You are here: Home / Salads

roasted beet & brussel sprout salad

October 17, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 10 Comments

I need to preface by saying this is one yummy little number.  I decided to combine one of my all-time favs (beets), with something I have never EVER tried before (brussel sprouts).  This Saturday morn, we took another visit to the Evergreen Brickworks Farmer’s Market.  Something that has become an awaited weekend adventure.  I love the atmosphere.  I love the people.  I love chattin’.  Week after week, the icing on the gluten-free cake is when the vendors and farmers start to recognize your face and call you by name.  Really cool!

Amongst our market haul, were amazing organic heirloom beets, brussel sprouts and fresh perch.  To put this dish over the edge, I thought it would be ideal to cook up some bacon in the oven first and then roast the beets, onions, garlic and brussel sprouts in the fat afterwards.  Two words.  Fantastic decision.  It was so flavourful and delicious.  After slowly roasted in a big pan in the oven, everything caramelized together, to make one huge mound of goodness.  While still warm, we platted this on same mixed greens and drizzled with some really good quality olive oil.  Trust me…once you actually have a taste of what olive oil should really taste like, you will never want to go back to your other ‘cheapy’ brand.  I highly recommend paying the few extra bucks and getting something worthwhile if you are able.

Ingredients

  • 6-8 beets – I used heirloom beets (different varieties) – cubed
  • 1 small basket of brussel sprouts – cleaned thoroughly
  • 1 medium white onion – thinly sliced
  • 6 cloves garlic – chopped
  • .5 – 1 lb bacon
  • 3 tsp dried thyme
  • ground pepper
  • sea salt – I used coarse rosemary & lemon
  • chopped nuts – I used a mix of pecans, walnuts, almonds and cashews (optional)
  • handful or two of mixed greens
  • a splash of olive oil

Prep

  • on a tin foil-lined baking sheet, lay and cook bacon in oven until desired crispiness
  • remove and set aside, keeping the bacon fat for cooking the vegetables
  • in a large roasting pan, add beets, brussel sprouts, onion and garlic
  • drizzle with leftover bacon fat
  • add in a few dashes of ground dried thyme, ground pepper and sea salt
  • roast in the oven at 350(ish), until softened and browned
  • in last 5-7 minutes of roasting time, crumble in the bacon and set to broil (watch carefully)
  • on a dish, plate a couple handfuls of mixed greens
  • while warm, scoop out several spoonfuls of the roasted mixture
  • top with a sprinkle of chopped nuts (optional, but they were a yummy touch!)
  • finish by adding a drizzle of good quality olive oil (optional as well, but recommended)
  • enjoy!

Somewhat random, but super tasty nonetheless, we paired this newbie with another first attempter…’pan-fried perch.’  Stay tuned for that recipe and many more fish/seafood delights in the near future, as we rev-up our repertoire in the kitchen with regards to the realm of underwater creatures.

Filed Under: Appetizers, Mains, Salads, Sides, Snacks Tagged With: bacon, beets, brussel sprouts, fish, garlic, Nuts, one-pot wonders, onion, perch

pesto and coconut zucc noodles

August 31, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 5 Comments

So…the topic of THIS spirally thingy came up when we were up North at a friend of the fam’s cottage a couple weekends ago.  While we were there, my mother-in-law mentioned it in conversation whilst (love that word, but hardly ever use it) on the dock chillin’ as pictured below..ahhhhhhhh – PURE BLISS!

It was seriously sooooo relaxing.  Totally awesome to spend loads of quality time with loved ones and then to have the opportunity to communally create some pretty amazing feasts in the evenings together.  We ate like Paleo kings and queens!  Workouts included swimming across the lake and back, kayaking, canoeing, aqua lily pad fun and of course, the inaugural adventure on the ‘newly popular’ paddle board (video coming soon…).  If you haven’t tried this yet…I strongly encourage you to give it a go!  I thoroughly enjoyed every single minute of it.  Even the near face-plant onto the dock right at the beginning!!!

Changing gears for a second (bear with me)…at the beginning of our 10 day, California Coast “expedition”, we were fortunate enough to meet and listen to some really incredible speakers at UCLA, throughout the 2-day 2011 Ancestral Health Symposium that we attended.  There was one presentation that really resonated and rang true to me at that present time.  Consequently, I have come to realize that I do in fact need more play in my life, after listening to Mark Sisson’ s presentation on ‘The Lost Art of Play’.  It was phenomenal in my eyes!

