salad Archives - JoyFoodly

Ginger Kale Salad–A Recipe by Wellness in the Schools

Sep 22 by Chef Hollie Greene Leave a Comment

When I was a young chef just out of culinary school, I volunteered and worked for Wellness in the Schools (WITS) in New York City. It’s where I learned a love for how to tie healthier school lunches with the importance of teaching kids how to engage with these new foods without fear and loads of joy. You may not believe it, but in just 50 minutes, a Kale Cooking Lab can change a kid’s relationship with food forever. I’ve seen it firsthand.

The discussion around school food can get complicated really fast. There is policy involved (Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act), the politics and influence of the big food industry, the USDA, and certainly there’s the skills and will challenge of going from a heat-and-serve food culture to actually preparing whole, locally grown foods from scratch for kids. Often as adults, when we do make changes in school food, we generously pat ourselves on the back but forget that we’ve only tackled half the battle. Now, we must educate kids on how to eat that new healthier food so it doesn’t end up in the trash.

Yes, you can improve the food served in schools, but if you don’t teach children how to engage with these new foods with all of their senses and reduce the fear of trying new foods, there is a huge disconnect between what’s served and what’s eaten. I saw this first hand while working for Wellness in the Schools. Fast forward 10 years later, and WITS is bringing healthy food and fitness to 40,000 students across 75 public schools, cafeterias, classrooms, and recess yards. Clearly, there’s so much work to be done.

What I have found I love doing best is not working in the cafeteria but in the classroom. No matter what happens on the school food front, I know that when I teach a child how to cook a simple recipe and engage with farm fresh, local vegetables and fruits with all of their senses, I’ve planted a seed that will grow with them for life. That’s why I’m SO excited about this new partnership with WITS and my partner in the Novato California Unified School District, Miguel Villarreal, our pilot school’s principal and PTA, and our presenting sponsor, Whole Foods Market. Next week, we’re piloting the WITS Labs through our Joyful 12 School Pilot at Lu Sutton Elementary–350 kids will learn how to make this delicious salad and then we’ll feature it on the salad bar the following week on October 7th, National Kale Day.

I hope you’ll try this easy and delicious recipe with your kids in your home kitchens. I’m betting you’ll find some kale converts in your household after they get to help you grate the ginger, rip the kale from its stems, squeeze the fresh orange juice, and toss the beautiful strands of greens in their honey, orange and ginger soy dressing.

Ginger Kale Salad - A recipe by Wellness in the Schools

2015-09-22 23:30:37

Serves 6

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Ingredients

2 bunches lacinato (dinosaur) kale,
washed, de-stemmed, and chopped thin
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Juice from 1/2 orange
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1/4 cup olive oil

Prep

Combine vinegar, juice, soy sauce, honey, and ginger in a large bowl and whisk.
Add oil slowly while whisking so that a thick consistency is achieved.
Combine dressing with kale, a bit at a time, and mix thoroughly until salad is completely coated
with dressing. You may not need to use all of the dressing.
Using your hands, massage the kale with the dressing until covered

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

Summer Moroccan Salads

Jul 27 by Chef Hollie Greene Leave a Comment

Tearing off a hot piece of the freshly baked Berber bread, we dove in with gusto. Green, red, orange, and purple colors danced on the plates put down before us. Mounds of airy grated carrots, heaps of perfectly diced tomatoes and fire grilled bell peppers, glistening chunks of earthy purple beets–all displayed at once–were the starters for our first lunch in Morocco.

Wait. What just happened? Hadn’t we ordered “the Moroccan salad” appetizer? Yet, it felt like a parade of salads had just made its grand entrance into our meal. I love the way Paula Wolfert describes these sensory delights in my favorite of her many beautiful cookbooks, The Food of Morocco:

Moroccan salads are not like ours, mixtures of greens doused with dressings. They’re closer to Italian antipasti, served at the beginning of a meal to inspire the appetite and excite the palate: spiced or sweetened, cooked or raw, or pickled or stewed vegetables, as well as cubed and grilled meat or fish.

Our appetites were inspired…and excited. This was a side of Moroccan cooking I had never experienced stateside. We were all too familiar with tagine and couscous but had yet to relish in the glory of these heavenly treats at the beginning of every meal. You see, the area of Morocco we started our trip in, around Rabat, Meknes and Fez, is known for their agricultural delights–from grapes for wine to artichokes, beets, tomatoes, olives and a whole myriad of vegetables that make this part of Morocco the culinary capital.

And then I wondered. How do families really do this in their own homes? Was this a restaurant show or really a part of their food culture? As it turns out, most Moroccan families will have their three or four go-to salads, usually prepared a day in advance that can be pulled out of the refrigerator and served quickly at the start of a meal.

