Roasted Carrot Beet Salad and Creamy Avocado Lemon Dressing

As the weather gets warmer and the days get longer, my food brain turns to fresh colorful simple spring food. (which is totally a thing). Spring food is a combination of the last of the winters hardy root veggies combined with the springs bounty of fresh greens and early growers. Spring food is the best!

This lovely. oh so gorgeous salad has been on repeat in my meal repertoire. It's so yummy and so simple. Beets and carrots roasted and sliced, tossed onto a bed of tender spinach and topped with a creamy, lemony avocado dressing. Fresh, fast, light, and filling. Everything a perfect  spring salad needs. Not to mention it takes no time at all to make because with all this nice weather , we want to spend as much time basking in the warmth and glow of the sun. I might even take my spring salad outside today. Maybe.

Dressing stuff. A nice and ripe avocado, the juice of a juicy lemon, a bit of garlic powder (raw garlic is nice too, but grate it super fine) and salt. Simple simple and sometimes simple can be the best.All stuff get mashed super mashed until smooth and scooped into a jar with a lid. Add about 1/4- 1/2 cup water (depending on how thick you like it) and shake that jar all around.

That's it. You now have super creamy avocado lemon dressing. Drizzle on anything and everything… especially this roasted carrot and beet salad..

A roasted beet and carrot, all sliced upTossed onto a bed of tender baby spinachAnd topped with creamy avocado dressing. Fantastic, so pretty, and makes the day super springy!

A salad suggestion….  Add some roasted chickpeas toasted nuts, or sunflower seeds to this or any salad. Adds a little proteins and the crispy crunch is a nice addition. 

Enjoy the day..Smile lots 

-C

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Roasted Carrot Beet Salad and Avocado Lemon Dressing

Salad

• 2-3 cups Baby Spinach
• 1 large carrot
• 1 medium beet
• Toasted nuts, beans, or seeds (Optional)

You can roast the veggies a few ways.. Slice the carrot and beet, place on a baking sheet and  stick into the oven at 425 degrees until tender. Or you can just toss a the carrot and beet onto a baking sheet whole and roast.( What I usually do)

Once the veggies are roasted and cooled, thinly slice and toss onto the bed of baby spinach. Top with Avocado Lemon Dressing (recipe below) and some toasted crunchy thing.

Dressing

• 1 Ripe Avocado
• 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4- 1/2  cup water

Scoop avocado fruit into a bowl and mash with a fork until a paste is formed. Scoop mashed avocado into a jar and add remaining ingredients. Stick lid on jar and shake tip combined. Use on anything. 

Dressing lasts a few days in the fridge. Should stay green, but add a layer of lemon juice to top to keep from browning.

Balsamic Soaked Strawberries on Spinach Almond Avocado Salad

When something goes on sale at the grocery store, I tend to buy it. Being that it is Valentines Day this week, all the stores are having specials on all sorts of sexy things… and strawberries are one of them.  Now I am not a huge fan of buying produce that is terribly out of season, but I can't help myself…a good deal is a good deal and the strawberries were a super good deal. I was just going to make some sweet ass strawberry jam or maybe a lovely strawberry cake with them (and I probably still will), but these strawberries are actually super juicy and full of flavor, and it's always nice to eat some full flavor freshy strawberries… especially soaked in balsamic vinegar.  And yeah,  I think that this salad is pretty sexy, so it makes for a perfect Valentines day dish.

A handful of ingredients and 5 minutes will get you to a fantastic salad experience.

A bowl of  baby spinach, a few chopped up strawberries*,  half a sliced avocado and a small handful of toasted almonds.. Oh, and don't forget the balsamic vinegar…. 

*Note.. Strawberries are kind of heart shaped already so if you want, reserve a few slices to fancy up you salad presentation, but chop up the rest into smaller pieces.

Pour the vinegar on the strawberries and let sit for at least 5 minutes. (the longer the strawberries can sit with the vinegar, the better)

 Pile it on..  thinly slice avocado.. rough chopped toasted almonds… It's pretty much as easy as it can get.And last but not least, toss on the balsamic soaked strawberries and drizzle the remaining vinegar. (if you made hearts, place on top to make pretty) Sprinkle with a pitch of salt and pepper and pow! Fancy, sexy, delicious salad.

Not to shabby for  5 minutes and a handful of ingredients.  Anyone (don't feed to a person with nut allergies) would be so syked to be fed a salad like this… You yourself should be pretty excited to eat a salad like this. Heck, I am excited to eat a salad like this!

A love salad for everyone and everyday!

YAY for Thursday and Happy meal planning!!!! 

-C

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♥ Balsamic Strawberries on Spinach Almond Avocado Salad ♥

Ingredients for 1 large or 2 small salads

• 3-4 ripe strawberries
• handful of roasted almonds (slivers or whole)
• 1/2 avocado
• 2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar 
• 3 cups baby spinach
• Pinch of salt and pepper 

Dice strawberries into small pieces (reserve a few whole slices for heart shapes if you want) and toss in a small bowl  with the balsamic vinegar. Let sit for at least 5 minutes. Rinse and dry spinach. Place in a bowl(s) and top with thinly sliced avocado, chopped almonds and balsamic soaked strawberries. Drizzle the residual vinegar on top and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. 

