You may tend to eat salads just in the spring and summer; have you ever tried a salad with winter veggies? 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.
Even vegetables :: verdure can be as stunning as Hollywood’s stars in high heels and sparking dresses strolling down the red carpet at the Oscars.
What’s not to love about plump green Brussel sprouts? Don’t be frightened by your childhood years when your mom probably overcooked them until they were soggy, waterlogged balls that smelled of rotten eggs. Trust me, cooked correctly, brussels sprouts are like candy :: caramelle that you want to just pop in your mouth, one after the other.
Beets also get a bad rap. Many people hate them, including Mr. Italicano. That is, until I roasted the beets to caramelize and concentrate their flavors :: sapori and snuck them into various salads and pastas. Now Mr. Italicano is a converted beet lover.
Fennel is an underrated vegetable that often times gets neglected, yet, it is one of the most aromatic vegetables and can add intense anise flavors to any dish :: piatto. Here in Italy, we love to eat raw fennel dipped in a simple vinaigrette made of extra virgin olive oil, salt and lemon.
If Popeye the Sailor Man eats spinach, so should we. Their bright green tender leaves :: foglie are packed with iron, fiber, vitamin C and vitamin K. Spinach is extremely easy to work into your daily meals. Make a salad, toss the fresh leaves into your egg scramble or serve it warm as a side.
In the spring and summer I grill vegetables; in the fall and winter I roast them. Roasting vegetables intensifies their natural flavors and turns ordinary vegetables into mouthwatering succulent goodness. Many people skip out on using fresh vegetables because they are time consuming to prepare. Roasting vegetables is one of the simplest methods to reduce consumption of processed foods because you can cook with whole foods in just 3 easy steps:
1. Chop up whatever veggies you have in your refrigerator
2. Lay them out on a baking sheet and drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and salt; if you’re feeling wild, add some dried spices.
3. Shove the pan in the oven and roast at 400°F (200°C) for 25-45 minutes. I don’t mix the vegetables until they have been roasted as vegetables have different roasting times. (Brussel sprouts and fennel will take about 25 minutes whereas beets and potatoes will take 45 minutes). Just peak at them every so often to make sure they are not burning and give a quick stir.
In the meantime, relax with a glass of wine or help your kids with their homework. Roasting vegetables allows you to cook with whole foods without a lot of hands on work. Eat the roasted vegetables as a side or vegetarian main course, toss them in salads, add to pasta or grains like quinoa and couscous, use them as fillings for quesadillas and wraps or blend them up and use as a healthy sauce :: salsa or dip.
Where I live in Italy, it’s quite impossible to find salad dressings :: condimenti—I love this. We use extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dress our salads. At first I missed my bottles of ranch and blue cheese dressings that I always had in the refrigerator, so if you’re not ready to make the leap to a lighter dressing, I understand; yet, at least make your own. One of the worst things about most salad dressings is all the added chemical ingredients to preserve their shelf life. You don’t want to put those unknown ingredients that you can’t even pronounce into your body. Making this cashew salad dressing is so simple: just put the 6 ingredients into a food processor or use a hand held mixer and blend. And, voilà, it’s done.
Hah! This is funny, I’ve been pronouncing “chia seeds” wrong for the last year since I started cooking with these little beauties. I just had to watch a youtube video to get the English pronunciation right. I’ve been calling them “key-uh”, like how we pronounce them in Italian. Apparently in English they are pronounced “chee-uh”. So, why do I use chia seeds a lot in my cooking? They are a remarkable “super food” and are packed with protein, fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. Here is a great article that explains other health benefits :: benefici salutari.
I hope you enjoy this spinach salad with chia crusted tuna and roasted winter veggies all topped with a creamy cashew dressing. It has quickly become one of my new favorite winter salads.
Spinach Salad with Chia Crusted Tuna and Roasted Winter Vegetables
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.
Serves: 2
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
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Put parchment paper on two baking sheets.
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.
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.
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.
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!
*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.
