Bachelor in the Kitchen: Dressing Up a Seasonal Favorite

Written by Nick -

I eat seasonally. Wintertime is for meat and potatoes, but when the sun is shining, I’m all for a fresh salad. Salad doesn’t need to be a side dish. It’s easy to “dress-up” with your favorite salad dressing and adding a bit of grilled chicken or any other favorite protein item makes it a filling meal. A salad is also a great way to get your recommended five servings of fruits and veggies. And it’s one of the simplest meals to make for one or two people, which is what I typically cook for. But, I think, the best thing about a salad is the constant variety you can create by adding new and interesting dressings with the seasonal veggies and fruits.

I’m lucky enough to live close to a fantastic green grocer. Not only do they have great, fresh produce, but shopping there takes out the headache of dealing with the crowds at the grocery store. Plus it helps you avoid the grocery store temptations. After all, salads should be healthy, but I can’t help adding bacon to my cart when I see it right next to the low fat ranch dressing…

You can add all the different veggies you want, but if you don’t have a unique dressing, salads can become stale and boring. So I’m always on the lookout for homemade dressing recipes. I like making dressings at home so I can constantly customize to my individual liking and then brag about my expert skills in the kitchen. Anyone can chop some lettuce and tomatoes and throw in a bit of store bought dressing, but when you have a“signature” dressing it’s worth showing it off.

I decided to step out of my comfort zone and try this creamy salad dressing, which uses NESTLÉ COFFEE-MATE Liquid Coffee Creamer! I didn’t follow the recipe for the salad, I like to pick out whatever looks fresh. In this case I mixed in some romaine, added some spinach, cherry tomatoes, red onion, avocados (since moving to California I add avocados to everything), and topped it all off with some grilled chicken. This dressing is a delicious, creamy mixture with a kick of pepper. Each tablespoon is packed with flavor, so don’t get too overzealous when adding to your salad. A little goes a long way with this dressing.

What’s your favorite way to dress up a salad?

Creamy Parmesan Romaine

Ingredients for 4 Servings:

• 2 slices whole-wheat bread (about 2 ounces total), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 cup sliced cucumber
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
• 3 tablespoons Original NESTLÉ COFFEE-MATE Liquid Coffee Creamer
• 2 tablespoons fat free sour cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoons light mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons BUITONI Refrigerated Freshly Shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 350° F.

PLACE bread cubes in single layer on large baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove from oven; cool completely.

PLACE lettuce, cucumber and onion in large bowl; set aside.

COMBINE Coffee-mate, sour cream, mayonnaise, cheese, vinegar, salt and pepper in small bowl; stir until completely blended. Add to lettuce mixture; toss gently, yet thoroughly, to coat completely. Add bread cubes; toss gently.

Related Recipes:

Tortellini Salad Italiana	Chickpea-Spinach Salad with Avocados and Oranges

A New Favorite: Fennel & Apple Salad with Apple Vinaigrette

Written by Chris -

This Fennel & Apple Salad has become my new favorite salad – and mind you, this is coming from someone who avoided fennel her whole life. Really. I’m not sure why it took me so long to warm up to fennel, but now, I can’t get enough of it. Fennel and apple play so well together and I’m kicking myself for just discovered this.

I have our local Farmer Fresh to You program to thank for my new obsession. Bi-weekly, we get fresh, local and organic produce delivered to our doorstep, so I like to challenge myself to create new recipes from what’s in the box. Two of our recent deliveries were overflowing with apples and fennel. My first thought was – shoot, what am I going to do with all this fennel? Then I remember coming across a recipe for a stacked fennel salad that caught my eye. It was more the visual that I fell in love with, because, well, fennel was the star ingredient.

I nearly always add fresh thyme, glazed walnuts or pecans and crumbled blue cheese to my salads, so why not incorporate these elements into a stacked fennel & apple salad? I thought I’d tie it all together with an apple vinaigrette that I created for Nestlé. Wow! I am certain I ate at least 3 servings.

I used a mandoline to slice the apples and fennel, but you could thinly slice with a sharp chef’s knife as well. I made one minor change to this recipe after photographing it. I’ve been using the mandoline to shave the apples and fennel almost paper-thin. This way, you can eat it with just a fork. It’s really just a matter of preference. One tip: if you like fennel, double the recipe and save half. This salad gets even better the second day! The fennel softens ever so slightly, the apple stays crisp and the flavors marry beautifully. I was topping everything with it – turkey burger, ahi tuna – you name it.

Apple & Fennel Salad with Apple Vinaigrette

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 1/2 cups Apple NESTLÉ® JUICY JUICE® All Natural 100% Juice
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 to 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 small red apples, washed, cored and thinly sliced
• 4 small fennel bulbs, washed and thinly sliced (about 4 cups total)
• 2 to 3 slices red onion (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped glazed pecans
• 1/4 (1 ounce) cup crumbled blue cheese
• Fresh thyme leaves

Directions:

BRING Juicy Juice to a boil in small saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low; cook for 20 minutes or until juice is reduced to ½ cup. Cool to room temperature. (Juice can be refrigerated in covered container for up to 2 days.) Whisk in vinegar, oil, mustard, salt and pepper.

TO ASSEMBLE: Alternately stack layers of fennel and apple (and onion if using) on salad plates. Drizzle with apple vinaigrette. Sprinkle with pecans, blue cheese and thyme leaves.