A huge ‘thank you’ to Mark for sharing his love of life with the audience.  Incorporating more play into my ‘everyday’ is def on the forefront for moi, having now listened to him share his infectious spirit and passion for ‘being in the moment’ and ‘detaching oneself from the outcome.’ (Okay…fully off topic now, but he seriously inspired me with his words of wisdom.  I am going to do a full/proper post on the importance of what he and others spoke of in a separate entry very soon!)  An amazing weekend we all had…filled with lots of PLAY!Alright…back the THIS spirally thingy!  Joannie (MIL), started telling my about it and it’s rave review that a friend of hers had excitedly conveyed to her earlier that week.  She went on to say that this cool device has the capacity to create these spirally noodles out of many different types of vegetables, such as: zucchini, yams, sweet potatoes etc…  At this point, I could kinda picture was she was talking about, but needed to see it in action to grasp it’s full beauty I think.  Nonetheless, I was super stoked to do a little researcheroo upon returning back to the city, to find out where I could pick-up something of the sort!?

A couple days later, after being back at home…I couldn’t stop thinking of the potential possibilities of such a damn clever sounding creation.  Soooooo, while not totally knowing the ‘exact brand’ that she was referring to, I decided to go on the computer and do some investigating for myself.  I read several reviews on various makes and then called up a couple local stores, in the neighborhood to see if they had something similar in stock!?  First one (Stack)…no dice!  Second one (Cook It!)…YES!  They had 2 different brands in-store.  The sun was a-shining, so I decided to take a wee stroll to hopefully (fingers crossed), find what I was looking for…which was of course…THIS spirally thingy!!!

Upon entering the shop, the owner greeted me and directed me towards the shelf, where they both sat.  She took both of them out of the package and laid them on the counter for me to have a closer peek.  It wasn’t even a contest!  The first one that she showed me was made of a flimsy plastic…I think something even fell off of it as she pulled it out of the box!  The second one was different.  A total beaut!!!  It was even grey and red!  Two of my favs (but that’s not why I bought it okay! Haha!)  I could just tell by looking at it, that it was well-made, durable and would stand the test of time.  I don’t splurge too often, but when I really want something I will not hesitate to get it.  It was the last one and was on-sale…bonus!  My days of over-thinking purchases and being wishy-washy on things are over.  I could tell right away that this new addition would be soooo helpful in making countless meals.  Without a second thought, I was over at the cash register buying up my new…well you know, sprially thingy – aka…the German-made, Westmark Spiromat! 

BTW – I am sure there are several other wonderful spiral slicers out there too!  But, here are the photos of my ‘baby’ for your viewing pleasure! ;)  It has 3 different blade inserts, as shown below.

I have used this sweet little contraption twice now.  Both times I made zucchini ‘noodles’; the first being the ‘spaghetti’ style ones you see in the first 2 photos above (thick/thin) and the second time,  I tried the wide/flat style that is pictured in the third photo.  I am going to continue to experiment with different veggies, as the potential for more greatness is right at my fingertips.  Without further ramblings (sweet if you made it this far!), here are the 2 different versions that I have made to date…

Zucchini “Spaghetti” with Pesto Sauce (at top of page)

Ingredients:

  • 3 large zucchini – spiraled
  • olive oil
  • pesto sauce – you can use store-bought or homemade (I have done both before)
  • my homemade pesto:  fresh cilantro, basil, cashews, garlic, olive oil, lime juice (squeezed), jalapeno peppers, sea salt and pepper, various dried spices – I apologize that I didn’t pay much attention to amounts here…I was basically just ‘eyeballing’ and tossing the ingredients into the food processor!  I will update with specifics, when I make it next!!
  • sea salt and pepper to taste

Prep

  • wash your zucchini thoroughly
  • secure in your spiral slicer and turn handle to create ‘spaghettish noodles’
  • using olive oil, sautee your zucchini on low heat on the stove-top (note – this doesn’t take long!  keep an eye on it, because no one likes mushy ‘noodles’.)
  • when you feel like the zucchini is almost cooked to your liking, add in a few spoonfuls of pesto sauce
  • mix it in thoroughly and continue to heat for a couple more minutes
  • plate and sprinkle with some sea salt and ground pepper
  • enjoy!

