Add the shrimp to the hot skillet, and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until the shrimp is fulled cooked. Squeeze some lime juice over it. Set shrimp aside.
Add the sliced bacon to the hot skillet, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the bacon is cooked and crispy. Drain the bacon fat into a heatproof bowl (reserve for other recipes!). Remove the crispy bacon bits into a place with a paper towel to absorb the extra fat.
2. Assemble the salad. Place the sliced tomatoes and avocado on top of the spinach. Sprinkle with crispy bacon. Top with cooked Cajun shrimp. Shave some Parmesan over it. Drizzle with cilantro lime dressing (see below).

Cilantro Lime Dressing

In a small bowl, combine the very finely chopped cilantro, juice of 1 whole lime, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Grate 1 garlic clove into the dressing, and add 1/4 teaspoon salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Mix well, squeezing the cilantro into the dressing to release its flavor.  If you prefer, you can blend the whole thing in a magic bullet to grind up the cilantro. Drizzle over salad.



taken by : http://www.babaganosh.org/cajun-shrimp-salad-with-homemade-cilantro-lime-dressing/

Open-Faced Lemon Pepper Artichoke and Arugula Sandwiches

…aka fancy toast, because I am alllll about the toast lately. Chunky almond butter chia seed toast for breakfast, avocado toast for lunch (psst – sometimes this is breakfast too…), and soup or salad for dinner…with a side of toast.

I’ve learned in my 29 years that when I enter intense food phases, it’s best not to fight them. Instead, I lean into them, like when I ate peanut butter at every meal for a good month or so this winter, resulting in numerous rounds of curried peanut soup, thai peanut noodles, and scotcharoos.

Now, with my need for thick, seeded whole wheat bread toasted with toppings all day every day, I at least can make myself feel fancy about it. For these toast sandwiches, I broiled bread until golden on top, then slathered on the almond arugula white bean hummus from earlier this week, piled on chopped artichokes sautéed with olive oil, lemon juice, and black pepper, and finished it off with baby arugula tossed with a pinch of salt and olive oil, and drizzled with sweet balsamic glaze.

SO FANCY. Also most definitely a knife and fork meal – if you try to pick this up and eat it you will look like a fool. A fool with sticky, balsamic-covered stainable fingers.

Creamy, rich, savory, subtly sweet, fresh, and colorful! Heeeey spring, I missed you.

Open-Faced Lemon Pepper Artichoke and Arugula Sandwiches

A healthy springtime meal made with almond arugula white bean hummus, lemon pepper artichokes, fresh baby arugula, and sweet balsamic glaze.

Yield: 2 sandwiches
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 slices hearty whole grain bread
• 1 ½ teaspoon olive oil, divided
• 1 (15-ounce) can artichokes (BPA free), drained, rinsed, and roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups baby arugula, packed
• Pinch salt
• ¼ cup almond arugula white bean hummus
• Balsamic glaze, to taste

Directions:

1. Set the oven to broil, and place the bread in the oven. Broil until golden brown (about 3-5 minutes).
2. While the bread is in the oven, heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Add the artichokes, lemon juice, and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the liquid is absorbed.
3. Place the arugula in a bowl, and toss with the remaining olive oil and a pinch of salt.
4. Top each piece of toast with 2 tablespoons hummus, 1/2 the artichokes, and half the arugula. Drizzle with balsamic glaze.

Nutrition information does not include the balsamic glaze, since the amount you use is up to you. You can make your own, using the recipe linked to above (sub agave for honey to keep vegan), or use store-bought in a pinch.

taken by : http://veggieandthebeastfeast.com/2015/04/02/open-faced-lemon-pepper-artichoke-and-arugula-sandwiches/

Paleo Waldorf Salad

Paleo Waldorf Salad is a winner for your garden tea party, a snack or lunch.  I added some tuna for a crunchy meal.
I told you last week, I spent my time in bed sick watching Downton Abbey.  Well, it got me thinking of my Grannies.  I have always been an old soul, more interested in listening to stories and looking at old pictures than gallivanting with my cousins.  I liked baking, and flowers, and dainty things.  As a result I have ended up with a handful of family heirlooms.  An 8-place setting, set of hand painted gold foil dishes, a carved tinder box, some silver and tea cups.  Something that as a single 20-something has been a task to move and store over the years.  The dish set belonged to my Grandma Rae, a woman who said as she was going into assisted living, that my grandfather’s “next wife was NOT to have her things,” so she gave away all of her stuff, (and most of his family stuff) leaving him with an appreciatively empty home.  He didn’t seem to care, and was more relieved to be rid of all her nick knacks.  That woman was a terrible cook.  Truly awful.  The only time us kids got fast food was after a dinner at grandma’s.  It was all dried meatloaf and mushy canned peas.  She could bake, but cooking… just terrible.  This was one of the things I would look forward to her making because, well, it is pretty much impossible to mess this up.

The family on my maternal grandfathers side has been in Canada for generations, and among my granny’s dishes and family heirloom type pieces is this silver spoon.
The engraving says “Lilian 1998″  And it has a stamp of a steam ship.  The story behind this spoon is: Emily Carr purchased this commemorative spoon for her favorite niece on a trip from San Francisco -that niece being a great, great, aunt(?).