Both simple and seasonal, the brilliance of the Moroccan salad spread is the reliance on a few seasoning combos that you see repeated in numerous variations of the same salad–from the basics of olive, salt and pepper, to spices like cumin, paprika, and coriander to fresh herbs like parsley and cilantro. So when I got back home and tested out my own version of this glorious buffet of salad bites, I kept to the same principles. And some salads were pre-made things I picked up, like an amazing artichoke hummus at our local farmers market and some harissa brined olives from Bi-Rite Market.

Others, I made up as I went along, making a game of seeing what flavors would work together. Diving into Paula’s cookbook, I grabbed ideas from here and there. For example, she has a beautiful carrot and orange salad that’s as simple as mixing together grated or peeled carrots and tossing them with a tiny splash of orange blossom water (I use the Sadaf brand that’s about 2 bucks), a few tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, cinnamon, and a pinch of sugar. You just can’t imagine how refreshing grated cucumbers are with that same flavor combo!

But the one recipe I must share with you that’s pure summer Moroccan love is from my buddy, Chef Tarik Ait Yahya at Atelier De Cuisine. Recreating his “favorite” summer salad was so easy and delicious–even back on my home soil. The only thing that takes a little planning with this salad is roasting the bell peppers, which I chose to do in my oven since I don’t have a charcoal grill in my small city apartment. At 400F, flipping them after 20 minutes per side (40 total),it was an easy and foolproof way of roasting them enough to extract those rich flavors.

Being rebellious, I chose not to peel my tomatoes as is suggested by any good Moroccan cook–I just couldn’t bring myself to do it with the juicy dry farmed Early Girls I’d bought that morning at the farmers market. I was afraid I’d lose too much juice and good bits…and it worked out just fine!

Literally, 1, 2, 3–with the tossing of diced onion, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and the tomatoes and roasted green bell peppers–the MOST heavenly summer salad came together. Take your own family on a culinary adventure this summer, and start a new tradition of Moroccan Salads to start your meals that are sure to surprise and delight your appetites!

I hope you’ll also enjoy exploring my post on chicken tagine and my six favorite things I learned about Moroccan food and culture on our blog from July. And as I explore and continue to learn about Moroccan cooking, I can not begin to tell you how in love I am with Mourad Lahlou’s cookbook, Mourad: New Moroccan. From Marrakech to San Francisco, Mourad cooks from his childhood memories but in his own Northern California style–full of love, flavor, and the beauty of Moroccan flavors.

Special thanks to Elle Wildhagen, our photographer and videographer, for this beautiful shoot.

Chef Tarik’s Roasted Green Pepper and Tomato Salad

2015-07-20 13:01:00

Serves 4

Adapted slightly (based on my memory) from the original recipe we learned from Chef Tarik Ait Yahya at Atelier de Cuisine outside Marrakech, Morocco

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Prep Time

40 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

55 min

Prep Time

40 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

55 min

Ingredients

Tomatoes, 4 medium (Early Girl variety works great)
Green bell peppers, 2 medium
Red onion, ¼
Lemons, 1
Olive oil, 2 TBS.
Salt, ½ tsp.
Black pepper, ¼ tsp.

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach.
Wash all produce.
Chef Tarik recommends roasting the green peppers over charcoal. If this is not an option, what we did was to roast them for 40 minutes at 400F in our oven, flipping them mid-way through cooking time.
As they are roasting, juice your lemon, dice the red onion, and measure out your spices and olive oil into a bowl.
For fresh summer tomatoes, I do not recommend peeling them, even as this is the traditional Moroccan way. In Morocco, we used a tomato that appeared to be a paste tomato variety (Roma) and with a small pairing knife, starting at the bottom of the tomato, we worked our way around the skin, peeling slowly. Later, we made roses with our tomato skin!
Dice peeled tomato and add to the bowl.

Assemble

When the peppers have finished roasting, place them into a bowl and cover with saran wrap. Let them sit at least 5-10 minutes. This will help the skin to release. Peel the bell peppers, dice them, and add to the salad.
Toss all of the ingredients together. Taste to make sure you have enough seasoning. Enjoy with fresh bread or your favorite Moroccan main dish.

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

Terrific Tomatillo and Corn Potato Salad–what to make for your 4th of July BBQ

Jun 29 by Chef Hollie Greene Leave a Comment

I often daydream about the creamy potato salad my grandmother was known for. It was totally Southern. Slathered in Duke’s mayonnaise (the only suitable brand), the balance of sweet pickle with bites of yellow mustard all came together for the perfect picnic salad. Well, except on those painfully hot summer days.

Over the years, I’ve found other ways to enjoy potato salad, especially while teaching kids healthier options. We make homemade vinegar based dressings to dress our hot red spuds, adding some chopped green onion for bite and some fresh herbs for brightness.

But I had never ever thought of making a Mexican potato salad. That was way beyond my potato salad comfort zone. That is, until I discovered tomatillos while cooking in California. Last summer as I was building the Joyful 12, I realized that tomatillos were a summer favorite in the local markets. I was shy to also admit that I knew nothing about them other than the fact that I loved their zingy flavor in green sauces and pre-made tomatillo salsas. But that all changed when I wanted to teach kids how to love them. I mean what’s more fun than a sticky green tomato that grows in a husk?

