Recipes
Harvest Salad with Maple Cinnamon Vinaigrette
This comforting apple and brussels sprouts salad features a unique mix of autumnal flavors, making it the perfect accompaniment for your cold weather meals…
We’re just past the half-way point of our Six Weeks of Salads journey, and if this has taught me anything, it’s that I tend to think arugula is the only acceptable salad-leaf. Baby arugula is, in my mind, the undisputed champion of the salad world. Why deal with lettuce, which is essentially just less flavorful arugula? So, I guess, I learned two things: lettuce belongs on sandwiches, and arugula is king. Things would get pretty boring, though, if I kept offering you arugula salads every single time. So, I’m changing things up. No arugula here, and thankfully, no lettuce either.
I never was a big salad person growing up. Unless the salad had no lettuce in it, in which case I was easily convinced. So, when I grew up and started having to reason with my own self to eat my vegetables, I tried all sorts of different new and exciting salads. I had a very simple garden salad made on baby arugula with some feta, tomatoes, onions, and a simple lemony dressing. I also had raw broccoli in a broccoli salad. Similarly, I had raw brussels sprouts in a salad, too.
I’ve had many different salads over the years, but the most fun, stand-out experiences for me was when I had these vegetables, that I’d only ever had cooked, in salad form. That’s why when I was brainstorming ideas for this harvest salad, I knew from the start the base was going to be brussels sprouts. To me, they’re the ultimate cold weather vegetable.
Now that I’ve discussed the base, let’s talk about everything else! The weather’s been getting colder here in Australia, so a quick look at the produce section of my grocery store was plenty of inspiration for this. Beautiful dark kale leaves, ripe and juicy pomegranates, and all sorts of different apple and pear varieties. When it came time to dream up the dressing, it had to be made on apple cider vinegar, of course. Then came the risky, but rewarding, decision to add in the sweet, warm flavors of cinnamon and maple syrup. The result is a really comforting salad packed full of flavor.
Harvest Salad with Cinnamon Maple Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
- This recipe is vegan and gluten free.
- You can play around with the type of apples used in this salad, and you can even try pear!
Nutrition Facts
Calories
405.13Fat
23.54Sat. Fat
2.82Carbs
46.93Fiber
11.07Net carbs
35.87Sugar
28.5Protein
8.74Sodium
53.53Cholesterol
0Actual nutritional value may vary based on quantity of balsamic glaze and honey used.
Citrus Salad with Sockeye Salmon
This zesty salad is the perfect refreshing summer lunch. Peppery baby arugula and sweet ruby red grapefruit come together in a beautiful blend of flavors, perfectly pairing with delicious sockeye salmon…
Depending on where in the world you live right now, all sorts of different citrus may be in season. Blood orange season is a very fun time and I love when I start seeing tangelos or mandarins at the grocery store. That’s why this is one of my staple meals. Oranges and grapefruits are easy to find year round and when more exciting citrus fruits are in season, it just provides an easy way to freshen up a classic staple.
Citrus salad is nothing new, Sicilian orange and fennel salad is a delicious classic that proves that oranges belong savory salads. This one is also really simple and easy to make. Pick two kinds of citrus fruits, segment them, combine them with some arugula, onion, and cashews. For a protein-rich meal, top the salad with salmon cooked however you like it (I bake mine in the oven).
The salmon is totally optional, and, to make this meal vegan, mushroom scallops can be the perfect way to have that similar seafood-y feel. With or without the mushroom scallops, though, I’m sure you’ll love the bright flavors of all the different citrus fruits with the peppery arugula.
Salmon Citrus Salad
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
- To make this vegan, omit the salmon or make mushroom scallops to accompany the salad.
- The citrus in this salad can be varied depending on the citrus in season, try making this with blood orange, tangelo, pomelo, mandarins, and more.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
553.51Fat
32.02Sat. Fat
4.85Carbs
30.43Fiber
5.31Net carbs
25.15Sugar
16.98Protein
39.01Sodium
179.06Cholesterol
93.5Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Baked Oats
These dairy-free, refined sugar-free baked oats have the classic flavors of a blueberry lemon poppy seed muffin, elevated by a lemon-vanilla yogurt and some stewed blueberries, making this a healthy, yet decadent, breakfast option that will make your whole house smell like lemons and vanilla…
I have some big-ish news! Starting this week, I will be posting a new oat recipe every Monday for six weeks. That’s six creative and delicious (not to mention very easy) oat recipes.
I’ve got recipes coming up for baked oats, overnight oats, and even savory oats, so there’s something for everyone—even if you don’t like oats. Take me, for example, I really didn’t get the hype around oats. The texture, flavor, and all-around rich and dense mouthfeel really didn’t appeal to me. That being said, the idea of oats always sounded really good to me, health-wise, and I do like the flavor of oats in the right context. So these are going to be, naturally, me-approved recipes, but that means a little bit more in this context: if you like oats, I’m sure you’ll love these recipes. If you don’t like oats, I know at least one of these recipes will work its way into your heart. Sincerely, a fellow not-huge-fan-of-oats.
So, about this recipe: if you’ve never tried baked oats, you’re missing out. It’s very close to having cake for breakfast. I’m not going to lie and say it’s exactly the same, but it’s its own cake-adjacent vibe, like banana bread or muffins. It is a vastly different experience to your classic oatmeal, though.
What makes this recipe better than most other baked oats recipes? The straightforward answer is the brightness and acidity of the lemon. One thing I don’t love about traditional oatmeal recipes is how dense and rich they are, I get tired of eating them very quickly. The brightness of the lemon in the baked oats and in the lemon vanilla yogurt, combined with the freshness of the stewed blueberries, just makes this recipe relatively light. Bonus points: your house will smell like a lemon loaf all morning.
This recipe is dairy-free and refined sugar-free, but it’s not vegan. I do have tips at the end to make this recipe vegan and gluten-free.
Blueberry Lemon Poppy Seed Baked Oats
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
- To make this recipe vegan, replace the egg with one flax egg, which is one tablespoon flaxseed meal and three tablespoons of water, left to thicken for 15-30 minutes
- You can also substitute the honey in this recipe for maple syrup
- To make this recipe gluten-free, make sure you use gluten-free oats
- If you’re not a fan of coconut, replace the coconut yogurt with greek yogurt or soy yogurt, and the coconut oil with butter or avocado oil
- To make greasing your pans and dishes easier, buy an oil spray—my favorite is a non-aerosol avocado oil
- For vanilla extract, for any recipe, use vanilla-bean paste, it’s a touch more expensive but it’s a very quick and easy way to make your desserts a little more refined and better tasting
- Almond extract is a touch controversial (at least among my friends) but adding the tiniest bit of almond extract to this (1/4 teaspoon) adds something a little extra
- This makes two servings and can be reheated the next morning in the oven, covered with aluminum foil, for about 15 minutes
Nutrition Facts
Calories
424.30Fat
17.22Sat. Fat
10.07Carbs
63.50Fiber
7.36Net carbs
56.13Sugar
29.39Protein
12.54Sodium
143.31Cholesterol
97.88Nutritional value for oats made on almond milk
This cinnamony treat is the perfect way to start your morning, with coffee, protein, and lots of flavor…