Eat with a fork

Citrus Avocado Salad

  Whenever me and the mister get invited / show up for dinner at someone's house, I like to bring at least one thing to contribute to the meal. First, because I am nice like that. Secondly, because I get to make food for other people besides Nick and get new feedback on recipes. (Sometimes I think he tells me things taste amazing when they might not) And thirdly, its nice to mess up someone else's kitchen besides my own. So last night we went to my sisters and  I made a salad.  A very easy and virtually mess free salad…….I still made a mess (I cleaned it up myself!)

 The salad I made was a light, crisp, and citrusy thing of beauty. Not exactly what one would think to eat on a freezing my face off cold day, but hey, you can't help what the body craves. Plus, if you  make it for. lets say, a sister that is making french fries and hamburgers for dinner..then a light and citusy salad is just what you need. Feedback from the mouths that ate it….Fanstastic combo! Best Salad ever! Never going to eat anything else! Ok, not so dramatic, but this was a winner. And for real, this salad takes about five seconds to compile and all the ingredients are really accessible right now so really, why not? 

  

 Nice crisp  kale. Thinly slices red onion for a nice bite. Orange for that sweet citrusy and juicy smack and avocado to add a perfect creamy finish. Lime to make it perfect.  Start with the  base layer of kale… then first goes the sliced onion. (Make sure it's thinly sliced or else it will be to overpowering)  Add thinly sliced oranges…oh boy, your half way there!!!

Top with thinly sliced avocado, a sprinkle of salt and drizzle with lime juice. I also served with an extra wedge of lime, there is never too much lime.

Now you can stand back, take a picture, send to all your friends and make them jealous of you fantastically pretty and oh so delicious salad. They will ask, "What is that amazing looking dish you are eating?" Your response will be.."Check out the blog..the lovely crazy…and make it yourself! " (yes, I am shamelessly plugging myself here) 

Anyway, enjoy the day and try to keep warm!

-C

Citrus Avocado Salad (Makes 2)

Ingredients

• A few good handfuls of kale leaves
• 1 orange
• 1 avocado
• 1 lime
• 1/2 a red onion

Remove tough stems from kale and chop leaves into small month sized pieces. Thinly slice  onion, peel and thinly slice orange and cut avocado into…yup you got it, thin slices. 

Kale into bowls, top with  onion, orange and avocado. Top with the juice of half a lime…Add a sprinkle of salt. 

Warm Winter Salad

Lets kick the weekend off right, with a nice warm and hardy salad. Not a frilly little salad, but a salad that fills you up and leaves you feeling warm and cozy.   A salad with a lot of squash! So here's the thing, I eat a lot of winter squash, maybe 4 plus a week. Because I eat so many, I store a good amount in a cold storage area outside of the little warm living space we call home. Last week we had a drastic temperature change and  a good few of the my butternut and spaghetti squash froze.. then started to de-thaw. Not good. That was the second bad food experience of the day….. Earlier that day I had bought about 2 dozen super ripe bananas that I had been planing on freezing and what not. There were four bunches and each bunch was wrapped in plastic and were in a bag that I left near the back door. The thought crossed my mind, but I hastily brushed it away. Washer won't eat those….. Well guess what? The shit ate half of my freaking bananas…plastic and all. Needless to say, I was kind of pissed already so finding my squash on the way out really set me off. I was not about to let more food go to waste.(or be eaten by the dog) I went into rescue mode..Chop chop and dice…boil, roast and steam…and eat eat eat…. and eat. I have been eating butternut for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the past week and that's ok with me cause man it does taste oh so tasty. But for some people in my life, eating mashed squash out of a jar all day long does not hold the same appeal so I have been sneaking it in where ere I can.  

So some of that diced squash tuned into this lovely warm salad. Even the mister liked it and he is not a fan of warm salads(he says he is not, but I think he actually is, as long as I don't call them "salads") Any who…This salad hits all the marks…. Fantastically filling, super delicious, fast and healthy.  Check, check, and check! I am so good. 

Easy peasy….

Diced butternut squash, half a vilalia onion,  prepared lentils and a bunch of kale… Nothin else.(salt and pepper, but they don't count)

Diced butternut and a mediumly sliced onion..(mediumly is a new cooking term) Spritz a bit of oil in a pan and toss the squash and onion in there and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Shove into the hot oven and roast until squash and onion are tender and tasty.

Remove the pan from the oven and toss in finely chopped kale and a big scoop of lentil… Mix it up and let the sit in hot pan for a few minutes…it will make the kale get soft and warm.

Plate it and eat eat… I drizzled a little balsamic vinegar on mine…Nick like his straight up. Do what you will cause either way, it's going to be awesome!!!!

Hooray for Friday and for winter squash!!!!

