Roasted Fennel and Spring Vegetable Salad

Someday I'm going to write a book called 101 Ways to Make Tacos because tacos are what we have for dinner. Seriously. Every. Single. Night.

Okay, maybe not every single night, but certainly most weeknights. At this point, my partner has basically stopped asking what's for dinner because it's obvious: beans and something else that's going to go inside of corn tortillas. Any questions?

Someday I'm also going to write a book called 101 Ways to Make A Salad because salads are what I have for lunch practically every single weekday.

The key to making a good salad is this: it has to have a good protein source (I usually opt for beans or lentils), a variety of vegetables with complimentary flavors and textures, and a good dressing. For most salads, I usually dress the leaves in a little plain balsamic vinegar, but the classic balsamic vinegar and olive oil mix is fabulous for almost any salad.

And if you eat an oil-free diet, subbing avocado in for oil is a fabulous way to still enjoy a creamy dressing. This sweet and tangy mango salad dressing and this jalapeno avocado lime dressing are great oil-free options.

My personal challenge to enjoying salads is that I don't typically crave raw veggies because Seattle is cold most of the year. However, I can get around this by roasting vegetables and adding them (while still warm) to a bed of cold greens. This salad is my newest favorite and it's a fabulous meal during these cold, drizzly days of spring.

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How to Make Massaged Kale Salad

What was the hardest part of your week last week?

While you ponder that, let me share mine: having to watch as a teacher took kale away from a preschooler and made him cry. (Yep, ladies and gentleman, apparently I am so good at getting kids to love kale that they cry when it is taken away.)

Last week I was making my famous kale smoothie for kids with a group of preschoolers. One of the boys was so excited about getting to try the smoothie that he started eating one of the raw kale leaves that had been passed around the classroom for the kids to touch and explore. After taking a bite of the kale he liked it so much that he continued to gnaw his way through most of the leaf. (I was quite impressed!)

Of course, a child snacking on a germ-y piece of kale caught the attention of one of the teachers who promptly took it away from him. Sure enough, crying ensued. Which actually seems pretty fair because if someone tried to take my kale away, I would probably cry too.

Luckily, the nice thing about being an adult is that you can eat as much raw kale as you want. Especially if you massage it and turn it into a delicious salad. Just wash your hands first. :)

By now you might have heard of "massaging" kale and wondered what all the fuss was about. Massaging raw kale transforms it from a tough, somewhat bitter leaf into a sweet, delicate salad. And it only takes a few minutes!

Let me show you how!

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Kohlrabi Chickpea Salad

What is kohl-rabi? Kohl...rabi? Is that how you say it?

What does kohl-rabi taste like? Can you eat the leaves?

That's a funny looking vegetable! 

I've seen kohlrabi at the store, but I don't know what to do with it. How do you prepare it?


In my life away from this computer, I spend a lot of time talking to people about vegetables and encouraging kids and adults to eat outside of their comfort zones. Fall and winter brings us many vegetables that we are already familiar with and love, including: winter squashes, a variety of greens, and beautiful root vegetables. I've found that kohlrabi is one of the most unfamiliar veggies this season and most people have questions about how to prepare it and what to do with it.

Today I have a special treat for you... Check out the video below to learn how easy it is to prepare kohlrabi and see the cooking demo for this delicious recipe!

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Daikon Carrot Salad with Almonds

Do you know how hard it is to get a cat to make a cute paw print on a card?  No, of course you don't... because why would you?  Why on earth would you do something weird and wacky like that?  Things like this are best left up to me; then I can come back and tell you how crazy they are.

I got this idea to make a card "from our cats" for my partner for Valentine's Day.  Naturally my first concern was what medium to use that would be safe on their paws. Anything possibly toxic like ink and paint were most definitely out so I opted for fresh beet juice.

You should know that beet juice stains. Bad. Especially when there are tiny paws covered in beet juice that are running very quickly away from you. In the end, I didn't even get a cute paw print on the card. All I got was a couple of red, ill-shaped blobs. I think the card ended up looking more like a threat than a gesture of one's love and admiration.  

