Adapted from the Fresh 365 site... go visit, you won't be disappointed!
I substituted a few items (sliced almonds for walnuts, spinach for lettuce, feta for goat cheese) and it was all good in the hood.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
1 1/2 cups green or yellow lentils, rinsed
3 cups water
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1-2 t salt
Packet of baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or sliced almonds, toasted
2 tablespoons minced red onion
Crumbled feta or goat cheese
For the Dressing:
2 tablespoons minced sun dried tomatoes
6 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons honey
1 teaspoon salt
Directions
In a saucepan, add lentils, water and thyme leaves. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Simmer 20-25 minutes, until lentils are just tender. Meanwhile, in a jar or small bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients. Remove lentils from heat when cooked through, and gently stir in salt, to your taste.
Divide spinach leaves among bowls. Top with lentils, nuts, red onion and cheese. Drizzle dressing on each salad, to taste. Garnish with additional thyme leaves if desired. Serve immediately.
Showing posts with label Salad. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Salad. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Poached Egg Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
Adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters
Basically, you gather as many greens as you'd like for however many people you're having. You obviously wash the lettuce/spinach (whatever you choose to use), and have enough bacon crumbles to make people happy with one poached egg on top of each individual salad. The following dressing recipe is enough for two large to three small salads, and you can increase the proportions as you see fit-- I mean...it's just salad dressing.
Red Wine Vinaigrette
Ingredients
2-3 bacon slices
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove finely chopped or crushed into a paste
2.5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon bacon fat (from the drippings of when you cook the bacon. also optional)
Salt
Fresh cracked pepper
Directions
Cook the bacon in a skillet on medium-high heat till the fat begins to render and you think it's done to your taste (some people prefer soft, some people like it bone-dry. I prefer it somewhere in between the two). Remove the bacon and allow to cool on a paper towel to soak up the extra fat. Crumble or cut into pieces when cool. Reserve the fat in the pan for the vinaigrette.
In a small jar (I think leftover jam jars are ideal for making a dressing...you just shake it all together and serve! Another option is a tupperware with a tight lid or even just a whisk and small bowl), just mix together the remaining ingredients, and season with the salt and pepper to your taste. Set aside.
Poached Egg Salad
Ingredients
Fresh eggs (one per person, depending on how many you cook for)
Greens (this can be a mixture of baby lettuces, spinach, curly endive--you name it)
Parmesan cheese
Homemade croutons, baby tomatoes, spring onions, etc are all optional, but lovely as well.
Bacon (from directions above)
Red Wine Vinaigrette (directions above)
Directions
To poach an egg, first heat a pot (or deep skillet) of water till it's very hot, but right at the level where it just starts to simmer. It shouldn't be a rolling boil by any means. First crack the egg into a small bowl, careful to remove any bits of shell. Add some vinegar to the water (this helps the egg keep its form in the hot water). The average amount of vinegar to poach an egg is, at the minimum, one tablespoon to four cups of water, but I always add a bit more because I love a good vinegar. Place the bowl with the egg near the top of the hot water and gently slide it in, and, once it falls in and the white actually turns from clear to white, gently stir the water to prevent the egg from sticking to the bottom of the pan, but be careful not to puncture the egg. The average time for a poached egg in the hot water is 3 minutes if you'd like the yolk to still be liquid with the whites set properly (which is the best way to have it on a poached egg salad, mind you.)
Once the egg is done, gently remove it from the hot water and place on a paper towel, and be very careful to pat it gently to remove any excess water. Repeat as necessary for the number of eggs you will be poaching.
Take the red wine vinaigrette and toss it with the lettuces you choose. Divide the dressed salad onto individual bowls or plates, sprinkle with bacon and freshly grated parmesan, and add chopped spring onions if you'd like. Additionally, if you have croutons around, toss those on too! A hunk of fresh baguette is also great with this salad. Place the poached egg on top of your salad and voila!! A most wonderful salad at any time of the year.
p.s. bacon is optional but is just SO good on this salad. Oh, and the dressing is a winner, even without the bacon, always. This is actually one of my go-to dressings.
Basically, you gather as many greens as you'd like for however many people you're having. You obviously wash the lettuce/spinach (whatever you choose to use), and have enough bacon crumbles to make people happy with one poached egg on top of each individual salad. The following dressing recipe is enough for two large to three small salads, and you can increase the proportions as you see fit-- I mean...it's just salad dressing.
Red Wine Vinaigrette
Ingredients
2-3 bacon slices
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove finely chopped or crushed into a paste
2.5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon bacon fat (from the drippings of when you cook the bacon. also optional)
Salt
Fresh cracked pepper
Directions
Cook the bacon in a skillet on medium-high heat till the fat begins to render and you think it's done to your taste (some people prefer soft, some people like it bone-dry. I prefer it somewhere in between the two). Remove the bacon and allow to cool on a paper towel to soak up the extra fat. Crumble or cut into pieces when cool. Reserve the fat in the pan for the vinaigrette.
In a small jar (I think leftover jam jars are ideal for making a dressing...you just shake it all together and serve! Another option is a tupperware with a tight lid or even just a whisk and small bowl), just mix together the remaining ingredients, and season with the salt and pepper to your taste. Set aside.
