Here are some fun facts about this recipe that make this a Vogue worthy dish to make and eat: 

1. It’s easy! Super easy!
2. There is no icky mayonnaise in it. 
3. You are using raw ingredients in the dressing that pack a lot of healthy benefits especially when they are not cooked.  This includes cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, rosemary, and garlic.  Fresh rosemary has healthy essential oils that are lost in cooking. Fresh rosemary also has 25% more manganese than dried.  Did you know that rosemary also contains fiber, iron and calcium?  For more rosemary facts check out this site: Rosemary Facts.  Garlic contains an abundance of cancer and cardio protective properties. It’s also chock full of manganese, Vitamins B6, B1, C and selenium, calcium, and tryptophan… the list goes on and on.  Yes, garlic IS your BEST friend . . . but you may not have too many friends if you eat tons of it.  If this turns out to be your situation, no worries . . . you’ll live much longer than all your anti-garlic friends and then you can get new ones.  More fun garlic fact here. 

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lbs of baby red potatoes
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (preferably cold pressed)
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 3 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced (see footnote)
• 1 heaping tbsp fresh rosemary, finely minced
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cut up potatoes into quarters or about 1/2-3/4 inch chunks (see footnotes).  Put in a large pot of warm water and bring to a boil.  When potatoes can easily be pierced with a fork (about 15-20 minutes), turn off the heat and drain the water in a colander.  Let the potatoes sit for a few minutes to drain then put into a large serving bowl. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl whisk the remaining ingredients until the oil is emulsified.  Pour the dressing over the potatoes and gently stir to combine.  Dash a few good shakes of pepper over it and if you used unseasoned rice vinegar instead of seasoned, you may need some salt too (see footnotes). You can serve immediately or cover and put into the refrigerator.  These get better as they sit and taste great a day or two later!

Footnotes:  Leave the skins on the potatoes.  If you boil them just right, the skins won’t fall off and they are really pretty in the salad.  Baby red potatoes can be a variety of sizes.  I usually cut the small round ones into quarters but if they are bigger, you may want to cut them a little smaller.  I usually quarter the larger ones then halve each quarter. Red potatoes do not break down as quickly when boiled like some other varieties.  Therefore the size you cut them to will be the size they end up in your dish.  I used about 2 1/2 lbs for this amount of dressing but you don’t have to be exact and you can always make extra dressing if needed.

Note that I used seasoned rice vinegar which contains added salt and sugar.  If you use  regular rice vinegar you may need to add a touch of honey or agave and some extra salt.

Please use a garlic mincer to mince your garlic on this.  Finely chopping your garlic will not get the same result.  When you use a mincer you get all the garlic juices into the dressing and that adds a lot of extra flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 cup cooked and drained farro (or wheat berries), see footnote for cooking instructions
• 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (1 can drained and rinsed)
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
• 3 artichoke hearts, quartered or roughly chopped
• 8-10 kalamata olives, roughly chopped (see footnotes)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• ground pepper to taste
• handful of chopped parsley or cilantro (optional)
• 1/4 cup feta cheese (optional – will make this vegetarian, not vegan)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the farro, chickpeas, cucumber, red pepper, onion, artichoke hearts and olives.
2. In a smaller bowl whisk the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic and salt until well combined. Add pepper to taste. If you prefer a touch of sweetness, add in a tsp or so of agave nectar but be careful with it. This should be fairly acidic and as as the salad is mixed together, the acidity will not be as strong.
3. Add in parsley or cilantro if using along with feta if you are not concerned with making this vegan.

Footnotes: Farro is an ancient grain consisting of certain wheat species in whole form. Because its is hard to grow, farro almost became extinct during the 1940′s. However, it is now making a big comeback especially in Italy where top restaurants feature it in soups and side dishes. It has a pleasant nuttiness and a hearty texture and is naturally high in fiber, protein and B vitamins. You can find this lovely little gem in the bulk section of health food stores. It looks just like other wheat berries or barley and if you can’t find it, or if it’s too expensive where you live, substitute it with any other wheat berry.  They take about 45 minutes to an hour or so to prepare. Just put a pot of salted water on the stove and boil them until they are soft and chewy. Some like theirs a bit firmer, I usually boil mine for about an hour or 1 hour and 15 minutes as my family prefer them less chewy.  To reduce the cooking time, you can also soak them overnight.

Kalamata olives add a strong, sour flavor that compliments Greek cuisine. If you don’t have a taste for these, you can use black olives instead or leave them out entirely.

I’m not a huge fan of canned goods. But when it comes to artichoke hearts, I always go the canned form as I don’t have time for the alternative.  If you buy them canned you’ll have quite a few left over. I like to take an extra one and garnish each plate with one. But, if you don’t have access to these or if they are too expensive, it’s fine to just leave them out.

