Spinach Salad with Chia Crusted Tuna and Roasted Winter Vegetables
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 2
 
This spinach salad with chia crusted tuna and roasted winter vegetables is packed with nutrients and flavor. Top it off with a creamy homemade cashew dressing and you'll find yourself in the ultimate food heaven.
Ingredients
  • For the salad:
  • 20 Brussel sprouts, cut into 4
  • 1 small fennel, cut into slices.
  • 1 small beet, peeled and cut into cubes
  • 2 fillets of fresh tuna
  • ¼ lime or lemon
  • Chia seeds, as needed
  • 4 handfuls baby spinach, washed and dried
  • For the Cashew Dressing:
  • 1 cup (130g) cashews
  • 1-2 small cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • ¾ cup water
  • ½ lime or lemon, juiced
  • 1 handful Italian flat leaf parsley
  • Salt and pepper, as needed
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Put parchment paper on two baking sheets.
  2. Put the Brussel sprouts and fennel on one tray and the beets on another. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil, add some salt and stick the trays in the oven. Check the veggies every 10 minutes and give a quick stir. Take out the tray with the Brussel sprouts and fennel after roughly 25 minutes and take out the tray with the beets around 45 minutes.
  3. In the meantime, make the cashew dressing. In a food processor add: cashews, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, water, lemon, parsley, salt and pepper. Blend until the dressing is creamy and homogenous. Add more water to arrive at the consistency desired.
  4. Drizzle some lime or lemon over the tuna fillets then roll them in the chia seeds and cook in a medium pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes on each side, leaving the center raw but warm. Cut the tuna into strips.
  5. To prepare the salad: divide the spinach among two plates, add the Brussel sprouts, fennel, beets and tuna strips. Top with the cashew dressing. Buon appetito!
  6. *Store the remaining cashew dressing in the refrigerator and use it on other salads, stirred into grains like quinoa, couscous or millet or eat it as a dip with crackers.
Recipe by Italicana Kitchen at https://italicanakitchen.com/spinach-salad-chia-crusted-tuna-roasted-winter-vegetables/