Salad with Goat Cheese, Pecans, and Fruit

Carrots optional.

I put together this salad for Thanksgiving from a mixture of different recipes. It seemed like it would be a good basic salad to complement the Thanksgiving flavors.

I underestimated just how good it would be! The dressing is simple but so, so good. The toppings worked perfectly together, and they were indeed complementary to a Thanksgiving plate. But the salad itself ended up being one of my favorite things on my plate.

This one is a keeper.

The Recipe:

1 small shallot, minced

3 tb balsamic vinegar

1 tsp brown mustard

1/2c extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

10oz baby greens

1 c pomegranate seeds

4 oz goat cheese, crumbled

1 pear, chopped

1/2c toasted pecan halves

Combine shallot, balsamic vinegar, mustard, olive oil, salt, and pepper. (I used a magic bullet.)
Layer other ingredients and toss with dressing.

The Verdict:

Overall grade: A+

Overall reason: Simple, delicious, and versatile

Time to prepare: 20 minutes

Toddler quote: "I don't want that. I don't like lettuce." (He did enjoy a plate of pecans, pears, and pomegranate seeds, though.)

Comments

Curry Fried Rice

Excited for these leftovers. One of the things I wanted to try with my new jar of curry powder was fried rice. Years ago, Miles got fried rice at Korea House and it was the best fried rice I'd ever had. I suspected there was curry powder in it, but at that time I had never really cooked with curry powder, so I tucked that knowledge away for a later date. After reading a few recipes, I went rogue on this one. I couldn't even begin to effectively guess at what proportions I ended up with, so the recipe below is more of a rough guideline of ingredients. The "Recipe" (sorry no quantities; follow your heart): leftover jasmine rice tofu, cubed and crisped in the oven with avocado oil and salt vegetables: garlic, onion, cabbage, red bell pepper salt curry powder (I used a Vietnamese one) soy sauce sugar sesame oil future topping ideas: runny egg, sesame seeds, green onion Saute the vegetables in avocado oil until softened, and salt them to taste Add the tofu and toss to...

Samosa Burritos

Imagine a pile of plain yogurt and some Indian pickle for dipping I saw a Pinterest recipe for samosa-filled quesadillas, which led me to this recipe from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen for baked samosas using tortillas, which led me to just use the giant tortillas I had in the fridge and make them into full-sized burritos. They were a hit! I largely followed the recipe from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen, but I added some potato, omitted the chana masala powder and just added a bunch of cumin instead, added bell pepper and fresh chilies, didn't bother with the "sealing paste," and basted them in a little bit of melted butter (omit for vegan version). Everyone except the 5-year-old liked them! The Recipe (adapted from Nadia's Healthy Kitchen ) 2 cans (30 oz total) cooked garbanzo beans, rinsed (I eyeballed the equivalent from dry beans) 1 small onion, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 thai chili, minced 1 bell pepper, chopped 1 potato, baked until soft (or microwaved for...

Kitchen renovation!

BEFORE: AFTER: Still to come: a beautiful new induction range and some wood shelving on the left side, above the backsplash. And maybe the shelving unit on the wall facing the cabinets should be green, but we're going to live with a while before making that decision.

Adventures of a healthy-ish pseudo-foodie

Search This Blog