Lemony Roasted Asparagus

To me, nothing brings out the flavor of asparagus like lemon. Here, an intensely lemony vinaigrette brightens some oven-roasted spears, still toothsome and vibrant green — a plateful of spring. Enjoy!

Advertisement

Austrian-Style Potato Salad

I love potato salads of any kind; they are usually what I go for first at a barbecue or other warm-weather get-together. And yet I can’t tell you how many times I’ve botched my own attempts at making a good potato salad. The potatoes have ended up either too mushy and falling apart or too hard and unyielding. I finally figured out that the right variety of potato makes all the difference.

A potato is a potato is a potato, I used to think. Not so. And this is particularly crucial to those of us living in new places where the potato varieties are unfamiliar and labels can be confusing. Here’s what I’ve learned:

Kohlrabi, Apple & Mâche Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

I decided it was time to try one of these funny-looking vegetables I keep passing by at the grocery store — the kohlrabi. High in Vitamin C and containing heart-healthy nutrients and antioxidant properties, kohlrabi seems to be gaining in popularity and attention; Time Magazine called it the next superfood. Some studies show it might even have protective benefits against certain kinds of cancer (Source: Livestrong/University of Maryland Medical Center). Kohlrabi’s flavor is somewhere between cabbage and broccoli stems, and it has a nice crunch to it when eaten raw. In terms of its appearance, I think it’s kind of an eerie, other-worldly thing:

Winter Salad of Chicory, Orange, Pomegranate & Walnuts

Can you taste these colors? Feel this brightness? When winter starts to feel drab and dark — around January — I like to find seasonal ingredients to make a vibrant and cheery salad.

Dried Fig, Apple, Ricotta & Toasted Almond Salad with Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

Assembling a salad from leftover ingredients in my pantry can be a risky endeavor. In my college days, one could search my kitchen and find a stash of ketchup, marshmallows, and some questionably fuzzy-looking bread (Oh, how did my roommates and I survive?). These days, I feel so grown-up to say that I can find an array of well-stocked items: a bag of dried figs I planned to use over the holidays, a beautiful bottle of balsamic vinegar I’d been meaning to open, half a bag of sliced almonds, an apple, leftover ricotta (from the Eggplant-Ricotta-Tomato Crostini that we made again as our entire dinner the other night), and some orange-blossom honey. Put them all together with some greens, and they seem like they were meant for each other, melding into a flavorful, colorful, and fresh salad. Here’s to a grown-up pantry. Enjoy!

Avocado-Tomato-Feta Stack

This nutritious and scrumptious salad tower can be enjoyed any time of year, but I think it is festive and perfectly color-coordinated for the holidays. Plus, it helps to balance out all those decadent meals and treats consumed at holiday parties. It’s great as an appetizer, as a healthful snack, or for lunch, and can be tweaked with different ingredients to your taste: optional layers of artichokes, olives, crab, tuna or chicken salad. Enjoy!

Warm Ginger-Sesame Chicken Over Carrot & Radicchio Salad

Maybe it’s in anticipation of The Big Cooking Day next week, but lately I’ve been drawn to fresh and light meals that are easy to prepare. This bright salad combines a spectrum of flavors and colors to please the palate and the eyes.

Marinated Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Salad with Dill

Let’s talk about beets. Those sweet, earthy, garnet-red root vegetables are among the best things you can put in your grocery cart to enhance your health and fight disease, according to Jo Robinson, author of Eating on the Wild Side. A good source of fiber, folate, and potassium, beets are also remarkably high in antioxidants.

Love, Part III: Grilled Ginger-Bourbon Pork and Peach Salad with Soft Goat Cheese

Sometimes it’s those unlikely pairings that bring out the best in each other — like ginger and bourbon, or pork and peaches. Do you believe that opposites attract?

Picnic Pasta with Roasted Chicken, Olives & Artichoke Hearts

This pasta salad, with marinated artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, green provencal olives, and chopped leftover roasted chicken makes an easy picnic spread or summer meal