So I dove in and conducted a thorough internet search before jumping into my test kitchen. Here’s what I discovered. I’d been missing out all this time. Almost like a painter that’s short a primary color in their palette, I found tomatillos to be a primary summer flavor enhancer.

Plus, for the busy families I teach and the kiddos that cook with me, keeping it simple when introducing new ingredients is a priority. Tomatillos turned out to be amazingly easy to work with. Literally, within 2 minutes of being blanched in salty boiling water, they cook enough to release their bright citrus flavors. And roasting them is just as easy–cut in halves and broiled for 10 minutes to char the skin. You don’t even need to remove their seeds!

I started putting them into everything…guacamole, chili, and especially my potato salad vinaigrette! But just to keep things slightly Southern, since that’s how I’ll always view a good potato salad, I threw in some crunchy summer corn to make my potato salad even sweeter.

For your 4th of July celebrations, feel good knowing our potato salad is mayo free, gluten free, and boring free–especially for those hot summer celebrations! Wishing you and your family a safe and joyful celebration on our nation’s Independence Day. -Chef Hollie

If you want to learn how to make more recipes with tomatillos, and our other eight vegetables we’re exploring this summer in the Joyful 12 learning lab, join us.

Terrific Tomatillo and Corn Potato Salad

2015-06-23 13:51:32

Serves 4

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

35 min

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

35 min

Ingredients

small red potatoes, about 2 lbs
tomatillos, medium sized, 3
lime, 1
cilantro (fresh), 2 cups
olive oil, 1/3 cup
dijon mustard, 2 tsp
ground cumin, 1/2 tsp
salt, 4 tsp (divided)
green onions, 1 bunch
corn on the cob, 2 cobs
black pepper, 1/4 tsp

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach.
Wash all produce.
Place potatoes, whole, in a pot and cover with cold water. Add one teaspoon salt to the cold water. Bring water up to a simmer. Once the water starts simmering, start your timer for 15 minutes.
To blanch the tomatillos, bring four cups salty water (about 1 1/2 teaspoons salt) up to a boil, in a separate pot. While you are waiting for the water to boil, peel the husks from the tomatillos and rinse the sticky substance off under cold water.
When the salty water is boiling, place the whole, peeled tomatillos in the water for two minutes. Set up an ice water bath.
Remove tomatillos and shock in the ice water bath. Set aside.
Cut corn off cob into a large bowl.
For the green onions, pull out three and cut off the white bottoms. You will use them to make the vinaigrette. Cut the remaining green onions, green and white parts, into thin slices and add to the corn.

Cook

After fifteen minutes of cooking, test the potatoes with a knife to see if it can easily enter the potato.
Drain from water and cover with a towel. They will stay warm and keep steaming while you make the vinaigrette.
Make the vinaigrette: put into a blender the blanched tomatillos, juice and zest of the lime, cilantro, olive oil, dijon mustard, cumin, ½ teaspoon salt, and the white bottoms of three of the green onions.
Pulse in the blender until smooth. Add to the corn and green onions in the bowl.
Cut the potatoes into quarters, once they are cool enough to touch.
Toss potatoes with corn, green onions, tomatillo vinaigrette, another 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.

By Chef Hollie

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

Elena’s Kickin’ Southwestern Quinoa Salad With Mango Salsa

May 18 by Elena Dennis Leave a Comment

Please welcome Elena Dennis to our Joyfoodly community. She’s not only our spring intern at Joyfoodly, but she’s a fellow educator who has a passion for teaching children to love eating seasonal vegetables and fruits through the camp she started at the tender age of 17–Camp Cauliflower. Please welcome Elena as she shares her passion for living veggie love in these next few blog posts:

I still remember the expression on my best friend’s face when I told her. We were sitting in the food court of the Northgate Mall, a bowl of teriyaki chicken and rice placed in front of us. The majority of the broccoli and carrots were pulled to my side of the plate while the tender chicken strips were gathered near her fork. Surprised that I wasn’t digging into the sweet and sour flavors of this slowly roasted bird, I decided to break the news.

That’s right folks. I officially announced my vegetarianism. However, I didn’t realize the slew of questions I would receive when converting over to a life full of veggies. Let me share some of the FAQs I’ve found over my three years of being a veg.

#1: How do you live?

Well, I’m able to talk, breathe, eat, and laugh, so living isn’t too difficult. I’ve never been the biggest red meat eater, and to be honest, I love vegetables so being vegetarian isn’t a bad lifestyle for me. However, I can see why people ask that question all the time, which brings me to #2.

#2: How do you get enough protein?

Research. It’s all about taking out the fat Wellness Encyclopedia of Food and Nutrition and reading. I’ve found that my favorite sources of protein are quinoa, beans and rice, greek yogurt, and almonds. These are also incredibly versatile ingredients, which you can use and substitute into about any recipe.

