Salads

Baby Kale Salad with Cherries & Pistachios

August 11, 2017 by mollygilbert520 Leave a Comment

Well, here we are, feet firmly planted into August. How has your summer been so far?

Besides a general theme of uncomfortable, sticky heat (yes, summer, hello, hi), mine has been filled with good things: popsicles, peaches, chubby toddler toes in public wading pools, ferry boats, merry-go-round rides at the zoo, cold wine, flowy shirts, bags of fresh cherries, Moana dance parties, grilled salmon, and a handful of rocky beaches. The usual, you know.

And we’ve only had two instances of toddler food poisoning, and just one semi-bad allergic reaction. Not too shabby!

OH, also, here’s a fun question: anyone know what happens when you accidentally run a (used, yes, ugh) non-cloth diaper through the washing machine?

I DO.

I don’t really want to talk about it – there is weird chemical gel involved – but let’s just leave it at GROSS, cool?

Let’s get back to the popsicles and the wine and the cherries, okay? Maybe in a bright, tangy baby kale salad with pops of sweet fruit and salty pistachios? There’s still plenty of summer left to grab.

Baby Kale Salad with Cherries & Pistachios…

Roasted Potato Salad with Arugula

May 26, 2017 by mollygilbert520 1 Comment

Are you a potato salad person? Or do you just ask for the french fries and be done with it? (I mean, I get it.) But let’s at least give the potato salad a chance, okay? It just might be the perfect food. Hear me out! It’s bright but also deep and roast-y, filling yet packable, and supremely picnic-ish, which I think we can all agree is a top rate quality.

Are you on board yet? Great! Because this weekend marks the official start of potato salad season. And yeah, fresh berries and probably popsicles too, but the potato salad! With mayo or without mayo but definitely full of herbs, and probably eaten on the patio.

This one can be enjoyed warm or cool, and is sharp with a zingy vinaigrette and lots of peppery greens. Potato salad people, unite!

Roasted Potato Salad with Arugula

I had some leftover roasted broccoli and cauliflower hanging around the fridge, so I added it in here — if you’d like to do the same, go right ahead! Though if you don’t want to bother, there’s no need.

Ingredients:

For salad:

2 lbs fingerling potatoes (or baby Yukon golds or red bliss)
1/4 cup olive oil
good pinch kosher salt and ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
3 scallions, thinly sliced
a few big handfuls baby arugula

For dressing:

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup champagne (or white wine) vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil.

Slice the potatoes in half, lengthwise, or into quarters if yours are on the large side (the pieces should be big-bite-sized), and toss them onto the prepared sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and shake to lightly coat. Roast the potatoes for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown and tender.

While the potatoes cook, make the dressing: combine all ingredients into a jar with a lid, and then shake like the dickens until smooth.

Pour about 3/4 cup dressing into a large bowl, and top with the dill, tarragon and scallion. Add the warm potatoes, once cooked. Toss the (still warm) potatoes with the dressing to coat. (You can do this a few hours ahead of serving, and let the potatoes sit at room temperature, soaking up the dressing.)

As soon as you’re ready to serve, add the arugula and toss the salad to coat with dressing, adding more if necessary. Enjoy at room temperature (or as leftovers, cold from the fridge).

Serves 4-6.

Pesto Pasta Salad with Slow Roasted Tomatoes

September 27, 2016 by mollygilbert520 Leave a Comment

Hello, friends! Fall has come to Seattle in all its glory, and I find myself invigorated by the crisp, sunny days, fire-colored trees, early sunsets, and ample opportunity to pumpkin spice just about everything (not sorry… well, ok, a little bit sorry.) Still, there are pieces of summer that seem to be holding on tight – as evidenced by the (still!) exploding tomato plants in my backyard – and I’m fine with that, too.

September always feels a bit in-between-ish to me – the sun hasn’t yet given way to the dark, misty drizzle of true Seattle winter, but days are shorter, new routines are starting, and everyone seems to be hunkering down for the season – which, at least in my case, means getting back into the kitchen. It feels time to stock the freezer with easy meals (this and this come to mind), time to bake too many cookies (I’ve got my eyes on these ones, next), that first can of pumpkin to use up (always a good choice), and all those tomatoes! They want to be roasted.

A big batch of puckered, candy-sweet, roasted tomatoes can (should!) be covered with olive oil and stored in the fridge, to use in myriad forms of deliciousness – eaten straight up, smushed over a hunk of crusty bread, maybe, or tossed into a frittata or scrambled eggs, layered in a veggie lasagna, or thrown into a quick pasta, either hot or cold. Maybe with fresh pesto, tangy olives, creamy cheese and sharp arugula? Yes, yes, yes and yes. As the air cools and days shorten around us, we’ll be happy to have these sweet, juicy remnants of summer at our fingertips.

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Simple Greek Chopped Salad

June 1, 2015 by mollygilbert520 1 Comment

Oh hi, June! It’s lovely to see you.

