Winter, Vegetarian, Vegetables, Fruit, Gluten FreeRebecca Shetler FastApril 01, 2017

The Last Salad of Winter & A Caramelized Apple Vinaigrette

Winter, Vegetarian, Vegetables, Fruit, Gluten FreeRebecca Shetler FastApril 01, 2017

Paul and I are nuts for winter fennel salads, and it turns out that our 14-month old daughter is a big fan as well... that is until we upped our game and added this amazing caramelized apple vinaigrette. Madeline ignored the salad completely and licked the vinaigrette off all the salad components, all the while loudly commenting "mmmmmm." We realize that a 14-month-old cannot be our barometer of good food, but darn it if we don't love this salad combination ourselves, and want to lick the vinaigrette off the bottom of our plates. The tart green apple, crisp fennel, sweet blood oranges and sweet and sour notes of this wonderful caramelized apple vinaigrette make this a winner. This recipe is adapted from Food52.

Yield: Serves 4

Salad:

4 large handfuls mixed salad greens
1 large fennel bulb, finely cut or sliced thinly on a mandoline
1 large green apple, finely cut or sliced thinly on a mandoline
1 blood orange, peeled, and cut into segments

Caramelized Apple Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons maple syrup
8 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, finely diced
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Steps:

For the vinaigrette: in a medium size pan, bring the maple syrup, cider vinegar and diced apple and garlic to a simmer. Stir regularly with a wooden spoon until the liquid is reduced and your apple appears mushy and well cooked (about 5 minutes). Transfer the apples and liquid mixture to a blender or food processor. Add the lemon juice, canola oil and salt and pepper and puree until the mixture is an even consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more vinegar, maple syrup, salt etc. to your preference.
Assemble the salad ingredients in a large bowl (greens, fennel, apple and blood orange).
Toss the salad with vinaigrette immediately prior to serving, or pass the vinaigrette seperately.

Note:

Both the apple and fennel will brown after they are cut, lemon juice can help delay this process, but we would recommend cutting the apple and fennel as close to serving as possible.

Rebecca Shetler Fast

Salads, Spring, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, FruitRebecca Shetler FastMay 15, 2014kale, lettuce, apple, walnuts, mint, cilantro, cider vinegar, lemon, green onions4 Comments

Kale and Red Leaf Salad with Apple Mint Vinaigrette

Kale and Red Leaf Salad with Apple Mint Vinaigrette is an unusual and delicious salad that we made this evening with our first spring batch of local green kale. Kale is the quiet gawky kid in the corner who landed the starring role in the school play and never looked back. Kale has a serious following of die-hard fans who devour it in all forms; chips, smoothies, ice cream, brownies, pesto. Kale is a cancer-fighting super-food loaded with beta-carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, calcium, and antioxidants. To learn about the many ways to use kale and its nutritional value check out Deborah Madison's new book Vegetable Literacy. This Kale and Red Leaf Salad is a tasty example of raw kale serving as a base for this distinctive crisp apple mint vinaigrette.

Salads, Spring, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, FruitRebecca Shetler FastMay 15, 2014kale, lettuce, apple, walnuts, mint, cilantro, cider vinegar, lemon, green onions4 Comments

Fall, Salads, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, SidesRebecca Shetler FastNovember 03, 2014lentil, squashComment

Slow Cooker Lentil Salad with Roasted Squash

Research shows that taste and smell work together to help guide our perception of the flavor of food. Food without scent, is a large part of why I find the flu season so gastronomically depressing. Anytime you need to blow your nose to taste your steak, you know things are getting desperate. In this light, the old school slow cooker becomes a brilliant device: an aromatizer and purveyor of olfactory delight. Because who doesn't love the smell of cooking food when you come home from work starving? This fall, I found a clever slow cooker technique for French lentil salad. Our Slow Cooker Lentil Salad with Roasted Squash has a traditional French Dijon style vinaigrette, is garnished with a flurry of cheese, herbs and nuts, and with a nod towards fall, accompanied by caramelized roasted Delicata Squash. Do not hesitate to use bold flavors in this salad, a lentil under seasoned is a truly woeful thing.

Fall, Salads, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, SidesRebecca Shetler FastNovember 03, 2014lentil, squashComment

Slow Cooker Lentil Salad with Roasted Squash

Salads, Winter, Gluten Free, Quick, SidesRebecca Shetler FastFebruary 19, 2015fennel, appleComment

Crisp Fennel Apple Salad with Tangerine Vinaigrette

Fennel and apple pair terrifically in this simple and elegant salad, wonderful for cleansing the palate after a hearty winter stew. Fennel is a winter vegetable that brings a celery like crunch and cucumbery sweetness to this easy winter salad. We like to pair fennel and apple with a tart and salty citrus vinaigrette, and couldn't resist the bright orange color and flavor of this tangerine vinaigrette.

Salads, Winter, Gluten Free, Quick, SidesRebecca Shetler FastFebruary 19, 2015fennel, appleComment

Crisp Fennel Apple Salad with Tangerine Vinaigrette

Grilled, Salads, Summer, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Favorites, Gluten Free, World CookingRebecca Shetler FastJune 13, 2015halloumi, lemon, tomato, bell pepper, lettuce, red onion, olives, cucumber, cheeseComment

Grilled Greek Salad

Grilling is our cooking method of choice for these early summer days, but it's not all about the meat. Actually, our summer diet has tilted vegetarian since we started making this Grilled Greek Salad. I dreamt up this colorful dish in the colder months, with longings of summer. This salad knocked our socks off and had my meat loving husband requesting more. We made Grilled Greek Salad through bitter March sleet, April winds, and May rains. And now finally, with seasonal vegetables and balmy temperatures, we can grill in the sunshine. Unlike some grilled salads, this isn't grilling for cuteness. Grilled Greek Salad is a hefty, hearty entree salad, that relies on the grill to give the peppers, onions, and tomatoes their luscious char, and to add caramel sweetness to tangy halloumi cheese. Topped with kalamata olives and a tart lemon-zest vinaigrette for contrast, this salad is dynamic. Halloumi, for those not familiar, is a hard salty sheep-milk cheese from Cyrpus, a great cooking cheese that keeps its shape and texture at high heats.

Favorites, Fruit, Gluten Free, Quick, Salads, Summer, Vegetables, Vegetarian, SidesRebecca Shetler FastSeptember 05, 2015corn, tomato, cucumber, peach, green onions, cilantro, cumin, garlic, lime, bell pepperComment

Southwest Black Bean Salad

In high school while browsing for recipes for a Mother’s Day brunch, I was struck by a colorful sounding 'Stoplight Salad' in my Mom’s copy of Simply in Season. My sister and I added it to our Mother’s Day menu that year, and it became a family staple. Through the years, I have created my own version with a bit more of a Southwest flair, swapping in a potent lime-cumin vinaigrette and handfuls of herbs and fruit for contrast. In college, when I needed a dish for a potluck with some Amish friends, I didn’t think twice before whipping up my Southwest Black Bean Salad…what had seemed like a good idea in my dorm room started making me nervous when I saw my garishly bright salad sitting amidst a table of creamy noodle casseroles. Before I could withdraw my food offering, the head cook stuck her spoon in my salad, and I was given a nod of approval, I quietly let out my breath and tried to act nonchalant. Southwest Black Bean Salad is a pungent, bright, and refreshing salad with corn, tomatoes, herbs, and a customizable base of seasonal vegetables and fruit. It has been my most requested recipe over the years, and is an infinity adaptable salad that will be devoured every time. I’d love to hear your favorite combinations! To read more about Simply in Season and our other favorite cookbooks, check out our Bookshelf.