Salad Recipes

[VioletButterfly]

@hodge - I saw said tray of veges at W-M today and thought of you! lol

I kind of go the way of @Junebug, lettuces/greens, chopped veges (snap or sugar peas, squash, peppers, carrots, cucumbers, onions, radishes, broccoli - too many to list!) , sometimes fruit (tomatoes, apples, pears, pineapple, mandarin oranges...), protein (fish, chicken, turkey), cheese, nuts/seeds, dressing. Whatever I have on hand or looks particularly interesting/fun at the market goes into the bowl.

A few combinations:

Field greens
Mandarin orange slices
Almonds, sliced
Summer squash, chopped
Snap peas, halved
Red pepper, chopped
Salmon or chicken, grilled or baked (add some lemon on top of the salmon and a touch of salt)
Dressing: small container of fat free/sugar free raspberry yogurt, thinned out with water or use an Asian dressing (Newman's Own is good)

Romaine, chopped
Baby spinach leaves
Apple, chopped (or sliced pears)
Walnuts or Pecans, chopped
Zucchini and summer squash, chopped
Carrot, shredded
Dressing: Balsamic vinaigrette

Iceberg lettuce, chopped
Tomatoes, chopped
Cucumbers, chopped
Carrot, shredded
Bacon or ham, chopped
Dressing: Buttermilk ranch

 

[hodge]

Yum to all of @VioletButterfly's ideas. I like other salad ideas posted, too, but cannot stand vinegar of any kind unless it's barely discernable in a dressing or sauce. I think it's just a trigger, as that's what we usually had for dinner when I was growing up . . . Italian dressing on lettuce, and dinnertime was a bad time in our house. I have never bought Italian dressing as an adult since I've been on my own. The only reason there is even vinegar is our house is for a) homemade BBQ sauce, or b) cleaning.

 

[Changing4Best]

I use pickling cucumbers rather than the larger waxed variety, so I can enjoy eating the peals too! Also, my pet guinea pig enjoys them as well. I just slice one up for me, salt it a bit and eat it with my hands. I eat out of packages a lot, that is just me. I like simple. If I don't use a plate, I don't have to wash it afterwards!

 

[VioletButterfly]

I had a thought last night - I didn't see the time-honored taco salad. :)

My version -

Iceberg lettuce - chopped or shredded
Carrot - shredded
Tomatoes - chopped
Colby Jack or Cheddar cheese, shredded
Salsa
Avocado, chopped
Black Beans, canned (drained) (can also use cooked ground meat of your choice)
Taco seasoning packet
Sour cream or Greek yogurt (or ranch dressing)
Taco chips (Mission brand is awesome!)

To assemble, place lettuce, tomatoes, carrots in a bowl and toss.
Sprinkle cheese on top, pour on some salsa and add avocado around the boarder of the bowl.
Heat beans and some of the taco seasoning packet through until hot enough to melt cheese.
Spoon beans on top of cheese.
Spoon sour cream/greek yogurt on top.
Serve with taco chips.


A sweet salad:
(there are many renditions of this on the Internet so you can check around for your preferences and get exact measurements)

Broccoli florets
Dried Cranberries or raisins
Colby Jack or Cheddar cheese, finely shredded
Sliced Almonds or Sunflower seeds
Red onion, finely chopped
Bacon, crumbled
Mayonnaise
Cider Vinegar (don't worry, this just gives the mayo and sweetener a mild twang)
Sugar or Splenda

 

[Friday]

Last time I was in the UK there was slightly more Mexican food than the time before, but aside from fresh coriander (cilantro) in most parts there was still virtually none. (Yay! Leeds Costco had tortilla chips! ...it's easy to make tortillas, and easy to make them into crisps, but tedious & time consuming) If you've got access &/or make this stuff at home all the time, ignore the following! :D If not & Mexican food is rare where you are Sandstone...

In America Taco Seasoning = chile powder, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, salt in roughly equal proportion.*

((In Mexico there are about 1,000 varieties. In my own cooking I follow a couple regional styles of CoastalMex cooking that's wildly different than the TexMex widely available over here. Meats & seafoods are mostly grilled, and mostly seasoned -except for salt or SantaMaria (salt, pepper, onion, garlic), and sometimes smokey ancho pepper- after cooking with various salsas & fresh veg.))

Basic Tomato Salsa = Tomatoes, white onions, jalapeño, garlic, fresh coriander, lemon juice, lime juice, salt, black pepper. ((Can be eaten fresh as pico de gallo / salsa fresco, or heated on the stove until it resembles pasta sauce, then chilled.))

Salsa Verde > I use this one Link Removed

(Corn) Tortilla Chips/Crisps are a pain time wise, but super cheap. It just Masa Harina (cornmeal, polenta) mixed with water, rolled into balls, then rolled out or pressed in a tortilla press into circles, baked or fried, then cut into triangles & deep fried. There are some great tutorials online.

* I've now got "Apples, grapes, celery, mayonnaise!" stuck in my head :hilarious:

 

[VioletButterfly]

Thanks @Friday for rounding out my taco salad ingredients. I think I'm guilty of living in an American bubble of sorts. :)

Ummm, cilantro and lime. Might be time to make some salsa. I picked up a new bag of chips yesterday.

Also, salads... I had an email from The Fresh Market in my email this morning with 3 salad recipes that looked very interesting. I can't post a link, but if you go to the website and look for salad recipes, you can page through them and see what looks good. Following are 3 that looked interesting to me:

Honey Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (no vinegar in this dressing)
Kale & Apple Quinoa Salad
Jicama Slaw

@Sandstone - Since you don't like vinegar, have you thought of substituting citrus fruit juice, i.e. lime or lemon, maybe mixing in a little orange or grapefruit?

 

[Deleted member 28740]

Last time I was in the UK there was slightly more Mexican food than the time before,

Living in London in '94 missing Los Angeles a friend took me to a Mexican restaurant for my birthday. Crips with catsup, and a shot of gold tequila was white. I was :roflmao: when I mentioned that it was not gold. "Yes it is." No it is not, is has no color. "The bottle say Gold." The bottle lies.
Awkward when the bill came.

Love Ceviche for a meal / salad mix. Raw seafood of choice and citrus, peppers, seasoning, veggies… so many recipes and each an adventure.

 

[Sandstone]

Had @Suzetig 's cauliflower salad tonight. Rather nice

 

[Suzetig]

Glad you enjoyed it - it's a favourite in my house