Poached Egg Salad
Ingredients
Fresh eggs (one per person, depending on how many you cook for)
Greens (this can be a mixture of baby lettuces, spinach, curly endive--you name it)
Parmesan cheese
Homemade croutons, baby tomatoes, spring onions, etc are all optional, but lovely as well.
Bacon (from directions above)
Red Wine Vinaigrette (directions above)
Directions
To poach an egg, first heat a pot (or deep skillet) of water till it's very hot, but right at the level where it just starts to simmer. It shouldn't be a rolling boil by any means. First crack the egg into a small bowl, careful to remove any bits of shell. Add some vinegar to the water (this helps the egg keep its form in the hot water). The average amount of vinegar to poach an egg is, at the minimum, one tablespoon to four cups of water, but I always add a bit more because I love a good vinegar. Place the bowl with the egg near the top of the hot water and gently slide it in, and, once it falls in and the white actually turns from clear to white, gently stir the water to prevent the egg from sticking to the bottom of the pan, but be careful not to puncture the egg. The average time for a poached egg in the hot water is 3 minutes if you'd like the yolk to still be liquid with the whites set properly (which is the best way to have it on a poached egg salad, mind you.)
Once the egg is done, gently remove it from the hot water and place on a paper towel, and be very careful to pat it gently to remove any excess water. Repeat as necessary for the number of eggs you will be poaching.
Take the red wine vinaigrette and toss it with the lettuces you choose. Divide the dressed salad onto individual bowls or plates, sprinkle with bacon and freshly grated parmesan, and add chopped spring onions if you'd like. Additionally, if you have croutons around, toss those on too! A hunk of fresh baguette is also great with this salad. Place the poached egg on top of your salad and voila!! A most wonderful salad at any time of the year.
p.s. bacon is optional but is just SO good on this salad. Oh, and the dressing is a winner, even without the bacon, always. This is actually one of my go-to dressings.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Watermelon Salad
Adapted from Nigella Lawson's book, Forever Summer
As Nigella points out, you can make this recipe as simple or as complicated as you like (though it's not complicated at all). If you're really pressed for time, you can just serve the chunked watermelon with a sprinkling of feta and mint and a squeeze of lime, but where's the fun in that? Also, the proportions can all be adjusted to your own taste, so this is more of a guide, really, than a strictly measured recipe that you need to follow.
Ingredients:
1/2 small red onion
2-4 limes, depending on how juicy they are
1 small seedless watermelon, or 1/2 of a larger watermelon
Feta cheese (the kind that comes in a big block, not the pre-crumbled kind)
Fresh mint sprigs
2 tablespoons olive oil
Pitted Kalamata Olives
Salt and Black Pepper, to taste
Pine nuts (optional)
Instructions:
Peel the red onion and slice thinly, into half-moon shapes, and place in a small bowl. Squeeze the juice of about 2 limes over the onions, and allow to steep as you make the rest of the salad (this diminishes their harshness, and the onions will become slightly more transparent.)
Chunk up the watermelon into large bite-sized pieces, (removing the rind in the process), and place into a large bowl. If you get a seeded watermelon, try to remove the seeds as well. Chop up the mint,( as much as you like, but at least 1/3 cupful,) and add to the bowl of watermelon pieces.
Tip the onions and lime juice over the salad, and add the olive oil and chopped Kalamata olives. Sprinkle with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and as much freshly crumbled feta as you please, and give it a gentle toss so that the watermelon doesn't break up. Taste for saltiness and lime, add more as you wish. Sprinkle with pine nuts if desired (or even toast them lightly and then sprinkle them on. Yum!)
This recipe is easily doubled or tripled for larger dinner parties or BBQs.... add as much mint, lime, salt, olives, and feta to your liking, just start with minimal amounts as it can get too salty so make sure to taste it along the way.
As Nigella points out, you can make this recipe as simple or as complicated as you like (though it's not complicated at all). If you're really pressed for time, you can just serve the chunked watermelon with a sprinkling of feta and mint and a squeeze of lime, but where's the fun in that? Also, the proportions can all be adjusted to your own taste, so this is more of a guide, really, than a strictly measured recipe that you need to follow.
Ingredients:
1/2 small red onion
2-4 limes, depending on how juicy they are
1 small seedless watermelon, or 1/2 of a larger watermelon
Feta cheese (the kind that comes in a big block, not the pre-crumbled kind)
Fresh mint sprigs
2 tablespoons olive oil
Pitted Kalamata Olives
Salt and Black Pepper, to taste
Pine nuts (optional)
Instructions:
Peel the red onion and slice thinly, into half-moon shapes, and place in a small bowl. Squeeze the juice of about 2 limes over the onions, and allow to steep as you make the rest of the salad (this diminishes their harshness, and the onions will become slightly more transparent.)
Chunk up the watermelon into large bite-sized pieces, (removing the rind in the process), and place into a large bowl. If you get a seeded watermelon, try to remove the seeds as well. Chop up the mint,( as much as you like, but at least 1/3 cupful,) and add to the bowl of watermelon pieces.