So, the lesson here is simple: don't be like me when it comes to cats... or probably life in general. But, if you like good food, you are more than welcome to be like me when it comes to this salad.
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Tempeh of the Sea

Things I love about summertime...

• The way my kitchen always smells like a juice bar
• Sleeping with the windows wide open
• Biting into cool, crisp watermelon slices
• Mock tuna salads

Things that drive me crazy about summer time...

• The way my kitchen is always swarming with fruit flies
• Waking to the sound of chirping birds at 5 am and my cat trying to rip out the screen in order to get to them
• Biting into mushy watermelon slices
• Running out of my favorite mock tuna salad

For someone that can't stand the thought of seafood or the smell of the ocean, I am oddly obsessed with mock tuna salads, especially in summer.  Every time I am at a new restaurant and see a mock tuna salad on the menu I have to try it.  My obsession finally got to the point where I knew it was time to make my own version so I could have it whenever I wanted.  And so I did.  

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Mizuna Salad with Roasted Cherries and Balsamic Glaze

Once in awhile a recipe comes along that changes my world.  This happened a few months ago when I discovered the beauty that is pineapple fried quinoa.  As a result of this discovery I think I ate enough pineapples over the winter to feed a small island.  And then there was this tahini broccoli salad with cashews.    After this my fridge has always been stocked with tahini, broccoli, and red onions.  Always.

But then I recently discovered that you can roast cherries.  And when cherries are roasted, their juices condense into the most intensely flavorful, sweet, cherry goodness that you can possibly imagine.  It is utterly indescribable.  If you are not a cherry person, I don't know what to tell you to convince you otherwise. But if you are?  This recipe is mandatory.

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Southwest Salad with Jalapeno Avocado Lime Dressing

It's time to kick off summer.  It's time to put your hair in a ponytail, pull out the beach towels, and get out in the sun.  It's time for watermelon slices, corn on the cob, and picnics.  I think this also means it's time for picnic foods... easy dishes that you can share with friends and family and quick go-to meals that you can pack for yourself regardless of where you are headed.  No matter what you are up to this summer, this salad fits the bill.  

We start with a hearty bed of fresh greens and top it with corn, ripe tomatoes, black beans, bell peppers, and a spicy-sweet jalapeno avocado lime dressing.  Flax seed crackers are completely optional, but they add a fun crunch and are perfect for easy and healthy snacks (goodbye tortilla chips!).  What are you waiting for?  Make this salad and get out there!

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Kale and Spelt Berry Salad

If you did not spend your Friday evening making kimchi and rocking out to Cher... then you really missed out on a good time.  If you did not spend your Saturday morning spilling a green smoothie on yourself while doing the Minion Mambo and rocking out to the Despicable Me soundtrack... then you really missed out this weekend.  And if you did not spend your Sunday evening making a kale salad and writing an embarrassing post about yourself ... then what did you do this weekend? 

For me, Sunday evenings are lazy evenings.  I am just starting to come down from my weekend-high and am about to crash right into reality.  This reality usually hits about 5 pm when I realize that a) dinner time is quickly approaching and I have nothing that's easy to prepare b) I haven't made Monday's lunch and c) I don't feel like making dinner for tonight or lunch for tomorrow.  These things are usually enough to make me a tad cranky, at least for the moment.  Luckily kale usually steps in to save the day.

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Kale Caesar Salad

I think my apartment is haunted. Some of my things have been showing up in really weird places lately and last night my bathroom light turned on by itself.  I'm not kidding.  I know that you will try and talk me into thinking that I just left the light on accidentally or that maybe my cat somehow learned to flip the switch.  No way Jose.  I'm not convinced.

In my ghost-paranoid sleep I got exactly 2.3 hours of sleep.  It was a bit of a rough night.  In order to keep myself from completely freaking out I decided to stay up the rest of the night and hide out in my kitchen.  Naturally, this led to me trying to figure out what to do with a loaf of day-old bread from the local bakery that was too amazing to toss out. What else can you do with day-old bread at 4 am than make warm, toasty croutons fresh from the oven?  These disappeared a little too quickly for my comfort, but luckily that was my fault and nothing paranormal.