#3: What do you usually make for dinner?

And this question brings me to my favorite dish: quinoa bowls. Whether it’s chopped cold carrots and celery or sautéed chard and kale doused in a ginger-miso sauce, I can confidently say that you could put anything on quinoa and feel satisfied after. These fluffy seeds are chock-full of essential amino acids that fulfill my complete protein requirement per day. I’ve been one to sprinkle toasted almonds and pecans over a honey-drizzled bowl of quinoa or create a cheesy quinoa mixture and stuff it into a roasted pepper. However, there is one quinoa dish in particular that I could eat for the rest of my life.

Behold, the Southwestern Black Bean Quinoa Salad. Whew—that’s a mouthful. But it’s a mouthful of deliciousness! I’ve always loved the combination of black beans and cilantro; it reminds of my father’s famous beans and rice that he introduced to me when I was a youngin’. This dish definitely leaves me feeling full, but not lethargic, which is very important as a hustling and bustling student.

With bursting colors of orange, green, white, and black, this zesty salad truly knows how to bring a family together. I’ve been one to finish off a whole bowl of this stuff with my brother and parents in one sitting. Sad? Definitely not! Because even though we left the table feeling as if our stomachs were a couple of inches wider, we were able to enjoy each other’s presence in the process.

Elena’s Kickin’ Southwestern Quinoa Salad With Mango Salsa

2015-05-14 13:40:47

Serves 3

Culinary note: You can top this bowl with just about anything! My favorite is avocado or the mango salsa, but you could throw in some regular pico de gallo or plain ol’ tomatoes.

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Prep Time

25 min

Cook Time

10 min

Prep Time

25 min

Cook Time

10 min

For the Quinoa Bowl

Black beans, 30 oz
Quinoa, 1 cup (uncooked)
Cilantro, 1 bunch
Carrots, 4, medium
Green onions, 1 bunch

For the Lime Vinaigrette

Limes, 2
Olive oil, 1/3 cup
Cumin, 1/4 tsp
Garlic, 1 clove
Maple syrup, 1 tsp
Salt, 1/2 tsp

For the Mango Salsa

Mangoes, 2
Garlic, 2 cloves
Habanero pepper, 1-2 (small)
Shallot, 1
Lime, 1
Salt, approximately 1/2 tsp

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach. Wash all ingredients.
Cook quinoa. Being 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water up to a boil. Once you reach a boil, turn the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes. Leave this mixture cooking while you prep the vegetables.
Peel and shred the carrots. Place in large mixing bowl.
Remove lower stems only and rough chop the leaves. Add to carrots.
Chop the green parts of the green onions and add to the other vegetables. Make sure to save the white parts of the onions for another recipe!
Drain and rinse black beans. Add them to the bowl.

Make the mango salsa--in a separate bowl, prep and combine

Peel and cut mango meat off of pit and place in separate bowl. Using your hands, squeeze pulp off of the pit and place into bowl.
Peel and chop garlic.
Rinse and chop Habanero pepper. WARNING: do not touch your eyes after handling Habanero peppers; they will sting! Make sure to thoroughly wash your hands after touching them.
Peel and finely chop the shallot. Make sure the pieces are very small!
Juice the lime and add salt. Set aside.

Assemble

Once quinoa has finished cooking, take a fork and fluff the grains. Pour the cooked grains onto a cookie sheet, spread them, and let dry while you prepare the vinaigrette.
Measure out all the ingredients of the lime vinaigrette and whisk in a bowl or quickly blend in blender.
Add cooked quinoa to the bowl of prepped veggies, give the mixture a solid toss, and then mix in the lime vinaigrette.
Enjoy a bowl of my Southwestern quinoa dish with a large dollop of mango salsa on top, or eat them separately! Both options are equally delicious!

By Elena Dennis

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

I want to give a BIG thank you to Chef Hollie Greene for allowing me this amazing opportunity to intern and blog on JoyFoodly. From working with her, I can already feel my skills as a blogger, educator, and lover of fruits and vegetables grow!

-Elena-

Crazy Cool Celery Root and Fall Apple Salad

Sep 25 by Chef Hollie Greene Leave a Comment

In my kitchen, vegetables rule. Take celery root for example. It’s gnarly, hairy, and by all appearances unattractive. But when you peel off it’s crazy exterior, you find the coolest, creamiest flesh underneath that’s divine in fall salads, veggie roasts, or hearty soups. When I get the chance to turn kids and adults onto fun new vegetable finds, like this past Wednesday at Whole Foods Market® San Mateo, where we made our Crazy Cool Celery Root Salad, I jump for joy.