Curly Coconut Zucchini and Carrot Ribbons (above ^)

Ingredients:

  • 3 large zucchini – spiraled
  • 1-2 carrots – peeled and shredded
  • coconut oil
  • dried chili pepper flakes (optional)
  • sea salt and pepper

Prep:

  • wash your zucchini thoroughly
  • secure in your spiral slicer and turn handle to create flat/wide ‘ribbonish noodles’
  • wash and peel your carrots
  • use a ‘regular’ peeler to shred them and then combine them in with the zucchini ‘noodles’
  • using coconut oil, sautee your zucchini on low heat on the stove-top (note – this doesn’t take long!  keep an eye on it, because no one likes mushy ‘noodles’)
  • when you feel like the zucchini is almost cooked to your liking, add in a few shakes of dried chili pepper flakes
  • mix it in thoroughly and continue to heat for a couple more minutes
  • plate and sprinkle with some sea salt and ground pepper
  • enjoy!

These 2 dishes are great grain-free ‘noodle’ recipes.  Zucc noodles are also a nice alternative to having spaghetti squash.  I choose to sautee the noodles in these sauce variations, but play around with whatever you like!  I probably wouldn’t get too carried away though with a heavy sauce – the simplicity of both dishes made for heightened flavours.  Next on the docket…spiral slicer + sweet potatoes and yuca!  Stay tuned…

Filed Under: Appetizers, Breakfasts, Mains, Salads, Sides Tagged With: coconut, noodles, pesto, spicy, spiral, zucchini

zingy tuna salad

August 16, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 7 Comments

Who says you need mayonnaise??? A fan fav amongst adults and children alike. Perfect for on-the-go lunches! Yesterday I had a huge craving for some tuna salad.  I knew that I had created a yummy concoction of this awhile back and actually thought I had done up a blog post on it!  After searching my own website…I realized that I had in fact just done a quick photo/write-up on my facebook page…with good intentions of turning into a post!  It must have slipped my not-so-good memory.  Having realized this, I then thought what better time than right now!  This tuna salad recipe is just too scrumptious not to share!

I wanted to recall exactly what I had tossed into this dish, so I did a little diggin’ over on FB!  I discovered that I first made this bowl of deliciousness way back in May.  At that time, I had immediately posted a photo (sans recipe) and it prompted the following conversation…

“Does it have a dressing?”

“I’d like to know that too!”

“Looks great!  Ingredients?”

“Totally want details on ingredients . I have become bored with tuna and it sits all by itself in my pantry!!!!”

“Need ingredients! Been craving tuna salad forever! :) ”

Me: “Yes! No mayo though…basically I used freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and some rosemary mustard. Then, I finely chopped up some mini cucumber, pickles, red/orange pepper, celery and white/green onion.  After that I seasoned it with loads of ground pepper, freshly chopped dill and sea salt. Finally…added in few dashes of dried pepper flakes. Basically, feel free to use whatever spices/herbs you wish. =) I am going to make tuna lettuce canoes/wraps tomorrow! Oh ya…3ish cans of tuna as well…enjoy!”

“Talk about a major salad!! Lol.”

Me: “P.S…the shredded carrot and radish were last minute additions (after the pic). I noticed them hiding in the veggie crisper afterwards! Hehe…”

“Beautiful! Thanks I’m making this tonight since I have most of these ingredients already! YUM :D .”

“Haha it is a pretty big salad!”

“Adding different veggies to make it a little crunchy is actually a great idea, I had tuna last night for the first time in years.  I had some red onions finely chopped with celery and a couple of dried raisins and it turned out good, I’m def trying this one tonight!  Thanks for the recipe!”

Me: “Hahaha…just to clarify…we didn’t eat this entire thing tonight if that’s was you were thinking.  I like to make a lot at once…then I put it in the glass container (as shown above) and an airtight lid seals it up, so it stays fresh.”

“I would of probably ate it all the same night! NOM NOM NOM!!! Lol.”

“Dammit Cin, Now I have to make one, and I was looking forward to not being in the kitchen today!!! LOL.”

“If you do like the creaminess of traditional tuna salad, I mash up some avocado and mix it in. Delicious!”

Me: “Good call on the avocado…this is what we actually did with the batch we made this week. So yum!”

“Wow what a coincidence, I just made tuna salad today, too!”

Me: “Awesome! I think I will make it again this wkend!  Haha.”

“Me too! It’s such a cheap, versatile, and delicious option.”

“Made this tonight. Love it. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe!”

Big batch.  Serves lots!

