Kale Salad with Honey-Tahini Dressing

At UMass, there’s a cute little vegan/vegetarian cafe called “Earthfoods”. It’s a student-run organization and they serve up fresh, healthy meals daily. Prior to eating there, I knew I enjoyed a lot of vegetarian food, but knew little about vegan food. The first time I ate there was at the beginning of my junior year with my friend Nik. He told me to get the steamed kale as a side choice, so I did. I had never eaten kale before but I knew it was somewhat similar to spinach. After a few bites, I wasn’t really into it, so I gave my kale to Nik, who happily devoured it. Then I looked around and realized just about everybody surrounding us was also eating a huge plate of kale. What is with these people and their kale? I thought to myself.

Fast forward to a few months later: I was one of those people also enjoying a big plate of kale. I guess it just grows on you.

Their kale is cooked perfectly and always ripe and sweet. My favorite part is the tahini dressing that many people pour over the kale. It’s nutty and tangy and complements the kale perfectly. Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. If you’re a hummus-eater, you’ve probably eaten tahini at some point or another. Tahini is one of the main ingredients in most types of hummus. It adds that tangy, slightly bitter taste. It’s often used as a substitute for cream in vegan meals because it has a very smooth, thick consistency. Trader Joe’s sells small tubs of it (already mixed with lemon juice and garlic) that you can find in their hummus section, or in the natural foods section of your local grocery store.

The tahini dressing at Earthfoods contains oil, lemon juice, garlic, and parsley and is super tasty. For this particular salad, I decided I wanted a slightly sweeter dressing so I added some honey. Pour that on top of your kale and add some toasted almonds, dried cranberries, and shallots and you’ve got one delicious, healthy salad! If you’re not a fan of kale, feel free to substitute your favorite greens. This salad would be great with baby spinach.

Instead of steaming the kale for this method, I used the “massaging” technique to soften it. It’s exactly what it sounds like – gently massaging oil or dressing into the kale leaves (using your hands) until they become softer and turn bright green. This helps break down the toughness of the leaves and bring out some of the natural moisture.

Kale Salad with Honey-Tahini Dressing

Ingredients:

• For the dressing:
  • 2 Tbsp tahini
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp vinegar
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
• 5 stalks kale, rinsed and torn into pieces
• 1/4 cup sliced roasted almonds (or to toast your own, see directions below)
• 2 Tbsp dried cranberries
• 1 small shallot, sliced thinly (or 1/4 cup sliced red onion)

For the dressing

For the salad

Directions:

1. To prepare the dressing, simply combine the first 5 ingredients into a small bowl and whisk until combined.
2. Pour the dressing over the kale leaves and using your hands, gently massage the leaves until they soften and turn bright green. Set aside.
3. To toast the almonds, add 1 tsp olive oil to a small frying pan and heat over a low flame. Add the almonds (and a sprinkle of salt, if desired) and stir constantly for 30-45 seconds. The almonds toast very quickly so you have to keep and eye on them. They’ll be done within 1 minute.
4. Toss the kale with the almonds, dried cranberries and sliced shallot and enjoy.

Mix the dressing up

Toast up some almonds

Massage the dressing into the kale (this is what it looks like before)

And this is what it looks like after. Notice how the leaves have turned bright green?

One nice thing about kale is that it holds up well to moisture. You could prepare this salad in the morning, dressing and everything, and it will barely have wilted by lunch time.
I really love the toasted almonds in this salad because they are nice and crisp and almost taste like pumpkin seeds!

Basil-Feta Pasta Salad

Pasta salad is one of those things I really only eat in the summer. In the winter, I’m all about hot pasta with marinara sauce or some creamy pesto. But in the summer, with frequent cookouts with my family, pasta salad just seems so appropriate.

This salad came about due to my love of basil. When I was younger, I used to hate basil and wouldn’t touch any dish that had strong basil flavor. As I got older, I learned to appreciate the flavor of basil, and now I love it.

I even bought a basil plant at the beginning of the summer, hoping to use the leaves in lots of recipes. For a few weeks, it was really nice having fresh basil at my disposal whenever I needed it. After about a month, though, it started to dry out and always looked limp, even when I kept it moist and let it get enough sunlight. And now, it looks like this:

… Oops. Needless to say, I was not blessed with the green thumb. Yeah…

Anyway, onto the food!

