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Susan’s FAMous Springtime Salad
Susan’s FAMous Springtime Salad
When the stars align in spring and I spy all the FAM ingredients, I start to crave this salad. …I’m making this dish today, so I had to share the recipe. No worries if you miss the window of opportunity. I note a perfect sub for the short-lived fava beans, so enjoy this salad all summer long!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 Side Salads 1x
- Category: Salad
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Champagne vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons honey
- ½ teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 large bunch kale, ribs removed and sliced or chopped
- 1 cup fava beans, cooked, peeled and cooled, blanched edamame
- 6 whole artichoke hearts, quartered and drained (gently squeeze out excess water)
- 3/4 pound asparagus, cooked and cooled, cut into 1.5-inch pieces
- 1 medium avocado, halved, seed removed and diced
- 2 ounces Manchego cheese, small dice or shaved
- ½ cup mint leaves, minced
Instructions
- In a salad bowl whisk together the honey, salt, pepper and vinegar. Drizzle in olive oil while mixing until the dressing is well emulsified and thick. Set aside half of the dressing for later use.
- Add the kale and toss well to coat.
- Let the salad sit at room temperature for 10-30 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and toss again.
- Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days.
Notes
By the way, the “F” in FAMous is for Fava. Can you guess the balance of the acronym (which helps me recall my grocery list)?
Sprinkle it on!
Antioxidant Sprinkles
Use this herb blend in abundance! It is a great immune boost that is simple and tasty to use everyday…on salads, soups and vegetables.
- Prep Time: 5
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Seasonings
Ingredients
- 1 part dried rosemary
- 1 part dried parsley
- 1 part dried thyme
- 1 part dried sage
- Toasted sesame seeds, to taste
- Seaweed (dulse and arame, or other), raw or toasted, to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt, red alea or alder smoked or other, to taste
Instructions
- Blend individual herbs, sesame and seaweed in an herb grinder or with a mortar and pestle
- Add salt a small amount of salt to taste
- Add a few whole sesame seeds if you like
Notes
Adapted from Rosemary’s Remedies
Lately I’ve been buying my dried herbs and spices from Vitacost.com. I find I can purchase a pound of Organic Frontier brand for the price of 2 small jars of store-bought. I’ve compared, and there is a huge difference in flavor between standard grocer brands and Frontier. I’ll never go back to buying lesser quality herbs. If you’re not up for a pound, check out Mountain Rose Herbs online store for great quality (smaller) bulk options.
Nutrition Bonus:
- Sesame seeds provide calcium and they soften and enhance the flavor of the dried herbs.
- Seaweed is a great source of minerals and adds a subtle Unami flavor.
Susan’s Glorifying Morning Muffins
Susan’s Glorifying Morning Muffins
I was inspired to make a healthier version of Zeppole’s morning glory muffins, which I adore, but are really a sweet treat and rather oily. So I dissected one of their muffins, and this is the result of years playing around with the recipe. Feel free to make it your own…
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 18 Regular or 42 Mini 1x
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Bake
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup oat bran
- 3/4 cup ground flaxseed
- 3/4 cup shredded carrot
- 3/4 cup shredded zucchini
- 1/2 cup currants or golden raisins
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 medium apple, grated, such as Gala
- 1/3 cup millet
- 1/3 cup dried flaked unsweetened coconut
- 1 cup whole wheat flour, or substitute with a GF flour blend
- 1/2 cup unbleached white flour, or substitue with GF flour blend
- 1 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
- 3/8 cup brown sugar, packed
- 3/4 cup milk, buttermilk or dairy alternative such as almond milk
- 3/4 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk, or dairy alternative with 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1/3 cup olive oil (plus extra for oiling muffin tins)
- 1 egg (or 1 teaspoon egg replacer, mix egg replacer with 2 tablespoons of water)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- In a medium-sized bowl mix together oat bran, flaxseed meal, carrots, zucchini, raisins, walnuts, apple, millet, and coconut.
- Mix together flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice.
- Combine oat bran mixture with flour mixture. Blend together milk, yogurt, sugar, egg, oil and vanilla and pour over oat bran and flour mixture. Stir until just combined. Mixture will become thicker.
