Broccoli Salad With Golden Raisins, Olives, and Pickled Mirepoix Relish

My leftover steamed broccoli inevitably ends up in a cold dish, as reheating can make it mushy. I had tossed these little trees with salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice during their first lives; so to dress the salad, all I used was a bit of additional olive oil.

Mirepoix refers to the French holy trinity of cuisine: onions, carrots, and celery. Tradition calls for two parts onion to one part each carrot and celery, a fact that I did not know when I made this pickled version. So if you're a publisher who has decided not to give me a cookbook deal based on that transgression, please keep in mind that, hey, now I know (though if you want an author who knows what the hells she's talking about, you're not the variety of publisher who would have given me a cookbook deal anyway).

Salad isn't the only use for Pickled Mirepoix Relish. You can sprinkle it on deviled eggs, thick soups, hot dogs... Maybe even dessert? Worth a shot. I see Pickled Mirepoix Cookies in my near future.

As mentioned at its first appearance on The Chickenless Kitchen, this brine recipe was adapted from the one for Fresh-Pickled Vegetables on page 220 of Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food.

Pickled Mirepoix Relish

Ingredients

1/2 c. each carrot, celery, and onion, minced

1 batch of pickling brine, subbing an equal amount of sugar for the acai black currant syrup

Directions

Combine the veggies in a heatproof container. Set aside.

Bring the brine to a boil for five minutes. Pour the brine over the veggies. Strain immediately. Allow to cool, then store in the fridge for at least two hours before using. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Beat the eggs. Whip the cream. Show no mercy.

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Curry Spiced Lentil Salad With Coconut

I'm calling this Kelly and Casey's Salad, in honor of my good friends who would hate it. Kelly hates peas, Casey hates curry, and I can't imagine I got through composing the rest of the ingredients list without stepping on their picky toes.

Kelly and Casey's Salad

Ingredients

5 carrots, peeled and sliced

3 large boiling potatoes, parboiled and diced large

2/3 c. lentils, cooked until just tender

2/3 c. split peas, cooked cooked until just tender

2/3 c. black olives, chopped

1/3 c. olive oil

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated

2 tsp. dried cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. dried turmeric

1/2 tsp. dried coriander

1/4 tsp. dried cardamom

Dried cayenne to taste

1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 c. sweetened coconut flakes

Directions

Mix the carrots, potatoes, lentils, peas, and olives in a large container with a tight-fitting lid.

In a separate bowl, combine all remaining ingredients except for the coconut flakes and whisk together.

Pour the dressing over the salad contents, stir well, and seal the container. Let it marinate in the fridge at least 4 hours (an eight-hour work day is ideal). Thirty minutes before serving, add the coconut flakes and stir again, then leave the container on the counter until its contents are at room temperature. Serves 6-8 as an appetizer or light meal.

I served this salad with homemade pita chips and extra lemon wedges.

As always, I encourage you to play around with the recipe. For a creamy dressing, try adding plain yogurt or coconut milk. If you dislike the taste or texture of coconut, try subbing golden raisins, dates, or apples (fresh or dried).

Beat the eggs. Whip the cream. Show no mercy.

Awards Season Is Still Going Strong

Rabbit, rabbit!

Once again, a fellow blogger whom I admire very much has flattered me with the Kreativ Blogger Award. If you haven't already, please pay The Colors of Indian Cooking a visit. Writer Kathy Gori serves up some delectable dishes, and I learn something new whenever I read her blog.

I'm supposed to tell you seven fun facts about myself, but I have decided not bore you with that part again. I am just an ordinary person (unlike Kathy, who has voiced Hanna-Barbara cartoons!!)

The rules also state that you must pass the award on to seven other bloggers. This, I will do. A lot of great people inhabit the blogging community, and it was difficult to pick just seven last time, so I'm glad I get another chance.

November Edition Nominees (in Alphabetical Order):

Brooklyn Farmhouse

Eating Local in the Tropics

Just Cook It

Living in the Kitchen With Puppies

Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska

Salty Seattle

Sunshine Mom

These bloggers differ greatly from one another, but each electrifies the blogosphere with passion and creativity. Congrats to them! (If this is your first time receiving the award, please tell us seven interesting facts about yourself and nominate seven other blogs that you are proud to follow.)

Next on the agenda...

Results of the Roasted Salad pictured above? Meh. The vinaigrette was a little weird. I couldn't cut the tartness of the lime without adding more olive oil, and since I had already used olive oil in the roasting process I was hesitant to make a big oily mess of the whole affair.

As always, please feel free to tweak this at home and email me/comment with your results.