I had a devious plan when I made this recipe :: ricetta. I wanted to see if Mr. Italicano really didn’t like beets or if it was just a psychological or textural hatred for this lovely purple vegetable.
Just as I thought, Mr. Italicano devoured his plateful of farro with beet sauce and roasted carrots. He actually complimented me on how good this dish was in between bites. I, of course, kept my mouth shut, took a sip of my red wine :: vino rosso and smiled sweetly back at him, enjoying my sneaky little trick.
Then, the moment came when Mr. Italicano asked what was inside. Luckily by this time, his plate was almost clear. As I mentioned the word beet :: barbabietola, I watched him cringe. Yes, definitely a psychological hatred and hopefully one that I’ve helped him kick as I love cooking with beets.
After the farro is cooked, it is versatile like rice :: riso— I love mixing in blended vegetables like my beet sauce or kale pesto. Here are some other ideas of yummy alternatives from bloggers around the web:
Roasted Cauliflower and Farro Salad with Feta and Avocado from Cookie and Kate—A great winter salad recipe.
Farro Salad with Lentils, Beans, and Oven Roasted Vegetables found on Serious Eats – Not just a salad, but a complete meal.
Warm Farro Salad with Spinach and Mushrooms from Little Spice Jar— A great side for special dinners.
This farro salad with beet sauce and roasted carrots can be served as a side salad, or even as a vegetarian :: vegetariano main course. It is especially great when you host large dinner parties and need to easily (and elegantly) serve a large amount of people.
Wash the beet well and wrap it in a piece of aluminum foil. Place on a cookie sheet with raised lips or in a baking dish in case the liquid drizzles out.
Cook for 50-60 minutes, opening the foil and checking half way through. The cooking time will depend on the size of the beets. *(Add the carrots at this time, see below.)
The beets are ready when you can easily poke a fork in the center. Let them cool slightly then use a paper towel to rub the skin off. If the skin is not easily coming off, put the beets back in the oven for a few minutes.
After the skin has been removed, blend all of the ingredients together.
Mix 2-3 spoonfuls of the beet sauce into the farro salad. Any left over sauce can be used as a dip with raw vegetables or a spread with crackers or can be mixed into pasta, couscous, millet, quinoa etc. Store in the refrigerator and consume within 3-4 days.
For the farro salad:
Line a cookie sheet with raised lips with parchment paper
In a small sized bowl, toss the carrots together with the basil, ginger, salt and extra virgin olive oil. Place on the cookie sheet and bake alongside the beet for 30 minutes. (I like to give the veggies a stir every 10 minutes to prevent the outer carrots from burning.)
In the meantime, bring a medium pot of water to boil. Add course salt followed by the farro. Cook for ½ hour. Drain.
Put the farro in a large bowl and mix in 2-3 spoonfuls of beet sauce and roasted carrot. Serve. Or, if you want to present the salad like the photo, set a pastry ring in the middle of a plate and add the farro that has been mixed with the beet sauce, topped by another layer of beet sauce and top with the roasted carrots. Buon appetito!
It’s time to get your fig on, especially while they are still in season. Fresh figs compliment a salad like no other fruit because their varied texture and unique taste offers both sweetness and crunchiness (thanks to their tiny seeds), while their beautiful rosy flesh provides vibrancy to otherwise plain salad greens. Line them up besides mature pear slices, gorgonzola crumbles and walnut pieces and you have just created a salad under 6 minutes that beckons to be eaten.
Did you know that figs have many health benefits? Here are just a few ways that fresh figs can improve your well being.
3 Reasons to Eat Figs:
1. High Fiber Content: Figs are high in fiber. Not only do they act as a natural laxative for regularity, but high fiber foods also provide the sensation of fullness, reducing hunger and therefore is a great way to naturally control weight.
2. Rich in Potassium: Why is potassium important? Low levels of potassium can lead to high blood pressure. In recent years, potassium deficiencies have increased due to the fact that many people consume too much salt, which is often found in processed foods. Fresh figs, as well as other fruit and vegetables, naturally increase potassium levels and thusly can help lower blood pressure.
