Salad — Page 4

Oranges, Balsamic Candied Pecans & Herb Salad

March 11, 2015 By Marcella Rose Leave a Comment

Hi, Marcella Rose here! I often find that I make some of my most exciting recipes out of necessity. Needing to use this or that before it goes bad or to make room in the fridge or because “surprise!”, you have guests staying for dinner. It’s where I shine because you really have to be creative to make it work.

It is a skill that was honed while being a ranch cook 45 miles from anything for 5 years. I would open up a cook book and decide on a recipe only to find out that we don’t have half the ingredients. I got really good at substitutions and clever ways around things and it made me feel empowered. I didn’t need to be limited by recipes. So strict and to the point. Why not let your palate decide? You know what you like, what flavor combinations taste best together. So tonight why not take off the saddle, untie the reins and just run free? Make something up, be spontaneous, and try something new! Who knows what could happen, you could invent a new favorite dish!

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Citrus Salad with Toasted Coconut & Pistachios

January 29, 2015 By Alli Smith 21 Comments

I’ve been trying to eat a more healthful diet since falling off the clean-eating wagon during the holidays and being run over repeatedly. And then there’s the blog. Someone has to sample my recipes before I share them, right? I’ve officially delegated that entire job to my husband, my children and whoever happens to be at my home or walking by . . . for now. And what about winter? Why do I seem to eat more during winter? It’s not like I’m preparing to hibernate or anything.

We haven’t experienced too much cold weather here in the south (yet), but we have had an unusual amount of rain and cloudy days that seemed to turn into weeks. It could be downright depressing for a sun-loving girl like me if I didn’t have my citrus salad with toasted coconut and pistachios to cheer me up. It’s healthy, delicious and nutritious!

I was going to call my salad a deconstructed citrus salad with toasted coconut and pistachios and citrus balsamic vinaigrette, but man, that’s a mouth full! So I just gave it a nickname.

My citrus salad is light, refreshing and provides a crunch from the coconut and the nuts. The vinaigrette provides a smooth, sweet finish to this perfect winter dessert or snack.

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Roasted Beet, Heirloom Tomato Salad with Ricotta Salata

September 22, 2014 By Marcella Rose Leave a Comment

It’s the peak of summer harvest here in the Pacific Northwest. Gardens are over-flowing with the bounty. Local farmers markets are saturated with the vivacious tastes, smells, and colors of the season. Co-workers bring in boxes full of produce, letting the bright colors seep into the office, laying out the summer bounty in the break room, making the donuts seem sad and desperate. Neighbors drop off baskets overflowing with greens, yellows, oranges, reds, and purples so deep and rich you can hardly believe it.

Your mind starts to race as you think of all the recipes to be explored. Your heart quickens as you dream of the canning to be done; to capture the tastes to be savored on a cold winter day as you open summer captured in a jar. You start to salivate as you think of sitting down to a meal, oh the cooking to be done! But instead of turning on the stove and tying the apron strings on, you slice a tomato and sprinkle it with salt, taking a bite of it raw. It is perfection on the tongue, so sweet and juicy; it makes you wonder what piece of plastic has been posing as a “tomato” the rest of the year in your grocery store. Yes, it’s time to enjoy the splendor of what the good earth has to offer.

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