Shaken, not tossed: The Martini Salad

Dan    Recipes, Vegan/Vegetarian     booze, fun, gin, salad, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

1 pack baby spinach

1 apple

1 cup red grapes

1 pack cherry tomatoes

1 red onion

2 celery stalks

2 carrots

1 can artichoke hearts

for the dressing…

2 ounces lemon gin

1 lemon

1 TSP dried oregano

1 clove garlic

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

olive oil

salt & pepper

Slightly James Bond-inspired, I present to you my martini salad. It was part of a rock star themed dinner party I had a couple weeks back. Taking the term salad bar literally, I decided to let guests pick what went into their salad, then shook it up in a martini shaker (of course!). Fun times were had. A little bit of booze in salad dressing never hurt anyone, right?

The presentation might look fancy, but this is the easiest recipe. Start off by chilling some martini glasses. For the dressing, mince the garlic clove, and zest half the lemon. Place in a bowl with juice from the lemon, gin, vinegar, 1/2 cup of olive oil, and a sprinkling of salt & pepper. Whisk to combine. Set aside until you’re ready to shake up them salads!

Chop all the veggies into salad-appropriate pieces. When everything is chopped and ready to go, shake portions with about a tablespoon of dressing, and serve in a chilled martini glass.

Wowing your friends has never been so easy!

Serves 6

Total cook time…15 minutes

Roasted Veggie & Almond Pesto Salad

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     appetizer, pesto, roasted, salad, summer, vegan

What you’ll need…

2 corn cobs

2 bell peppers (1 red, 1 yellow)

4 portabella mushrooms

1/2 cup roasted almonds

2 cups baby arugula

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1/4 cup fresh parmesan

extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

Scenario: The summer is coming to an end and you’re planning one last, fantastic, delicious BBQ dinner with your friends. Now, you just need a perfect salad for that dinner…It’s a good thing I’m looking out for you!

Get that BBQ fired up! Toss the peppers, mushrooms, and corn in a bit of olive oil. Place them on the grill. Turn the vegetables several times so they don’t burn. The mushrooms will be done after about 10 minutes, the corn in 20, and the peppers in 30. Place them in the fridge to chill.

In lieu of a BBQ, roast the vegetables in the oven at 400 degrees. Mushrooms for 15 minutes, corn for 30, and pepper for 50.

Now for the pesto…Place the arugula, almonds, garlic, and parmesan into a food processor (or blender). Pulse, adding olive oil as you go, until the mixture is nicely blended. If you want to keep it vegan, just omit the cheese.

Chop up your now chilled veggies, cut the corn off the cob (obviously), remove the seeds and stems from the peppers. Mix together with the pesto, white wine vinegar, and salt & pepper to taste! Voila! Place in the fridge to keep it cool until you’re ready to serve. Enjoy the BBQ!

Serves 3-4

Total cook time…40 min (BBQ) or 1 hour (oven)

Basmati Summer Salad

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     almonds, gluten-free, salad, summer, vegan, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

4 cups basmati rice (cooked)

4 radishes

3 celery stalks

2 shallots

1 orange

1/2 cup fresh basil

1/2 cup roasted almonds

1 cup arugula

1 cup red grapes

1 TSP tumeric

1 TBSP minced garlic

3 TBSP olive oil

1/4 cup cider vinegar

2 TBSP pepper

This is summer on a plate. Rain or shine it will make your tastebuds smile! Go on, have a picnic. Invite me too if you would like, I’m always down for free food!

Ok, I’m going to go out on a limb and assume you know how to cook rice, so let’s just say the rice just finished cooking! While the rice is still warm mix in the tumeric until the rice is a light, sunny colour. Set aside to cool.

Chop your arugula, radishes, and celery. Halve the grapes and chiffonade the basil. Add all of the aforementioned into a bowl with the almonds and (now-cooled) rice. Mix thoroughly.

For the sweet vinaigrette zest the orange, and juice it as well into a bowl. Pour in the olive oil, cider vinegar, minced garlic, and pepper, then whisk for about 30 seconds. Pour this on top of the salad and mix until it’s evenly coated, add a bit of salt if needed.

Let it chill in the fridge until you’re ready to feed it to your guests!

Serves 4-5

Total cook time…20 min (not including chill time)

Chamomile Citrus Vinaigrette

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     salad, salad dressing, tea, vegan, vinaigrette

What you’ll need…

1 orange

1 clove garlic

1 TSP dried oregano

1 TSP dried basil

1/3 cup chamomile tea (concentrated)

1/3 cup cider vinegar

2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

I’ve been going a little salad-crazy lately, but who says that’s a bad thing right? The chamomile adds a nice sweetness to the dressing, and it makes me think of summer. I made a salad of sprouts (alfafa & radish) with shallots, cucumbers, & grape tomatoes to go with it.

I concentrate the tea by steeping 1 cup of chamomile tea, removing the tea bag, and then simmering it in a small pot until it has reduced to 1/3 of it’s original volume (should take about 15 minutes).

While the tea is simmering away, feel free to zest & juice the orange, mince the garlic clove, and combine all remaining ingredients. Once the tea has cooled (pop it into the fridge to cool faster), add it to the mix. Salt & pepper to taste. Now you have a perfect dressing for your summer salad!

Serves 8-10 (depending on the size of your salad!)

Total cook time…45 min.

Blackberry Dill Vinaigrette

Dan    Appetizers & Co., Recipes     dressing, fruit, salad, vegan, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

1 pint blackberries

1 clove garlic

4 TBSP fresh dill

1/3 cup white wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

(that’s all you need for the dressing, make the salad how you want! I used organic argula, spinach, cucumber, tomatoes, fresh parsley, oregano, & the leftover blackberries.)

First off, finely chop the clove of garlic & the fresh dill. Place the garlic, dill, & 6 blackberries into a mortar and pestle then grind away (a good way to let out any of the day’s frustrations).

Combine your blackberry ‘paste’ with the vinegar and olive oil. Add a touch of salt & pepper (to taste) and that is it! Let it sit for bit before using so the flavours have some time to intermingle, and enjoy on your salad.

Serves 6-8 (depending on the size of your salads)

Total cook time…10 min