Salad 2016 –

[blue_dolphin]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

Dammit, @blue_dolphin, I do not need another cookbook. Mind if I move in with you for a while? (Seriously, those all look delicious. I may have to buy that book.)

Thanks!  You are most welcome to swing by!  
Good Things was the book of the month for December in the cookbook group I participate in.  It didn’t grab me right away. It’s not a book to pick up at 5:30 when you’re already hangry but I spent a little advance prep time making a few condiments, dressings, etc and have been very much enjoying Samin’s creative ways of using them…and my own, too!  I need to write a little review over in the Cookbooks topic. 

[Smithy]

2 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

Thanks!  You are most welcome to swing by!  
Good Things was the book of the month for December in the cookbook group I participate in.  It didn’t grab me right away. It’s not a book to pick up at 5:30 when you’re already hangry but I spent a little advance prep time making a few condiments, dressings, etc and have been very much enjoying Samin’s creative ways of using them…and my own, too!  I need to write a little review over in the Cookbooks topic. 

 

I may take you up on that! And yes, please write a review of the book.

 

This part really strikes home for me, where you said: 

Quote

...It’s not a book to pick up at 5:30 when you’re already hangry but I spent a little advance prep time making a few condiments, dressings...

 

This is the thing I keep telling myself I have to do. If I don't have prep work done by, oh, midafternoon then I'm going to be eating one of my planned-overs (tonight it was chili) or a grilled sandwich. I can't be messing around with washing, chopping, roasting, mixing and so on when it's almost dinner time already. I do need to work on that advance prep business, and her creative ideas might be good inspirations.

[blue_dolphin]

18 hours ago, Smithy said:

This is the thing I keep telling myself I have to do. If I don't have prep work done by, oh, midafternoon then I'm going to be eating one of my planned-overs (tonight it was chili) or a grilled sandwich. I can't be messing around with washing, chopping, roasting, mixing and so on when it's almost dinner time already. I do need to work on that advance prep business, and her creative ideas might be good inspirations.

Yeah, my chances of eating a salad increase dramatically if there’s a dressing prepared and greens washed. I’ve been using escarole & radicchio a lot lately because they’ve been looking great at the farmers market but importantly, they’re really sturdy so I can wash enough for a few days, spin dry, and store wrapped a towel. I should branch out and get some other options. 

 

Salad du jour was roasted honeynut squash and pear, escarole and radicchio dressed with the house dressing from Good Things, baked goat cheese and pecans.

 

[blue_dolphin]

Another salad based on the roasted vegetable salad matrix from Good Things. 
Roasted cauliflower, roll-cut carrots and chickpeas on a bed of baby kale with pickled onions, dressed with the tahini sbagliato dressing and a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. 

The first time I used this dressing, I found it overly garlicky, surely due to my use of a huge garlic clove, but happily that flavor didn’t intensify and the roasted vegetable salad stood up to it just fine. 

[Darienne]

20 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

Another salad based on the roasted vegetable salad matrix from Good Things. 
Roasted cauliflower, roll-cut carrots and chickpeas on a bed of baby kale with pickled onions, dressed with the tahini sbagliato dressing and a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. 

The first time I used this dressing, I found it overly garlicky, surely due to my use of a huge garlic clove, but happily that flavor didn’t intensify and the roasted vegetable salad stood up to it just fine. 

That's it.  I'm moving to SoCal and will be your housemate.  I could live on salad.  We have it 2 out of 3 nights...I mean nothing else besides salads of all kinds. They don't look as good as @blue_dolphin's but I love them.