3. Rich in Calcium: A diet rich in calcium is important to keep bones strong and to lesson the risk of osteoporosis.
There are many ways you can incorporate fresh and dried figs into your daily diet: toss them in salads, sprinkle them on top of flatbreads or pizzas, add them to yogurt and muesli o purée them and spread them on a piece of whole wheat toast with some almond slivers. Yum. All this talk about figs is making me hungry!
Fig, Pear, Gorgonzola, Walnut Salad with Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
This Fig, Pear, Gorgonzola, Walnut Salad with Poppy Seed Vinaigrette is a nutritious salad you can throw together in just 6 minutes.
Serves: 2
Ingredients
For the salad:
4 ounces (100g) mixed greens, cleaned and dried
2 figs, sliced
1 small pear, sliced
4 walnuts, shelled and chopped in pieces
Handful gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
For the vinaigrette:
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ tablespoon balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoon poppy seeds
Instructions
Divide the salad among the two bowls and top with the fig and pear slices, walnuts and gorgonzola cheese. Drizzle the vinaigrette on top. Buon appetite!
Bulgur is an inexpensive cereal grain that is high in fiber and protein and low in fat and calories. I love bulgur not only for its nutritional benefits but also for its quick cook time and convenience that it can be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator. You can toss together any of your favorite raw or cooked vegetables with bulgur to create a delicious and healthy salad :: insalata perfect for summer dinners and ideal for a no-fuss picnic lunch. This time around I added chunks of avocado, crumbled feta, chopped cherry tomatoes all mixed together with a delicious herb green sauce. For a simple, yet, elegant presentation serve the bulgur salad in the avocado shells.
This weekend I was in Rimini, Italy at Al Mèni, a culinary event that promotes handmade food and products. Massimo Bottura, one of Italy’s most famous chefs, led the event that was held in a beautiful circus tent where 24 renowned Italian and international chefs created innovative dishes :: piatti for spectators to try. Also making a surprise visit was Oscar Farinetti, owner of Eataly, an international supermarket offering high quality Italian artisanal products.
Massimo Bottura is well known for his Michelin three stars restaurant, OsteriaFrancescana, located in Modena, Italy and ranked first in Italy and fifth in the world by the San Pellegrino list of the World’s Top 50 Restaurants. With such a famed presence, I honestly expected him to have a reserveddemeanorand to be quite of an snob. Boy, was I wrong! He is an effervescent, playful and comical person. During Al Mèni he flittered from one group of spectators to the next, sprayed his chefs with water from the faucet hose and even invited me, a little food blogger, back in the kitchen for an enthusiastic explanation of the preparation of one of the dishes. Here are just a few pics from this grand event :: evento!
A delicious and healthy salad perfect for summer dinners and ideal for a no-fuss picnic lunch.
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
For the bulgur salad:
1 cup (185g) bulgur
2 avocados
1 cup (140g) crumbled feta
1 cup (170g) chopped cherry tomatoes
1 cucumber, chopped
For the Herb Green sauce:
1 handful parsley (about ½ cup (33g))
¼ cup (25g) shelled walnuts
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ lemon, juiced
½ garlic clove
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
For the bulgur salad:
Cook the bulgur according to the package’s directions. Slice the avocado in chunks and conserve the shells. Add the avocado chunks, crumbled feta, cherry tomatoes and cucumber to the bulgur.
For the Herb Green sauce:
Put all of the ingredients into a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth. Add a few spoonfuls at a time to the bulgur salad, depending how strong you want the flavor. Add a few more squeezes of lemon if you want an added burst of freshness. Serve cold.
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Have extra herb green sauce? You can use it up with this delicious recipe for green eggs and toast!
I am addicted to salads in the spring and summer :: estate months. Who doesn’t love bright and flavorful seasonal produce adorning a bed of fresh crisp lettuce? If you mix up your ingredients, you are sure to never get bored.Here are just a few of my favorites: lentil salad in radicchio cups;quinoa salad with feta and caramelized walnuts; apple, dried cranberry, caramelized almonds and feta salad and, of course, not to be missed from this list is this rucola salad with strawberries, radishes and macadamia nuts topped with a rich gorgonzola dressing.