Kids are natural explorers. When you set the right environment for exploration of fresh foods, kids will go there with you every time. I’m not saying they’ll love the taste of every last bite, but the sensory journey of smelling, touching, and hands-on preparation of the dish is totally something they are up for. At JoyFoodly®, we love partnering with like minded organizations who know this too, and who make it possible for kids to have positive experiences with vegetables and fruits to grow good eaters for the future. That’s why I was especially excited to teach our recent class to benefit Whole Kids Foundation. They are not only helping schools across the country build school gardens and fund salad bars in the cafeteria, but they are also inspiring and helping families back at home make the learning keep on going!

So when you make this Crazy Cool Celery Root Salad for your family, be sure to make it an adventure. Here are my tips for how to engage your kids to love exploring this cool fall vegetable and fruit salad back at home:

Touch, hold, and look at the ingredients

What do you notice? The celery root and apples are a cream color, so what other colors are we using to brighten up our dish? Dried cranberries!
How about any green? Yep–the tarragon and the chives.
Feel the hairy celery root–super cool or kinda weird? What about after we peel it?

Taste the ingredients separately

Have your kids smell things before they taste them. Smell the tarragon! What about the other ingredients? Does the apple smell? What about the celery root? Can you smell the nuts toasting in the pan?
Taste one of the ingredients your kids already know like an apple; then let them try a dried cranberry. Which is sweeter? Which is crunchy? Which is tangy?

Let your children help with the prep

Letting kids measure out and make the salad dressing is a great way to get them involved. Grab a mason jar and let them start shaking!
Kids can also tear herbs with their hands or sprinkle nuts and cranberries over the salad to decorate. Any involvement will build positive food experiences–regardless of whether they love the taste of the final dish.

Never prepared a celery root at home? Have no fear! In just under two minutes, I’ll teach you how to master this crazy cool vegetable.

How to Prep Celeriac from JoyFoodly on Vimeo.

Crazy Cool Celery Root and Fall Apple Salad

2014-09-23 14:17:12

Serves 6

Save Recipe

Prep Time

30 min

Cook Time

10 min

Total Time

40 min

Prep Time

30 min

Cook Time

10 min

Total Time

40 min

Ingredients

Celeriac (celery root), 2 small (or 1 large)
Apples (or can use pears), 2
Dried cranberries, ¼ cup
Walnuts, ½ cup
Chives, 1 bunch

Tarragon Yogurt Dressing

Plain Greek yogurt, 1 cup
Rice wine vinegar, 1 TBS
Dijon mustard, 1 TBS
Lemon, ½ (plus its zest)
Fresh tarragon, 2 TBS loosely packed (or dried, 1 TBS)
Honey (or agave), 1 TBS
Salt, ¾ tsp.
Pepper, ¼ tsp.

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach.
Wash all produce. Celery roots are especially dirty. Be sure to wash them well and when removing their outer skin with a knife, you may need to rinse again after peeling off their dirty outer skin.
First make the tarragon yogurt dressing: combine all the ingredients for the dressing in a food processor or blender and pulse. Pour into a medium sized bowl.
Cut either end off the celeriac to create a flat surface. Use a knife to cut off the hard rind all around. Rinse before cutting further. Cut into med size pieces and grate on a cheese grater or for a quick grating using a food processor.
Place the celeriac in the bowl where you poured the dressing. It’s best if the celeriac can sit in the dressing for 15-30 minutes before serving.
Dice pears. You can leave the skin on or peel it.

Cook

In a dry pan over med high heat, toast the walnuts until they are lightly brown, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the diced pears and cranberries to the bowl of celeriac and toss together.
Crumble toasted walnuts with your hands once they are cool and add to the salad.
Cut and garnish the salad with some chives on top.

By Chef Hollie

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

If you’re looking for more ways to cook simple, yet nourishing meals for your family, join my Joyful 12 Kitchen Learning Lab. It’s a members only course for busy parents and adults. We cook nine veggies and three fruits together each season with other families that are looking for time saving ways to cook great food for their loved ones. Join the Joyful 12.

Tomato Basil Quinoa Salad

May 22 by Chef Hollie Greene Leave a Comment

Who says kids don’t like vegetables? Sometimes all it takes is a good dressing or a familiar flavor to introduce a new food.

Last month I got a great video from the mother of a 1 1/2 year old who was happily chowing down on some fennel. Her child was dipping the fennel in some Joyful 12 (super duper easy) ranch dressing and was thoroughly enjoying herself. Since my goal with the Joyful 12 is to give parents resources to help get their kids excited about fruits and veggies, this was the best endorsement I could ever receive. It makes me so happy to see people setting a great groundwork for their kids to grow up unafraid to try new foods!

I wanted to share another great dressing with you today. This basil lime vinaigrette tastes like summer, and goes great with tomatoes, corn, and quinoa in an easy to make salad. Just in time for Memorial Day, you can make this ahead of time and pack it to go. It also happens to be one of the recipes in my summer Joyful 12 Learning Lab, so stay tuned for more!

