Chopped Salad

As a kid, my Mom would frequently ask me to make the salads that accompanied our family dinners. She'd say that salads were her least favorite thing to make, and I'd go along with it because I was just excited to be in the kitchen. As I'd wash the lettuce, lay it on a soaked paper towel, and proceed to tear the leaves in to tiny pieces, she'd tell me how salads always tasted better when somebody else made them.

Split Pea Soup

You may have noticed that I'm gravitating toward make-ahead, cozy meals this winter. I think that it's easy to feel bogged down by the gross weather, your ever growing to-do list, and the lack of daylight this time of year. These factors can easily convince us to throw our healthy eating resolutions out the window and run to the nearest take-out option. 

The meal I'm posting should hopefully save you from scenario B. Help yourself out with easy, wallet-friendly, healthy, make-ahead split pea soup. Will you give it a try?

This soup is great because it's a nice change from the typical lentil soup or beef stew. It also packs in the vegetables in a hearty, filling, yet lean way.

And the best thing about having soup for dinner is what? Come on...any guesses?

Crusty bread! Treat yourself to some good quality artisan bread. If you are in the Seattle area, I highly recommend any of the crusty bread options from Essential Baking Company. It's great dunked into a bowl of this hot, homemade soup.

Enjoy, friends!

Split Pea Soup

From For The Love of Fiber

Ingredients

1 ham shank, chopped into cubes (see what I used in the picture below)
1 pound green split peas (find these in the bulk section at the grocery store)
3 quarts organic chicken or vegetable stock
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon oregano
1/3 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 ½ cup carrots, thinly sliced (I made it easy on myself and used the shredded carrots from Trader Joes)
1 cup celery, chopped

Directions

Separate ham shank bone from meat. Chop the meat in to small cubes and set aside.

In a large stock pot, combine peas, stock, ham shank bone, onion, garlic, oregano, pepper, and bay leaf. Simmer uncovered for about 90 minutes.

Remove the shank bone and add carrots and celery to pot. Simmer uncovered for about 90 minutes.

Remove the bay leaf, and blend the with an immersion blender or blend in batches using traditional blender (be careful with the hot liquid).

Return blended soup to the pot, add chopped ham pieces. Simmer another 30 minutes and serve.

Persimmon Pomegranate Salad

Every Thursday morning, as I am half awake and rushing out the door to address the tail-end of the week, I am greeted by a friendly and familiar organic produce delivery. Farm fresh fruits, veggies, and the occasional set of organic eggs and artisan bread sit on the patio chair propped next to my front door smiling at me, as if to say, "slow down."

And I do. The welcomed package forces me to stop, turn around, open the door, and thoughtfully take my farm fresh groceries inside.

Opening the Full Circle Farm box up every week is always a treat. It’s exciting to discover new vegetables and fruits – items I wouldn’t normally pick out at the store on my own. Eggplant, delicata squash, purple potatoes, and starkrimson pears.

In many cases, I get fruits and vegetables I'm not sure how to prepare. This past week I received three perfect persimmons, orange and plump with possibility. I'd never had a persimmon in my life. I emptied the brown bag containing them on to the counter and examined the goods.

I'll admit, I bit right into one of them thinking a persimmon may just be a glorified apple. After doing some online research, I discovered that while the skin is edible, many people like to cut off the top of the fruit and scoop out the flesh, or some folks peel the fruit before eating it (lesson learned). I also discovered that persimmons are ripe when they are soft (If you buy persimmons and they are pretty firm, stick them in a brown bag for a few days to help them along).

Now as to how to prepare persimmons, well, you can do a lot. You can make breads, puddings, marmalades, cookies, relish, ice cream, sherbert, and more. I decided to take a tip from Simply Recipes and make a wonderful fall fruit salad.

The lemon juice, honey, mint, pomegranate, and persimmon mesh together so well. This could be a great side for any meal, but honestly, it could even pass for dessert.

Persimmon Pomegranate Salad
From Simply Recipes

Ingredients
4 fuyu persimmons, peeled, chopped
3/4 cup pomegranate seeds (approximately one pomegranate)
1 Fuji apple, peeled, cored, chopped (1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces)
7-10 leaves fresh mint, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey

Directions
Gently toss all of the ingredients together. Plate and serve.

Beet Salad

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

One of my favorite restaurants in Seattle is a neapolitan pizzeria called Tutta Bella. Just thinking about their wood fired, thin crust pizzas makes my mouth water. Their ingredients are fresh and you can tell everything is handmade with organic ingredients.


I usually get a Ciro pizza with pomodoro, fresh mozzarella, prosciutto, mushroom, basil, and olive oil. Need I say more?


And while I will never ever be able to replicate their pizzas in my own kitchen, there is another special item on their menu I do like to take a stab at making now and again.


Introducing the Bietola Marinata, or beet salad. 


Have you ever had beets? I was skeptical at first. I'd see beets at the salad bar in the local grocery store and wonder what place they had. But I promise, beets are luscious, sweet, sour, and so very good for you (cancer fighting). Once you try this recipe you will be hooked.


I make this recipe probably twice a month. It goes with everything - chicken, beef, pork, pasta - the works. You could even add diced meat right into the salad to make it a main meal.  It's easy to keep the ingredients on hand, so you can pull them out whenever you need a quick, nutritious side.


If I can go from a beet doubter to advocate, I bet you can too. Give this simple but fabulous recipe a go. You won't regret it.

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson

Beet Salad


Ingredients
2 cans organic beets, drained and diced
1/2 cup pistachios, shelled and chopped
Handful of raw goat cheese, crumbled
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Salt
Pepper


Directions
Add beets, pistachios, and goat cheese to a medium size bowl. Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the top of the mixture as desired. Sprinkle salad with salt and pepper. Mix all ingredients together until distributed equally. Serve and enjoy.

Photo by Rachel Dedrickson