Red Quinoa Cabbage Kale Salad

Sweet and Spicy Triple Red Quinoa Salad

Let’s talk about cabbage. I love cole slaw—like, really love, it’s one of my favorite sides/snacks. Sometimes I will eat a big bowl of slaw for dinner. Is that weird? Probably. Other than cole slaw, though, I don’t really do much with cabbage. So I had to get a little creative with the huge head of crisp, red cabbage that came in our Johnson’s Backyard Garden CSA box last week.

Red Quinoa Cabbage Kale Salad

What’s my go-to when it comes to using up vegetables? Mixing them into some quinoa, of course. What’s my other go-to? Adding a runny egg to anything/everything. Using these two standby moves, I transformed a head of cabbage into a super flavorful, easy, and healthy dinner for the household. (Let me tell you, it’s fantastic living with a boyfriend and roommates who enjoy healthy cooking as much as I do.)

This warm salad is red on red on red on red! We’ve got red quinoa, red cabbage, and red onion mingling with kale, sour apple, rich tropical coconut oil, and sweet raisins. The addition of curry and red chile flakes kicks up the spice and keeps this combination from becoming too sugary. Make sure you don’t overcook your quinoa or produce—mushy quinoa is a bummer and you want to be able to savor the crispness of the cabbage, apples, and kale.

Sweet and Spicy Triple Red Quinoa Salad

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Autumnal Salad: Orange, Avocado and Cilantro

Guest blogger Jack Mauro brings ES a recipe that proves salad season doesn’t have to end.

Though the temperature is dropping lower and lower with each passing day, it doesn’t mean you have to rearrange your diet around chilis, stews and hot porridge. A delicious means of sneaking summer sunshine into the shortened days, autumnal salads are a light meal that whets an appetite as well as provides necessary nutrition for the upcoming season. We like incorporating fresh citrus into our salads as the boost in vitamin C can mean the difference between being knocked out by the flu, and winning the neighborhood snowball fight. Ramp up the flavor by making your own dressing from scratch—whisking gourmet vinegar and unusual olive oil together with subtle citrus tones.

 

Ingredients

  • 1 head green & purple lettuce, roughly torn
  • 2 oranges, peeled and cut into medallions
  • 1 avocado, pitted and sliced
  • ½ red onion, sliced thinly
  • ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly torn
  • ¼ cup sliced pitted green and black olives

Dressing:

  • 2 tablespoons blood orange olive oil
  • 1 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

    1. Toss lettuce, oranges, avocado, onion, cilantro, and olives in a medium bowl
    2. Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Pour over salad and toss gently. Serve immediately. Makes salad for four.

(Photo: CAC)

A Salsa for Summer: Grilled Watermelon and Feta

As I get older and now that I have life all figured out (Ha!  Sense the sarcasm, folks), I am less embarrassed about stuff. I used to be the girl who turned beet red and just about died from humiliation over the tiniest things.  Now, if I trip in front of you (I most likely will) I’ll just smile and wave.  Saying something stupid?  I do it on the daily.  I’m okay with it.

The one thing I am consistently still embarrassed over is my iPod music selection. The worst part is that I voluntarily put all the crazy embarrassing music on there. Just to give you a taste, there are about 300 songs including Pitbull (face getting red), assorted 90’s rappers (getting redder), maybe some country (eyes closed in shame) and a butt-load of Glee renditions (maximum levels of musical embarrassment reached).  I’m just gonna tell you, I sometimes roll my eyes when listening to my iPod alone.  I need an intervention.

Why am I discussing this with you today?  Well, I had some willing taste-testers hanging around my kitchen while I made this killer salsa aaaaand my iPod was on the speaker dock. So, when I think about this salsa, I will forever associate it with the delicious flavors of fresh watermelon with a grilled char and tangy feta, along with the ear raping sounds of Miley Cyrus.  Oy.  Y’all, forget I wrote this, okay?

Grilled Watermelon & Feta Salsa

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