Ingredients: (or something of the sorts)

  • 4 cans of tuna
  • 1 lime
  • 1/2 lemon
  • 1 red pepper
  • 2 dill pickles
  • 2 mini cucumbers
  • 2 stalks of celery
  • 1/2 yellow onion
  • 4 cloves garlic – minced
  • 2 shredded or coined carrot and radish (optional)
  • loads of fresh dill
  • generous amounts of ground pepper and sea salt
  • several spoons of mustard (I used Kozliks’ rosemary)
  • a few splashes of olive oil and balsamic vinegar
  • a dash or two of dried chili flakes or hot sauce (optional)

Prep:

  • basically take all your cans of tuna, open them up and pour it into a large bowl
  • next, take all the veggies and finely chopped them all and toss into the mix
  • add in your mustard, herbs and spices
  • then, drizzle with the olive oil, balsamic vinegar and the juice from squeezed lemon/lime
  • once you have combined all your ingredients, mix thoroughly with a fork
  • sprinkle with dried chili flakes or a few splashes of hot sauce
  • enjoy!

P.S. – This dish is super wicked because you can eat it on it’s own, over a bed of mixed greens, in a “lettuce canoe” or even throw it on-top of some eggs.  Also, it has some serious zing and is even better the next day, after being in the fridge all night.  Perfect to take in lunches as well!!!

Filed Under: Appetizers, Breakfasts, Mains, Salads, Sides, Snacks Tagged With: chunky, fish, simple, tuna

cabbage, carrot and cucumber slaw

July 9, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 2 Comments

I have spoken about this before…inspiration for recipes can come from the most random places sometimes.  This was actually my first time ever making coleslaw of any kind, in my whole entire life!  While strolling the streets in the beaches this weekend, I decided to pop into one of my fav stores…it is called STACK.  While perusing all the kitchen gadgets and home decor items, I spotted this julienne slicer, made by the German company Borner.

Owning their mandolin slicer already, I knew that I needed to have this bad boy!  This product is a real beaut…$ 15, well spent.  Okay, so back to the inspiration.  Basically it came from the photo on the julienne slicer’s box.  It was showing a lovely pile of carrots and cucumber, looking so thinly sliced and fresh.  That’s where the recipe started and then I pretty much winged it from there!

On the way home, I ran into the grocery store and picked up those two items, along with some red cabbage, celery, lemons, limes and fresh dill and parsley.  Not gonna lie, this recipe was a bit of an ‘eyeballer’, so to speak.  Please don’t hate, (as I know this can be somewhat irritating, especially to those ‘Type A’ peeps out there), but that’s usually how I roll in the kitchen!  I didn’t really measure as a was tossing things together.  However, having said that, I will try to be as accurate as I can, when I explain below.

I knew we were going to chef up some homemade Paleo wings and wild boar wrapped sweet potato wedges for dins…so I thought that this would be a delicious side to go along with both of those.  Full recipes for those two dishes coming very soon as well!

Moral of the story: 1 – Don’t over-think your recipes.  Be open to trying new foods, and the creations will come to you (perhaps even from a box).  2 – Spruce up your kitchen with a new tool or gadget.  Makes prepping/cooking more fun and usually acts as a huge time saver too!

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

  • 1 large english cucumber
  • 3 medium carrots
  • 1/4 head of read cabbage (used the julienne slicer with this as well…kinda messy, but still worked well)
  • 1-2 stalks of celery (optional) – I actually forget to throw this in, but am sure it would be great!
  • 1 lemon – juice freshly squeezed
  • 1 lime – juice freshly squeezed and some grated zest as well
  • handful of fresh parsley – finely chopped
  • handful of fresh dill – finely chopped
  • good quality olive oil – add, stir and taste test as you go along (sorry, don’t know the exact amount here)
  • dash of sea salt and ground pepper

Prep:

  • cut all the veggies using the julienne slicer and mix together in a medium sized bowl
  • squeeze in the lemon and lime juice, along with some zest
  • add in the freshly chopped herbs (can choose different ones – cilantro would be yummy too)
  • drizzle with olive oil
  • sprinkle with some salt and pepper
  • mix well to make sure it is all coated in the citrus dressing
  • allow to cool in the fridge before serving
  • enjoy!

Filed Under: Appetizers, Salads, Sides, Snacks Tagged With: citrus, fresh, simple, slaw

mango.berry & avocado.cuc salsa

June 18, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 1 Comment

Fresh. Sweet. Crunchy. Summery. Fully loaded with flavour.  There are many words to describe this little number that I could go on forever.  It turned out so amazing, because it has several wonderful ingredients that compliment one another so nicely. 

