Beet Salad with Asparagus

In warm weather, a vegetable salad makes a good dinner. Vegetables are healthy, filling and pretty to look at. They make the meal interesting, even when it's too hot to have much of an appetite.

I made this colorful salad of beets, red butter lettuce, asparagus and watercress the other night. A citrus dressing added perkiness, and I puréed one of the cooked beets to make a red dressing that I served on the side. It was both delicious and colorful. I took the leftovers for my lunch the next day. I really like meals that stretch.

Beet Salad with Asparagus
4 medium-small beets
20 spears asparagus, trimmed
3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup chopped shallots
1/3 cup olive oil
large handful of watercress
red butter lettuce to line the plate

Scrub the beets, place in a steamer in a large pot over medium-low heat, and steam until tender, probably about 45 minutes depending on the size of the beets. When a thin knife can pierce the center of the beets, they're cooked. Remove the steamer from the water and set aside to let them cool a little.

Cook the asparagus in a little boiling water 3-6 minutes until tender-crisp. Drain, plunge into ice water to stop the cooking, drain again and set aside.

Whisk together orange juice, vinegar and shallots. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until it's emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Pour half the dressing in a blender. Peel and chop one of the beets and add it to the blender. Purée into a gorgeous purple sauce. Pour into a jug.

Line a plate with the lettuce. Peel (if desired) and slice the beets and arrange around the edge of the plate. Cut the asparagus in bite-sized pieces. Toss with the watercress and some of the first dressing (the one without the beet) — enough to coat the leaves. Pile this into the center of the beets.

Drizzle the beet dressing over the salad, and serve the extra on the side.

Serves 3-4

Arugula and Orange Salad

It's nice to have a zesty salad to go with a simple plate of rice and beans. The other day I picked tender arugula leaves from our garden and combined them with oranges and red onions for a salad that definitely left the mouth tingling.

Unlike most store-bought arugula, ours is quite spicy. Although the sweet oranges provided a nice balance, a few leaves of butter lettuce would have made the salad less of an adventure in eating.

Don't let that deter you though. Just munch on an arugula leaf before you make the salad, and decide if you need to add some lettuce. There is plenty of dressing in this recipe to easily coat a few leaves of lettuce. I saved the extra dressing and used it on a green salad the next day.

Arugula and Orange Salad
1/4 cup fresh orange juice (from 1 orange)
1 very small clove garlic, minced (opt)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp canola oil
1/4 tsp curry powder
1/2 navel orange
1 tbsp slivered red onion
1 cup arugula leaves, washed and dried

In a small saucepan, boil the orange juice over medium heat to reduce it by half or a little more, about 5 minutes.

Pour the concentrated juice into a small bowl and whisk in the garlic, vinegar, oil and curry powder. Add a sprinkle of salt to taste.

Cut the top and bottom off the orange. Stand it on end and cut it in half. Reserve half for another use. Slice the skin and white pith off the half you will use, then cut the flesh crosswise into 1/4 inch half-moons.

Toss the arugula in the dressing and put it on a plate. Add the red onion and oranges. Drizzle a little dressing over all. (You will probably have extra dressing.)

Serves 2

Orange and Cranberry Salad

I've never really warmed to cranberry sauce. My mother used to cook cranberries with orange zest and a little cardamom and they sat on the table and were returned to the kitchen untouched (at least by me). I didn't like the texture of the cooked berries. Of course, the stories of jellied cranberry sauce being slid out of the can and presented on a plate weird me out even more.

So I struggle to serve cranberries at Thanksgiving.

This year, however, I served them in a salad, and they were great. This is not the jello salad of the '70s with cranberries, tinned mandarin orange slices and miniature marshmallows. This is a healthy yet delicious updated version. No jello (not vegetarian) required.

 I combined chopped cranberries with crisp celery and sweet juicy oranges and served them on a bed of greens. The oranges provided sweetness without jammy-ness, and the lightly-sweetened cranberries were pleasantly tart but not overpowering. The salad provided a nice contrast to the creamed corn and scalloped potatoes.

I added a few home-grown arugula and nasturtium leaves to the butter lettuce for a little variety. Salad mix would be fine too. The mint adds a really nice perk, but if you don't have any, the salad will still be good. Also, olive oil can substitute for the walnut oil if needed.

Orange and Cranberry Salad
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen cranberries
2 oranges
1 stalk celery, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
2 tbsp chopped red onion
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp grated ginger root
butter lettuce
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves
1 tbsp walnut oil

Pulse cranberries in food processor 5 times to coarsely chop. Transfer to a bowl.

