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Feta and Sun-dried Tomato Lentil Salad

I enjoy lentils and feel like they are highly underrated. This lentil salad from Gourmet Magazine has a lot of good flavors happening. I'm a fan.

Feta and Sun-dried Tomato Lentil Salad

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1/4 cup drained finely chopped sun dried tomatoes packed in oil
1 cup lentils picked over and rinsed
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese (about 2 ounces)

In a large bowl whisk together oil, vinegar, thyme, tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. Add lentils to a large saucepan of salted water and bring water to a boil. Cook lentils at a bare simmer until just tender, about 20 minutes. Drain lentils in a sieve and rinse gently. Toss lentils well with dressing and gently stir in Feta.

Blue Cheese & Pear Salad

I'm very into soup and salad right now. Here is a recipe for a quick and robust salad with a rich homemade dressing.

Blue Cheese and Pear Salad

1  bunch arugula, torn
1  head romaine lettuce, torn
2  medium pears, cored and thinly sliced
1  medium garlic clove, minced
1/2  cup buttermilk
1/2  cup blue cheese
1/4   tsp black pepper, ground
3/4 oz  chopped walnuts, about 3 Tbsp, toasted

Divide arugula and romaine among plates. Arrange pears on greens. Combine buttermilk, cheese, garlic and pepper. Toss salad in dressing. Sprinkle with walnuts and serve. 6 servings / 2 points each

 

Vegetable Salads

2007 is all about salads without lettuce. Let's be honest the lettuce is just filler in a salad anyway. I made one recently with cucumbers, avocado, tomato, sweet corn and vinaigrette for a screening of Madea's Family Reunion. It was fine, but a little too crazy for me. Here's a rundown of my favorite veggie side salad of the moment. It's clean and simple, with just the right mix of creamy and acidic flavors.

Avocado and Tomato Salad

1/2 avocado per person
1 medium tomato per person
olive oil
salt and pepper

Cut avocados and tomatoes into thick slices or chunks. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper to taste. Toss to coat.

X-treme Jello Salad

I know that Jello salad has gotten a bad rap over the years, but this is truly the jello salad recipe to end all jello salad recipes. My mom used to make this for potlucks and dinner parties and it always left guests wanting more. It's so good that I serve it as a dessert more often than a salad. The secret is in the apple sauce. It gives the jello a depth of flavor and texture that you can't get otherwise. You can sub any jello flavor or frozen fruit combination, but this combination tends to be the biggest crowd pleaser. Jello takes a few hours to set, so you may want to make this the night before or morning of your lunch or dinner.

Mom's Jello Salad

2 pkgs sugar free raspberry jello
1 cup boiling water
1 cup cold water
1 1/2 cups apple sauce
1 bag frozen mixed berries
rectangular casserole dish or baking pan

In a large glass measuring cup or small bowl, combine 1 cup of boiling water and both packages of jello stirring until well dissolved (about 2 minutes). Pour jello into pan and mix in 1 cup of cold water, 1 1/2 cups apple sauce, and bag of frozen berries. Place pan in fridge to set for 4 hours or until firm. Cut into squares and serve.

Warm Chopped Chicken Picatta Spinach Salad

In the same 30 Minute Meal episode as the spaghetti recipe was this warm spinach salad recipe. It's a little more involved than Rachael Ray lets on, but it's pretty good and Popmuse loved it. It requires a lot of spinach, but for fear of e coli / bloody diarea it's probably best to use arugula instead.

Warm Chopped Chicken Picatta Spinach Salad

1 pound chicken breast cutlets, 6 pieces
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan
1 tablespoon butter
2 shallots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons capers, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 lemon, juiced
2 pounds triple washed spinach, stems discarded, leaves coarsely chopped

Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a large nonstick skillet with 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. When oil ripples, add chicken and cook 3 minutes on each side then remove and let meat rest and cool.

