This a guest post from Michelle Tam of Nom Nom Paleo.
Whipping up some chicken salad? Don’t you dare make a bland-tasting version tossed with plain old mayonnaise. Instead, punch it up with smoky, aromatic curry powder, crisp apples, fresh herbs, and toasted almonds. With just a few pantry items, you can radically transform a ho-hum dish into an elegant and flavorful meal.
Although this South Asian-inspired chicken salad is making its debut on my blog today, it’s been one of my favorites for years. In fact, this recipe first popped up in our iPad app almost three years ago, before making its second appearance in our cookbook. When I’ve had a long day, I just throw this salad together and serve it on a giant bed of organic lettuce mix. Hosting a party? Spoon it into cucumber cups or on endive spears for a fancy hors d’oeuvre. No one’ll guess how little time it took!
Read MoreThis a guest post from Natasha of The Feisty Kitchen.
Broccoli Salad. I know this isn’t quite something you’d think of for the middle of January, but I got it stuck in my head, and had to make it. So there’s that. My version has a few twists in it but still reminds you of that classic Broccoli Salad that your aunt or somebody would bring over to the summer potluck!
I don’t care for raisins. Like not one bit, so I subbed in organic dried goji berries and still achieved that little hint of sweetness in the dish. Raw red onions are another one of those things I just can’t do. Luckily I do like raw shallots, so that was a perfect substitution in this recipe and I opted to add it in minced in the dressing portion rather than in a dice in the salad, so it’s just a hint. I also don’t care for sugar and soybean oil filled mayos. Gross. I was lucky enough to get my hands on some new Paleo Approved Mayo by Mark Sisson’s Primal Kitchen Foods… It’s sooo yummilicious! It’s made using avocado oil, cage free eggs, and it’s free of sugar, soy and canola! It’s amazing!
Read MoreSquid is a mild-flavored, quick cooking, quite decent source of omega-3s, copper and selenium. So if fish is too fishy for you, or you’re craving a new way to get your seafood fix, then this recipe for grilled squid salad is the answer. So much healthier than battered, deep fried calamari, this recipe is light, flavorful and fit to be an appetizer or main course.
Quick-cooking squid over an open flame is the way to go, pulling it off the grill just as the edges get crispy and curl under and before it has a change to get chewy. The mild flavor is made more interesting by dousing the squid in a zippy vinaigrette made from grilled lemons, garlic and lots of oregano. This vinaigrette would also be fantastic with shrimp, salmon and chicken.
Read MoreIt’s a bit of a mystery why raw kale salads took off with the popularity they did and raw Swiss chard salads have yet to catch on. Raw Swiss chard greens are tender and milder in flavor than you might think. The stems are edible and have a pleasantly crunchy texture and tart flavor. Not a fan of cooked Swiss chard? There’s a good chance you’ll like it better raw. The leaves have a light and lemony flavor with very little of the astringent bitterness of cooked Swiss chard.
It’s that light and lemony flavor that pairs so well with something meatier, heavier and spicier like harissa lamb chops. The flavor combination of harissa lamb chops and raw Swiss chard salad is pretty much perfect. Plus, you’re getting ample amounts of vitamins K, A, C and E, magnesium and fiber from the powerhouse green, plus iron, niacin, zinc, B vitamins and conjugated linoleic acid from the lamb. What more do you need from a meal?
Read MoreAfter grilling broccoli once, you’re going to wonder why you’ve never thought of cooking it this way before. Charred and crispy around the edges, tender with just a little bit of crunch, grilling brings out the best in broccoli. Toss grilled broccoli in a big bowl with lime and chili grilled shrimp and you’ve got one amazing salad.
Grilled broccoli doesn’t taste all that much different than broccoli roasted in a high-heat oven, but it cooks faster. The bright green color and a bit of crunch remain intact. Plus, who wants to crank the oven to 450 ºF in the summer?
Read MoreCrispy, crackling nuggets of pork belly are better than traditional bread croutons, any day of the week. Pork belly “croutons” add crunch and saltiness to salad, plus they have a succulent, fatty middle that a square of stale bread can’t compete with.
But you probably don’t need to be sold on loving meat croutons over bread croutons. So let’s get right down to the recipe. How does one turn a tough slab of pork belly into gorgeous layers of thin, crispy skin, velvety fat and tender meat? It’s easier than you think. Plus, pork belly is a relatively inexpensive cut of meat and easy + inexpensive + incredible flavor = Primal happiness.
Read More
Ⓒ 2023 Mark's Daily Apple