Cut the tops and bottoms from the oranges. Cut the peel and white pith from them, then hold them over the bowl and cut the sections from the membranes, letting juice and fruit fall into the bowl. Stir in celery, onion, sugar, lemon juice and ginger root. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour, or up to 2 days.

Toss lettuce and mint leaves with oil. Place on a serving platter. Top with the cranberry mixture.

Serves 4

Green Salad with Peaches and Pistachios

When we barbecue in peach season, as we did Sunday night, I like to serve this simple salad dressed with orange juice and scattered with pistachios. It makes a sweet juicy foil to whatever the grilled entrée is, and I can make it ahead and then just toss the salad with the dressing right before serving it. That's my kind of easy summer eating.

Green Salad with Peaches and Pistachios
2 tbsp pistachios
juice of 1 orange (about 1/2 cup)
juice of 1 lime (about 2 tsp)
1/2 tbsp olive oil
red butter lettuce, torn (about 4 cups)
1 ripe peach

Toast the pistachios in a small heavy skillet until fragrant and very lightly toasted. Set them aside to cool.

Pour the orange juice into the hot skillet and let it bubble down until it reduces to about a tablespoon of juice, about 10 minutes. Pour the juice into a heat-resistant bowl and set aside to cool.

Whisk the lime juice and olive oil into the cool orange juice and season with a little salt and pepper.

Just before eating, line a plate with the lettuce. Half the peach and take out the pit. Cut the flesh into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle the pistachios on top.

Either toss the dressing with the salad, or serve it on the side so everyone can add their own.

Serves 2

Kale Salad with Grilled Carrots

Grilled carrots are really awesome. They're almost worth lighting a barbecue just for them.

Sunday night we cooked a full meal on the barbecue and I grilled some carrots and served them with a kale salad. The warm buttery carrots were a wonderful foil to the greens. And the salad made good leftovers for lunch the next day.

This is what I did.

Kale Salad with Grilled Carrots
Grilled Carrots:
6 carrots, peeled
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp chopped fresh oregano
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
Kale Salad
juice of 1/2 lemon (and more to taste)
juice of scant half an orange
1 tsp chopped shallots
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
1 bunch Tuscan kale

Cut carrots in half lengthwise. Blanch them in salted boiling water until tender-crisp, about 2 minutes. Drain and cool in ice water. Dry them off and toss with the olive oil, oregano and balsamic. Grill over medium-high heat until grill marks appear, 3-5 minutes. Keep warm.

Whisk together lemon juice, orange juice, shallots, balsamic, olive oil, and a little salt and pepper.

Stem the kale and cut the leaves in half lengthwise. Stack them together and cut them in 1/4 inch strips crosswise. Toss the ribbons into the dressing, massaging the leaves well to absorb the oil and soften.

Mound the kale on a plate and place the warm grilled carrots on top.

Serves 4-6

Good as cold leftovers.

Spritely Winter Salad

Winter is the season for the more vigorous salad greens - watercress, radicchio, curly endive, cabbages, kale, nasturtium leaves - all of these are great additions to the salad bowl, and are more often found at the farmers markets in winter than summer when the heat causes them to wilt and become bitter (or dead).

I picked some watercress from a pot on the patio and some marjoram from the garden to decorate this salad we ate last night. The dressing is a vigorous combination of citrus juice, capers and oregano, so the greens need to be perky to stand up to it. I used radicchio and frisée on a bed of butter lettuce. Olives and pomegranates are an unusual combination, but added to the fun.

We enjoyed this colorful and zesty salad with a main course of leftover lentil stew and brown rice. It really perked up the meal.

Spritely Winter Salad
2 tbsp orange juice (from 1/2 an orange)
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tsp olive oil
1 tsp chopped drained capers
1/4 tsp chopped fresh oregano (or a sprinkle of dried)
2-3 cups mixed greens
2 tbsp pomegranate seeds
4 cured black olives, pitted and sliced

Whisk together the orange juice, lemon juice, olive oil, capers and oregano. Season with salt and pepper to taste, but remember the olives will add salt to the salad.

Toss together (or decoratively plate) the greens, pomegranate and olives. Toss with the vinaigrette and serve.

Serves 2

Fennel and Orange Salad with Pomegranate Seeds

We ate chili and rice on Sunday night - an easy slow cooker meal - and I decided we needed something crisp and fresh as a complement.

I combined fennel, oranges and pomegranate seeds in this salad that was so yummy and pretty, I might put it on the Thanksgiving menu.

