Caramelized Apple Salad

This dressing was absolutely delicious to me. The one thing I would do differently, though is dice the apples for the salad instead of slicing. As visually appealing as nice thin slices of apple are, they are somewhat harder to eat in a salad. I would definitely do this again. You could put whatever salad veggies you want as long as you keep the bacon, pecans (or other nut) and apple chunks.

This recipe was adapted from Food52.

Caramelized Apple Salad

For the salad:

• 4 handfuls or 1-2 bags lettuce (your preference)
• 1/4 celery root, peeled and cut into matchsticks (I couldn't really taste this with everything else, so it's up to you to put it in or not)
• 1/2 fennel bulb, very thinly sliced
• 3/4 cups pecans, toasted (or your preferred nut - make sure to toast them though. Spritz with cooking spray and cook about 5 min in a 350 degree oven.)
• 5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled/cut
• 1 green apple, diced

Caramelized Apple Vinaigrette:

• 2 ounces brown sugar
• 3 ounces plus 1 ounce apple cider vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 gala apple, peeled, cored and medium diced
• 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 4 ounces olive oil
• 2 ounces canola oil
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• salt

In a small skillet over medium heat add 3 ounces vinegar and the sugar. Let it reduce until the color turns a dark caramel color and begins to thicken. You will start to see big foamy bubbles on the surface.

Add the apples and garlic and sauté until the apples are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Remove from heat and put in the blender with the oil, 1 ounce of vinegar, thyme, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Blend until the dressing is emulsified. 

Mix all of your salad ingredients together and top with the dressing. Enjoy.

California Roll Salad

I love Japanese food (including edamame) and I love avocados. This salad is a great blend of flavors and the miso vinaigrette tastes just like something you could find in a Japanese restaurant. I would definitely make this again. I was too lazy to cut the nori nicely, so it was not as pretty as it should have been, but it was tasty.

This recipe was adapted from Shutterbean.


California Roll Salad

• brown rice, cooked and cooled (I made 2 cups for 3 people)
• 1 cup shelled frozen edamame, thawed
• 1 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp honey
• romaine lettuce, chopped (or your preferred lettuce type)
• 1 cucumber, cut into small pieces
• 1 medium size carrot, shredded
• 4 tsp sesame seeds
• 2 sheets nori, chiffonaded
• 1-2 avocados, chopped
• 1 recipe Green Onion-Miso Vinaigrette (recipe below)

In a small bowl, mix the edamame, rice vinegar and honey together, set aside.

Set out your bowls and divide the ingredients evenly among them. Start with the lettuce, then drizzle dressing on top. Add rice, cucumber, carrot shreds, sesame seeds, and avocado to the lettuce. Drizzle more green onion miso dressing, top with nori, and serve. (Feel free to use more or less of the toppings per serving to taste.)

Green Onion-Miso Vinaigrette

• 1/4 cup red miso
• 1 cup roughly chopped green onions
• 3 tbsp rice vinegar
• 2 tsp minced ginger
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 tsp honey
• 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 cup water

Put everything in a blender and blend until smooth. Chill until ready to use.

White Veggie Soup and Curry Chicken w/ Salad

I thought this meal was good. The soup was fairly neutral but I thought the chicken broth took over the flavor a bit too much, but it's plain and satisfying enough to me. The chicken was good (I love curry, so of course I would think that). I wasn't a huge fan of the vinaigrette, though. My dad said it had too much thyme in it and it didn't really blend well with the chicken. I also prefer my salads to be fairly drenched with dressing, and there wasn't enough liquid in the vinaigrette to do that. I'm going to have to do some more work to figure out how to make it better and work with the curry.


FYI, I have not altered the recipe to fix the vinaigrette, yet.

These recipes are adapted from I'll Have What She's Having and Serious Eats.

Roasted White Vegetable Soup

• 1 cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 rutabaga, peeled and diced
• 1 turnip, peeled and diced
• 1 celery root, peeled and diced
• 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
• 4-6 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 L low sodium vegetable stock

Preheat oven to 400.

Place the vegetables, onion and garlic on a baking sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast vegetables for 40 minutes.

Transfer roasted vegetables to a large soup pot. Cover with stock. Bring to a boil then simmer for 20 minutes.

Using an immersion blender puree soup, or allow to cool and pour into a regular blender to puree (may have to be done in batches).

Chicken with Tomato-Saffron Vinaigrette

• 2 Tbsp white rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup minced shallots
• 1/8 tsp crumbled saffron
• 1 1/2 tsp hot paprika
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes (or equivalent chopped tomato pieces)
• 1 1/2 - 2 lbs chicken thighs, sliced
• Lettuce of your choice

(I did these steps while the veggies were simmering.)

In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, lemon juice, shallots, saffron, and 1/2 teaspoon of paprika. Whisk to combine, then slowly whisk in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil to create a dressing. Sprinkle in half the thyme and add the tomatoes, mixing to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, curry powder, and remaining paprika and thyme. Heat a skillet with the remaining olive oil over medium heat and sauté the thighs until cooked through. Remove the chicken and turn off the heat. Add the vinaigrette to the pan to deglaze and warm through. (Oh, I just realized I forgot to heat the vinaigrette up...that could also have had something to do with why it wasn't as good as I'd hoped.)

Place your lettuce on plates and place the chicken on the salads, then spoon the vinaigrette over and serve immediately.