Memorial Day Salads

I love Pinterest... I do, I do, I DO!!!  So, here is a list of some of my favorites for this holiday weekend.  Click on the picture to take you to the link...

Sweet Liberty Fruit Wreath

Patriotic Taco Salad

Summer Corn Salad

Pina Colada Fruit Salad

Patriotic Salad

Easy American Trifle Dessert

The Vinaigrette... so simple to do at home

I won't try to reinvent the wheel for you on this one.  LOL  There are some great articles already written on this topic and a variety of twists on it.  I choose to make my own for three basic reasons... the freshness of ingredients that I can use, the control I have over what goes into my dressing and the cost... it is MUCH cheaper for me to make it than to buy it.  

Here is a small list of my favorites...

How to Make a Basic Vinaigrette

Try a Chia Seed Vinaigrette

More about Chia Seeds in Salad Dressings

A Great PDF Download with lots of Chia Seed Dressing Recipes
& Videos of recipes from the same site

Easy Homemade Vinaigrette Ideas

Make the Perfect Vinaigrette

A video on how to emulsify your vinaigrette... 

really simple and good instruction.  

You will be making your own tonight for dinner!  :)

One more nice article 

with instruction and recipe included.  

Basic Lettuces I Use

I have been able to find several really lovely lettuces at our local market.  This particular one is a curly endive.  I use this particular variety in the classic Italian Wedding Soup.  It would be nice in a cold salad, too, in a blend of different lettuces.

This is a classic Endive.  I have used the leaves from this to serve as "pockets" for other goodies when serving hors d'oevres.  It is also nice chopped into salads.  I plan to share a salad from Giada in a few days that uses them.

Arugula is a nice spring lettuce that has a bit of a peppery flavor.

Nice and light and perfect for those early spring salads for Easter or Mother's Day.

 This is a Boston Bibb or Butter Lettuce (both in the package above and the one below)

 Boston Bibb is the lettuce of choice for the classic Salad Nicoise.

It is perfect with a lemon or vinegar dressing and can serve as a beautiful bed for other salad showcasing.

It has a light flavor, too, and does not overpower the other ingredients on display.

 Traditional Green Leaf Lettuce is one that a precious lady used to grow in her garden in Paluxy, Texas.  

You can find it readily in the supermarkets today along with it's sister, the Red Leaf Lettuce. (below)

Both red and green lettuces are great for simple salads throughout the summer and can be paired with both savory and sweet ingredients nicely.  I often use one or both of these when pairing with apples and dried fruit as well as carrot, tomato, celery, etc...

This one gets a very bad wrap but it is a classic.. It is the Iceberg Lettuce.  It has it's uses but my favorite is to use it as a filler in with other lettuces or to use to top things like tacos with.  The leaves can also serve as a base for other items and, of course, hamburger, chicken and other sandwich filling.  Don't throw it out... just add variety to it.

 This one is Curly Kale.  There are several varieties of Kale but this one seems to be the easiest to find in our local stores.  I use this in a salad I am going to share with you in the next few days, too, and it is FABULOUS in smoothies.  I also use Romaine and Spinach in smoothies.  Lots of green and fiber... it does a body good!

 Romaine is great subbed in just about anything you have ever used Iceberg Lettuce in.  I use this one a my go-to standard because it is readily available and very affordable.  It makes great wraps, too.

Spinach is fabulous... in smoothies... in salad... cooked... on burgers and sandwiches or just snitching it out of the bowl and popping it in the mouth while thinking your wife did not see you swipe it.  LOL  This one is Dan's favorite!

We love this mix!  We love that it comes organic now and that it is cheaper at Walmart then it's non-organic counterpart.  Put whatever you want on it and add nuts and some grated cheese along with a favorite vinaigrette and you have a party in your mouth!  This one is my favorite!!!

Got a favorite that you can get in your area?  

One you love to grow in your garden? 

What do you add to your favorite lettuce?

Please feel free to share with us...

The personal sized Salad Nicoise... for hot summer weather this is perfect

This is a Julia Child recipe and I have it here if you would like to try it. :)

Fruit Salad tip...

Here I have apple, strawberry, grapes and banana.  I will often add green grapes instead and kiwi and blueberries but did not have them on hand today.  To keep the apple and banana from turning brown I add an acid.  Lemon tends to be too tart and I don't often have orange or grapefruit to use.  

 I will keep cans of pineapple on hand to use in such an instance and the pineapple juice does nicely to keep the brown away plus the pineapple is a nice addition to the salad.  It also gives a little shine to the salad.  If you want even a little more shine you can sprinkle some powdered sugar over the top and stir it in for a nice sheen.

Pineapple

Quick lunch salad...

I have recently lost 20 pounds.  I am still working on losing about 15 to 20 more.  I have changed how I eat and I plan meals much better these days.  I also keep lots of things prepped and ready to put together things like this salad.

This is a typical lunch for me these days.