So, my apartment is haunted.  And I learned to make croutons.  What is new in your world?

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My Top 5 Tips for Quick, Healthy & Incredibly Easy Meals

I have received a couple of emails from readers asking for tips on how to start cooking more meals from scratch in their kitchen.  I think one of the most intimdating factors for most folks is thinking that cooking from scratch is going to be a huge amount of time.  I won't lie, you will have to devote some time to meal planning, grocery shopping, and basic kitchen prep work.  But, once you stock your kitchen up with some basics and learn a few quick go-to meals for easy breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, cooking from scratch will hardly seem intimidating!  Here are my top tips for making quick, healthy, and easy meals at home.  Whether you are a kitchen newbie or an experienced home chef, hopefully this will inspire and enlighten you!

1. Keep a well-stocked pantry of grains

If you are new to cooking or are hoping to start preparing more meals at home, then cooking your own grains is an easy place to start.  Go to the bulk bins at your local health foods store and stock up on some basics.  I always keep brown rice, red and white quinoa, spelt berries, millet, rolled oats, and brown rice pasta on hand.  Some grains take longer to cook than others (e.g. brown rice), which is why it is important to have a variety so that you can easily prepare something in 15 - 20 minutes (e.g. quinoa) if you don't have much time. 

Grains are great for quick dinner items like thai quinoa salad, kimchi fried rice, millet and aduki bean salad, spicy tofu and spelt berries salad, pineapple fried quinoa, or simple rice and beans.  Every Sunday evening I make a batch of brown rice and/or quinoa for the week.  Having grains already prepared for the week makes weeknight dinner assembly a snap!

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Winter Citrus Salad

Consider this salad your reward.  Your reward for surviving a hard week filled with a late-night trip to the animal hospital, three sleepless nights in a row, some not-so-great medical news about your cat, and lots of worrying. This salad is for you, stressed-out mama.  So put your feet up.  It's the weekend and you deserve this.

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Gingered Sea Vegetable Salad

Let's be honest. I know that you didn't wake up this morning thinking to yourself, "I can't wait to eat a giant bowl of seaweed." (And if you did think that, you have my undying admiration.) Let's just say that I didn't wake up this morning thinking that either.

But, I know that sea vegetables are really important for my health. Seaweed is chock full of good stuff like B Vitamins, folic acid, and Vitamins C and E. It is also incredibly rich in minerals like magnesium and calcium and a good source of iodine, iron, and chlorophyll. This is especially important because over the past few years our soil has lost minerals so we aren't getting as many from our food as we used to.  As much as I hate the smell of the ocean, and especially seaweed, I'm gonna eat my sea vegetables.

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Warm Winter Squash Salad

It's been a snowy weekend here in Seattle.  I started my weekend with a trip to the grocery store to stock up on goods in case the weather got worse.  And besides heading out to the gym a few times, we've pretty much stayed indoors.  Between Dance Central on kinect, cleaning projects, photo and writing projects, and being entranced with season 2 of Lost, I've kept myself pretty occupied.  The cats enjoyed watching the falling snow and Bilbo decided that sitting at my photography station (where I photograph all of my food photos) was the coziest place to watch the weather.  And fulfill his dream of being a kitty model.

It is usually hard for me to eat salads during the winter because cold food doesn't sound as appealing, but I happily munched on this one all weekend.  This salad starts with a bed of peppery arugula topped off with warm delicata squash and french lentils.  It's finished with sweet pomegranate seeds and a tangy lemon dressing.  This salad was just what I needed to power our kinect marathon and keep me warm during the snowstorm. 

Warm Winter Squash Salad
Serves 4
1 cup french lentils, uncooked
2 cups water
2 medium delicata squash
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
Seeds from 1 pomegranate
6 cups of baby arugula

Add lentils and water to a pot over high heat.  Bring to a boil, and then simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes, or until tender.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut squash into equal bite-size pieces.  Toss with coconut oil and lay flat on sheet pan.  Roast for 20 minutes, until tender, turning at least once.

