There is nothing better than taking all of Summer’s bounty and throwing it into an easy, no-oven salad! This Stone Fruit Caprese Panzanella Salad is at once familiar and comforting with a hint of the unexpected!
I live here now.
But actually! Lol. Summer hits the NYC farmer’s markets and I just can’t stop.
All the berries, all the heirloom tomatoes, all the peaches, nectarines and cherries!
This Cherry Burrata Millet Grain Bowl has nutty millet, grilled red onions, charred shallots, spicy corn, grilled chicken, fresh cherries, creamy Burrata and a bright cherry vinaigrette! It’s the summer bowl to eat on repeat!
Tired of quinoa? Ha! Never!
But today I introduce to you a new ancient whole grain: millet.
Mill-eh what?
In this Asparagus Orange Farro Salad boiled new potatoes, crispy raw asparagus, chewy farro, peppery scallions, salty feta and crispy bacon all get tossed in a bright orange vinaigrette for a mouthful of Spring flavors!
Alternate Title: “Spring in a Bowl”.
The orange vinaigrette is bright and basically liquid happiness and sunshine right there on a salad. It’s healthy and light, yet filling enough to power you through the day.
Pretty much everything you need for Spring…except the new shoes and purse(s).
Oh and I invited bacon to the party because…
Because I don’t need a reason; it’s bacon.
I mainly eat vegetarian (Yes, I know bacon isn’t vegetarian. Calm down.) because I work in a steakhouse and there is meat everywhere, but this salad would be AH-mazing with my Foolproof Rosemary Chicken. Amazing.
I also slice some avocados on top for a little extra healthy fat and protein. Plus anyone who knows me knows that avocados are my everything.
You can make all the components of this salad ahead of time and just assemble it for an easy lunch, light dinner or fabulous party side dish.
Crispy roasted honey Brussels sprouts and leaks are tossed with wild rice, kale, feta cheese and a honey orange dressing for the perfect side dish or meal!
These roasted Brussels sprouts and leeks are my everything right now.
I can eat an entire pan without blinking.
The crispy pieces of honey leek and Brussels sprouts are like candy to me. A salty, sweet addicting candy.
And I don’t even like Brussels sprouts.
The sad thing is that I am not exaggerating. I have to put away the extra roasted veggies or I will eat each and every last one, and then I will have no lunch for the next day.
This is such an easy side dish or, if you add a layer of spinach, shredded raw cabbage, and my favorite 10-minute chicken, it becomes the most fabulous salad! And I should know…
Because I’ve been eating this on repeat for several weeks now! I may have learned how to make unimaginable things out of sugar, but I still eat the same thing everyday for months on end. A tigress cannot change her stripes.
This Quinoa Kale Power Bowl is packed with vitamins, minerals, healthy fats and filling protein!
Oh hey! Culinary school has taken over my life the past few weeks, but I’ll fill you in on that at another time. Today, today is about food!!! More specifically filling, healthy food!
Even I cannot live on bread alone. Yes, I can. But it’s best if I don’t!
You know the ubiquitous Power Bowl that has popped up at every food establishment? The one that has a sprinkle of quinoa, a few leaves of kale and a whole lot of filler; and yet somehow they still justify charging $15 for it?
The first week of school I traded some fudge brownies for one such salad (Best trade ever, by the way!) and I decided for free it was awesome but for $15 I could do so much better!
This is my version. It’s packed full of healthy, fresh vegetables, filling protein and just a hint of sweet from the grapes. It’s just how I do.
Triple protein from the quinoa, turkey and feta; healthy and filling fat from the avocado; and vitamins and minerals from the kale, peppers and grapes! It is seriously packed to the max with healthful fresh ingredients.
It’s no secret that I could live off of cupcakes and salad. Salad and cupcakes.
I should probably just rename my blog “Cupcakes & Salad”.
My tagline could be “Eating salad to save room for more cupcakes!”
But that would be a lie, because I LOVE salad.
The salad can be cold or warm with roasted vegetables. I don’t play favorites, but I do flit from obsession to obsession like a butterfly.
And like every other salad I’ve ever posted on AHC, I have eaten this quinoa roasted vegetable chopped salad (or some variation thereof) everyday for about a month. Creature of habit.
I LOVE roasted vegetables. Especially sweet potatoes, baby potatoes and onions. And when you toss all those roasted vegetables in with chopped kale and spinach and a healthy dose of quinoa, you have a winning combination.
Remember how I said #whycantidreamofsalads?
Well that was because I hadn’t made the right salad! Today I bring you a dream-worthy salad! A healthy Kale and Cabbage Slaw Salad.
This is one of those obnoxiously healthy, yet strangely delicious, salads that people would pay $20 for in California.
And unlike all my other salads, it’s 100% raw, 100% paleo, 100% vegetarian and 100% vegan if you take out the cheese. But don’t take out the cheese, please! Feta: I heart you.
The blend of different textures is wonderfully satisfying: the crunch of the cabbage; the smooth creaminess of the avocado; the bursts of sweet from the blueberries and the soft tang of the goat’s milk feta. All tossed in a light champagne vinaigrette. It’s fabulous!
I originally served this as a side dish with pork chops when my husband was last in town. I cobbled it together out of a lack of all other vegetables, and I was pretty sure that he was going to complain about it.
But he didn’t…
And then the next day he ate it again…
And then the day after that he said, “Is there no more slaw?” and he looked so sad I almost died.
Collard Greens don’t get nearly enough love. I am here today remedy that. No longer will collards be relegated to a buttery, Southern side dish. Sometimes you’ve gotta mix it up!
This sliced Collard Green Salad with Vidalia Onion Peach Glazed Chicken is packed with fresh flavors. It’s so good, in fact, I am proposing that Georgia make this salad its new State Salad.
Is there no such thing? Nonsense. There is now!
Thank God I’m here.
This salad has a base of thinly sliced collard greens tossed with a light, balsamic lemon vinaigrette. The greens marinate in the dressing, which softens them up a little bit and takes away some of their raw bite. I then topped them with an absolutely divine spicy peach and Vidalia onion glazed chicken.
Dried cherries offer a little bit of tarty-sweetness and some almonds add crunch. The final touch is a sprinkle of thinly sliced basil, because basil pulls it all together. You are going to love the flavor melody going on in this salad!
All good things must come to an end, and my love affair with this salad is no exception. After 2 ½ happy months my love started to wane and for a few days I was worried that I would never love a new salad as much again. But don’t despair! Enter this Grilled Onion Roasted Potato Strawberry Spinach Salad with a Balsamic Lemon Thyme Reduction drizzle to pull it all together!
She’s magical! There is no other word. Except maybe stupendous! But that doesn’t even do it justice. The deliciousness and flavor complexities of this salad totally justify the 86 character title.
I absolutely love warm roasted potatoes and onions on my salads. I’m not entirely sure why but I think it’s fabulous! Seeing how it’s practically Summer you could definitely serve this Warm Lemon Rosemary Roasted Vegetable Salad cold, but I think it loses some of its charm.
Usually roasted potatoes only end up on my salad if I am rummaging through the refrigerator trying to figure out what needs to be eaten, but today I made these potatoes and onions especially to complement the flavors of this salad! Lemon and rosemary keep it summertime fresh!
