BEET, APPLE, AND CARROT SALAD

This salad was first published in PassiFlora - an online magazine Eric, Liza, and I launched several years ago. Although the magazine didn't last, this recipe remains one of my favorite.

What you need

3 medium beets, washed and peeled
2 medium carrots, peeled
2 Granny Smith or other crispy firm apples, cored and peeled
2 tablespoons non-sweetened shredded coconut
1 tablespoon lime juice
6 Boston lettuce leaves (optional)
3 tablespoons slivered almond, toasted (optional could be replaced with pine nuts, pumpkin seeds or other nuts/seeds)

What to do

• In a salad bowl julienne beets, carrots, and apples
• Sprinkle vegetables with coconut, drizzle with lime juice and mix well
• Let salad stay for 15-30 minutes and mix well again
• Serve salad in Boston-leaves “cups”, sprinkled with roasted almonds. For a more simple presentation omit the salad leaves.

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A year ago: if all goes well ...

Achick-Chuck aka Uzbek summer salad

 

A couple of years ago Eric, Liza and I launched PassiFlora magazine - a bimonthly online magazine filled with eco-friendly recipes, craft ideas, and articles.  Working on both content and presentation was much more demanding than we expected so after 2 issues we had to slow down and eventually close the project altogether.  Today's recipe and the image come from the 3rd issue of PassiFlora, the one that never got to be published online.

This is my version of achick-chuck - a salad you get to taste in Uzbekistan and some other republics of former Soviet Union.  Traditionally it is made with tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions but feel free to add your favorite vegetables.

Unlike typical North American chef - salads, achick-chuck is juicy without addition of any dressing.  The trick is in the way you slice onions and tomatoes (make sure you get the juiciest tomatoes possible). 

What you need:

1 medium onion

2-3 small (Lebanese) cucumbers or 1 English cucumber

1 red bell pepper

2-3 big ripe tomatoes

a small bunch of parsley, cilantro or dill

splash of olive oil

salt and pepper

optional:

lemon juice

 What to do:

• Thinly slice onions in half-moons.  Rinse them under cold water
• Remove any excess water from the onions; there is no need to dry them or pass through a salad spinner. Generously salt the onions, mixing thoroughly with your hands.  This allows onions to give out some juice
• Cut cucumbers either in half-circles or quarter-circles.  Your slices should be fairly thin, but not as paper-thin as onions
• Similarly slice thinly red pepper.  Combine all the vegetables in a salad bowl
• Time to cut your tomatoes.  Typically, in Uzbekistan we don't use a cutting board for this step, instead we hold the tomato on top of a salad bowl and using the sharpest knife possible thinly slice half circles with the circular motions.  This way sweet tomato juice will drip in the salad bowl 
• Add chopped herbs (roughly 2-3 tablespoons) and a splash of olive oil.  You can also add a little bit of lemon juice at this point
• Mix the salad thoroughly, taste and adjust for salt and pepper

Tips and Suggestions: 

If you are not a big fan of juicy salads and want to add your favorite dressing, omit salting sliced onions and cube your tomatoes instead of slicing them

This salad does not keep well and is better eaten soon after prepared

You can experiment with herbs and add a mixture of cilantro, dill, and parsley (or any other herb you like)

A fast Google search told me that in some republics of the former Soviet Union, this salad is known as "shakarab"

Olivie aka Russian salad

 

Ask any Russian what dish is ALWAYS served at any festive occasion and chances are he/she will say: "Olivie".  Together with red caviar, pierogies, and salted herring, this yummy salad with a French name is a Soviet/Russian culinary staple.  BTW this salad is especially successful with small children and picky eaters!
Just like any other folk recipe, Olivie salad has several versions.  I am giving my favorite basic recipe, but feel free to adjust the quantities.