This pasta salad features a thick, creamy sauce made from basil, feta cheese, garlic, and a couple other spices. I was a big fan of the sauce. It’s similar to classic basil pesto, but with the addition of tangy and salty feta cheese. Feta cheese has always been one of my favorites. Like most other cheeses, it is fatty, but I recently realized feta has a lot of protein – 7g per 1/4 cup! So, while it should still be eaten in moderation, at least you’re getting your protein and calcium.
I also added fresh tomatoes and sweet peppers to the pasta for a little crunch, but you can add any type of veggie your heart desires.

Basil-Feta Pasta Salad
serves 5-6

Prep time: 15-20 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• For the pasta:
• 1 box pasta of choice (I used penne)
• 1 large tomato, diced (or 1-2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved)
• 1 large bell pepper, diced
• For the sauce:
• 2  cups fresh basil leaves (stems removed), rinsed and roughly chopped
• 1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 Tbsp vinegar (I used apple cider)
• 1 large or 2 small cloves of garlic
• 1/2 shallot, finely diced
• 7 oz. hunk of feta cheese (or about ~1 1/2 cups crumbled), cut into small chunks
• 2 Tbsp fresh grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• pepper, to taste (the cheese is pretty salty so you’ll probably find you don’t need any more salt)

your ingredients for the sauce

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to box directions. Rinse with cold water and let drain.
2. In your food processor, add chopped basil, 1/3 cup olive oil, vinegar, garlic, and shallot. If you have a small food processor, you may need to add some of the basil, blend it to break it down, and then add more. Pulse until well-combined, scraping down the sides when necessary.
3. Add feta and parmesan cheese (I did this in two batches) and blend again until smooth. If it’s too thick, add another Tbsp of olive oil, or a small amount of water. Add oregano, red pepper flakes, and pepper. Pulse a few more times.
4. Add basil-feta sauce  to cooled pasta and stir well. Note: you may not need all of the sauce – I used ~3/4 of it (it made about 1 cup), so I’d recommend adding some, stirring, and then seeing if you need more. It may also be necessary to add extra olive oil at this point to loosen up the pasta.
5. Add diced tomatoes and peppers and stir. Serve immediately or chill for a few hours (it also tastes great heated up!). Leftovers should be eaten within 3-4 days.

rinse that basil!

separate the stems from the leaves

combine basil, olive oil, shallot, and garlic

pulse until all leaves are broken down

add feta, parmesan cheese, and spices

blend until smooth, and it’s done!

I had this pasta salad as a side dish, and also served it as a meal with diced grilled chicken. Yum. The sauce would also be delicious on a sandwich or a pizza!

Raspberry Almond Summer Salad

Raspberry Almond Summer Salad with Goat Cheese

This past Sunday, I had a girl’s day out with my mother, sister Emily, Mirva, and little Naomi. We took a walk around a local park, ate at one of our favorite restaurants, and got our nails done. It was so nice to spend time with the girls in my family and I hope we start making a tradition of it.

This salad is inspired by the one I ordered at the restaurant, Not Your Average Joe’s. Their salad is called the Almond-Crusted Goat Cheese Salad, and I finished eating it before anybody else had even touched their appetizer… oops. I loved the lightly fried warm goat cheese and the way the fresh raspberries perfectly balanced out the tanginess of the goat cheese. Raspberries have always been one of my favorite fruits, but I only recently discovered that I really enjoy goat cheese. I decided to make a simpler version, using fresh crumbled goat cheese and chopped almonds. I’m not usually a big salad person, but this one has seriously kept me going back for more – I’ve had one a day for the past three days. Ha.

Raspberry Almond Summer Salad
as adapted from Not Your Average Joe’s

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh field greens
• a handful of almonds, roughly chopped (I used Cinnamon & Brown Sugar, mmm)
• 2 Tbsp fresh goat cheese, crumbled
• handful of fresh raspberries, halved (or frozen, thawed)
• 1-2 Tbsp light raspberry vinaigrette (I used Naturally Delicious brand)

Directions:

In a medium salad bowl, add field greens and then all other ingredients. Toss and enjoy. To make a meal of it, try adding some sliced grilled chicken.

Simple and delicious.