- Pour into lightly oiled muffin tins. Bake mini-muffins at 350 for 25 minutes (32-minutes for larger muffins). Cool for 5 minutes in tins before placing muffins on a cooling rack.
Notes
The muffins always seems to come out fine even when omitting one ingredient that you may not have on hand, and adding another in its place. The added sugar can be reduced by 50%, but you will have a drier muffin that must be consumed fairly quickly…usually not a problem!
“No-Tuna” Salad (Chickpeas)
“No-Tuna” Salad (Chickpeas)
This simple recipe is loaded with nutrition bonuses. Besides being an economical option, garbanzos, or chickpeas, are a very good source of protein as well as zinc, a mineral that supports our immune function. Capers are rich in Quercetin (actually one of the best food sources!) which promotes our production of the powerful “master” anti-oxidant, glutathione.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 5
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
- Category: Salad
Ingredients
- 1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 3 Tablespoons tahini
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (or spicy brown mustard)
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 1/4 cup celery, diced
- 1/4 cup pickles, diced
- 1 lemon for 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons capers, drained and loosely chopped, if large
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons sunflower seeds, unsalted, optional
- 8 whole leaves lettuce, Bibb
- 1or 2 tomatoes, sliced
- Sliced or diced avocado, optional
Instructions
Prep:
- Drain and rinse chickpeas
- Dice red onion, celery, pickles
- Drain capers
- Thinly slice tomato and avocado
Make:
- Place the chickpeas in a mixing bowl, and roughly mash with a fork or potato masher.
- Add tahini, mustard, maple syrup, red onion, celery, pickles, lemon or pickle juice, capers, salt and pepper, and sunflower seeds. Toss well to coat. Adjust seasonings to taste.
- Place whole leaves of lettuce on a platter.
- Scoop 1/4 of chickpea mixture into each lettuce cup. Top with tomato and additional onion, avocado or other chopped vegetables, as desired.
Notes
Adapted from Living Plate
For a fun variation, quickly blanch or steam collard greens and use in place of the lettuce as a wrap for your salad.
Nutrition Tips:
- Use a naturally fermented pickle (e.g. Bubbies or Woodstock are two brands) for a probiotic boost.
- Think dairy is the best source of calcium?…Think about tahini (sesame seed paste) as a better source. It is packed with bio-available calcium.
A taste of spring…From your grocer’s freezer
Fresh Pea Soup
This soup reminds me of springtime in a bowl. It is so refreshing, and is a simple addition to any meal. It is a great do-ahead alternative to a salad…or sub-in when fresh salad ingredients may be scarce.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 Servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
- 2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 leeks)
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, preferably homemade
- 5 cups freshly shelled peas or 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen peas
- 2/3 cup chopped fresh mint leaves, loosely packed, or 3 tablespoons dried (see variation, below)
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup freshly chopped chives or scallions
Instructions
- Heat the butter or oil in a large saucepan, add the leeks and onion, and cook over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the onion is tender but still firm. Add the stock, increase the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Add the peas and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the peas are tender. (Frozen peas will take only 3 minutes.) Turn off heat, add the mint, salt, and pepper.
- Puree the soup in batches: Place 1 cup of soup in a blender, place the lid on top, and puree on low speed. With the blender still running, open the vent hole in the lid and slowly add more soup until the blender is three-quarters full. Pour the soup into a large bowl and repeat until all the soup is pureed. Add lemon juice. Taste for seasoning.Can serve warm or cold, topped with chopped chives or scallions.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten
Tips and Tricks:
- Note that fresh mint may be hard to come by right now, so simply use dried, or make a mint tea with the broth prior to adding the liquid to the recipe. Steep 2 mint tea bags in hot broth for 8 minutes. Add the infused broth to the sautéed leeks in step 1.
- Leeks can be loaded with dirt. To clean, slice your leeks lengthwise and open the cut side like a book while rinsing the leek half with water.
Nutritional bonus:
- Alliums (think onion, scallions, garlic and leeks) are rich-sources of sulfur compounds, which are especially beneficial to bone health and immune function.
- Two for one: The pre-biotic fiber in leeks supports healthy gastrointestinal function, too.