What you need:

4-5 medium potatoes
2 medium carrots
2-3 hard-boiled eggs
1 small onion
2 pickles
1 can of green peas (you can use an equivalent amount of steamed/boiled frozen peas)
2-3 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2-3 tbsp mayonnaise OR mix equal amounts of mayo and sour cream

salt and pepper

 What to do:

• Boil carrots and potatoes until soft, but not over-cooked.  Let them cool and then cube finely (~1/4 inch)
• Finely cube the eggs.  Alternatively you can mash them roughly with a fork.
• Finely dice pickles and onions.  If onions are very strong, rinse under cold water and pat dry.
• Mix all the vegetables and add mayonnaise.  The preferred amount of mayo varies from person to person.  In general, Russians add a lot of it to their salads.  I usually start with  a couple of spoons and then adjust after tasting. 
• Add salt and pepper.

Tips and Suggestions: 

For a fancier dressing add a splash of lemon juice, a pinch of sugar, and a little bit of cucumber brine.

Originally, Olivie is not a vegetarian dish: diced ham or roasted chicken meat is added to the vegetable mix.

Some cooks add diced apples or even green grapes in the salad - although it sounds quite unusual, I encourage you to give it a try.

Cabbage salad

 

We were celebrating my SISTER's belated birthday this weekend and I decided to prepare her favorite cabbage salad.  This is one of the simplest salads there is; all you need is cabbage, onion, cucumbers, fresh dill, and a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  The rest of ingredients are optional but you are free to improvise and add some of your favorite vegetables (I think radishes would work great).

For the dressing I used good quality extra virgin olive oil.  If you want a more complex flavor add a splash of lemon juice or some grated lemon rind.  You can also experiment with herbs: I added a little bit of home-grown lemon thyme in my salad but parsley and/or mint would be great too.

What you need:

1 small cabbage

1 small onion (I prefer the sweet varieties: vidalia, Spanish or red)

1 English cucumber or better a couple of small Lebanese cucumbers
fresh dill
2 tbsp capers (optional)
olive oil
salt and pepper

 What to do:

• Finely slice the onion.  I first cut it in thin half-moons and then slice them in two.  If the onion is too strong, rinse it under cold water.
• A little trick: put sliced onion in the salad bowl, salt it well and mix thoroughly.  It will give a little bit of juice which is oh-so-good as part of the dressing.
• Grate cabbage: no need for any fancy tools here, just cut it in fairly thin strips.
• Cut cucumbers in thin half-circles.
• In a salad bowl, combine all the vegetables and add 2-3 tbsp of finely chopped dill.  Add capers and olive oil (or salad dressing) and mix.
• Taste and adjust for seasoning.

Tips and Suggestions: 

This salad is great for pick-nicks: it's does not get soggy and can easily survive a couple of hours outside of a fridge.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Orange Salad

Image from Cooking Light

The smell of the sweet potatoes roasting with rosemary and garlic is mouthwatering!!!

Salad:

1 tbls chopped fresh rosemary

2 tsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves, unpeeled and crushed

1 1/2 pounds peeled sweet potato, cut into 3/4-inch pieces

3 cups orange sections (about 6 oranges)

1/2 cup vertically sliced red onion

3 tbls pine nuts, toasted

1 (6 oz) bag prewashed baby spinach

Dressing:

3 tbsp fresh orange juice

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp stone-ground mustard

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp honey

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• To prepare salad, combine first 4 ingredients, tossing well. 
• Place potato mixture on a jelly-roll pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400° for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
• Remove from oven; cool. Discard garlic. 
• Combine potato mixture, orange sections, onion, pine nuts, and spinach in a large bowl.

To prepare dressing combine orange juice and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk.
Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat.

Yield: 10 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Soup and Salads

Monday was my sister’s belated birthday celebration. I guess, “celebration” is too big of a word for a family gathering of 3 over some soup, salad, and cake, but it felt like a celebration to me, partially because I finally cooked. I did not cook anything for last 2 months. I am not sure why that was happening – my appetite was absent (blame the heat) and those rare moments when I would be hungry I would crave unhealthy junk food.