Divide the arugula amongst four plates.  Top with warm lentils, squash, and pomegranate seeds.

Dressing:

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

juice from 1 lemon

1 Tablespoon brown mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients until combined.  Drizzle over salad and serve. 

Spinach and Kale Salad with Pear Vinaigrette

Here's a little writing tip for you... If you should ever find yourself racking your brain for writing topics and coming up short, write about cats.  Everyone has an opinion on cats.  Hopefully your readers' opinions are favorable, but even if they are not maybe they'll stick around long enough to tell you that your cats look creepy.  It's okay... 'cause mine totally do.

This week we had a new addition to the family, and like any good mother, I have to share photos and brag.  If you've been hanging around this blog for awhile you've probably met Bilbo by now.  Frodo is the new little brother.  10 pounds, 5 ounces, and energetic as heck.  Try and stop that guy from climbing your curtains.  Just try.  

And just to set the record straight: neither of their names were my idea.  But once the vet starts referring to you as the "Lord of The Rings Mom," you just kinda have to go with it.  If Lord of The Rings is not the natural transition to talking about spinach and kale salad with pear vinaigrette then I don't know what is.

This is the perfect salad for fall because it's hearty and goes well with the warm, comforting dishes that we love this time of year.  The pear dressing adds a nice bit of sweetness that livens up the kale and spinach.  You can use red kale like I did for color contrast, but any type of kale will do.  I liked adding pecans, dried cranberries, lemon zest, and white pepper for extra flavor, but you can easily leave these items out or add in your favorites.  

Pear Vinaigrette

Makes 1/2 cup

1/2 pear, diced

1 Tablespoon water

1 Tablespoon sherry vinegar

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Add pear, water, and sherry vinegar to food processor.  Add olive oil in a thin stream with the blade running.  Process until smooth, scraping down the sides and re-processing as necessary.

Spinach and Kale Salad

Serves 4

4 large kale leaves, destemmed, and chopped

4 cups spinach leaves, chopped

1/2 pear, sliced

1/3 cup pecans, optional

1/4 cup (fresh or dried) cranberries, optional

zest from 1 lemon, optional

ground white pepper, optional

Add dressing to kale in large bowl.  Massage dressing onto kale with your hands, thoroughly rubbing the leaves.  (This will help to break down the kale and make it less tough.) Toss with the spinach.  Divide the salad among four plates and top with pears, pecans, cranberries, lemon zest, and white pepper if desired. 

Asian Soba Noodle Salad with Fresh Peaches

Cool: Listening to the Inception soundtrack.

Super cool: Listening to the Inception soundtrack at your office. It will make your life seem epic, promise.

Cool: Watching the sun rise.

Super cool: Watching the sun rise while running along your favorite trail and listening to the Inception soundtrack. Even more epic.

Cool: Eating soba noodles.

Super cool: Eating soba noodles topped with edamame, sesame seeds, fresh veggies, and sliced peaches. Incredible.

Soba noodles are one of my favorite things at the moment.  They are made from buckwheat flour and can be found at your local Asian or natural foods market.  One cup of cooked noodles only contains 113 calories, but has 6 grams of protein!  They don't have any fiber (unlike whole wheat pasta), but when paired with fresh vegetables and beans they make the perfect hearty meal.

One of the perks of soba noodles is that they don't go mushy overnight.  I made a batch of this salad and have been pleasantly surprised to find that it still retains its texture over a couple of days.  I love using fresh, sliced peaches while they're in season, but you could substitute mango or mandarin oranges, or leave it out altogether.  This is the perfect weekday lunch and the only thing that could possibly make it better (yep, you guessed it) is eating it while listening to the Inception soundtrack.  Totally cool.