To the same skillet, add another tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan, and the butter. Melt butter into extra-virgin olive oil and add the shallots, garlic and capers. Saute 5 minutes then add white wine and reduce 30 seconds. Next, add the juice of 1 lemon and immediately add the spinach - mound up the pan. You will not be able to fit it all in there. Keep turning the spinach and wilting it down until you get it all in there then turn the heat off. Keep some leaves still a bit crisp to vary textures in your salad. Season the spinach with salt and pepper. Chop chicken into little bits and add to the warm salad. Toss to distribute and serve.

Mason Jars & Salad Dressing

Last night while making salad dressing for my Arugula and Pepper Salad, I had an Oprah ah-ha moment. Instead of wisking my salad dressing in a bowl, making too much, and thowing the excess out, why not shake it in a Mason jar and store it in the fridge. As Maya Angelou has told Oprah time and time again, when you know better, you do better.

Arugula and Pepper Salad

I went to the Nilblog and Nilblogette's house last night for dinner video games and Sky High. We had london broil, corn on the cob and an arugula and pepper salad. Here's the salad rundown.

Arugula and Pepper Salad

2 bunches arugula, washed and dried
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 red pepper, sliced
1 cup olive oil
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper

In large bowl toss together arugula and red pepper and onion. In empty 16 oz. jar combine garlic, vinegar, mustard and olive oil. Secure lid and shake until well mixed. Drizzle over salad and toss well. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Store any extra dressing in the fridge.

Reader Submission: Broccoli Salad

I tried out Bloghungry’s first reader-submitted recipe last weekend. I was in need of a side dish and turned to Toby's Broccoli Salad for help. This is a simple recipe that's made up of crisp broccoli, bacon crumbles, and golden raisins dressed in a sweet and creamy dressing. I am not a huge fan of raw veggies or mayo, but this recipe still won me over. It would make a good side dish for a picnic or potluck. I added a few green onions to mine to balance out some of the sweetness and I would recommend adding some bell peppers as well. Make sure you give yourself enough time for this salad, as it needs to sit in your fridge for at least a few hours.

Broccoli salad

2 good size heads of broccoli(uncooked)
1 lb of bacon, crumbled
3/4 cup golden raisins

In large bowl mix
1 cup Mayo
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsps cider vinegar

stir all together and let sit at least overnight.  Stir before serving.
Great with steak and chicken.  You can add some green onion, bell
peppers or cauliflower if you like.

(Bloghungry note: If adding green onions, chop and toss in before serving to help maintain it's freshness)

Special thanks to Toby for the recipe. To send in your favorite recipe email me at Bloghungry@yahoo.com.

I'm Caprese For You

After sampling another crappy salad recipe last night, I decided to clean out the fridge a little and throw back to a classic.. The Caprese salad. Foodies can be snotty about their Caprese, sticking their noses up at adding vinegar of any kind and insisting on capers or oregano. Well this is a basic Americanized recipe that's simple and tasty. Because Blogungry is trying to drop a few pounds, I didn't have any cheese in the house for last nights caprese. However, you can never go wrong with fresh tomatoes, basil, and balsamic vinegar.

Bloghungry Caprese Salad

2 large red or yellow tomatoes, sliced
1/2 lb. fresh Mozzarella cheese, drained, sliced
1 bunch fresh basil leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil
balsamic vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Arrange tomato, cheese slices and basil alternately overlapping on platter. Dress with oil and a drizzle of vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Italian Chopped Salad

I love a chopped salad and anything that involves sun dried tomatoes. So when the Everyday Italian lady brought the two together I had to give it a try. Due to lack of time and energy I didn't actually chop my salad so it didn't live up to it's full potential, but it was still pretty great and I'll definitely make it again. Italian Chopped Salad

4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups finely chopped romaine lettuce (from 1/2 head)
2 cups finely chopped radicchio (from 1/2 large head)
1/2 cup drained canned white beans, rinsed and patted dry
8 oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves, drained and chopped

Whisk the vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper in a large bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in the oil to blend. Add the lettuce, radicchio, beans, and sun-dried tomatoes. Toss to coat. Season the salad, to taste, with more salt and pepper, and serve.