I have a few items passed down, most everything having been sold or in the Carr house museum in Victoria.  I have a couple little pieces of history: this treasured spoon, a couple of tea spoons and a hand carved tinder box.  Fame and “value” does a funny thing to family treasures.  For example my dish set: 25 years ago NO ONE wanted it. My mother cringed when I proclaimed it was “so pretty” ( I was 9 years old).  But in later years when someone thought it was worth something they suddenly demanded to know who had it and why.  I told them that they could absolutely have it (to sell, no doubt) but that my moving and storage fees would far surpass the market value.  See how tricky I am?  I am disappointed that previous generations were quick to sell our family belongings, and cash-in.  I guess that is how it works. If I was destitute, I may see it all differently.  For now, I love the dainty and pretty, and old.  I treasure my family heirlooms, I’ve packed and moved them enough times I have grown to love their weight in family history.

The Waldorf Salad is American turn-of-the-century cuisine.  It was dreamed up and named by the Waldorf Hotel’s maître d’hôtel, Oscar Tschirky.  The Waldorf hotel was later to become the Waldorf Astoria, originally where the Empire State building stands on 5th Ave, NY.  Oscar although never becoming a chef, had a large cook book and was responsible for the popular thousand island dressing, with rumor that he may have contributed to Eggs Benedict preparations as well.   

Paleo Waldorf Salad

 

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Waldorf Salad, fruit salad with a satisfying crunch.

Author: www.ThePrimalDesire.com

Recipe type: salad

Ingredients

• ½ cup mayo
• ½ cp chopped walnuts
• 1 cup sliced grapes
• 2 cups chopped apple
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• salt & pepper

Instructions

1. Combine all Ingredients and stir well.
2. Serve chilled on a bed of lettuce

taken by : http://theprimaldesire.com/paleo-waldorf-salad/

BLTA Pesto Chicken Salad – Low Carb, Gluten Free, Paleo

This chicken salad is so easy to make and is crazy flavorful. I like to make a double batch of it for quick, protein packed lunches throughout the week. Serve on top of or wrapped in fresh butter lettuce leaves.

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 Ingredients

• 1 lb chicken, cooked and cubed
• 6 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
• 1 medium avocado, cubed
• 10 grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp garlic pesto
• Several fresh butter lettuce leaves

Instructions

• In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, bacon, avocado, tomatoes, mayonnaise, and pesto.  Toss gently to coat.

taken by : http://peaceloveandlowcarb.com/2015/03/blta-pesto-chicken-salad-low-carb-gluten-free-paleo.html

Strawberry basil pie

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time                 45 minutes

Yield                   6 people

Difficulty                Intermediate, Moderate

Very refreshing strawberry basil pie that looks beautiful and the taste is absolutely amazing! Ready in about 1 hour.

Ingredients for the dough

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 yolk
• zest of half a lemon

Ingredients for the filling

• 1 cup cream
• 3/4 cup white chocolate
• 2 gelatin leaves
• juice and zest of 1 lemon
• handful of basil leaves + extra for garnish
• strawberries

Preparing the basil cream — 15 minutes

Strip the basil leaves from their stems and finely chop the white chocolate. Grate the lemon to create the zest and squeeze the juice out of the lemon. Place the gelatin leaves in cold water, this way the leaves will soften. Cook the basil stems with 1/2 a cup of the cream on low heat for about 5 minutes. Strain the cream and throw out the basil stems. Squeeze the water out of the gelatin leaves and dissolve in the hot basil infused cream. Also dissolve the chopped white chocolate into the hot cream. Add the lemon zest and juice and set the mixture aside for a few minutes. Meanwhile whip up the other 1/2 a cup cream. Chop the basil leaves and mix those together with the whipped cream into the cream. Now it’s time to let the basil cream cool off completely.

Baking the strawberry basil pie — 45 minutes

Grate the lemon to create the lemon zest and slice the butter into cubes. Combine the all-purpose flour, butter, lemon zest and powdered sugar. The structure of this particular dough will be a bit like sand. Add the egg and egg yolk and mix it some more. When it forms a dough ball, wrap it in cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Use a silicone kitchen brush to butter the inside of the baking tin. Use a rolling-pin to create a very thin dough crust, don’t forget to use a little bit more flour to prevent sticking. Also use the rolling-pin to transfer the dough onto the baking tin and cut the overlapping dough.
Puncture small holes into the pie crust, for example using a fork. Place exactly fitting parchment paper on top of the crust and fill it up with blind-baking beans. Now bake the pie crust for about 20 minutes in an 180 degrees celsius or 350 degrees fahrenheit oven. Remove the baking beans and parchment paper and bake the crust another 5 minutes to create its golden brown color. Let the pie crust cool off completely.

Finishing the strawberry basil pie — 5 minutes

Divide the basil cream over the pie crust. Cut the strawberries in slices, for the best result the slices should be cut in the same thickness. If you like, you can dust the pie with extra powdered sugar and top it off with a few extra basil leaves.


taken by : http://ohmydish.com/recipe/strawberry-basil-pie/