Corn and Tomato Quinoa Salad in a Lime Basil Vinaigrette

2014-05-22 04:16:17

Serves 6

Save Recipe

Prep Time

10 min

Cook Time

30 min

Prep Time

10 min

Cook Time

30 min

Ingredients

quinoa, tri-color, 1 cup dry (yields 3 cups cooked)
water, 2 cups
red onion, ½
salt, 1 teaspoon
corn on the cob, 2
tomatoes, cherry, 1 pint

Lime Basil Vinaigrette

basil, 2 cups (lightly packed)
limes, 2
salt, ½ teaspoon
dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons
honey, 1 tablespoon
olive oil, ½ cup

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach.
Dice ½ the red onion.
Shuck corn (peel off outer husks) and remove the corn silks by pulling off with your hands.
In a large bowl, use a paring knife to carefully cut away from yourself and down the corn cob to remove the corn. It will fall into the bowl.

Cook

Cook quinoa - bring 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water up to a boil. Once you reach a boil, turn the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, lift the lid, use a fork or spoon and pull back the quinoa until you see the bottom of the pan. There should be no water remaining at the bottom of the pot. If there is, just leave the top off and cook for another 1 - 2 minutes to let that water evaporate. Use a fork and spread the cooked quinoa out on a parchment or tinfoil lined cookie sheet. This helps the quinoa air dry and not get mushy. If it stays in the hot pot, it will keep cooking and loose its nice texture.
With the diced red onion, put a teaspoon of salt on top and crush the diced onion in your hand. This macerates the onion, releasing its beautiful flavors and taking some of the raw onion bite out of the taste. Place in the bowl with the cut corn.
Add the pint of cherry tomatoes to the bowl. We leave them whole for ease, but you can cut them in half.
Make your vinaigrette by placing all the ingredients into a blender and pulsing until smooth.
Combine your cooked quinoa, the vinaigrette and chopped veggies in a large bowl.

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

Strawberry Kissed Chicken Spinach Salad

May 19 by Chef Hollie Greene 1 Comment

JoyFoodly has recently partnered with Whole Foods Market in Northern California to help families gets more seasonal fruits and vegetables into their diets. The ‘Now in Season’ program at Whole Foods will feature one seasonal produce pick every month, and JoyFoodly is creating fun family recipes with those fruits and veggies. This month strawberries are in season, and we’re diving into their sweet berry flavors on a savory salad your whole family will love.

What is your all time favorite salad you order when eating out? Does it have just the right balance of sweet and savory notes and gives you that crunchy comfort food feel? Is it so satisfying that the bacon burger sitting on your friend’s plate doesn’t even cross your mind? With strawberries at their peak of juicy sweetness, I’m honoring their perfection in this restaurant quality salad that you can make for your family at home.

What I adore about this salad is that it truly hits all the pleasure notes and is so easy to assemble. The creamy and tangy goat cheese balances the sweet strawberry vinaigrette. The perfectly moist chicken breasts add that filling, meaty flavor packed in their lean protein package. And as a Southern raised chef, I of course had to throw in some crunchy pecans.

To get started on the salad we included a short technique video that shows how to make a perfectly moist chicken breast every time. Once you taste the strawberry vinaigrette you may want to use the leftovers to top all sorts of foods, especially our homemade Buttermilk Parmesan Baked Crispy Chicken Fingers!

Make sure you check out our last video on how to prep strawberries!

Strawberry Kissed Spinach Pecan Salad with our Best-Ever Moist Chicken

2014-05-17 23:38:24

Serves 4

topped with Strawberry Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

25 min

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

25 min

Salad Ingredients

Strawberries (fresh), 16 oz. container
Pecans, 1 cup
Spinach, 6 cups (or 1 bag)
Goat Cheese, plain, 5 oz
Chicken breasts, skinless, boneless, 2
Olive oil, 1-2 tablespoons
Salt, 1-2 teaspoons

Sweet Strawberry Vinaigrette

Champagne vinegar, 2 TBS
Agave, 3 TBS
Strawberries, 1 cup (approximately 4 large strawberries from the 16 oz container)
Dijon mustard, 1 tsp
Poppy seeds, 1/2 tsp
Salt, ¼ tsp
Extra Virgin Olive Oil, ¼ cup

Prep

Take 5 minutes to get out all your ingredients, measuring and cooking equipment needed, and place them on a cookie sheet within easy reach.
Take your chicken breasts out of the refrigerator and set aside while you get your other ingredients prepped.
Make the salad dressing: measure the strawberry vinaigrette ingredients, place them in a blender and pulse until combined.
Wash and cut the remaining strawberries into any size you like (slice, quarter, etc).
Wash and dry spinach.
Crumble goat cheese and set aside.