Related recipes:

Apple Quinoa Salad	Spring Farro Salad

Ancient Grains: Spring Farro Salad

Written by Chris -

Farro is an ancient wheat grain that can be found in specialty foods stores, natural foods stores, and Italian markets. It’s sold whole (which is the most nutritious), semi-pearled, or pearled, all of which can be used in place of barley and other grains in salads. In Italy, where most farro is grown, the grain is often added to soups. It can be substituted for rice in risotto as well. And it’s fabulous for breakfast.

Farro has a hearty texture and nutty taste, making it the perfect base for this spring salad. I chose to use pearled farro because it can be prepared quickly. Since it’s hulled, the cook time is reduced to 15 to 20 minutes. If you prefer to use whole grain farro, plan on cooking it for about 45-60 minutes.

Grain salads make a satisfying lunch, simple side or nutritious snack. Use whatever vegetables are in season and you really can’t go wrong. I chose fresh English peas, English cucumber, green onions, dill, micro greens and avocado. I didn’t plan to have everything green in color; it’s just what I had on hand. Fresh lemon vinaigrette brings it all together!

Spring Farro Salad

Ingredients needed for four 1-cup servings:

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup pearled farro
• 1 ½ teaspoons MAGGI Instant Chicken Flavor Bouillon
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup English peas, blanched* (these are super tasty raw too!)
• ½ cup sliced and quartered English cucumber, seeded if desired
• ½ cup micro greens or wild arugula
• ¼ cup sliced green onions
• 2 tablespoons snipped fresh dill
• ½ cup diced avocado

Directions:

COMBINE water, farro and bouillon in medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover; cook for 15 to 20 minutes or just until farro is tender (it will not absorb all the water). Drain and set aside to cool.

WHISK together oil, lemon juice, lemon peel, vinegar and pepper in large bowl. Add farro; toss to coat. Add peas, cucumber, micro greens, green onions and dill; toss gently to coat. Taste and season salad with sea salt, if needed; fold in avocado. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

*Set aside a bowl of ice water and slotted spoon. Bring a pan of water to boil over high heat. Add a teaspoon of salt and the peas and boil just until bright green (about 30 seconds to 1 minute). Quickly remove the peas with the slotted spoon and plunge them into the ice.

Links:

• Spring Farro Salad
• Get a Maggi coupon

Related recipes:

Whole-Wheat Couscous Salad

Apple Quinoa Salad

Layered Mediterranean Tortellini Salad: the New 7-Layer Salad

 

Written by Liz

For those of you who grew up in the south or the mid-west, or “just north of Texas,” your mom probably made 7-Layer Salad, or at least had it in her recipe repertoire. If she didn’t make it at least once, her mom probably did.

This was a very popular salad that swept the American interior in the 1950s – and maybe even made it to the coasts – with its sophisticated layered presentation, flexibility for ingredients you might be cleaning out of your fridge and the plentiful mass of mayonnaise on top. In the south it’s heavy on peas, and it makes a great picnic or pot luck salad.

Chris’ Layered Mediterranean Tortellini Salad is a healthier version of this 7-Layer Salad using spinach and whole wheat tortellini and I decided to make it for my mom when she came to town. She fondly remembers the classic 7-Layer Salad from my childhood (as well as a variety of wine punch recipes involving a fancy punch bowl and polyester bell bottoms) and was eager to try this lighter, updated recipe.

I used my new punch bowl/cake stand to showcase the salad and made just a few substitutions: I used a chunk of Italian parmesan cut into wide strips with a vegetable peeler and I replaced the canned olives with a gourmet mix of fresh olives with their pits from the local grocer. I also made my own Greek salad dressing with olive oil, red wine vinegar, dried Italian herbs, salt and pepper (I added a dash of buttermilk to evoke some of the classic taste for my mom).

Layered Mediterranean Tortellini Salad

Ingredients for 12 servings:

• 1 package (9 ounces) BUITONI Refrigerated Spinach Cheese Tortellini
• 1 package (9 ounces) BUITONI Refrigerated 100% Whole Wheat Three Cheese Tortellini
• 6 tablespoons bottled light Greek or Italian dressing, divided
• 2 cups whole cherry or pear tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded fresh basil
• 1 1/2 cups sliced cucumber
• 1 can (13.75 ounces) artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed and quartered (about 1 1/3 cups)
• 1 can (6 ounces) pitted whole ripe olives, drained (about 1 1/3 cups)
• Ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup (1.5 ounces) BUITONI Refrigerated Freshly Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

PREPARE pasta according to package directions; rinse in cold water then drain well. Place spinach tortellini in one bowl and the whole wheat tortellini in another bowl. Add 2 tablespoons salad dressing to each bowl; toss gently to coat.

PLACE tomatoes in large glass serving bowl; drizzle with 1 tablespoon salad dressing. Top with all of spinach tortellini, feta cheese, red onion and basil; drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon salad dressing. Top with all of the whole wheat tortellini, cucumbers, artichokes and olives. Cover; refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Season with pepper; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese before serving.

It was delicious, light and very satisfying as a summer meal. It was even better the next day after marinating in the dressing overnight. My mom was delighted too. Next, we’re moving on to the punch.

Links:

• Layered Mediterranean Tortellini Salad
• More salad recipes
• Get a Buitoni coupon

Related punch bowl recipes:

Sparkling Sangria

Ambrosia