Roasted Salad

Ingredients

Roasted Vegetables

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced large

1/2 red onion, diced large

2 stalks celery, rinsed and sliced

1/2 tsp. olive oil

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

Pinch ground cloves

Salt 'n' pepper to taste

Sweet Lime Vinaigrette

1 tsp. lime juice

Pinch salt

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. honey

Quick dash dijon mustard

1/8 tsp. celery seed

Pinch black pepper

Directions

Heat oven to 425.

Toss the sweet potato, onion, and celery in a mixing bowl with the olive oil, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper. (This seems like a small amount of olive oil, but little fat is needed for roasting.)

Spread the mixture in a baking pan or other oven-proof vessel. If possible, maintain a single layer.

Bake at 425 for 25 minutes.

Go read the next chapter of your book or something.

Remove veggies from the oven. Transfer them to a heat-proof container with a lid that seals. (Do not put the lid on yet.)

While the veggies are cooling, squeeze the lime juice into a small cup or dish and add salt. Let this sit at least ten minutes, then whisk vigorously. Add the rest of the vinaigrette ingredients and whisk again.

Pour the vinaigrette over the veggies and put the lid on. Holding the lid firmly, shake to distribute the vinaigrette. Leave this on the counter and go read another chapter of your book or something.

When the mixture has cooled down enough to refrigerate without compromising your fridge's other contents, shake it one more time and chill for two to forty-eight hours. Shake or stir again before serving. Can be brought to the table chilled, at room temperature, or reheated. Serves 4.

Hope you had a happy Halloween!

Beat the eggs. Whip the cream. Show no mercy.

Kicking Off a Compulsory Vegetarian Week: Lentil and Broccoli Rabe Salad with Honey-Orange Vinaigrette

All right, so it's not compulsory in the literal sense. No one is holding a gun to my head making me go vegetarian this week. But my husband and I agree that if we can't afford that "fancy" free-range, grain-fed meat, we don't want meat at all. It disturbs us to think of the cruelty that goes on in those factory situations.

In any case, there are plenty of fantastic dishes out there centered on eggs (yes, I still bought cage-free eggs... I'm hopeless! We're going to be kicked out and living under the 408 overpass in no time), cheese, beans, and/or legumes. Publix had one lonely bundle of broccoli rabe that needed a home, and since I'd never tried broccoli rabe, I snapped it up, thinking it would go great in a lentil salad I had planned.

Hooray! Success!

For those of you who have never tried it, broccoli rabe is like regular broccoli with a kick. Raw, it tastes bitter. But lightly steamed and then chilled in a sweet garlicky marinade, it adds a mild spice and enhanced green flavor that both my husband and I loved. Liz and Mary at Green Flamingo Organics are growing some as we speak, which is another reason I was curious to try it. Can't wait to get it from them and other local sources later this fall.

Lentil and Broccoli Rabe Salad with Honey-Orange Vinaigrette

Ingredients

Lentil and Broccoli Rabe Salad

1 c. steamed lentils

1 c. cooked brown rice (great use for leftover rice)

1 thick slice red onion, finely chopped or minced

2 carrots, finely chopped or minced

3 c. broccoli rabe, chopped

Honey-Orange Vinaigrette

1/3 c. olive oil

1 1/2 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. orange juice

2 tsp. holly honey

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Directions

Steam the broccoli rabe until just tender (about three minutes in the microwave). Drain, allow to cool, then combine with the rest of the salad ingredients.

In a cup or bowl, add the salt to the vinegar and whisk until well-dissolved. Add the rest of the vinaigrette ingredients and whisk together.

Pour the vinaigrette over the salad ingredients and combine. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours to suck the bitterness out of the broccoli rabe and let the garlic do its thang. Serves 4 as a light main dish; not recommended as a an appetizer due to its strong palette-numbing flavor, but use your discretion.

This would also have been super-good with feta cheese and dried cranberries. As far as serving suggestions, my two cents' worth of advice is to pair it with something simple. My husband and I preceded it with hot chicken broth and fresh bread for a well-rounded, seasonally-appropriate meal.

As usual, if you try any variations at home, let me know how it turns out!

Beat the eggs. Whip the cream. Show no mercy.

Arugula Salad With Black-Eyed Peas, Honey Crisp Apples, and Zesty Tomato Dressing

Since I did not make it to the farmers' market over the weekend, I indulged in some non-local goodies at Publix, including the honey crisp apples in this salad. It seems unfair for nature to deny me an iconic food like the apple. But I don't have to scrape ice off my windshield or shovel snow out of my driveway, so let's call it even.

Zesty Tomato Dressing

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. tomato puree

1 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. holly honey

Salt, pepper, and hot sauce to taste

Directions

Combine ingredients and whisk together. Serves 2.

Beat the eggs. Whip the cream. Show no mercy.