chickinthekitchen.com

Roasted Broccoli & White Bean Dip

Roasted broccoli is delicious and homemade hummus is easy to make, so I knew this recipe for Roasted Broccoli Hummus — which uses white beans instead of chickpeas — would be a winner. It is.

I did not need to add any water to thin the dip. I also used a little more broccoli and garlic than the recipe suggests, because I really wanted to elevate the flavor beyond a white bean dip: I wanted it to scream “broccoli!” It did.

Make this dip as an appetizer or a snack to have with drinks; serve it with cut-up vegetables, whole wheat pita, or pretzels. It could make an easy summer lunch or dinner, slathered on a bagel or stuffed into a pita with lettuce and tomatoes. You can make a double batch of roasted broccoli, serving half as a side dish for dinner one night and using the rest the next day to make this dip.

June 22, 2011

Raw Brussels Sprouts Salad with Walnuts & Gruyere

There are lots of great food blogs I read that are focused on a specific food niche, and that have great recipes even though I don’t fall into the group of eaters they target. Gluten-Free Girl is one such blog. I don’t eat a gluten-free diet, but Shauna has some great vegetable-based recipes on our site that even a die-hard wheat eater would love. This recipe for Brussels Sprouts Salad originally comes from her site.

I adore Roasted Brussels Sprouts and make them often, but I’d never tried them raw. I cannot tell you how much I loved this salad. Shredding the Brussels sprouts make them feathery and light, even though my container had been kicking around in the fridge for a couple of weeks. I can only imagine how delicious it would be with CSA or farmer’s market sprouts. Add in the toasted walnut and Gruyere with a bit of vinaigrette, and you have a dish with enough protein to call a meal. I ate a huge plate of this stuff for lunch the day after I made it, and I liked the flavors even more. The Brussels sprouts easily stand up to a night in the dressing, and don’t wilt like other greens might. This is definitely a recipe to try this summer — I’ll be making it again.

Raw Brussels Sprouts Salad with Walnuts & Gruyere
Adapted from Brussels Sprouts Salad

1 10-oz. container of fresh Brussels sprouts, trimmed
3-4 oz. shredded Gruyere cheese
1/2 c. chopped walnuts, toasted & cooled (otherwise they’ll melt the cheese)
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
4 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. whole grain mustard
1 tsp. honey
salt and pepper to taste

Using the slicing disc on your food processor, feed the whole Brussels sprouts into the machine until they are shredded. Switch to the shredding blade to prepare the Gruyere. Toss the sprouts, cheese, and toasted walnuts in a medium bowl and set aside.

To prepare the dressing, whisk vinegar, olive oil, mustard and honey together. Pour over the salad and toss. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

3 Comments June 13, 2011

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette & Gorgonzola

I found a recipe for Grilled Sweet Potato Salad with Green Onion, Basil, Thyme, and Feta on Kalyn’s Kitchen and figured it was fate: I had all the ingredients in my house already, which is unusual. We don’t eat a lot of sweet potatoes so I don’t keep them on hand. I also had feta left over from Greek Quinoa Salad, and a bottle of balsamic vinaigrette.

Instead of grilling the sweet potatoes, I peeled and sliced them, and then tossed them in a quarter-cup of dressing. Then I placed them in a single layer on a foil-lined cookie sheet, and baked them for 20 minutes at 400° F. J. felt they should have been cooked longer; I thought they were fine as is but I will bake them for an extra 5 minutes next time. I wasn’t in the mood for feta, so I substituted Gorgonzola cheese instead — just a quarter cup.

Me, J., and my mom all really enjoyed the flavor of this salad. It’s got a lot going on: the sweetness of the potatoes, creaminess of cheese, crisp freshness of the green onions, and depth of thyme. It’s a very unusual side dish and one we’ll repeat. I’ll also try it without cheese, to serve kosher-style with burgers on the grill.

3 Comments May 26, 2011

Greek Quinoa Salad

This recipe for Greek Quinoa Salad comes from A Girl and Her Carrot. It is a good gateway dish for trying quinoa, if you have been reluctant to do so. I’m a big fan of Greek salads to begin with, and adding a grain (ok, a grass) to the mix is a nice riff on a traditional mix of vegetables.

I served the Greek Quinoa Salad with grilled eggplant, and hummus (store-bought) on baguettes. We ate dinner outside on our patio, and as I looked over my plate it occurred to me that this meal is the type of cooking I ultimately aspire to. The dinner was most importantly, delicious. But it was also inherently healthy without feeling like we were giving up taste or satiety in exchange. I’m able to get that feeling out of vegetable-based soups sometimes, so it was a little thrilling to find it in a salad-based meal as well.

May 18, 2011