Salads and Dressings Archives | Page 2 of 6

Crispy Prosciutto Fig Salad with Lemon, Chive and Honey Dressing

September 12, 2017

Fig season isn’t over yet, is it? My fresh figs are long gone, but I’ve still been seeing them around online so hopefully I’m not too late.

I made this salad a few weeks ago and have been meaning to post it ever since. Travel picked up for me in September and as usual the blog was the first thing I could put on the back burner for a few days.

So here I sit with a tasty fig salad recipe to share and fig season is coming dangerously close to ending.

The inspiration for this came from my friend Tracey. She told me about a salad she makes with bacon and figs and it got me thinking about similar combinations.

Quick Pickled Cucumber Tomato Salad

July 19, 2017

I hate to say it, but I’m pretty sure my days of canning are over. Or at least on pause for a while.

I’m not opposed to doing it again, but I learned something pretty quickly after our big garden and endless canning motivation back in Kentucky – we can’t eat it all. Especially when it is jam, or jalapenos, or relish.

Salsa we did a pretty good job of polishing off, but the rest of it? It was just too much to have around or even to give away.

These days my time is spent making small batches of jam in a saucepan and popping it in the fridge, versus a water bath for long term storage. Same goes for pickling – it is small batch quick pickling all the way.

Growing up we always had cucumber salad in the summer made with a sugar and vinegar dressing.

I still make a similar version, but with a bit less sugar. Occasionally I throw in other veggies which is how this salad came about.

Skillet Sweet Corn Salad with White Nectarine

June 22, 2017

Skillet Corn Salad with White Nectarines Recipe | Fake Food Free

There are two things I love about summer – sweet corn and white nectarines.

Normally, I wouldn’t think of putting the two together, but lately I’ve had this thing for mixing fruits into savory foods. I’m a huge fan of the of sweet and savory and combining fruits and veggies feels like a better habit to me than, say, eating too much salted caramel.

So blueberries sometimes find their way into chicken salad and cherries often appear in my bean salads.

Given this new habit I found myself wanting to try nectarines with my corn. My first thought was a corn fruit salsa, but then I decided to skip the chips and eat this as a summer side dish.

Grilled Cherry Salad with Garbanzo Beans, Cilantro, and Lime

May 12, 2017

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve abruptly slammed on my brakes at the sight of fruit for sale since moving to California. Don’t worry, I’m careful. But at least one of every 10 drives involves a brake and swerve.

In this case, it was local cherries.

I’d lost track of the timing since last year, and I wasn’t quite sure what week to expect seeing trucks with them for sale parked at intersections. I was less than a mile from the house last week, when a truck came into view.

No. It couldn’t be. Is it that time already?

I was coming from behind the display so the truck was blocking my view. But just as I got close enough to see those round, glossy cherries piled high in cups lining a folding table – brake, swerve, park.

Chickpea, Brown Rice, and Kale Salad in a Jar with Pesto

February 26, 2017

I’ve always wanted a messy garden. I know that sounds strange. Most people want a gorgeously organized, symmetrical growing plot with every veggie in its place.

Not me. I’ve always loved the look of gardens that are bursting at the seams with greenery growing in every direction. Like a forest gone wild that produces food.

This might be because I lack the skill to produce one of those perfect gardens. Maybe I’m drawn to messy gardens because they are easier to maintain. But really it’s how they look.

I’m getting there.

Fall Salad with Butternut Squash and Apple Cider Vinaigrette

October 11, 2016

I totally cheated.

I was walking through the supermarket and it was about 11:15. Lunchtime was quickly creeping up on me, but I knew that I’d have to dive back into recipe work for clients the second I got back home.

I needed something quick to make, but I couldn’t get my mind off the piles of winter squash all around me in the produce section.

I wanted roasted squash. On a salad. With other fall-like things.

So I went over to that little section with all the pre-cut veggies. And there it was. Little cubes of butternut squash ready to pop in the oven.

Simple Cilantro Jicama Salad

August 11, 2016

I buy jicama once in a blue moon. I have no idea why. Every time I get it into my kitchen, I marvel at the crunchy texture and its snackability. (Technically not a word, but it should be, don’t you think?)

So in honor of not completely going all fall on you with recipes, I picked one up last week to show that I still have a little light and refreshing summer left in me. I thought I’d show you what I do with it. It’s also known as the simplest salad ever.

Baked Tofu Bowl with Peanut Dressing

July 15, 2016

I have some strong opinions about tofu. To be honest, I feel sorry for it. Somewhere along the lines in our food culture it got pegged as a health-nut, granola, only-vegans-eat-it kind of food.

If those are the reasons you eat it, that’s great and all, but I discovered tofu in a much different way and associate it with a very different style of eating.

My Favorite Winter Salad

January 13, 2016

Early last year I was on a huge salad hiatus. I simply couldn’t get salads to taste good anymore. They were too bland, too blah. Quite frankly, they were living up to their reputation of tasting like cardboard and rabbit food.

Then one day I was assisting with a photo shoot and the recipe editor announced that she had made us a big salad for lunch. Expecting a few leaves of romaine and bottled dressing, I grabbed a bowl and headed to the kitchen.

Next she asked if we would like a poached egg. I love poached eggs, but I’d never tried an egg on a salad. I accepted as I cast my eyes over all the delicious toppings set out on the counter next to a large bowl of mixed greens tossed in a simple miso dressing.

Lemon Walnut Salad Dressing

March 13, 2015

This salad dressing combines tangy lemon and creamy walnuts for a flavor that will bring out the best in mixed greens, pasta or grains!

Salad season will soon be here. That probably sounds a little strange coming from someone who now lives in a place that most people would consider spring and summer year round.

I always thought that my salad cravings were controlled by the seasons, but I’ve learned that this is not the case. Apparently they are controlled by the months on the calendar. Despite sunshine and vegetables being plentiful all the time, I still really only want salads April through August.