I originally saw this Whole Foods recipe for Mediterranean Crunch Salad on Facebook, and shared it on my Chick in the Kitchen Facebook page. Several people commented favorably about the recipe, so I decided to make it to go with our Mother’s Day brunch of bagels and appetizing (lox, whitefish salad, baked salmon… the works!). However, it was J. that wound up chopping, chopping, chopping all morning long when I got behind schedule.
He is much faster at vegetable prep than I am, and I am not exaggerating when I say it took him at least 45 minutes to wash, trim, and dice everything in this salad. We left out the kale and added a yellow pepper instead, which brought a nice bright color to the mix as well as some sweetness. At first taste, neither of us loved this salad, and J. was annoyed with how long it had taken to prepare. An hour after mixing it together (the recipe says to chill it for that length of time) it was a little better, but it still just tasted like cubes of vegetables with vinegar. I didn’t hear anyone mention that they liked it during the brunch, either.
However, I was determined to eat all the leftovers so J.’s hard work did not go to waste. And the next day, this salad was great! The herbs, vinegar, and garlic melded into a flavorful dressing. The broccoli, pepper, and onion had softened a little, taking a bit of the titular “crunch” out of this chopped salad and helping all those vegetables form a kind of multi-veg experience rather than each one fighting to be its own flavor. One of the Facebook comments suggested added feta cheese to the mix, and I did that on my final serving of salad — the saltiness of the feta complimented the now-marinated vegetables perfectly.
I really like chopped salads, so I know we’ll make some kind of similar version of this again… especially if I can convince J. to do the chopping.
Do you like broccoli? This recipe will make you swoon. Not a fan of the green stuff? This recipe may change your mind.
I followed Dani’s recipe for Citrus & Garlic Grilled Broccoli pretty much to the letter. I marinated the vegetables for two hours before grilling. (Actually, J. came home early and cooked them for me.) We wound up with a gorgeous, heaping mound of broccoli on a large dinner plate, and between me, J., his mom, and grandma, there was not a bite left over to put away for another day. One of us even ate the last piece of broccoli off A.’s plate, after he’d finished his meal. But I’m not telling who… We will definitely make this recipe a staple of summer grilling.
I had leftover bulgur from when I made Vegetarian Moussaka, so I’ve been on the lookout for a good way to use this ingredient again. Bobby Flay’s Bulgur Salad with Green Onion Vinaigrette caught my eye because it reminded me of tabouli, but with less parsley (that’s a good thing in my book). I served the salad with barbecued chicken, and it was fantastic. The dressing was good enough that I encouraged my sister-in-law, who was keeping me company in the kitchen, to dip a spoon in it to try it straight from the food processor — we couldn’t wait to add it into the bulgur.
I made three small changes to the recipe: I did not add any red onion to the bulgur salad; I used a large, seeded jalapeño pepper instead of a serrano; and I used plain honey instead of buckwheat. Next time, I will go ahead and put in the extra onion and use a hotter pepper, since I barely detected any heat from my oversized, supermarket jalapeño. As for the buckwheat honey, I had to look that one up. Sometimes called “black honey,” it is a very dark, malty type of honey made when bees hang out around buckwheat plants instead of something like alfalfa, which makes them produce a lighter and more common honey. I’d buy buckwheat honey if I came across it locally, but I don’t think it’s mandatory for this dish.
I find myself saying this often with many of the whole grain side dishes I’ve been trying: Bulgur Salad with Green Onion Vinaigrette would be great for a barbecue. It’s healthy and fresh, and can hold up to sitting in the sun for a while. I will definitely be making this salad often this summer.
This is a protein-packed, high fiber side dish that keeps for days in the fridge. I made it Sunday night and J. and I have been eating it bit by bit since then. In the past, I have been lukewarm about quinoa — I felt it had a grassy overtone that took over whatever preparation I tried. I did not feel that way with this dish, probably because the dressing — though there is a very small amount of it — is very bold on its own. You could add some chili oil or sriracha if you wanted a spicy version of this salad.
1 c. quinoa
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. grated ginger
1 tsp. sesame seeds
1 c. shelled edamame, fresh or frozen & thawed
4 green onions, finely chopped
Prepare quinoa according to package directions, rinsing first if necessary. Make sure there is no water left in the bottom of your quinoa pot at the end of cooking. If there is, uncover the pot and continue cooking over a medium heat until the remaining water evaporates.
While the quinoa is cooking, whisk together the sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and ginger. Set aside. In a small pan, toast the sesame seeds for a few minutes over low heat, until they become fragrant and start to change color. Set aside.
Toss the dressing, toasted sesame seeds, edamame, and onions together with the cooked quinoa until they are well-combined. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours. Serve cold or room temperature.
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two school-aged boys and husband. Feeding my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more about me and CITK, and keep in touch:
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Cheesy Kale Crisps: We rarely eat kale now that our farm share is over, and I want to fix that. I've wanted to try using nutritional yeast, and this recipe looks like a tasty way to do it.
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two school-aged boys and husband. Feeding my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more 
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