When I lived in the U.S., the word “gorgonzola” for me was just a name of an Italian blue cheese. Little did I know that gorgonzola bears the name of the Italian city :: città where the product originated. Asiago is another example of a cheese named after a city, as well as Parmigiano Reggiano (what we often call parmesan cheese), an area that includes the cities of Parma and Reggio Emilia.
Gorgonzola has quite a strong taste, so if you are not a fan of this cheese you can simply add a splash of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I personally love gorgonzola as you can use it for both sweet or savory dishes. Add gorgonzola to a pear and walnut pizza, melt it down to create a gorgonzola sauce for pasta or risotto or prepare an apple and gorgonzola pie. A while back I made some very bland savory muffins :: muffin salati. Instead of throwing them out, I created a hole in the center with a small spoon, added a dollop of gorgonzola and instantly they were transformed into gourmet savory muffins with a gorgonzola-filled center.
Make the dressing :: condimento right after preparing the salad as the strawberries that are blended in the gorgonzola dressing become too sour if stored for days or overnight in the refrigerator. I also like to warm my radish slices in a splash of apple vinegar on the stove.
You may already be accustomed to buying your blue cheese salad dressings in a bottle, but living in a country where these are practically non existent, I’ve learned to make my own. I also make homemade dressings to moderate what goes inside. Who needs 10+ ingredients and preservatives with long names that you don’t know? All that is needed to make a tasty and satisfying salad dressing is just a few simple ingredients.
Arugula Salad with Strawberries, Red Radishes, Macadamia Nuts and a Creamy Gorgonzola Dressing
Light and colorful ingredients make this arugula salad with strawberries, red radishes and macadamia nuts perfect for celebrating the summer days; all topped with a creamy homemade gorgonzola dressing.
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
Makes 4-6
For the dressing:
2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
½ cup (105g) gorgonzola
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 strawberries
Salt and pepper, to taste
For the salad:
8 ounces arugula (about 12 cups)
15 strawberries, hulled and thinly sliced
4 red radishes, thinly sliced
¼ cup (38g) macadamia nuts
Instructions
In a blender, mix together the Greek yogurt, gorgonzola, extra virgin olive oil, strawberries, sat and pepper. Pour into a small serving bowl. In a large bowl, add the arugula, strawberry slices, radish slices and macadamia nuts.
Note: Since the gorgonzola dressing has a strong flavor, I suggest serving the dressing separately from the salad so that each person can add as much flavor as he/she desires. Due to the strawberries, the gorgonzola dressing doesn’t conserve well in the refrigerator, so make the dressing right before serving the salad.
The beauty of this lentil, avocado and feta salad in red radicchio cups is that it is very versatile; you can serve it as an appetizer, as a side dish or a vegetarian main entrée.
As an appetizer, use the inner leaves of the red radicchio which will be smaller, whereas for a side dish or main entrée :: secondo you can use the outer, larger leaves. Make sure that the leaves are crisp and have no brown spots.
There are many varieties of radicchio (pronounced rah-deek-key-oh), each of which are named after the Italian region where it was originally grown. The two types that are most widely available in specialty grocers in the United States are Verona and Treviso. Verona is round and similar in shape to a small cabbage head whereas the Treviso variety is characterized by its oblongleaves :: foglie oblunghe.
Being a leaf chicory, you may also find that radicchio is called Italian chicory, Verona chicory, Treviso chicory etc.
In Italy, red Treviso radicchio, along with other raw vegetables :: verdure crude, is commonly dipped into pinzimonio, a condiment made of olive oil, salt, pepper and a splash of lemon juice. The red Treviso radicchio is one of the most prestigious varieties of radicchio, yet is harder to find in the States.
Lentil, Avocado and Feta Salad in Red Radicchio Cups
This lentil, avocado and feta salad in red radicchio cups is very versatile; you can serve it as an appetizer, as a side dish or a vegetarian main entree.