But Monday was different: Monday I went to the grocery store, picked up a lot of veggies, brought 4 huge grocery bags full of goodies home, and started chopping.

My sister wanted something light and cool for the hot summer evening. After checking out my extensive recipe collection I decided to make salads and soup (my dad loves soup and even if he would not like the Asian flavor of edamame salad he would definitely enjoy my green pea soup).

First on the list was a tried and true veganized recipe of a “Greek Dinner Salad” (do not confuse with The Greek Salad, they are completely different). The recipe comes from a 2005 issue of Eating Well magazine.

Greek Dinner Salad

Dressing:
3 tbsp soy yogurt
3 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp agave nectar
½ tsp salt

Salad:
1 medium zucchini, finely diced (2 cups)
1 large bell pepper, finely diced (1 ½ cups)
1 bunch radishes, finely diced (1/2 cup)
1 15-oz can of chickpeas, drained
Boston lettuce leaves for serving

1. To make the dressing, whisk together all the ingredients until creamy
2. Toss all the ingredients (apart from lettuce leaves) in a large bowl. Pour over the vegetables, toss gently. Spoon into lettuce leaves for cups and serve.

To counterbalance the sweetness of the Greek dinner salad I prepared the Edamame salad with sesame dressing. This is a slightly modified version of this salad from the Vegetarian Times magazine.

Edamame and Greens with Sesame Dressing

Dressing:
3 tbsp roasted sesame oil
2 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce

Salad:
1 ½ cups edamame

4 cups salad spring mix
1 cucumber, sliced
8-oz baked teriyaki tofu, cubed
1 green onion sliced
toasted sesame seeds

1. To make the dressing, whisk together all the ingredients until creamy.

2. To make salad: cook edamame according to the package instructions (boil for 2-4 minutes). Rinse under cold water to cool. Drain well.

3. Divide spring mix among 4 plates.

4. In a medium bowl combine edamame, greens, cucumber, tofu, and green onions. Pour over 1/4 of the Sesame Dressing and mix well. Scoop the salad on top of the greens and drizzle with the reamaning dressing. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

I could not find any baked seasoned tofu (usually I get Asian flavored one) so I decided to try the mock chicken breasts (I don’t remember the name of the company that makes them – I’ll update this post from home with the brand name andmaybe even a picture). I pan-fried them for couple of minutes, cut it in cubes and added to the salad. All in all the chicken breasts were very good. I would definitely use them again in salads or sandwiches. I also think they would be delicious under gravy or sauces with a side dish of rice/mashed potatoes.

If you are not sure where to find edamame, try any Asian stores. They usually have them in frozen section and they come shelled or not.

This is how both of the salad looked:

Pea and spinach soup with coconut milk was a big hit. My dad enjoyed it so much that he asked me to prepare it again. The original recipe, which comes from one of the special issues of “Fine Cooking” 2006 calls for fresh peas, I didn’t have any fresh ones so I used frozen but the result was great. One great thing about crème soups is that you don’t have to care about sizes of cut vegetables.

Pea and Spinach Soup with Coconut Milk

2 large leeks, white parts and pale green, quartered and sliced (try using spring onions if you don't have leeks)
1 tbsp oil
2 tbsp basmati rice (use quick cooking rice if you want to speed up the cooking process)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp curry powder
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups of peas
4 cups coarsely chopped spinach, any thick stems removed
1 cup coconut milk

1. In a soup pot, heat up oil and stir in rice. Add leeks, salt, curry powder, cilantro, and 1 cup of the stock

2. Cook over medium-low heat at a vigorous simmer for about 12 minutes (if you are suing quick-cooking rice, cook for 3-4 minutes).

3. Add the remaining 3 cups of broth, the peas, and the spinach and bring to boil.

4. Boil for about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir I coconut milk.

5. In a blender or food processor, puree the soup in batches until smooth. Taste for salt, season with pepper and garnish with cilantro leaves.

If you prefer a soup with more texture, puree 1 cup and return it to the pot, season, garnish, and serve.