-C

Warm Winter Salad

Ingredients (This made one good sized salad…and exact measurements were not used so feel free to add greater or lesser amounts of any of the ingredients)

• 1 1/2 cup Diced Butternut squash
• 1/2 Vidalia Onion(or any variety you like)
• 3-4 large Kale leaves
• 1/2 cup Precooked Lentils
• salt and pepper to taste
• Balsamic Vinegar 
• drizzle of oil for pan

In a 425 degree oven,  place diced squash and sliced onions in a slightly oiled pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for about 20 minutes until tender. Remove pan from oven and toss in chopped kale and lentils and let sit in hot pan for a few minutes… Plate and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

SUPER SALAD!!!

For the past few days I have heard more complaining then happy. The biggest complaint…tummy issues.  A week of gorging on heavy, rich, and indulgent foods is finally catching up with people, turning them into grump asses. I can handle a little grump,  but its time to get get out of that funk and take care and stop bitching. May I make a suggestion? Eat this… You will be happy.  Your body will feel clean and nurised. Your tummy will get back on track.   It what I call satisfaction This salad is a complete meal .Chopped and shredded veggies atop a small heap of quinoa, tossed on a handful of lentils and topped with a dollop of lime avocado… Thats it and it is good. For the sake of picture-taking, I made a plate look all nice and pretty, with layers of  colors, but to be honest with you, I rather toss into a big bowl, grab a moderately large-sized fork and  food to face… and it's just as pretty.(the bowl of food is pretty, not food on my face) Quick note: the vegetables that I used here  are what I had at home. If you don't have one or two of these specific veggies, don't worry about it. Sub in something else, like pepper or spinach., Still have extra brussel sprouts, green beans or asparagus from thanksgiving? Go ahead and use those. If there is a specific veggie you know your stomach doesn't tolerate well, then maybe avoid using it. This is a happy feel good salad!A pile of vegetables is always a good start to any meal, especially these veggies.. All but the avocado came from my farm share. This is one  local organic meal of love.

Green Kale, purple cabbage, beets, red onion, carrots…I did a little shredding and some grating. I like to have different sized and textures in a salad.

Oh whats this? Diced butternut squash(from farm) sprinkle with salt and pepper waiting to be roasted. I am a huge believer in squash on salads…especially in a cold Vermont winter. A little bit of heartiness can really go along way. Quinoa.. 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water..Bring to a boil and let simmer until light and fluffy. When I make quinoa, I always make more than is going to be eaten, its great to have pre made for any meal.  Quinoa goes with everything, even a sprinkle of cinnamon and diced up apple for a nice breakfast or snack. I was making this for dinner for my mister who sometimes doesn't tolerate so many super raw veggies. So what I did and I recommend doing if you are worried about to many raw veggies at once, is to give them a really quick vinegar braise. I throw the veggie in a pan and drizzled red wine vinegar(you can use any vinegar you like) . Stuck a top on it and stuck it on the burner for a few minutes until the vinegar was gone. It just barely softens the veggies and  helps infuse the vinegar.Also a little easier for some to digest. Me, I like to eat it completely raw. Barely steamed kale, just enough to soften it. Again. raw is awesome too. Half a lime, half an avocado and a clove or two of garlic... guacamole…Call it what you will.

Salad contstruction… Quinoa. Kale. Cabbage, onion and beets.  Butternut squash. Carrots. Lentils and a nice sized scoop of avocado. But like I said, Bowl…,fork….. face. Tastes just as good. A super salad, full of flavor and healthy stuff, A salad that will  fill you up, leave you feeling full,  not gross. and is quite the looker if you ask me.

Super Salad

• 1/4 cup Quinoa
• 1/4 roasted Butternut squash
• 2-3 large Kale leaves
• 1/2 cup shredded Red Cabbage
• 1/4  grated Beet
• 1/8 cup sliced Red onion
• 1/4 cup grated Carrot
• 1/4 prepared lentils
• 1/4 of an Avocado
• 1/2 a lime
• garlic
• vinegar
• salt and pepper

This is the list of stuff that is in this salad. This is not a recipe that need to be exact.. Use more of something you like, omit whatever you don't. Just keep it simple and delicious. Dice up butternut into small pieces, place on baking sheet and roast till tender.  Add quinoa to water, bring to boil, then turn down to simmer  tip light ad fluffy. If you want steamed kale, stick kale in pot with a i/2 inch water and lid, and place on high for about 2 minutes, just until kale ha soften. The squash is roasting,(the smaller the pieces, the faster it goes)  quinoa is cooking and kale is soften,. Now grate or chop you veggies. Want them less than raw, place in pan with a bit of vinegar or just water and stick a lid on it. Medium heat for a few minutes, or until the veggies are slightly soften.. Dont over cook, you still want the veggies to have a bite and keep the good for you stuff.  Take avocado, chopped garlic and half lime and mash together.  Now everything is prepared and ready..Place strategically in a bowl or plate, quinoa, kale, squab, cabbage,beets, onion, carrots, lentils, avocado, drizzle with straight up vinegar.……..Or just throw it all together. Fork to FACE!!!