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
For the salad:
1 cup (200g) lentils, rinsed
1 teaspoon course salt
1 cucumber, chopped
15 datterini tomatoes, chopped
½ fennel, finely chopped
1 avocado, peeled and chopped
1 handful parsley, chopped
6 ounces (150g) feta, crumbled
8 large Verona radicchio leaves, rinsed
For the vinaigrette:
1½ lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon mustard (dijon or grainy)
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
2 pinches salt
Lots of freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
For the vinaigrette:
Combine the ingredients together in the order given then chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.
For the salad:
Bring a medium sized pot to boil, salt the water and add the lentils. Cook according to the package, about 15 minutes. Drain and cool.
In the meantime, add the chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, fennel, avocado, parsley and feta to a bowl. Add the cooled lentils and vinaigrette and stir until combined. Divide the mixture among the radicchio leaves and serve.
If made in advance, make the lentil salad without the avocado and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Prepare the vinaigrette in a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Rinse the radicchio leaves, wrap in a paper towel then store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, peel and chop the avocado and add the pieces to the salad mixture along with the vinaigrette. Stir well then distribute among the radicchio cups.
You may tend to eat salads just in the spring and summer; have you ever tried a salad with winter veggies? 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.
What’s not to love about plump green Brussel sprouts? Don’t be frightened by your childhood years when your mom probably overcooked them until they were soggy, waterlogged balls that smelled of rotten eggs. Trust me, cooked correctly, brussels sprouts are like candy :: caramelle that you want to just pop in your mouth, one after the other.
Beets also get a bad rap. Many people hate them, including Mr. Italicano. That is, until I roasted the beets to caramelize and concentrate their flavors :: sapori and snuck them into various salads and pastas. Now Mr. Italicano is a converted beet lover.
Fennel is an underrated vegetable that often times gets neglected, yet, it is one of the most aromatic vegetables and can add intense anise flavors to any dish :: piatto. Here in Italy, we love to eat raw fennel dipped in a simple vinaigrette made of extra virgin olive oil, salt and lemon.
If Popeye the Sailor Man eats spinach, so should we. Their bright green tender leaves :: foglie are packed with iron, fiber, vitamin C and vitamin K. Spinach is extremely easy to work into your daily meals. Make a salad, toss the fresh leaves into your egg scramble or serve it warm as a side. 
In the spring and summer I grill vegetables; in the fall and winter I roast them. Roasting vegetables intensifies their natural flavors and turns ordinary vegetables into mouthwatering succulent goodness. Many people skip out on using fresh vegetables because they are time consuming to prepare. Roasting vegetables is one of the simplest methods to reduce consumption of processed foods because you can cook with whole foods in just 3 easy steps:
Where I live in Italy, it’s quite impossible to find salad dressings :: condimenti—I love this. We use extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dress our salads. At first I missed my bottles of ranch and blue cheese dressings that I always had in the refrigerator, so if you’re not ready to make the leap to a lighter dressing, I understand; yet, at least make your own. One of the worst things about most salad dressings is all the added chemical ingredients to preserve their shelf life. You don’t want to put those unknown ingredients that you can’t even pronounce into your body. Making this cashew salad dressing is so simple: just put the 6 ingredients into a food processor or use a hand held mixer and blend. And, voilà, it’s done.
Hah! This is funny, I’ve been pronouncing “chia seeds” wrong for the last year since I started cooking with these little beauties. I just had to watch a youtube video to get the English pronunciation right. I’ve been calling them “key-uh”, like how we pronounce them in Italian. Apparently in English they are pronounced “chee-uh”. So, why do I use chia seeds a lot in my cooking? They are a remarkable “super food” and are packed with protein, fiber and omega 3 fatty acids. Here is a great article that explains other health benefits :: benefici salutari. 
I hope you enjoy this spinach salad with chia crusted tuna and roasted winter veggies all topped with a creamy cashew dressing. It has quickly become one of my new favorite winter salads.