It's also simple, and still tasted good on the 2nd day when we ate it as a side with black quinoa in a pumpkin.

Fennel tastes like licorice but in this recipe the robust flavor is toned down by the oranges and honey, and contrasts well with the slightly spicy olives. (If you don't have spiced olives, add a dash of cayenne to the dressing.)

The key is to slice the fennel thinly, but not too thin. I cut a few slices with my mandolin, but decided they were too slender to give enough crunch. Instead, I just sliced them across with my knife. They softened a little in the dressing, but didn't become soggy.

Fennel and Orange Salad with Pomegranate Seeds
1 lb fennel bulbs
4 small oranges
9 spicy red pepper stuffed green olives
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp honey

Cut the fronds off the fennel bulbs and set aside, and remove the outer segments of the bulb, including any which are brownish. Cut in half lengthwise, and then cut out the core - a triangle at the bottom of each half - and discard it. Slice the remaining pieces of the bulb cross-wise and place in a medium-size bowl. Chop about 1/4 cup of the fennel fronds and discard the rest.

Wash and dry the oranges. Cut off each end (top and bottom) to reveal the orange pulp. Place one end on a chopping board, and cut down between the white membrane and the pulp to remove the peel. Once the orange is peeled, hold it over the bowl and use a small knife to cut between the segments, separating the pulp from the white membranes. Let the juice fall into the bowl with the segments - but not the seeds. Squeeze the remaining juice from the membranes before discarding.

Slice the olives and add to the bowl, along with the parsley and pomegranate seeds.

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar and honey.

Add the dressing to the salad, and stir in the fennel fronds.

Serve at room temperature or chilled. Serves 4-6

Black Bean and Orange Salad

I picked a couple of oranges off our tree to combine with black beans in this colorful salad. Grapefruit, corn and cherry tomatoes added to the festivity, and the zingy dressing of lemon and lime juice made it fun to eat.

As usual, I recommend adding some red onion (maybe a quarter cup) to add a little bite. I used an anaheim pepper, because that's what I had, but a red pepper would work too (although then a jalapeño to add some punch would be nice). One morning I added some diced avocado to the container I was taking to work - that was a nice addition.

Bean salads are very flexible. The key is to use lots of good flavors, and enough salt to help the flavors shine through.

Black Bean and Orange Salad
1 cup black beans, cooked (or 2 14-oz cans)
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
2 oranges
1 grapefruit
1 anaheim pepper
1/4 cup cilantro
1/4 cup lime juice (from 2-3 limes)
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

If using dried beans, cook them in plenty of boiling water until they are tender but not mushy, about 2 hours depending on the age of your beans. Drain them and put in a large bowl. (This can be done ahead).

Add the corn and cherry tomatoes to the beans.

Slice the ends off the oranges and grapefruit and then slice down each side to remove the peel and pith. Then you have 2 choices of how to proceed.

For the very beautiful look, hold the orange over the bowl of beans, and cut from the outside to the center along one of the membranes. Then turn the knife so you're cutting the segment away from the membrane on the other side. Let the juice drip into the beans. Cut the segment in 2 or 3 pieces and add it to the beans too. Once you've segmented the whole orange this way, throw away the pith.

The second option leaves some of the pith on the segments. This is not as pretty, but it is healthier. The pith is where the bioflavanoids are, and we need those to enhance our immune systems. Once you've peeled the grapefruit as above, cut in half from top to bottom, and then cut each half in four wedges (as if you were cutting them into segments, but not worrying about cutting along the membranes). Then cut the pithy core off the wedge, and cut the remaining wedge into pieces and add them to the bowl. (This is way easier to do than to describe.)

Seed and dice the pepper and add it too, along with the cilantro.

Make a dressing by whisking together the lime and lemon juices, olive oil and salt. Add it to the beans and stir gently. Taste and add more salt or lime juice to taste.

Before serving, taste and season again. The beans absorb more flavor as they marinate in the dressing.

Serves 6

Orange Spiced Rice

I picked a couple of oranges on my way in from the garden the other day, and used the rinds in this wonderful rice dish inspired by a recipe in Chris and Carolyn Caldicott's beautiful book World Food Café. The pictures in this book are of the people and lands they visited in Asia and the middle East, Africa and Central and South America. And the recipes are all vegetarian, so it's quite inspiring.

I adapted a more complicated recipe into this simple rice cooker dish which had a bright flavor that went well with the leftover white bean and tomato stew. I used white basmati rice because it was late and I wanted to get dinner on the table. I'm pretty sure this would be good with brown rice, although more water would be needed.

