Sautéd Red Cabbage Salad (with tasty Greek influences)

I've made a solemn salad vow that is turning out to be scrumptious. This one was especially differently yummy.

I love cabbage and it's incredibly good for you, but sometimes when it's raw it's just too much. I wanted some colour in this salad for vitamins and cabbage keeps so well that it's a good standby. If you sauté it in a wee but of butter it makes a lovely salad topping. (Butter, I know 'bad,' but this salad is best enjoyed with a miniscule amount of salad dressing, so it's okay.) ;0) A little butter goes a long way in this: it lends the nicest creaminess to the nutty cabbage.

Sauté cabbage until it's al dente & adding sea salt helps keep the colour and pepper is wonderful with cabbage.

• Start with your favourite green (this has romaine hearts & spinach-both organic)
• Add the teeniest amount of finely-diced feta & spanish onions
• Red cabbage goes on there too
  
• Top with a hit of your favourite herb (I had basil on here & it was wondrously good)

Dressing suggestion: Greek. Nice. :0)

Happy eats!
Mel

Club sandwich Salad (a crunchy green take on the sandwich)

This picture is a cheat, because it's a bread-less version of this club salad recipe--with red pepper as a substitute for the tomatoes. Hardly the same, but kinda perty, no? It also has fresh dill and sorrel. (Sorrel is an unusually lemony perennial green that is delightful. I grow it in a pot.) :0)

Being a club sandwich fiend this is my favourite salad:

• Lettuce (a mix of Iceberg or Romaine for crunch with organic salad greens like mescaline mix or baby spinach is scrumptious and a good way to introduce greener varieties of lettuce to kids)
• Bacon Cooked 'til it's the crispness you like (avoid bacon bits like the plague--> they are evil! Muhahaha!)
  
• Tomatoes (if you don't have fresh canned finely diced are nice)
  
• Chicken or Turkey (For best results, put poultry in a ziplock bag and flatten it with a meat hammer until even. Cook 'til tender & moist, but not overdone of course!) ;0)
• Havarti or old /medium cheddar (or your favourite cheese)
• Green onion (fine chop)
  

You could use shrimp/crab/scallop as well or instead of poultry (seafood club, right?)

Avocado is awesome too (large cubes lightly salted.)

For entertaining friends who are Vegetarians: You could make a salad bar that includes the above, but also has chickpeas (Garbonzo beans--which are lovely toasted.) Other options include pine nuts, spiced pecans, pomegranate seeds...

Dressing:

I love this best topped with Ranch dressing (to which I add a shot of white balsamic vinegar & fresh herbs) or a with any mayonnaise-y vinaigrette. The pow of vinegar is the best! (TIP: If you can let your homemade dressings sit for at least an hour/overnight for flavours to marry.)

Homemade Sourdough croûtons:

If you hate store bought croûtons, like I do, you may be pleasantly surprised by making your own tasty morsels.

Butter & a little cooking oil
Sourdough (or other fresh bread)
Sea Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Pinch cayene
Paprika/other spices you like
Lemon/lime zest
Flat Leaf Italian Parsley/Cilantro/Dill or finely chopped Herb of your choice
Garlic

Add the ingredients in the order above (most important is the garlic last to avoid burning it bitter.) Toast it. This makes crispy croûtons with a soft warm inside. Mmmmm....

Thanks for looking. Happy Cooking,
:0)
Mel

Red Cabbage Coleslaw with fresh Dill

The key to this coleslaw is to add more vinaigrette than mayonnaise (unless you like it the other way 'round.) The zingy vinegar & onion against the nutty cabbage & sweet carrot is nicely accented by fresh pepper and a touch of creamy mayonnaise.

• 1/2 small Red Cabbage Finely chopped
• 1 large carrot shredded (or add more to taste)
• 2 green onions finely chopped
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette (or more to taste)
• 2 tbsp real mayonnaise
• 1/2 tsp or more white balsamic vinegar (or dark balsamic or other vinegar)
• Liberal amount of fresh ground pepper (to taste)
• Handful Fresh dill-chopped

Mix everything.

Couldn't be easier. Chops well in a food-processor also. This is lovely the next day... the flavours marry nicely. You may find you need to add a little more dressing & vinegar to get the same flavour kick.

Other flavour options:

If you can get your hands on Kohlrabi, Fennel, or Celeriac try a little in here too. :0) Kohlrabi is amazingly yummy. It's not that hard to grow from seed either.