Tip the onions and lime juice over the salad, and add the olive oil and chopped Kalamata olives. Sprinkle with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and as much freshly crumbled feta as you please, and give it a gentle toss so that the watermelon doesn't break up. Taste for saltiness and lime, add more as you wish. Sprinkle with pine nuts if desired (or even toast them lightly and then sprinkle them on. Yum!)
This recipe is easily doubled or tripled for larger dinner parties or BBQs.... add as much mint, lime, salt, olives, and feta to your liking, just start with minimal amounts as it can get too salty so make sure to taste it along the way.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Vietnamese Crack Salad
Via Orangette, Adapted from Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s Splendid Table Weeknight Kitchen e-mail newsletter
This salad, in short, is pimpin'. You can probably use chicken or tofu, if you don't like shrimp. I even made it with nothing but the veggies and noodles once, but it wasn't nearly as fun. For herbs, you can use cilantro, mint, or basil, either one or a combo of whichever you love best. You can probably also throw in other veggies, like edamame, etc. I like it the way it is though, with the spring onions and carrots and cabbage.
1 pound thin rice noodles (roughly the thickness of linguine)
3 large cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar, to taste (or I actually use 4 heaping tablespoons)
2 tsp. (your discretion how hot you want it) of Red Chili Flakes
1/2 a Napa cabbage of the leaves, washed and thinly sliced
8 scallions, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded or julienned
1/2 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup mint or basil or a combo, coarsely chopped
3/4 -1 pound of shrimp, sauteed with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, lime juice
1 cup cashews, salted, and toasted if desired
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the rice noodles and cook for 5 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Drain the noodles into a colander, rinse with cold water, and then place them in a large bowl.
Place the garlic cloves in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse to mince. Add the fish sauce, water, lime juice, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, and chilies, and purée them together. [The mixture will get quite frothy.] Taste, and if necessary, add more chile and adjust the sweet/tart balance. Pour the dressing into a serving bowl, and set it on the dining table. (*Note, if you are out of rice vinegar, I've cheated and used white wine vinegar. Nothing was destroyed, so go for it!)
Toss the vegetables and herbs in a large bowl, top with the shrimp and cashews. Traditionally, this salad is eaten in individual bowls, so place some of the cold rice noodles at the bottom, the salad and shrimp on top, and pour as much dressing you want on your own portion. Be warned--it's super addictive.
Serves 4-6.
This salad, in short, is pimpin'. You can probably use chicken or tofu, if you don't like shrimp. I even made it with nothing but the veggies and noodles once, but it wasn't nearly as fun. For herbs, you can use cilantro, mint, or basil, either one or a combo of whichever you love best. You can probably also throw in other veggies, like edamame, etc. I like it the way it is though, with the spring onions and carrots and cabbage.
1 pound thin rice noodles (roughly the thickness of linguine)
3 large cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar, to taste (or I actually use 4 heaping tablespoons)
2 tsp. (your discretion how hot you want it) of Red Chili Flakes
1/2 a Napa cabbage of the leaves, washed and thinly sliced
8 scallions, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded or julienned
1/2 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup mint or basil or a combo, coarsely chopped
3/4 -1 pound of shrimp, sauteed with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, lime juice
1 cup cashews, salted, and toasted if desired
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the rice noodles and cook for 5 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Drain the noodles into a colander, rinse with cold water, and then place them in a large bowl.
Place the garlic cloves in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse to mince. Add the fish sauce, water, lime juice, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, and chilies, and purée them together. [The mixture will get quite frothy.] Taste, and if necessary, add more chile and adjust the sweet/tart balance. Pour the dressing into a serving bowl, and set it on the dining table. (*Note, if you are out of rice vinegar, I've cheated and used white wine vinegar. Nothing was destroyed, so go for it!)
Toss the vegetables and herbs in a large bowl, top with the shrimp and cashews. Traditionally, this salad is eaten in individual bowls, so place some of the cold rice noodles at the bottom, the salad and shrimp on top, and pour as much dressing you want on your own portion. Be warned--it's super addictive.
Serves 4-6.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Panzanella
Adapted from Ina Garten on the Barefoot Contessa show (via Food Network)
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons good olive oil
Half a french baguette, torn into chunks (about 5-6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/3 red onion,thinly sliced
Handful of basil, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons capers, drained
For Vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons vinegar (I typically use Red Wine Vinegar, but Ina's recipe calls for Champagne)
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed, and some fresh cracked pepper to your tasting.
For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together and set aside. I personally like to use a little jar to add all dressing ingredients then shake the life out of it. It keeps everything contained and its easy.
In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the toasted bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons good olive oil
Half a french baguette, torn into chunks (about 5-6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/3 red onion,thinly sliced
Handful of basil, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons capers, drained
For Vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons vinegar (I typically use Red Wine Vinegar, but Ina's recipe calls for Champagne)
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed, and some fresh cracked pepper to your tasting.
For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together and set aside. I personally like to use a little jar to add all dressing ingredients then shake the life out of it. It keeps everything contained and its easy.
In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the toasted bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.
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