Salads Galore

When I’m travelling, it’s a bit of a challenge trying to eat food that’s best for me. I usually end up eating more meat than I should and I flare up. So every chance I get, I eat salad. I will order salad at restaurants; when I’m in a home setting, I make up my own. I mix salad greens with other veggies (carrots, bell pepper), fruits (fresh – strawberries, kiwi, papaya, oranges, grapes; or dried – blueberries, cranberries, prunes), nuts (almond, pistachio), cheese (small cheddar chunks or grated parmesan sprinkled over) and occasionally, bits of turkey. I usually stick to vinegar- and/or olive oil-based salad dressings (store-bought or made from scratch). I recently discovered Kraft’s light raspberry vinaigrette; I’ve put it on many salads that I’ve concocted and it tastes great!

Pako (Athyrium esculentum)

Pako (aka Fiddlehead fern) grows widely along the banks of streams, especially in less disturbed areas. Many of us are familiar with the use of ferns in flower arrangements; the roots are also used for growing orchids. Folkloric medicine has used decoctions of the rhizomes (see note) and young leaves as a cough remedy. The young fronds are eaten (raw or cooked) as a leafy vegetable; pako is a good source of calcium, phosphorus, iron, and vitamin B.

Source

Note: Rhizomes are horizontal underground stems that strike new roots out of their nodes, down into the soil, and that shoot new stems out of their nodes, up to the surface. This rhizome activity represents a form of plant reproduction (Source).

When I chance upon pako in the market, I always buy a bunch. The young fronds and soft stalks make a great basic salad. I simply slice up some tomatoes (you may add your choice of salad ingredients) and drissle it with vinaigrette dressing. For an easy vinaigrette recipe, check this out

Easy Vinaigrette

Talinum salad

Imagine if all plants were edible; maybe then no one would go hungry. I was recently introduced to a plant that grows freely around the area where I live and whose leaves are edible. The plant is called Talinum which is a genus of herbaceous succulent plants. Talinum fruticosum grows widely in tropical regions as a leaf vegetable. It can also be grown as an ornamental plant because of its foliage and tiny pink/purple flowers. As a leaf vegetable, T. fruticosum is rich in vitamins (including vitamins A and C) and minerals (such as iron and calcium). I prepare the Talinum leaves as a salad; sometimes I use it in sandwiches in place of lettuce. Pictured here is a simple salad made from Talinum leaves and carrots, topped with some chunks of low-fat cheese and vinaigrette dressing. A slice of bread (here, a mini ciabatta) completes a simple and healthy lunch or dinner. You can add more of your choice ingredients to the salad (for example, mango slices, almonds, grapes, dates, etc).

Black Bean Salad Recipe

Ingredients

1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, thoroughly rinsed, and drained (or 1 1/2 cup of freshly cooked black beans)

1 1/2 cups frozen corn, defrosted (or fresh corn, parboiled, drained and cooled)

1/2 cup chopped green onions or shallots

2 fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced, or 1 whole pickled jalapeño pepper, minced (not seeded)

3 fresh plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks

1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro

1/4 cup fresh chopped basil

2 Tbsp lime juice (about the amount of juice from one lime)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 to 1 teaspoon of sugar (to taste)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Make sure to rinse and drain the beans, if you are using canned beans.

In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, onions, jalapeno chile peppers, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, basil, lime juice and olive oil. Add sugar and salt and pepper to taste. (The sugar will help balance the acidity from the tomatoes.)

Source: Black Bean Salad

Avocado Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes

Ingredients

1 half avocado, peeled, sliced
1 half ripe heirloom tomato, sliced
A pinch of chopped fresh chives or sliced green onions
Juice from one slice of lemon
A pinch of coarse salt (fleur de sel if you can get it)

Directions

Arrange slices of avocado and tomato on a plate. Sprinkle with chives, lemon juice, and coarse salt.

Serves one.

Source: Avocado Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes

Asian Coleslaw

The dressing on this salad is peanut-based. If you have a food allergy to peanuts, you can substitute tahini for the peanut butter (or leave it out all together), and toasted sesame seeds for the peanuts.

Ingredients

1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter

6 Tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon toasted (dark) sesame oil

4 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar (if seasoned rice vinegar is not available, add a teaspoon or two of sugar to regular rice vinegar)

4 cups thinly sliced cabbage (Napa, green, purple, or a combination)

1/2 cup grated carrots

1/4 cup toasted, salted, shelled, peeled peanuts

Optional

Chopped fresh cilantro

Thinly sliced green onions or chives

Directions

1 Prepare dressing. Place peanut butter in a medium bowl. Add the vegetable oil and the toasted sesame oil and whisk until nicely smooth. Whisk in the seasoned rice vinegar and do a taste test. Depending on how you like your dressing, how salty your peanut butter is, how seasoned your rice vinegar is, you may want to add a little more vinegar, a little more sugar, or a little salt. (Makes about 3/4 cup of dressing.)

2 Toast the peanuts. Although the roasted peanuts from the store may already be cooked, you'll get even better flavor with just a little toasting. Heat a small skillet on medium high heat and add the nuts to the pan. Do not ignore or the nuts can easily burn. Stir a little with a wooden spoon until the peanuts begin to get browned in spots and you can smell the toasting aromas. Remove peanuts from pan to a dish.

3 In a large bowl, toss the sliced cabbage, grated carrots, and peanuts together, and any other optional ingredients you care to add (like a little chopped cilantro or green onions). Right before serving, mix in the dressing.

Great with fish or burgers.

Serves 4.

Source: Asian Coleslaw

Arugula Salad with Beets and Goat Cheese

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients:

Beets - (boiled until a fork easily goes in it, about an hour), peeled, sliced into strips
Fresh arugula - rinsed, patted dry with a paper towel
Goat cheese - chevre
Walnuts - chopped

Dressing ingredients:

Olive oil
Lemon
Dry powdered mustard
Sugar
Salt and pepper

Directions

The amount of ingredients depends on how many people you are serving and how much salad you intend to serve them. The important thing is that this is a good blend of flavors. I didn't try tossing this salad; each plate was composed individually.

The dressing for three individual salads was 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1/2 lemon, 1/4 teaspoon of powdered mustard, 3/4 teaspoon of sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Actually, it is all to taste. These are only approximate measurements.

Assemble the salad according to how much you want. A handful of arugula leaves, a few beet juliennes, some crumbled goat cheese, garnish with chopped walnuts. Use a vinaigrette salad dressing or what I've described above.

Source: Arugula Salad with Beets and Goat Cheese