Dry mustard
Optional add fennel seed

Enjoy!
:0)
Mel

Roasted Beet, Avocado & Asian Pear Salad

This is YUMMMMMMy! It's easy, and very good for you too. It's even pretty. It's nicest prepared fresh, and tossing it just makes the redness of the dressing even more appealing. The thing I love about it is the contrasting/complimenting textures. The earthy smoothness of the beet against the crispness of the Asian pear. The slightly bitterness of the crunchy romaine against the creamy avocado and the buttery crunch of pine nuts. Tasty!

If you don't enjoy fruit in salads, you may very well still enjoy the Asian Pear. You'd be surprised how subtle it's sweetness is and its moist crispness can't be found in anything else.

Beets With a bit of Zip:

I love pickled beets, so to bring out the sweet note of beets & to add a zing, I thought why not bake them with vinegar:

1. Peel & chop beets; (baby beets are nicest)
2. Blanch them (drop into boiling water for 30 seconds then put into ice water)
3. Wrap them in tinfoil--drenched in vinegar, oil, sea salt & fresh pepper (to taste) Even white vinegar is great, but balsamic is lovely. (The tinfoil keeps the skins tender for the salad. If you want caramelized beets with a slightly drier skin, opt for a pan & no tinfoil.) :0)
4. Roast beets at 375 to 400 degrees until tender. (Depends on the size you chop them)
5. Chop them smaller for salad or eat 'em as is. They keep well.

The rest of the salad:

• Organic Romaine Hearts washed & torn (or any lettuce/salad greens but crunch is nice)
  
• Avocado diced (I half it, remove the pit, & dice it in the rind then scoop with a spoon=no washing up.) I think lightly salting the avocado is key.
  
• Asian Pear peeled and chopped
• Toasted pine nuts
• I like to make my own dressing, but in a pinch Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette is my favourite store bought dressing.

You can substitute roast carrots/sweet potatoes for beets.

Other delectable substitutions/additions could include:

• Cheese (A natural with this) Goat cheese, creamy feta, old cheddar, blue cheese... (or your favourite)
• Spanish Onion (was all out or it would have gone in finely sliced- for sure!)
• Cilantro or Italian Flat Leaf Parsley (nice against the creaminess & sweetness)
• Other Toasted Nuts: walnuts, pecans, almonds or macadamia nuts<--(one of my faves in salad)
• Other Fruits: crisp pear...granny smith or gala apples... Or plums/strawberries/raspberries (with a little lemon/lime/grapefruit juice)

Happy cooking,
:0)
Mel

Tools I Couldn't Cook Without: My Zyliss Salad Spinner +A Healthy Trick for Cleaning Produce

I left my ex-husband our salad spinner in the divorce, so I had to go out and get a new one right away. This is my current Zyliss Salad Spinner. The first one had a lid that you could use to convert the spinner for fridge storage (lucky guy!) ;0) So if you're in the market for a salad spinner & you can find the one with the lid--go for it. If not, you can still store with the lid of this one. It pulls like a lawn mower, smooth and fun! Just hummms away. I eat so much healthier when I don't have to towel dry lettuces. It's a great way to get kids involved in cooking; there more likely to A) help in the kitchen & B) eat the salad they made.

It also allows you to soak the lettuce for a while, which is nice if you can't buy organic, or if you want to perk up lettuce with cold cold water. I just tear lettuce roughly and fill with cold water. Pull the basket up and dump the water. Put the basket back and spin away. You can clean other veg in there too. :0) Adding a paper towel on the bottom of the basket for storage makes the lettuce last longer. (It gets damp from the lettuce & prevents it from dehydrating.)

Salty fruit???

After I soak fruit/veg, I scrub 'em clean with a brush and salt. Then rinse 'em.

• Salt is naturally anti-bacterial (So it's great for things like cantaloupe which can harbor salmonella (source & more info)
  

• It doesn't affect the flavour. In fact, some people like to add salt to fruit: apples for instance.

• It's mildly abrasive, so it removes things like wax.
  

• Salt is especially good for cleaning produce you eat/use the peels of like potatoes and citrus: it gets in those little divits!

Happy eating,
:0)
Mel

Mel's Taco Supreme Salad (my favourite Guacamole & Salsa recipe)

This satisfying (low-carb) salad has 3 easy parts and it makes great left-overs, 'cause the ingredients can also be served as soft tortilla wrap fillings or crispy taco stuffings (or go crazy! and have a crispy taco inside a soft one)

Victorian Epicure Products this salad uses are: Taco Seasoning; Guacamole Dip Mix; and Salsa mix: choose your heat: Poco Picante (Medium) Caliente (hotchacha); sea salt and pepper. Optional time savers: toasted onion and red bell peppers.

