Warm Vegetable Salad

I really like this. I meant to post this many, many months ago and almost forgot about this recipe until I found this draft. I can’t believe I almost lost this recipe. I really like this salad!

Ingredients

• 2 whole red peppers
• 1 1/2 pound assorted red and white new potatoes
• 3/4 pounds green beans, trimmed and halved
• 1 bunch scallions, sliced
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped oregano leaves
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat the broiler. Place the red peppers on a foil lined baking sheet.

Place the red peppers under the boiler. Turning every 2 to 3 minutes cook the peppers until the skin is blistered, about 8 to 9 minutes total. Place the blistered peppers in a plastic bag. Seal the bag and allow the peppers to sit for 10 minutes to allow the skin to separate and to let cool.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and cook until tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the potatoes to a cutting board. Add the green beans to the pot. Cook the green beans until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove the green beans to a large bowl. Slice the potatoes in half while still warm and combine them with the green beans in the large bowl. Remove the peppers from the plastic bag. Peel off the skin from the peppers. Slice the pepper flesh into wide strips and remove the seeds and veins. Place them in the bowl with the potatoes. Add the scallions, parsley, and garlic and toss to combine.

In a small bowl combine the oregano, lemon juice and zest, and white wine vinegar. Whisk in the olive oil. Stir in the salt and pepper. Toss the warm vegetables with the herb vinaigrette. Serve immediately.

Sonoma Chicken Salad

This is Morgan’s favorite. We forget about it for a long time, then he remembers it and specially requests it. The recipe is from Whole Foods, and I know that they sell it in a wrap or just in the cold deli selection. Its pretty good, and if you’re lazy or just looking for a shortcut you can just use BRIANNA’S homestyle poppy seed dressing, instead of making the dressing from scratch. I like add chopped green leaf or red leaf lettuce and maybe some julienned carrots to the wrap when we make this.

Ingredients: 

• Dressing
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 5 teaspoons honey
• 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Salad
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3/4 cup pecan pieces, toasted
• 2 cups red seedless grapes
• 3 stalks celery, thinly sliced

Method: 

In a bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, poppy seeds, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to dress the salad. This can be prepared up to 2 days ahead.
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place the chicken breasts in one layer in a baking dish with 1/2 cup water. Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes until completely cooked through. Remove cooked chicken breasts from pan, cool at room temperature for 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate.
When the chicken is cold, dice into bite-size chunks and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in pecans, grapes, celery and dressing.

You can check out the recipe and a picture on Whole Food’s website here: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/sonoma-chicken-salad

Mexican Chopped Salad with Honey-Lime dressing

I found this recipe recently as I was looking for an easy lime Cilantro dressing I could make at home and really the rest of the recipe (the chopped salad part) sounded good too. I ended up making this when we had to feed a group of missionaries so I actually cooked up a few sirloin steaks to medium rare (let them rest a few minutes so they maintain the juices) and then sliced them up to top the salad with. Then we put the whole salad on top of a tortilla with cheese, of course this would be plenty yummy without the meat and tortilla. Now I know this sort of recipe is not everyone’s cup of tea (speaking to those who have taken on the vegan commitment and those who have special diets, oh and those poor souls who weren’t blessed enough to enjoy the brilliant flavor of cilantro), but we enjoyed it and I’m starting to use this site to store more of those easier everyday recipes I’d make again. Besides, Maren is posting all her vegan recipes on True Lavender these days!

INGREDIENTS:

Salad

• 2 1/2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 can (15.5 oz) black beans, rinsed and well drained
• 3/4 cup chopped seeded tomato
• 3/4 cup chopped peeled jicama (unfortunately this proved hard to find)
• 3/4 cup fresh corn kernels, uncooked (or frozen or canned)
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced radishes
• Half a ripe avocado, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese (I passed on this as we put Monterey Jack cheese on the tortillas)

Honey-Lime Dressing

• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp honey (I think its completely appropriate to add more…)
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
• 1 tsp chopped jalapeño pepper (use canned for less heat – I used dried pepper flakes because its what I had on hand)

PREPARATION

Toss all salad ingredients in a large bowl. In separate bowl, mix dressing ingredients. Pour dressing over mixture and toss again. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

You can find the recipe on this site:  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Mexican-Chopped-Salad-with-Honey-Lime-Dressing-230154#ixzz2SSNYd7bi