Tomatoes would taste wonderful in this salad.  If you want to use them, seed them first then dice them up.  However, if you plan on storing this as leftovers, you may want to leave them out.  Tomatoes turn watery in the refrigerator so it may make the salad soggy.  This is why I use red peppers instead.

-Inspired by OhSheGlows

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup no salt tahini
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• dash or two of pepper
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 5 garlic cloves (more if you like it real garlicy – I use about 8-10)
• 6 cups of kale, destemmed and torn into small bite size pieces
• 2 carrots, julienned (a julienne peeler works best)
• 1 small red bell pepper, diced or cut into matchsticks
• 3 tbsp sunflower seeds, dry roasted

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk tahini, lemon juice, water, oil, salt and pepper.  Add in nutritional yeast and garlic.  Add more water as needed 1 tbsp at a time until you have desired consistency.  It should be on the thicker side but not so thick that you can’t pour it on the salad.  Taste for salt, pepper and garlic and add more as desired.
2. Put the kale in a large salad bowl and mix about 1/2 the dressing into it.  (I found it best to use my hands to do this as you are able to “massage” the dressing into the leaves which can start off to be somewhat stiff.  This helps to soften the kale a little to make it more palatable while eating it raw.)
3. Toss in the carrots, red pepper and sunflower seeds and coat.  Add more dressing if desired and serve.
4. Refrigerate extra dressing and use the next day for another delicious salad.

I love making farro, spelt and wheat berries into a sweet or savory salad. You can mix them with cranberries, walnuts and a vinaigrette or make it more savory like this recipe.  What I love about this salad is that the roasted mushrooms taste like they have been marinated when you let this sit a bit.  These type of salads are great for a grab-and-go lunch or a wholesome snack.  They taste even better the next day when the flavors have melded.  You may also want to try my other Simple Savory Wheat Berry Salad which can be thrown together in just a few minutes once the wheat berries are ready.”

Ingredients

• 1 cup farro
• 4 cups water
• 3 tsp salt, divided
• 1 1/4 lbs butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced into 1 1/2 inch chunks
• 1 cup olive oil, divided
• 1 tsp black pepper, divided
• 1 1/4 lbs portobello mushrooms, stems and gills removed, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1 cup roasted red peppers, diced into 1 inch pieces
• 2 whole bulbs garlic, roasted
• 1/2 tsp rubbed thyme or 2 tsp dried
• 1 tsp ground rosemary or 1/2 tbsp fresh minced
• 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 bunch green kale, destemmed and torn into 1 inch pieces

Directions

1. Bring water, farro and 2 tsps salt to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 60-75 minutes or until farro is a tender, chewy consistency.  Drain in a colander and let cool to room temperature.  Do not rinse.
2. Meanwhile, to roast garlic, set oven to 350 degrees.  Cut off the top end of the two bulbs of garlic so it exposes the cloves (don’t cut the root end).   Place bulbs on a large square of tin foil large enough so you can envelope the entire bulb.  Pour a little olive oil over the top (cut end) and sprinkle with kosher salt. Pull the corners of the foil around the bulb to surround it loosely.  Place in the oven for 45-60 minutes or until soft to the touch.  When cooled, squeeze out the garlic from the papery peel and set aside the inner pieces for use later.  Discard the peels.
3. Turn oven up to 400 degrees.
4. Toss squash with 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.  Spread evenly in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes or until edges are brown and squash is tender.
5. Toss mushrooms with 2 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.  Roast in oven until tender and brown on edges, about 12-15 minutes.
6. Add roasted red pepper to cooled farro.
7. In food processor, puree roasted garlic with thyme and rosemary.  With the machine running, drizzle in vinegar and then remaining olive oil until dressing is blended.  Add more vinegar to taste if desired.
8. Toss the farro and red peppers with dressing, kale, mushrooms and squash.  Note: you may want to add the farro and dressing in increments with all the veggies as you may not need all the dressing or farro depending on how much farro to veggies you prefer.  Keep the extra dressing set aside to add to the salad the next day if desired.

Footnotes:

• You may not need to use all the farro and dressing.  Mix in about half then mix in the rest gradually until you have the right ratio to veggies that you like.
• You can make the roasted garlic and farro the day before so its ready to go.  Then all you’ll need to do is roast the veggies and combine.