Except everyone is talking about how Mercury is in retrograde, which essentially means that things are getting WEIRD and ANNOYING around here. Now, I’m not usually one to buy what the stars are selling me, but I’m having trouble shrugging this one off, mainly because of all of the WEIRD and ANNOYING stuff that the universe seems to be throwing my way. I won’t harp on most of it because nothing is really all that consequential – in fact, I was ready to give Mercury the benefit of the doubt and send it on its merry (if retrograded) way – but then my freezer up and stopped working for a hot sec (except it was many hot seconds, hours even), thawing everything in it to a nice, soupy mush, for no apparent reason whatsoever. BAH! Mercury, you salty asshat.

Normally I’d take solace for this annoyance in a pint of ice cream, but that doesn’t seem to be an option just now. (#IceCreamSoup).

On the bright side, I’m eating more salad.

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Gram’s Famous Sesame Cole Slaw

May 22, 2015 by mollygilbert520 5 Comments

Long weekend! We need slaw!

Because it’s slaw good, yo. (Sorry.)

Ben and I recently purchased our first grill (just the next step in our semi-suburbanization, yikes) and since then (aka last week) we’ve grilled approximately a thousand burgers. And brats. And hotdogs. Because HOW GOOD are hotdogs though? Also Cheetos.

I mean. It’s been a rough (read: FATTY) couple of weeks over here. But check out this slaw! If you serve slaw with a side of hotdogs and/or Cheetos, is that really so bad?

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My Favorite Salads

January 6, 2015 by mollygilbert520 2 Comments

It’s 2015! Let’s let that sink in for a minute.

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HOW has it been over 15 years since N*SYNC’s first album came out? Jeez. My youth. Anyway, how were your holidays, friends? Mine were filled with Maui-style sun and sand and fish tacos and new family, so all in all? GREAT.

I’m back in Seattle now and haven’t had a piña colada in three days, which feels wrong, but that’s New Year’s for you, isn’t it? Fresh starts and resolutions for all! This year, my resolutions are about family (seeing more of mine) and travel (doing more of it) and dental floss (this last one seems self-explanatory, I think). I’ve got a lot I’d like to do this year, but mostly I intend to be a kind, happy, healthy, involved and productive kind of person in 2015. Hooray!

I didn’t mention eating more salad/greens, and that was intentional (because COME ON and also just chocolate), but I know this is the time of year to get into the veggies, and FINE, I’ll comply. But not because you asked me to, internet. …Because I want to.

So here, some of my favorite salads to make this time of year!

1. Citrus Beet Salad with Creamy Poppyseed Dressing

Now’s the time for citrus! This one’s a no brainer.

2. Warm Truffled Mushroom Salad

Is this one really a salad? (You might ask.) What with the truffle oil, gorgonzola and FRIED SHALLOTS on top, it’s hard to say, really. But yes, yes it is.

3. Kale, Coconut & Persimmon Salad

Can’t find persimmons? Try mangoes instead!

4. Pink & Greens Salad

Roasted greens, tangy citrus, fresh herbs and quinoa. Great for a cold and rainy day. (So, like, every day in Seattle?)

5. Roasted Cauliflower & Chickpea Salad

This one comes together in a snap ON A SHEET PAN. Just saying.

There’s plenty more where these came from, both on this site and the interwebs beyond (I’m loving the looks of this salad, this one, this gem and these beans), so I hope you get your health fix this January (and beyond).

Here’s to a bright new year ahead!

Apple Dill Tuna Salad

October 1, 2014 by mollygilbert520 2 Comments

I’m on my way to New York! Like, as we speak. I’m tip-tap-typing to you on an airplane, from seat 10D (which is in an exit row! Holler extra legroom), many thousands of feet above ground. Three cheers for you, Technology!

I’m making the trip back east from Seattle to do a few last-minute wedding things, (including dress fitting, eeeek!), and I get to catch up with some family and friends, to boot. And assuming that pesky little dress fitting doesn’t get in the way, I anticipate enjoying a bagel (from Russ & Daughters), a slice of pizza (from pretty much anywhere), and a doughnut (from Dough) during my visit. Or maybe a paleta from La Newyorkina on the High Line. Or some Big Gay Ice Cream. Ooh! The chicken at Barbuto. I want that. Or! A Momofuku pork bun and cornflake cookie? Yes, definitely that.

…Shoot. I’m going to need more time.

I always love visiting New York City. Having lived in the city for three years (during and after culinary school), I know my way around and, now that I no longer live here, find things I once found irksome (the crowds, the smell, the rush, the buskers, the Subway, etc.) to be positively charming. Yes I WILL throw some money your way, person rapping on the F train! OF COURSE I will walk behind you at a glacial pace, clueless tourist! Since I don’t actually live here anymore and don’t have to deal with these issues on a regular basis, I can chuckle at the rat scurrying near that pile of garbage bags, or roll my eyes indulgently at the guy taking up a whole row of seats on the (crowded) A train. I really do heart NY.