That's an experiment for another day.

Orange Spiced Rice
2 oranges
2 tsp oil
1 onion
4 cloves
4 cardamom pods
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup white basmati rice
2 bay leaves

Scrub the oranges well, and peel off the thin outer layer of zest, leaving the white behind. I used a zester which removes the peel in long narrow strips. If you use a regular peeler, slice the pieces thin after peeling them. Save the oranges for another use.

Put the pieces of zest in a small pot with 2 cups water and 2 tsp oil. Bring to a boil and cook, covered, 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, warm 1 tbsp oil and sauté the thinly-sliced onion, cloves, and the seeds from the cardamom pods until the onions start to brown. Season with 1/2 tsp salt.

Put the onion mixture in the rice cooker along with the orange zest and cooking water, the basmati rice, bay leaves, and an extra 1/2 cup of water. Run rice cooker as directed.

The ingredients will probably separate out during cooking, as you can see in the picture above. Stir it all back together and serve.

Serves 4-6

Orange juice

I was raving to Jorge about his oranges the other day and how much we enjoy the juice with Sunday brunch. I stop at his stand (across from McGrath, next to the dried beans from Lompoc) every week to load up on grapefruits, oranges, and whatever else he has in season: pomelos, tangelos, limes, blood oranges - all flavorful and organic.

Jorge told me he went to a local restaurant where they used to serve fresh orange juice but the other day they gave him the pre-packaged stuff. The waitress insisted it was fresh juice, but then went into the kitchen and discovered the carton. She said Jorge was the only customer who'd tasted the difference.

Well of course he noticed - he's a citrus afficionado.

But I'm not surprised other people don't. Our niece Tracie swore that her Florida Naturals o.j. tasted just like fresh juice, until she tasted Uncle Larry's fresh-squeezed version.

But the manufacturers of mass-produced orange juice work hard to make their denatured juice taste as real as possible.

First they remove the oxygen so the juice will last for up to a year. Because this process removes the flavor as well, they then add packets of orange flavoring to make it taste like juice again.

According to Food Renegade, these flavorings don't appear on the label because technically they are derived from orange essence and orange oil. However, the food scientists take a natural product like orange oil, break it down into its constituent chemicals, and then use just one or two of these chemicals to create the flavor or aroma they want.

"The packs added to juice earmarked for the North American market tend to contain high amounts of ethyl butyrate, a chemical in the fragrance of fresh squeezed orange juice that, juice companies have discovered, Americans favor. Mexicans and Brazilians have a different palate. Flavor packs fabricated for juice geared to these markets therefore highlight different chemicals."

This shouldn't surprise anyone who enjoys a certain brand of o.j. and expects it to always taste the same. Nature is not consistent. Sometimes the juice Larry makes is tarter, sometimes more full-bodied, sometimes very sweet. If you find a food that always tastes the same, suspect some chemical trickery.

Are these chemicals harmful? I don't know. But I do know they're not food.

Summer Salad

One of my favorite cookbooks is A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen by Jack Bishop. He has a gentle way with vegetables, making them tasty enough for his children to enjoy, yet allowing their flavors to come through.

His peach and lettuce salad tastes of summer and is great eaten outside with a dinner cooked on the barbecue.

It's also very healthy. A reduction of fresh orange juice replaces most of the oil in the dressing and enhances the flavor of the peaches. This recipe doubles easily.

Sometimes I use pumpkin seeds, and sometimes cashews. I like them both with the peaches, but last week I opted for the buttery crunch of cashews to enhance the soft crunch of the tender lettuce from Finley Farms.

Peach and Lettuce Salad
2 tbsp cashews
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (from 1 orange)
2 tsp lime juice
2 tsp olive oil
4 cups lettuce, torn into bite sized pieces
1 peach, halved, pitted and diced

Put orange juice in a small saucepan and cook until syrupy and reduced to about 1 tbsp, about 10 minutes. Let cool.

Toast cashews in a dry skillet until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Whisk lime juice and olive oil into orange juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Combine lettuce, peaches and cashews in a salad bowl. Toss with the dressing just before serving.

Serves 3-4

Spinach Salad

It's easy to get run down at this time of year and succumb to the colds and flus that are so prevalent. The keys to staying healthy are plenty of rest, good exercise, and great food.

This spinach salad is an example of great food - full of vitamin C and antioxidants to help your body stay strong, and tasty as well. The toasted sesame seeds add a nutty flavor and a little calcium to the orange juice dressing.