Asian Soba Noodle Salad with Fresh Peaches
Serves 4

1/2 pound soba noodles
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon hot chili oil
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tablespoon minced ginger

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 cup  cilantro, chopped
1/2 cucumber, shredded
1 cup spinach, chopped
1 cup purple cabbage, shredded

1 carrot, shredded

3 scallions, chopped

1 cup edamame
1/4 cup peanuts
1 peach, pitted and sliced
sprinkle of sesame seeds

In a medium pot, fill with water and bring to a boil.  Add noodles and cook about 7 - 9 minutes, until they are fully cooked but not mushy. Once cooked, cool noodles down quickly in an ice bath (or run under cold water).  Drain.

Mix sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, hot chili oil, soy sauce, and sea salt.

Add olive oil to a small pan over low heat.  Sauce garlic and ginger for about 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add garlic and ginger to oil mixture and toss with noodles.  Mix in cilantro, cucumber, spinach, cabbage, carrot, and scallions.

Top with edamame, peanuts, peach slices, and sesame seeds.  Refrigerate until serving.

Asian Sesame Salad For One

Have you ever found yourself in a funk where you don't want to do... anything?

Where you just want to blow off all of your responsibilities and watch TV?  That's totally the adult thing to do anyway, right?

I've been avoiding my cycling training, paying my bills, doing my laundry, and weeding my garden for far too long now.  I've even been avoiding my runs for my Couch-To-5k program.  And I'm only in week one. How pathetic is that?

I finally kicked my butt off the couch yesterday and did a 33 mile bike ride.  I'd like to say that it made me feel better, but it actually made me want to avoid everything more.  I'm officially on strike.

However, I might have found the cure:  I can be bribed with food.  If I am promised food, and great food at that, then I can be bribed to pay my bills, do my laundry, and complete my first 30-minute run.  It's a start.

Maybe not everyone wants to be bribed with a salad, but I do.  Especially when that salad contains cashews, green onions, edamame, and a creamy Asian dressing.  Count me in.  If I had avocado and cucumber on hand you can bet those would have made it in here too.

The key to bribing yourself with food is that you have to make it all about you.  I fixed my dinner, poured myself some sparkling water with fresh lemon, and sat down with a nice plate and a cloth napkin.  Even though it was just a salad and just for me, it was a fancy pants dinner.  And apparently that's what it takes to get me through the day.  Lesson learned:  when the going gets tough, the tough gets bribed with food.

Asian Sesame Salad For One

2.5 cups mixed greens

1 carrot, grated

1 green onion, chopped

small handful of cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup cashews

1/2 cup edamame

1/2 cucumber, grated (optional)

1/4 avocado, sliced (optional)

sprinkle of sesame seeds

freshly grated black pepper to taste

Dressing:

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon agave syrup

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon tahini

Mix ingredients together.  Toss with your greens. 

Perfect Protein Salad

If it wasn't for the PCC Deli, sometimes I wouldn't eat.  And if it wasn't for the PCC Deli, sometimes I wouldn't eat so much.... Yesterday's lunch and dinner came from their deli case and I am always grateful to know that I can walk into any one of their stores and find something vegan, delicious, and healthy in a snap.  

If it's possible to request food now for the afterlife I'd like to place my order.  In fact, it would be great if it could look just the PCC Deli, but be more of a buffet situation if possible.  Please let there be vegan pesto pizza, Emerald City Salad, and Spicy Tofu and Spelt Berries. Oh, and some fresh marinated beets please?  Glad we settled that. 

This delicious little salad originally came from the PCC Deli and is loaded with hearty chickpeas, chewy spelt berries, and fresh veggies.  They use a vegan mayo in their dressing, but I opted for using cashews instead.  Blending soaked cashews creates a creamy, rich dressing and since I only blended them for a few seconds, there's still a bit of texture.  I also added in some fresh basil since I happen to have a ton of it growing at the moment, but you could also leave it out and add in some extra parsley if desired. 

Perfect Protein Salad

Adapted from PCC Natural Markets

Serves 6 - 8

1 cup spelt berries, raw

3 cups water

2 cups garbanzo beans, cooked

1 English cucumber, seeded and diced (I didn't peel mine)

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

3 stalks celery, diced

2 carrots, diced

1/4 red onion, diced

3 green onions, diced

1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade

Dressing:

3/4 cup raw cashews, soaked in water overnight

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon dried dill

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon minced garlic

Boil spelt berries in water until tender, about 45 minutes.  Drain and cool.

