salad – OwlCat Designs

December 14, 2012

Avocado, Sweet Potato & Corn Salad

What’s better than a healthy meal? A healthy meal that’s easy to make, tasty AND portable. Here’s another installment in our ‘lunch salads to go’ series. Assembled in a mason jar, layered so the dressing stays on the bottom until needed. Substantial enough to hold you over until dinner time, and when you mix the avocado with the citrus dressing first, the salad can be prepared ahead and will keep for 3 days in your fridge without turning brown.

Makes 1 two-cup jar

Ingredients

1 tsp minced shallot
1/2 avocado, cubed
1/3 cup sweet potato, cooked, cooled, peeled and cubed
1/4 cup sweet corn (from a ‘no salt added’ can)
2-3 radishes, sliced thinly
4 slices red, hot chili pepper (optional), diced
3-4 tbsp Citrus dressing

Directions

Toss shallots and avocado with the citrus dressing, then layer into the glass jar, followed by sweet potato, the corn, the hot pepper (if using) and finish with the sliced radish.
Store in the fridge until ready to use, then shake the jar until the dressing mixes throughout, use a fork, eat right out of the jar, or invert onto a plate.
Enjoy.

June 3, 2012

Celeriac Slaw with Pineapple

Ahhhh summer! 🙂 The weather has been crazy! From 95 to 69 in two hours due to thunderstorms, then back up to hot the next day, after the early morning temps were in the low 50’s… So with the official start of pool season (Memorial Day) the grill has moved back to center stage for many, and we can never have enough ideas for sides to eat with all the great things that will be grilled up. And with the warm weather being here to stay, there won’t be much winter crop celery root available soon. So here, to ring in the changing season with one more glorious celeriac recipe, I made a salad, a slaw really, adding summery pineapple to make it more special. Even though this is a ‘slaw’, it is light and healthy, no heavy mayonnaise or heavy cream, but flavorful and perfect for that next summer picnic!

I have made a dressing with sour cream for this one, but use any creamy dressing you like. (Have also tried it with buttermilk)

Ingredients

1 medium celeriac (celery root)
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup fresh pineapple, cut into chunks
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup apple cider or white wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped mixed herbs (such as parsley, chives, thyme)
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Directions

Clean and peel celeriac, then grate on the coarse side of a grater or use your food processor. Drizzle with lemon juice, toss add the pineapple and set aside.
To make the dressing, mix the herbs, mustard, salt and pepper with the vinegar, then stir in the sour cream.
Add the dressing to the celeriac, stir until well combined. Toss something on the grill to go along with it or make a yummy salad platter like I did here.

May 17, 2012December 16, 2017

Nüssli Salat (lambs lettuce, Mâche or Corn Salad) with Eggs and Orange

A filling lunch salad for a warm day. When I was kid, my Mom made this a lot after Easter, it’s a good way to use up all the pretty Easter eggs. I am sure she still makes it, I am just not there to enjoy it that often 🙁 Over time, I have changed things around a bit, so for one I do not always use her creamy dressing, here I just made a simple vinaigrette but it would sure would be awesome with Sour Cream Chive Dressing or Greek Feta Dressing! I also started adding part of an orange, to pep it up a bit, and really like it. Add a bit of the orange juice from peeling and cutting the orange to your dressing.

In my parents garden, we used to grow our own Nüssli Salat. In the early spring, and when we were going to get snow or a hard frost, my Dad would cover it with burlap bags. Wait, I am thinking, not totally sure on this, but I think, he grew the stuff covered with bags all winter long… Hmm will have to check on that next time I talk to ‘Switzerland’, it might be that I was just a kid making winter looooonger than it needed to be in my Mom’s eyes. (My Mom did not really appreciate winter as much as I did)

Per person you will need:

Ingredients

a good plate full of Nüssli Salat, Mâche (Corn salad or Lambs lettuce)*
2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 orange, peeled pitted and sliced crosswise into rounds
2-4 tablespoons of your favorite dressing (vinaigrette shown here)

* If you can’t find this delicious lettuce, it’s usually available in the winter and early in the spring, anything with some substance could be substituted

Directions

Arrange on platter and off you go!