Saturday, 21 Dec 2024

Vegetarian

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Most people think of lettuce and boring veggies when it comes to salads but they can be so much more than that.  They can be warm and comforting.  Hearty and flavorful.  And forbidden?  If it’s forbidden you know it must be good!  Forbidden rice is actually very high in nutritional value and contains 18 amino acids, iron,  zinc, copper, carotene, anthocyanin and several other vitamins. The grain has a similar amount of fiber to brown rice and like brown rice, has a mild, nutty taste.  I’ve been using quite a lot of forbidden (or black rice as it’s sometimes called) rice lately.  My kids think it’s great eating ‘forbidden’ rice and I love it’s hearty texture.  Our nights are still very cool here in Southern California and this salad is perfect for those nights.

I’m Just Peachy Salad

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I love living in California where just about everyone has fruit trees growing in their backyards.  If you know enough people you can easily have everything on hand to throw together an awesome fruit salad!  This week my friend Kara was kind enough to share some of their peaches with me.  Aren’t they just beautiful?!

Arugula, Blueberry and Cucumber Salad

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While the weather here in Southern California has been mild, reports from family and friends back home in the midwest have been anything but. With the summer heat that much of the country has been experiencing lately this cooling salad is just the thing. The combination of ingredients in this salad were inspired by the fresh offerings found at our local farmers market this past week. Arugula is one of my favorite greens to use in a salad and it’s pungent flavor is the perfect background to the sweet blueberries and crisp cool cucumbers. The bright lemon basil vinaigrette is light and clean and just the thing to combine all the ingredients together in perfect harmony. Enjoy the flavors of summer.

Cherry Tomato Salad with “Feta” Cheese

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Remember those MONSTER tomato bushes I told you about?  The ones that engulfed my chives, parsley, blackberry and raspberry bushes?  Well, they are now bursting with ripe little cherry tomatoes.  More than I know what to do with.  I’m pretty sure my kids will run away screaming if they see tomatoes on their plate at dinner one more night.   With all the picnics, potlucks and summer get togethers going on I decided to whip up a refreshing salad and share the tomato love.  Plus, this dish is best served at room temperature so no worries with having to keep it cool and refrigerated while at a gathering or outdoor venue.  And if you don’t have a backyard filled with cherry tomatoes – COME TAKE MINE!!!  I’m up to my eyeballs in tomatoes!  Someone save me!

Summer Sweet Potato Salad with Garlic Dijonnaise

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“Summer lovin’ had me a blast. Summer lovin’ happened so fast” (Grease-Summer Nights). I love summer. I love summer salads. I live on salads all year round but I especially enjoy salads in the summer with the fresh seasonal produce that isn’t available in the winter. Corn is one of my favorite summer ingredients so I paired it with a few other favorites like sweet potato and leeks and as if that isn’t enough to cause some summer lovin’ then the creamy, tangy dressing will make you want to break out in a chorus of “Hopelessly Devoted to You”.

Simple Naked Sauerkraut

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It hardly gets any more naked than this. Do you know what ingredients are in sauerkraut? Cabbage and salt. That’s it. You can add other things if you like, carrot, peppers, caraway seed or juniper berries, etc. but those are optional ingredients. I am of German heritage and my dad used to make sauerkraut so I grew up eating it and loving it. What I didn’t know then was how healthy raw sauerkraut is (this not does apply to store-bought pasteurized sauerkraut). Sauerkraut is cabbage that has fermented and fermented cabbage is even healthier and easier to digest than raw cabbage since the fermenting creates a naturally occurring probiotic.

Sauerkraut Soup

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I don’t eat a lot of soup in the summer but I like this one because it’s light yet flavorful. The sauerkraut adds a ton of flavor and since it’s added at the end and not cooked it keeps it’s beneficial raw live probiotic cultures intact. Happy belly, happy tastebuds, happy you.

Fiery Mexican Soup

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On a recent trip to Native Foods Cafe it was a pretty cool night and I decided to try their soup of the day – Tortilla Soup.  Now, I can handle some spice with no problem but one bite and I thought my mouth was literally on fire.  My husband, who can eat a habanero and not even break a sweat, gave the soup a try and deemed it to be one of the best he had tasted.  He flattened the whole bowl in less than a minute and asked if I could try to make something similar at home.  I’m always up for challenge and I love creating new soup recipes.  I know he’s biased but my husband enjoyed this soup more than the original.  I love that the creaminess of this soup comes from heart healthy nuts and avocado.  This was a great addition to our weekly taco night!  Enjoy.

Krunchy Kale Salad

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Say hello to my newest obsession.  I have eaten this salad every single day for almost 2 weeks now and some nights I even have it again for dinner.  I just can’t stop eating it!!!!  It needs it’s own Facebook page where people can come and say nice things to it and how much they enjoy it’s crunchy texture and delicious balsamic glaze.  If Bull Testicles can have a Facebook Page then my Krunchy Kale Salad can too!  And it’s such a polite salad, letting you add in your favorite veggies or seasonings – it doesn’t mind, it’s cool like that.  It just wants to fill your belly with yummy goodness – isn’t it sweet?!  Maybe it will trend on twitter – #krunchykalesalad.  Make it happen people!

Toasted Millet and Vegetable Stuffed Patty Pans

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Patty Pan squash are so adorable that sometimes I just can’t bring myself to cut them up to prepare them so the next best thing is to leave them intact and stuff them! I don’t know how they came to be called patty pan squash. I would name them sunshine squash since they are so bright and cheerful looking.