Ingredients

• 2-3 whole wheat pitas
• olive oil for brushing on pitas
• 2/3 cup dried green lentils
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
• Handful of baby spinach
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup minced shallot (about 2)
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (the tangier the better)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tsp dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons feta cheese, crumbled
• cilantro for garnish

Directions

1. Brush pita lightly with olive oil. Cut in quarters and set on a baking sheet.  Bake for about 5-7 minutes on 375 degrees or until lightly crisped to your liking. Remove from oven and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, cook lentils in boiling water until tender, about 20-25 minutes.  Don’t overcook or they will start to disintegrate.  Drain in a colander.  Set colander aside so lentils can continue to drain and dry out. (If I have time, I will cook the lentils ahead of time so they can sit in the colander for 30-60 minutes while draining of any excess moisture. An alternative is to place a large rimmed baking sheet on the counter with 2 layers of paper towels on top.  Layer the drained lentils on top of the paper towels then plan a third layer of paper towels on top.  Let sit for 5-10 minutes so paper towels can wick excess moisture from lentils.)
3. Meanwhile, seed your tomato and dice, cut up the bell pepper, and remove any stems from the baby spinach. Place all the prepared veggies in a bowl along with completely drained lentils.  In separate bowl, whisk balsamic vinegar, olive oil, basil, minced garlic and shallot.  Taste for salt and pepper and season accordingly.
4. Pour about 1/2 of the dressing on the lentil salad and stir.  Taste and if more dressing is needed, add until the right consistency/flavor.  Add in feta cheese. Reserve extra dressing for later if needed.
5. For best results, refrigerate for at least 1 hour for flavors to meld.  Serve on top of pita triangles and garnish with a sprig of cilantro.

Footnote: Feel free to play around with the quantity of olive oil, vinegar and spices.  I like mine a little tangier and typically add more balsamic vinegar.  Add more spinach to absorb any excess dressing.

Also, the spinach will wilt as you add the dressing.  This is normal.  It will make it meld into the salad very nicely and add a bright green that contrasts beautifully with the red tomatoes and peppers.

Ingredients

Pasta Salad

• 2 cups whole grain spiral pasta (3 1/2 cups cooked)
• 2 cups broccoli, cut into small florets (you can also use the broccoli stem, julienned)
• 1 cup carrots, julienned (about 2-3)
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1/3 cup green onion, diced
• 1/2 cup cubed cheddar cheese (optional)
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Dressing

• 3/4 cup light vegan mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp dried dill
• 1 tsp agave nectar or sugar

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions (be careful not to overcook!).  As soon as pasta is al dente, drain and run under cold water.  Set aside.
2. Put broccoli florets and julienne carrots in a steamer and steam for 5 minutes or until crisp tender. (See pic for how veggies will look after a quick steam).
3. Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for dressing and mix well. Set aside.
4. Combine pasta, broccoli and carrots, red pepper, green onion and cheese (if using).  Add in about half the dressing and mix well.  Slowly add in more dressing until pasta is the consistency you like (you may not use all the dressing). Add pepper and salt to taste.
5. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

Footnote:  For my household, I add in as much as an extra teaspoon or more of pepper or even a dash of cayenne for a spicy twist!

This week I will be showcasing some of these simple dishes.  They will include a few pasta and bean salads, vegetable combinations and friends favorites.  These are also wonderful dishes you can bring to potlucks when a side dish is requested.  Most of these dishes are extremely versatile and you can add more or less veggies and spices depending what you have on hand.  Enjoy this weeks Easy Breezy Sides!  For easy reference, I have added a new category named “Side Dishes” so they can quickly be found in the future.

Ingredients

• 1 cup hard winter wheatberries
• Kosher salt
• 1 cup finely diced red onion (1 onion)
• 6 tablespoons good olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 4 scallions, minced, white and green parts
• 1 red bell pepper, diced small
• 2 small or medium carrots, diced small
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Place the wheatberries and 3 cups of boiling salted water in a saucepan and cook, uncovered, over low heat for approximately 45 minutes, or until they are soft. Drain and set aside.
2. Saute the red onion in 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-low heat until translucent, approximately 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the remaining 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) of olive oil and the balsamic vinegar.
3. In a large bowl, combine the warm wheatberries, sauteed onions, scallions, red bell pepper, carrot, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the pepper. Allow the salad to sit for at least 30 minutes for the wheatberries to absorb the sauce. Season, to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw kale, destemmed
• Olive oil (to rub on kale)
• 20 pine nuts
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
• Kosher Salt, pinch
• Pepper, pinch

Directions

• Wash and dry kale.
• Dip fingers in small bowl of olive oil or pour a little
  over the leaves and massage onto each leaf.
• De-stem kale (stems make kale bitter), discard stem. Tear
  remaining leaves into bite size pieces and place into salad bowl.
• In small bowl wisk lemon juice, olive oil, salt and
  pepper. Evenly pour over salad.
• Sprinkle in cranberries and pine nuts.