I started this one with about 2 cups chopped Romaine lettuce

1/2 of an apple chopped up

1 serving (about 2 Tbsp) pistachios toasted

1/6 to 1/3 cup craisins

1/2 cooked chicken breast cubed

I love to add Feta cheese to the top, too when I have it

I also make my own Cranberry Vinaigrette

1/2 cup cranberry juice and reduce it in the saucepan for a few minutes

a couple Tbsp apple cider vinegar or Basamic vinegar added once the above is cooled

pinch of salt
if you want a little sweetness you can add a bit of brown sugar to taste

about 1/2 cup of olive oil whisked in to form an emulsion

I use about 2 Tbsp or so of the vinaigrette on the salad

This is one of my favorite "go-to" lunches these days.  YUM!!!

My first solo job...

I did a menu for a Summer Salad Supper...

I served a green salad with apple, craisins, walnuts and a balsamic vinaigrette, a gourmet taco salad with grilled chicken, brussel sprouts and quinoa with a walnut pesto, a traditional Italian pasta salad and to finish the meal I served an apple and blueberry crisp. I make all my own vinaigrettes and dressings.  No preservatives or artificial chemicals in any of this food!  :)  Here are some photos...

Salad Nicoise...

This was inspired by an episode from The French Chef with Julia Child.

I left out the anchovies... I do not like anchovies and neither does my family so we just did not use them. This made a great supper last night for us with a fresh cantalope.

Ingredients:

1 large head Boston-lettuce leaves, washed and dried
1 pound green beans, cooked and refreshed
1-1/2 tablespoons minced shallots
1/2 to 2/3 cup basic vinaigrette
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 or 4 ripe red tomatoes, cut into wedges (or 10 to 12 cherry tomatoes, halved)
3 or 4 "boiling" potatoes, peeled, sliced, and cooked
Two 3-ounce cans chunk tuna, preferably oil-packed
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and halved
1 freshly opened can of flat anchovy fillets
1/3 cup small black Niçoise-type olives
2 to 3 tablespoons capers
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Instructions:

Arrange the lettuce leaves on a large platter or in a shallow bowl. Shortly before serving, toss the beans with the shallots, spoonfuls of vinaigrette, and salt and pepper. Baste the tomatoes with a spoonful of vinaigrette. Place the potatoes in the center of the platter and arrange a mound of beans at either end, with tomatoes and small mounds of tuna at strategic intervals. Ring the platter with halves of hard-boiled eggs, sunny side up, and curl an anchovy on top of each. Spoon more vinaigrette over all; scatter on olives, capers, and parsley, and serve.

Yield: Serves 6

Basic Vinaigrette...

Ingredients:

1/2 tablespoon finely minced shallot or scallion
1/2 tablespoon Dijon-type mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon wine vinegar
1/3 to 1/2 cup excellent olive oil, or other fine, fresh oil
Freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

Either shake all the ingredients together in a screw-topped jar, or mix them individually as follows. Stir the shallots or scallions together with the mustard and salt. Whisk in the lemon juice and vinegar, and when well blended start whisking in the oil by droplets to form a smooth emulsion. Beat in freshly ground pepper. Taste (dip a piece of the salad greens into the sauce) and correct seasoning with salt, pepper, and/or drops of lemon juice.

Yield: For about 2/3 cup, serving 6 to 8

A bit of inspiration...

I have been reading lots of raw food sites since I started eating more raw a few weeks ago. I also picked up some books to read on the subject and am trying some new things. One of my favorite sites that I have found (along with her book I just picked up) is Ani Phyo. She made a wild rice salad that is really great! I made a few changes for my own tastes and ingredients I had on hand and this is what I came up with ...

Soak wild rice for 24+ hours changing water 3-4 times. It is recommended to use filtered water but I did not have any on hand. I do plan to pick up a filtered pitcher soon to do this more often.
I used 1 cup of rice uncooked to start this process.

After the rice was ready I added...

1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 small bunch of chopped cilantro
the juice of 1/2 a lime
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper to taste
chopped tomato.


Toss all together and enjoy. Very flavorful and filling!

Mock Taco Salad

Got my inspiration from this page.

I put walnuts into a food processor with a pinch of cumin, coriander, pink sea salt and pepper. I blended it until it was the consistency of cooked ground beef.

I cut up romaine lettuce
2 tomatoes
1 avocado
a bit of red onion

and then I tossed it all together and used the juice from one lime to use as my dressing.

If I had cilantro I would have used that and maybe a bit of oil like the other site indicated but the lime was quite good. It was very light for a hot summer day. At some point I might get creative and make some kind of raw crisp or cracker to go with it. I am going to play with this one some more 'cause I really liked it and would eat it often. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture before it was gone. Next time, I promise...

UPDATE: added that picture for you! :)

Apple Salad

Apple Salad

1 Red Delicious apple
1 Golden Delicious apple
1 Granny Smith apple

(I used a Gala, Braeburn, Red Delicious, Yellow Delicious for mine this week)

Peel and core all the apples.
Cut them into cubes and place in a bowl.
Add the following to the apples and mix together:

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup golden or regular raisins (or ¼ cup both if you like)

Dressing mix:
1 Tbsp orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup to 2/3 cup vanilla or plain yogurt

Blend together and stir into the apple salad and serve.