I realize that none of this has anything to do with tuna salad. Except for the obvious connection between The Big Apple and (The Big) Apple Dill Tuna Salad. So basically they have everything to do with each other, is what I’m saying. Are you a tuna salad person? I love tuna melts. I go open face, usually with a mess of sharp cheddar. This tuna salad with apple and dill is excellent in that capacity. It’s a little herby, with just enough sweetness and tang.

It makes a great lunch or quick dinner, when you don’t feel like doing all that much, effort-wise, in the way of lunch or dinner. I wish I had brought some on the airplane with me, but I didn’t because I like to think that I’m a considerate human. A considerate human, on her way to New York! See you soon, Big Apple.

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Spicy Sautéed Kale with Tofu

September 17, 2014 by mollygilbert520 4 Comments

Things are moving quickly around here! I mean, not around here here (I’m long overdue for a post, sorry), but the regular, on-my-feet, day-to-day? I mean, WHOOSH. Moving. Flying, really.

It always feels this way when summer slides into fall, doesn’t it? Everything on the move, and days getting shorter. There are lunches to pack, traffic to navigate and, in my case, a wedding to finish planning. (I’m trying to sound casual about this, but !!!!!!!!!!!!@%$#^@&%*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! is what’s actually happening in my brain). We’re at T minus six weeks until matrimony, people! Yeesh.

YEESH. Let’s look at a tranquil photo of Ross Lake that I took this summer:

And then let’s eat some kale. It’ll calm our brains and help our bodies feel good… about our brains and our bodies.

We’ll sauté it in a hot, hot pan. It’ll get wilty and crisp at the edges, and it’ll soak in all the flavor we throw at it. Coconut oil for health and sweetness! Garlic and red pepper flakes for bite! Baked tofu for heft, scallions and sesame seeds for depth and crunch, and soy sauce and rice vinegar for salt and tang.

It’s a quick and flavorful option for a busy weeknight. I’ve made it four times in two weeks, and I love it for its imprecise (in an I-don’t-feel-like-measuring-things way) deliciousness (you don’t really need to measure — just trust yourself and, if you need to, taste as you go. You can’t mess this one up). Plus it’s just so quick. You can do it while packing lunches. Or creating seating charts. For your wedding. In less than six weeks.

…Deep breaths. And more kale.

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Octavia’s Warm Shrimp Salad with Cantaloupe & Feta

July 14, 2014 by mollygilbert520 5 Comments

Excuse me for a minute while I eat all of the popsicles and forget to blog about it (oops).

I spent last week in Sunriver, Oregon, where the air is hot and dry and the mountains loom quietly on the horizon. We were there for Ben’s family reunion. There were some sweaty bike rides, a dip in the pool, a few spirited games of pickle ball (a real game, apparently), lots of empty wine bottles, ample ice cream cones, plenty of deer sightings, and a whole lot of family time.

My niece, Matilda, says hello.

…Skeptically.

We drove through Portland to get to Sunriver, so we stopped at Lardo for pork meatball bahn mi sandwiches, cucumber salad and french fries.

A good decision.

In Sunriver, we pretended to know how to play croquet.

When we got back to Seattle, it was hot. Real hot. Like, sweaty-knee-back hot. So we picnicked on the patio with cold white wine and this salad, which is plump with shrimp and tangy with arugula and feta. The cantaloupe is a nice and unexpected addition; it really pulls the whole dish together. It’s a salad for hot summer evenings, light and flavorful, as delicious at room temperature as it is warm.

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Pink & Greens Salad

March 27, 2014 by mollygilbert520 11 Comments

I live in Seattle now! Officially. There were two flights, a road trip through Portland (with doughnuts) and a few choice words to a less-than-stellar moving company along the way, but I’m writing now from my new home office (strewn with boxes and receipts and packing tape, but still) in Seattle. Because I live here.

In other big news, it’s raining.

Amidst the chaos of unpacked boxes, echo-y half-furnitured rooms, new streets to navigate and what feels like constant drizzle, I’ve been stress eating since I got here. Did I mention that BOX of doughnuts? Yeah. There’s been lots of pizza. And there was ice cream, too. Twice. Alone.

Yesterday I decided to take charge. I went to my happy place (Whole Foods). I stocked up on leafy greens and fruit and peanut butter. I color-coded my cookbooks. Then I made this salad, and it felt so good to get some actual health back in my routine. Roasted greens are the way to go. They wilt from the heat but keep their toothsome heft, their deep flavor intensifying and their edges crisping delicately. Tossed with some fresh herbs, a bit of quinoa, and plenty of soft avocado, tart grapefruit and a handful of meaty pistachios, and you’ve got yourself a lunch you can be proud of.

The boxes will get unpacked, and the furniture will fill in eventually. And the rain, well, it has to stop at some point, doesn’t it?

…Don’t answer that.

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