In a medium bowl, mix together the cooked spelt, garbanzo beans, diced cucumber, bell pepper, celery, carrots, red onion, green onion, parsley and basil.  

For the dressing: drain the cashews and add to a food processor with the lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, dill, salt, and garlic.  Process until creamy, but with a bit of texture (the consistency should be similar to ricotta cheese). 

Mix the dressing with the salad and let sit in the refrigerator until serving. 

Raw Broccoli Crunch Salad

I can successfully say that I will never again wonder what it's like to ride 50 miles on a bicycle in one day.  This summer it's been great to get back on my bike and I've been pushing myself to do more long rides out of my comfort zone.  Yesterday some friends and I rode the Lake Washington loop and my legs still feel like jelly.

I've decided to sign up for the Cycle the WAVE (Women Against Violence Everywhere) ride in September.  It's a non-competitive women's ride meant to inspire awareness and hope for domestic violence victims.  This year's proceeds will support the Eastside Domestic Violence Program, DAWN, and New Beginnings.  Before I discovered my passions for food and food justice, I used to do anti-violence awareness and recovery work with women.  This ride feels like a great way to support a cause I feel deeply about and keep myself motived on my bike.

When I was on the trail yesterday and began feeling defeated by a big hill I would picture myself in my apartment sitting on the couch and eating this salad.  That's been the majority of my day today and I'm not ashamed to admit it.  You certainly don't have to go on a long bike ride to enjoy this salad.  It's super healthy, quick and easy to make, and the leftovers make a wonderful lunch.  In fact, I think this tastes even better the next day after the vinegar has had a chance to soften the broccoli a bit.

If broccoli isn't a favorite vegetable of yours, this salad might just change your mind.  I love using broccoli stems because they have a milder flavor than the head, but you could also use broccoli heads if you wish.  This salad is crunchy, tangy, and sweet and is the perfect reward after a long hard day on the trail.

Raw Broccoli Crunch Salad
4 servings

Dressing:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon raw agave syrup

2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

3 cups broccoli stems, shredded

1.5 cups carrots, shredded

3 green onions, chopped
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup cashews
Freshly-ground black pepper to taste

Mix the olive oil, agave, and apple cider vinegar together in a small bowl and set aside.  Toss the broccoli and carrots together in a medium bowl and top with the dressing.  Work the dressing in with your hands.  Mix in the green onions, cranberries, and cashews and serve.  Top with some freshly-ground black pepper to taste.

If this salad will not be eaten right away, leave the cashews out until just before serving to keep them from getting mushy. 

Green Bean, Tomato, and Chickpea Salad

Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Access to Healthy Foods Summit organized by the Access to Healthy Foods Coalition.  It was really refreshing to see all of the different ways that organizations, institutuions, and individuals are working together to improve access to healthy foods in Washington State.  In Washington state alone, 15% of our residents do not have consistent access to healthy foods.

It's pretty obvious that I think about food a lot... but I also think about how much access I have to food.  In my neighborhood, I am within walking distance to two different grocery stores and within biking distance to about five.  I have a stable income that allows me to purchase fresh foods and I only work one job so I have the time to prepare the majority of my meals myself.  Additionally, I have access to information about healthy cooking  and have the abilty to prepare healthy foods from scratch, understand what healthy foods are, and read nutritional labels. 

Some of these factors could be said to be my personal choice.  For instance, I choose to purchase healthy foods.  It's true, I do make that choice.  But, there are many factors out of my control that influence my decision.  If I had a limited income, relied solely on public transportation, and my corner "grocery store" did not carry fresh produce, and the next closest store was two bus rides away... how much choice would I have in deciding what I eat?

It's been really exciting to see the ways that more people are becoming aware of "food deserts" (an area where healthy and fresh foods are difficult to find) in our country and working to improve everyone's access to fresh foods.  It's also great to see that EBT cards (food stamps) are now being accepted at various farmer's markets in King County.  Super cool!