Cook

Use our 6 step method for perfectly seared chicken breasts. Substitution note: a fast substitution would be to use the breast meat from a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken!
On both sides: dry off raw chicken breasts with paper towels, sprinkle with a pinch of salt (about 1 teaspoon each) and drizzle a small amount of olive oil onto both sides of chicken (about 1 tablespoon each).
Juice 2 lemons: about ½ cup liquid.
Get out an aluminum sauté pan and turn your flame on medium high heat (no oil in pan).
Place the chicken breast down (rounded side down) in hot pan. If you wiggle it a little when you put it in the pan, it will keep it from sticking. Do NOT touch it for 3 minutes.
Flip chicken over in pan; turn heat on low; add your liquid and place thyme branches on top of chicken; cover with lid and set timer for 12 minutes to cook on low.
When the 12-minute timer buzzes, take off the lid, remove chicken and let rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting or serving.
Layer your salad jars in the order you like, alternating the fruit, spinach, chicken, goat cheese and pecans.
Enjoy each salad jar with a few tablespoons of strawberry vinaigrette. Save the rest of the dressing for another salad night! It’s so good you’ll want to put it on everything.
If you are not using jars, just mix all ingredients in a bowl and drizzle with dressing just before serving.

TASTY TIP…for a simple pan sauce

While your chicken is resting, turn the heat back up on high to reduce the leftover liquid in the pan. After it has reduced down to a thicker consistency, turn the heat on low and whisk in a tablespoon of butter and a pinch of black pepper. Check for seasoning. Enjoy over slices of your moist chicken breasts!

How to cut your moist chicken to make it tender

The best way to cut any meat is against its natural grain. This will help the meat melt in your mouth!

Liquid + spice options to inspire your own creative concoctions

Juice and zest of 1-2 oranges and a pinch of curry powder
Juice and zest of 1-2 lemons and fresh rosemary
Juice and zest of 1-2 limes and a pinch of cumin powder
½ cup of white wine with some fresh thyme

JoyFoodly http://www.joyfoodly.com/

Build An Arugula Salad

May 16 by Michelle Venetucci Harvey Leave a Comment

I often fall into a salad rut. It’s easy for salads to get boring. But let me give you a little tip: it’s also easy to get really creative with those salad ingredients. Boring salads be gone!

I love arugula for a lot of reasons. Some people aren’t sure about the peppery taste of arugula, but I find that the right dressing really mellows it out, and the hardy flavor helps it stand up well to heartier salad ingredients like roasted squash, nuts, pomegranate seeds, and avocados. And that dark green color really makes for a beautiful salad!

There’s a great arugula salad in JoyFoodly’s online kitchen learning lab, the Joyful 12, which is good enough to convert any salad skeptic. After making it a few times I got inspired to change it up with what I have on hand, using arugula as a base. I wanted to share some of my combinations, but you can use these basic principles to build your own salad any day of the week!

The Dressing

For most arugula salads, I love using a basic dressing made up of olive oil, champagne vinegar, dijon mustard, lemon juice, and some minced shallots for an extra level of flavor. A fun alternative is a cumin lime vinaigrette, which pairs great with most of these salad toppings. For tips on creating your own dressing, see Chef Hollie’s recent post on salad dressings!

Add Texture

Think of fruits and veggies that have a texture you like. Avocados are always a nice addition to any salad (or any meal, am I right?), and in the winter I think persimmons add a nice flavor and texture to a salad.

Add Crunch

Not all salads have to be “light”. It’s nice to really feel like you’re eating something substantial. I often add ingredients that give the salad some crunch, like pomegranate seeds, pumpkin seeds, or even nuts.

Try Roasting

Arugula salads go great with roasted root veggies like sweet potatoes or fingerlings. Just slice them up, lightly coat in olive oil and a dash of salt (feel free to throw in some cumin or curry powder!), and roast in the oven on high heat (400 – 450F) until you like the texture! It’s always important to use a pan with low sides so that the heat can actually reach the veggies evenly. I love slicing and roasting delicata squash when it’s in season, which forms pretty yellow half-moons that look great (and taste even better!) in the salad.

Or Fruit!

Does fruit on a salad seem weird to you? Get rid of that thought right now! Fruit is a great addition to salad, both for all the great textures and flavors it can offer. I like to add apples for some crunch, or stone fruit like nectarines for the sweetness and texture. Dried fruits are also easy additions to keep around the kitchen. I even like adding mango every once in a while – can’t go wrong there!

Make Your Own Salad Dressing

May 14 by Chef Hollie Greene 1 Comment

When I was 19 I lived with a French family that made their salad dressing every night. I was amazed by how easy it was and so incredibly delicious, and the cool thing was that once you knew the basic vinaigrette recipe, you could play with all kinds of versions. It really inspired me to adopt this practice, and I hope your family has fun trying out homemade dressings. You’ll feel good knowing exactly what’s going into them and your taste buds will thank you!

When making my own salad dressing, I often build on a very basic set of ingredients and then taste-test to see what other flavors would go best with my salad. I can throw together a great dressing in under 3 minutes – and then keep leftovers in the fridge!