I made it with malabar spinach from Finley Farms. Bagged baby spinach would work too.

It's a little unusual to put pieces of orange in a salad, but try it. The textures and flavors go well together. Larry was surprised at how much he liked it.

Spinach and Orange Salad
3 tbsp sesame seeds
3 cups fresh spinach
1/2 red pepper, chopped
2 tbsp chopped red onion
1 orange
1 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tsp orange juice
3 tsp water

Toast sesame seeds in a small heavy frypan until they are aromatic. Grind them in a spice grinder or small blender.

Meanwhile, wash the spinach well, dry it, and tear it into bite-size pieces.

Cut the orange in half. Juice one half for the dressing. With a small knife, slice the peel off the other half, and cut the flesh into chunks. Don't peel off all the membranes because they are full of bioflavanoids that make the other vitamins more effective.

Combine the spinach, pepper, onion and orange chunks.

Whisk together the ground sesame seeds, orange juice, rice vinegar and water. Toss with the vegetables.

Serves 2

Bearing Vegetarian Dishes

When I am invited to a potluck, I take something filling that I will enjoy eating. I'm one of the few vegetarians I know in this low-carb town, and I find most gatherings serve animal protein and green salads. Although I enjoy salad, it is not a meal. Especially on these cold evenings.

So I take a filling vegetarian dish that I will enjoy. That way I eat well too.

To take pressure off the host, I take an entrée that needs no last-minute heating, because I don't know what demands there will be on the stove. I take my own serving plate and spoon, and carry everything in one bag that can be easily tucked out of the way.

This rice salad fits the bill, and it got great reviews at a potluck I went to in late October. The soy sauce and orange juice give it a rich flavor. To distract from the brown color (the downside of brown rice), I served it on a bed of romaine lettuce and garnished it with nasturtiums and violas from my garden.

You might consider this recipe as a side with your Thanksgiving dinner. You can make it a few hours ahead and let it sit at room temperature until it's time to eat.

Wild rice is a Native American food, so eating it is a way to honor the people who first cultivated this land.

Brown and Wild Rice Salad
Salad:
1/3 cup brown rice
1/3 cup wild rice
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup dried apricots, snipped small
1/2 cup chopped red pepper
3 tbsp chopped cilantro

Cook brown and wild rice together in 1-1/3 cups boiling water, lid covered, until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender - about 40 minutes.

Turn out into a bowl, toss with a fork, and stir in the remaining salad ingredients. Meanwhile, make the dressing:

Dressing:
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 tbsp dijon
2 tbsp soy sauce
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup orange juice (from 1 juicy orange)
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Combine all but sesame oil. Whisk in oil and add salt and pepper to taste.

Pour half the dressing over the salad. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add dressing to achieve the consistency you like.

Serve the extra dressing on the side, or save it in the fridge to use on green salads.

Serves 4-6

Peanut Sauce

When I want an easy yet healthy supper, I make peanut sauce.

Spooned over greens and brown rice, peanut sauce turns a healthy meal into comfort food. The fat in the peanuts helps the body absorb the nutrients in the greens. The brown rice provides fiber and B vitamins. The nuts and grains combine to make a complete protein. Yet it doesn't taste like health food.

If you're having a hard time getting your kids to eat greens, serve this peanut sauce. Your family will ask for second helpings.

Plus, it's an easy meal to cook.

I start the brown rice in the rice cooker. Fifteen minutes before dinner time, I wash the greens (last time I used collard greens and purple mustard greens), chop them coarsely, and throw them in a pot with just the water drops still sitting on their leaves. I cover the pot and cook them over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they are nice and soft.

Meanwhile, I stir together this peanut sauce that I adapted from Diana Shaw's book Vegetarian Entertaining. It's a California peanut sauce, not an Asian one. Yogurt smooths out the peanut butter and orange juice sweetens and lightens the sauce, which is quite addictive. Make extra and keep the leftovers in the fridge for a few days to add to cooked rice or spoon over steamed vegetables.

Peanut Sauce
1/2 cup yogurt
1/4 cup peanut butter (I use crunchy)
1/4 cup orange juice (1/2 of a juicy orange)
salt
cayenne

Mash peanut butter into the yogurt until well combined. If it seems too runny, add more peanut butter. Then stir in the orange juice. Taste and add extra juice to thin or add sweetness, extra peanut butter for intensity and firmness, or yogurt for smooth binding. Season with salt to taste and a dash of cayenne. It can sit on the counter for an hour or so until you are ready to use it. Refrigerate for longer storage.

Serves 2-3.