How much access do you have to fresh and healthy foods?  What barriers have you seen, for yourself or others, to being able to eat healthfully?  What are some of the ways that you or others could (or may already have) make an impact on these challenges?

I'm not really sure how to transition from talking about food access and scarcity to wowing you with this beautiful salad... So, let's just wow you with this beautiful salad. 

My favorite thing about summer foods are all the colors. It's true that we eat first with our eyes and everything always manages to look more appealing and delicious in summertime. This is a beautiful salad that anyone would be proud to serve up at their next dinner or get-together.  The recipe originally called for red onions and feta cheese, but I switched up the feta for kalamata olives and used green onions instead.  Fresh herbs like parsley are a must on this one, but fresh mint leaves would be good as well. 

Green Bean, Tomato, and Chickpea Salad
Slightly adapted from Everyday Food magazine, June 2011 issue
Serves 4

1.5 pounds green beans, trimmed
3 wide strips lemon zest, cut into thin matchstick, plus 3 Tablespoons lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
2 green onions, chopped
2 cups cooked chickpeas (or 1 can)
1/4 cup kalamata olives, halved
1/3 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves

In a large pot of boiling water, cook green beans until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.  Drain and rinse under cool water to stop the cooking process.  Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together lemon juice and oil.  Stir in tomatoes, onions, chickpeas, and lemon zest.  Add olives and parsley and stir to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.  Arrange green beans on a serving platter and top with tomato mixture.

Summer Black-Eyed Pea and Spelt Berry Salad

Can you believe that next week is July?  Hello, where did June go?

I can't believe that one year ago around this time I was graduating with my Master's degree, freaking out about what to do with the rest of my life, and doing weird things like dying my hair platinum blonde.  At home.  Using a box of 7-year old hair bleach.

Ladies (and lads), let me share a lesson with you that I hope you never have to experience first-hand:  if you are a natural brunette never, ever try to bleach your hair platinum blonde at home.  (Spoiler alert:  it doesn't turn a nice shade of platinum blonde; instead it's a nice mix of bright yellow and orange.)

Or, if you've already completed that step and learned by mistake, then quickly head to a salon and have them fix it.  Definitely don't try to dye it back to brown at home 'cause your stressed out and over-processed hair won't absorb the dye and instead of brown it will become grey.  And then you will spend the first few months after your 25th birthday with hair the color of Richard Gere's.  I'm not kidding.  It was not pretty.

So let's just say I'm really looking forward to summer with my natural brown hair this year.  And if I ever dye it again on my own?  You can be sure that the only thing touching this head is henna.

One of my favorite parts of summer is eating outside and I think a hearty go-to picnic salad is absolutely necessary this time of year.  For the bulk of this salad I chose spelt berries and black eyed peas because they both hold up well and don't get mushy when mixed with the dressing.  This is a very simple salad that can easily be adapted for some fun variations.  I used produce that was all available from my garden, but as the summer heats up some shredded zucchini or fresh corn would be great additions. 

Summer Black-Eyed Pea and Spelt Berry Salad
Serves 4

1 cup black-eyed peas
1 cup spelt berries
5 carrots, shredded
3 radishes, shredded
5 green onions, chopped
1 cup rainbow chard, shredded
1 cup arugula, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
juice from one lemon
1/4 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons mint, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons basil, finely chopped
Freshly-ground black pepper and sea salt to taste

The black-eyed peas do not need to be soaked before cooking.  Place them in a large saucepan, cover with about 4 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until peas are soft and easily chewable.  (This can take 20 - 45 minutes depending on your peas.)  Drain and set aside.

While the peas are cooking, add the spelt berries to a separate saucepan and cover with about 4 cups of water.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes.  Drain the berries and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together the minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and herbs and set aside.  Add the carrots, radishes, green onions, chard, and arugula to a large bowl. Add the black-eyed peas and spelt berries when ready (they don't have to cool before being mixed together).  Add in the dressing and mix well.  Add black pepper and sea salt to taste.  Refrigerate and serve cold.