The three parts are:

1--The Salad & Toppings
2--The Dressing
3--The Tortillas

1--THE SALAD & TOPPINGS

Chop or tear:
Iceberg lettuce (for the crunch; you can add the greener/more red varieties for flavour and vitamins)

Dice:
a red pepper (or use V.E. red bell peppers to save time)

Grate:
old cheddar (or your choice of cheese)
Season to taste with V.E. Sea Salt & V.E. Pepper to taste

Chunky fresh salsa--"kicked up a notch!":

Mix:
2 tablespoons V.E. salsa mix (Poco Picante (medium) or for the brave: Caliente (hot)
1/2 a finely chopped Spanish onion
2 fresh tomatoes (chopped coarsely)
1 can of tomatoes drained and chopped
1/2 a pepper finely-chopped (green or yellow look best)
fresh cilantro chopped (to taste)
1/2 a lime juiced
salt and fresh pepper to taste
Optional for heat and flavour: fresh jalapeño

Let flavours marry and seasonings hydrate for 1/2 an hour. This keeps very well and is a fantastic low-fat, lycopene-filled topping/filling for: wraps, sandwiches, Mexican recipes, meats, eggs, hot dogs, hamburgers. Salsa's also a vegetarian's best friend for flavour.

P.s. This makes a large amount of salsa; half it if you need to.

Meat or Vegetarian Taco Topping:

Brown prepared mix of:

2 tablespoons V.E. Taco seasoning

1 lb lean ground beef/chicken/turkey... or 20 medium-sized finely chopped mushrooms. (adjust

the seasoning to taste.)

1 clove garlic

1/2 a finely-chopped medium onion

--If you immediately mix all ingredients above with the seasoning (before the meat/mushrooms are cooked) it tastes much better, I swear; something about already cooked things not absorbing flavour--don't know the technical name ;-)

salt and pepper to taste.

2--THE DRESSING

This dressing is also topping! It's a Creamy Guacamole Dip set free!
(use light products if you like)

My ultimate favourite Guacamole recipe:

Mix:
2 tablespoons guacamole dip mix
3/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise

Let this mix sit for 1/2 an hour (or you can leave it in your fridge overnight, or until you need it.)

Before serving add the sour cream mix to a bowl with:

2 ripe avocados (leave some chunks if you like em.)
1/2 a fresh green jalapeño pepper finely diced (optional of course) You can always try a wee bit for great flavour or add a lot.
and the Juice of half a small lemon

To turn into a dressing just add 2-3 tablespoons water; that way, you can have both guacamole dip and dressing on hand by only adding liquid to the amount of dreesing you need to dress your taco salad.

3--THE TORTILLAS

My favourite to serve with this is white or yellow taco shells heated in the oven and broken into triangles. The warm crunch is a great texture against the smoothness of the guacamole dressing and the fresh bite of the lettuce and they make perfect scoopers: a fun party food and an answer to the messy eating of 'normal' tacos.

Other options are tortilla chips, warmed or not. Low-fat versions include any crisp bread, toasted pita or thinly sliced toasted baguette.

OR Try making Cajun Tortilla Chips

(Yield 32 chips) A low-fat treat that pairs well with spicy salsa. Spray vegetable oil instead of butter to reduce the amount of saturated fat (or coconut oil: it doesn't turn into a trans fat when heated & the flavour is heavenly!):

4 - 8" (20 cm) tortilla rounds1 Tbsp (15 ml) melted butter1 - 2 tsp (5 - 10 ml) VE Cajun Seasoning
2 tsp (10 ml) Parsley, Sea Salt, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400° F (205° C).

2. Whisk together melted butter (or oil), Cajun Seasoning and Parsley.

3. Cut each pita round into 8 even wedges and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush with prepared butter and sprinkle with Sea Salt.

4. Bake for approximately 8 minutes, or until chips are crisp and slightly browned. Serve with taco supreme salad or a selection of prepared Dips.

ALSO,

This salad is just as easily served as a layered dip:

Simply mix 1 8oz pkg of cream cheese and 1 cup sour cream with a tbsp of herb and garlic dip mix and spread in a dish, then pile the goodies on top.

Leave your guacamole as a dip (instead of the dressing) and voila!

I layer in this order:

cream cheese base-->guacamole-->salsa-->lettuce-->(and save some diced peppers and cilantro to top with; green onions is another optional addition).

E.T.A: If you're avoiding red meat, chicken makes a great substitute for the hamburger.

Enjoy!
Mel