Grilled Vegetable Salad with Goat cheese

We bought a grill recently, and decided to grill something on a Sunday evening. We did not have any chicken or paneer to marinate, and grill. I came up with the idea of grilling vegetables, mixing them with balsamic vinaigrette and adding goat cheese and pine nuts to it! DELISHH!! Its one of the healthiest and best salads I have ever had!

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

10-12 lettuce leaves
3-4 green onion sprigs
1 zuchinni cut into 1/2 inch slices(slanted)
1 red bell pepper  cut in half(for grilling)
1 red onion chopped into big rough pieces
8 asparagus sprigs with the ends cut
olive oil to coat the veggies
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette(recipe on blog)
4 tablespoons goat cheese
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts


Method:

Coat all the vegetables lightly with olive oil. Grill the vegetables and keep turning them until you see them charred. At this point remove the vegetables. Let it cool down. Lettuce leaves, red bell pepper should be cut into thin strips. Asparagus should be cut into 11/2 inch pieces, same with the spring onions. Put all the grilled veggies in a bowl. Add the vinaigrette and pine nuts and toss it to coat well.

Add salt and pepper if required. Plate the salads into 2 plates(that is the qty). Sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese.

EAT your heart away! ;)

Tomato Feta Pasta Salad

Summer is here! Time for pasta salads, orzo salads, and more salads :) I made this yesterday since it was a hot summer night, and it turned out really good! It tasted even better the next day after the pasta marinates over night.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
1/2 pound fusilli (spirals) pasta

Kosher salt
Good olive oil
1 pound ripe tomatoes, medium-diced
3/4 cup good black olives, such as kalamata, pitted and diced
1 pound good feta cheese, medium-diced
6 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped
1/2 red onion finely chopped

For the dressing:
5 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
6 tablespoons good olive oil
1 garlic clove, diced
1 teaspoon capers, drained
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 cup packed basil, chopped


Method:

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water with a splash of oil to keep it from sticking together. Boil for 12 minutes, or according to the directions on the package. Drain well and allow to cool. Place the pasta in a bowl and add the tomatoes, olives, feta and chopped sun-dried tomatoes.


For the dressing, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, capers, salt and pepper in a food processor until almost smooth.

Pour the dressing over the pasta, sprinkle with the Parmesan and parsley, and toss well.

Greek Orzo Salad

Orzo is a light pasta, and it makes for a good summer salad. I decided to try and make a greek orzo salad with loads of fresh veggies. It turned out really yummy! One could even have this salad on the side with grilled chicken, making it a wholesome meal with protein, carbs and veggies!!


Ingredients:

Around 4-5 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups orzo(preferrably Barilla)
2 tomatoes diced into chunks
1 cucumber, peeled and diced into small cubes
1/2 red onion either thinly sliced, OR diced into tiny pieces
1 red roasted bell pepper
About 20 pitted kalamata olives
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1/3 cup feta cheese with garlic and herbs cut into tiny cubes

For the greek vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Lemon juice from 1 small lemon
1 tablespoon honey
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon or dried oregano


Method:

Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover the pan and bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in the orzo. Cover partially and cook until the orzo is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo through a strainer. Transfer the orzo to a large wide bowl and toss until the orzo cools slightly. Set aside to cool completely.

Toss the orzo with the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, parsley, roasted red bellpepper, olives, feta cheese and enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad, to taste, with salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!:)

Beet goat cheese salad

This is our favorite salad to make! Its simple, does not take much time, filling and amazingly delicious!:)

Ingredients:
1 bag mixed greens
1 beet boiled and cut into thin slices
1/2 log goat cheese
1/5 cup walnuts pieces
1 scallion cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette dressing(more or less depending on the way you like your salad!)

Method:
Put the mixed greens, scallions, beets into a bowl and add the dressing. Toss it until all the greens are covered in dressing. Plate it into 2 plates, and top is with walnuts and goat cheese, equally distributed!

I usually make variations of this same salad, by adding tomatoes and/or cranberries, or even use red wine vinaigrette instead of balsamic vinaigrette. Especially in the summer this salad is so light and refreshing! Too bad that summer is over, and its cold again,, back to hot preparations!!

Orzo Salad

This is one of my favorite summer salads! Raj loves it too. I always make the entire quantity mentioned below, and we take it for lunch. Since its a cold salad, it doesnt require reheating as well. Also, it has carbs, proteins and veggies, all in one! ;)

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken OR vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups orzo
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups red and yellow teardrop tomatoes or grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
About 3/4 cup Red Wine Vinaigrette, recipe follows
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover the pan and bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in the orzo. Cover partially and cook until the orzo is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo through a strainer. Transfer the orzo to a large wide bowl and toss until the orzo cools slightly. Set aside to cool completely.
Toss the orzo with the beans, tomatoes, onion, basil, mint, and enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad, to taste, with salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature.

Tex-Mex Salad

A delicious salad, light and refreshing for the summer! :)

Ingredients:
1 bunch romaine lettuce roughly chopped
1 avocado chopped into bite size chunks
1 tomato chopped into bite size chunks
2 corn ears
1/8 cup finely chopped cilantro
1/8 cup finely chopped spring onions
1 cup fried bite size tortilla strips
1 lemon juice
double the lemon juice quantity of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon good honey
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 - 3/4 tsp tabasco sauce
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Method:

Char the corn ears on the gas until well done. Let it cool slightly and remove the corn off the ear in a bowl.

Put the romaine lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, onions, cilantro all in the same bowl.

For the dressing, mix the lemon juice, honey, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and tabasco sauce in another bowl and mix it well until blended.

Pour the dressing into the salad bowl and toss it lightly to coat all salad ingredients with dressing.

Plate it and top it with tortilla chips and cheddar cheese! YUM!! :D

Thai salad

A delicious refreshing summer salad! veryy Yummy!!

Ingredients:

For the salad:
1 napa cabbage thinly chopped
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup long thin slices of cucumber
1 cup fried wonton strips
2 tbsp lightly toasted sesame seeds
3 tbsp chopped scallions
sprigs of coriander to garnish


For the peanut sauce dressing:
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 1/2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp soya sauce
2 tsp chilli sauce
4 tbsp vegetable oil


For the cilantro lime dressing:

1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro/coriander
1 lime juice squeezed
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
salt to taste


Method:

Mix all the salad ingredients, except wontons and sesame seeds in a large bowl and toss it.

For the peanut sauce dressing, mix all the ingredients except oil. Pour in the oil and stir it in till well blended.

For the cilantro lime dressing, mix all the ingredients except oil, till well blended. Stir in the oil till well blended.

Pour in the 2 dressings, making sure not to overpower the salad with too much dressing. It should be just enough to coat the salad. There should NOT be any dressing at the bottom of the bowl. Lightly toss the salad.

Sprinkle the salad with the wonton and the sesame seeds and toss it lightly.

Its ready to eat!! :) Enjoy!