A Couple of Salads

We almost always start our Shabbat (Saturday) lunch with different salads.  Of course, that's after the kiddush wine and the Challah and what Israelis call salads (salatim) which are really spreads:  Chummous, eggplant, matbucha (red pepper spread), etc.  I used to make a large variety and some were more starchy and some were more vegetable-y.  Today I tend to serve 1-3 appetizer salads that are usually vegetable or legume based, and then I save the carby salads for side dishes.

It's a great way to get some veggies and some other goodies into your system and a lighter way to "do" appetizers as opposed to egg rolls, burekas and other heavy greasy things we sometimes eat at the beginning of a meal.

So today I am going to share three recipes with you:  carrot and cilantro salad, cabbage salad with goodies, and my friend Sima Navon's fava bean salad from her blog Just Add Flax.

Carrot and Cilantro Salad

This is my 10 year old daughter's favorite salad!

Ingredients

4 medium carrots, peeled into ribbons

1 bunch of fresh cilantro (coriander, cusbara), roughly chopped

juice of 1 lemon, freshly squeezed

1 tablespoon canola oil

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mix first four ingredients together and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cabbage Salad with Goodies

The secret to this salad is the dressing!  You can vary the amounts of cabbage and the types of goodies but whatever you do, don't change the dressing!

Salad Ingredients

3 cups of grated cabbage (green or a mixture of green and purple)

Nuts (raw, toasted and unsalted, carmelized or candied)

Pumpkin and sunflower seeds (raw or toasted and unsalted)

Dried cranberries (you can try other dried fruit, too)

Dressing Ingredients

1/8 cup canola oil

1/4 cup sugar (you can use a bit less)

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon peanut butter

salt and black pepper to taste

Instuctions

Put all the salad ingredients in a bowl and mix well

Mix dressing ingredients until peanut butter is more or less dissolved

Pour dressing on salad and mix in well

Serve immediately

Note:  it is possible to get the "naked" salad and dressing ready ahead of time and store in fridge and then mix right before serving.

Fava Bean Salad

Follow this link to this great recipe.

Happy salad eating!