There are a lot of directions you can take salad dressing, but all you really need to know are the basic building blocks. In just a few minutes you can become a salad dressing pro! For a basic oil and vinegar dressing, here’s how I start adding ingredients:

The Ratio

The basic vinaigrette ratio is 3-to-1: 3 parts oil, 1 part vinegar. This is just a baseline, so make sure you keep tasting it and adjusting. If you add some citrus like a lime, you may want to add more oil, or if you want it to have a stronger vinegar flavor, add more vinegar!

Oil and Vinegar

Oil and vinegar form a great base for a classic salad dressing. I like using olive oil and balsamic vinegar, which has a complex flavor. If you feel like balsamic would be too strong, I often use champagne vinegar or even red wine vinegar. you can also play around with the oil you use. I use olive oil mostly, but when I want to have a nutty or heartier taste in a winter salad, I use a walnut or hazelnut oil, and when I want a sweeter dressing like a champagne poppy seed vinaigrette, I use vegetable oil instead of olive oil, which gives a more delicate and neutral flavor. Start with the basic 3-to-1 ratio and then taste for yourself and decide!

Emulsifier

You know how oil and vinegar separate when combined? They don’t mix! If you put that on a salad, it will coat the salad with oil and leave a sad puddle of vinegar at the base of your bowl. An emulsifier is something you add to your dressing to help the two ingredients combine properly, and it helps stabilize the mixture. My favorite salad dressing emulsifiers are honey and dijon mustard, but garlic, tomato paste, cream, and egg yolks are all emulsifiers. They taste great too, so think about which ones work best for your salad. If you want to learn more about emulsifiers, there’s a great breakdown of emulsifiers and salad dressings over at Serious Eats.

Salt and Pepper

Don’t be afraid to salt your food! Salt can help bring out all the dressing’s flavors, and the more you enjoy your salad, the more you’ll want to make it again next time. Taste, season, and taste again! Sometimes chefs even add a pinch of salt to their salad greens right before eating.

Flavors!

Here’s where things get really fun. What kinds of flavors would taste good with your salad? My go-to addition is always a squeeze of citrus, but you can add spices, fresh herbs, poppy seeds, or other vinegars. I am especially fond of minced shallots to give my dressing an extra savory taste!

Dry Your Salad

Water and salad dressing generally don’t mix. Once you’ve got a great dressing it’s important to help it stick to your greens, which is why I always air dry or spin the salad greens well after washing.

Making your own dressing is a great way to start thinking about flavors in your food. I like to ask kids what ingredients they’d like to add to dressing, and have them taste-test by dipping a leafy green into the mixture. Dipping your salad ingredients into a dressing is the best way to taste it, since it helps you understand how the dressing will actually taste on your salad! Kids also love measuring ingredients into a mason jar and shaking it until it’s completely mixed.

Curly Whirly Shaved Asparagus Salad

Apr 7 by Chef Hollie Greene 3 Comments

I know that kids like veggies, but sometimes you have to know how to get them excited about it! I am often asked how I help kids find the joy in trying new veggies. It’s actually easier than you may think. My spring-inspired Curly Whirly Asparagus Salad holds all the keys to a playful adventure with food.

Let me walk you through this recipe and give you some examples of how I talk to kids:

It Starts With Fun
When we first get into the kitchen, I get kids involved right away with hands-on prep. I often start like this:

“Let’s inspect our asparagus! Which end is the woody, fibrous one? First use your eyes. Starting from the pointed spear and moving down the stalk, look for where it goes from bright green to shades of white. Now, feel along the spear gently towards the spot you identified with your eyes. Does it break at that point easily if you bend it?” Snap!

Give Kids a Task
Keeping kids engaged in the kitchen requires you give them a task that involves skill and focus. Peeling asparagus takes both. Here’s what I’d tell them:

“Hold onto the more fibrous end of the asparagus, flat against the cutting board, while you carefully press down with your peeler to make perfect, curly strips of this awesome veggie without breaking it.” (Check out the asparagus video below)

It’s always great to give kids a little praise when they’ve mastered a task. It makes them hungry for more!

Taste that Veggie
I use taste as my main tool for engaging kids along the journey, always asking for their input. The words I use may go a little something like this:

“Chefs always try every ingredient they are working with. Let’s try one of these shaved asparagus curls! That’s what I call quality control! We can’t use it if it’s not good, right?”

“Do you think the honey mustard dressing needs anything else? Is it sweet enough?”

“Let’s dip the asparagus in it to see if they go well together. Hmmm…do you still like the dressing just as it is? Does it need anything else?”

“What do you say if we toss the raw asparagus in the dressing? No? Ok, we can use the dressing on the side as a dip! Cool. What else might be tasty dipped in our dressing?”

“How about some cheese grated on top? Maybe we need to try some of that, too, for quality control of course!!”

Here’s a quick video to guide you through shaving asparagus!

In a nutshell, kids love to be treated like adults. They have valued opinions and are insatiable learners. Start with fun, build kitchen confidence by trusting they can handle more challenging tasks, and end with taste. Your kitchen adventures just may prove to help your family find new veggie favorites they never knew were so darn tasty.

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