The inspiration for this recipe really came from the simple fact that every time I walk into our local veggie/fruit market, the pile of ripe mangoes are right in the doorway, staring directly at me, totally screamin’ pick me.  It’s really funny, because I think each time I stroll through that doorway, I actually do stop…give one of ‘em a squeeze, but end up setting them back down and continue on my merry way into the shop.  Reason being…I LOVE mango…but to be honest I don’t eat loads of fruit, so this salsa is a real treat.

So good in fact, that you can eat it on it’s own.  That’s what ‘the duster’ did!  It could also serve well as a yummy condiment to pretty much anything.  We are absolute guacamole fans, so we plop that on just about everything we make on a daily basis.  The beauty of this salsa is that it offers a nice change from our usual.  A perfect match for grilled fish, pork or on eggs (like I had this morning)!  Why not even throw some on top of a bed of greens and grilled chicken and call it a day?!?  The options here are really endless.  Do you have a bbq to attend this weekend?  Are you hosting Father’s day brunch?  Family gathering?  Regardless…give it a go!!!

P.S.  The strawberries were a last minute addition to this recipe, but I just couldn’t resist because they are local now (Ontario grown) and super scrumptious.

Makes a large serving.

Ingredients

  • 2-3 ripe mangoes – cubed
  • 1/2 pint of fresh strawberries – cubed
  • 4 mini cucumbers – cubed
  • 3-4 ripe avocados – cubed
  • 1/3 large red onion – finely diced
  • 1 orange pepper – cubed
  • 3 garlic cloves – crushed
  • 1 lemon – juice freshly squeezed (can add in some zest if you wish as well)
  • 1 lime – juice freshly squeezed
  • 1 small navel orange – juice freshly squeezed (optional)
  • lots of fresh cilantro – chopped
  • sea salt and ground pepper – to taste
  • fresh ginger – grated (optional)
  • splash of olive oil

Prep

  • take all ingredients from the list that need cubed and chop them into fairly small bits.
  • put them in a medium sized bowl and mix together.
  • next, add in the garlic, grated ginger, freshly squeezed lemon/lime and orange juice and a splash of olive oil.
  • lastly, add in lots of freshly chopped cilantro and sprinkle with sea salt and ground pepper.
  • stir all ingredients together and allow to cool in fridge before serving.
  • enjoy!

Note: I made this salsa yesterday…and then let the flavours meld together in the fridge overnight!  It is even tastier the next day!!!

Filed Under: Condiments, Desserts, Salads, Sides, Snacks Tagged With: avocado, berries, salsa

triple love salad

May 29, 2011 By Cindy Sexton 5 Comments

I was at work, on my break, when I received a text from our friend Stew.  No words…just a pic of his lunch.  I responded with “mmmmm…looks yummy, what is in the salad?”  He replied…”bacon, garlic, tomato, red onion, olive oil, balsamic and salt/pepper.  So good!”  I continued on the conversation, by declaring, “oh my!  you are making me hungry!”  Then the bell rang.  Break time was over.  The afternoon continued on…In the meantime, I honestly couldn’t get the image of this dish out of my head.  What a fab combo of ingredients, I thought.  In there, were 3 of my top 10, all-time fav foods…bacon, avocado and roasted garlic.  Triple love…hence the name.  End of the day came, and I text-ed back once again…”I am fully making a version of your salad tonight!” 

Btw…I love it when my friends send me pics of their paleo(ish) meals.  Kinda nerdy you might say…I say nothing short of wicked!  I get so happy when I see people enjoyin’ and lovin’ amazing food!!!  Sooooo…on my way home from work, I decided to make a pit stop at the market near our house to pick up a few of the ingredients I didn’t already have in the kitchen.  I was good to go with most of it…which was a bonus!  I stuck to to most of his recipe, but decided to switch it up a tiny bit, based on things that I needed to use up…plus some leftovers aka…shredded chicken from the night before.  Fully inspired by Stew’s salad, while adding a few things and subtracting a couple…this is the concoction that I came up with.

Ingredients:

  • shredded chicken (leftover from whole cajun chicken  the night before.  Also see, dutch oven chicken)
  • bacon - cooked and torn into bits (use as much as you desire here)
  • 2 avocado – diced (chunky)
  • 1/2 red onion – thinly chopped
  • tomato medley – quartered (one container contains various types)
  • roasted garlic cloves – I did these on the same pan as the bacon!
  •  olive oil
  • 1 lemon and 1 lime – freshly squeezed juice
  • sea salt and ground pepper
  • fresh cilantro – chopped

Prep:

  • arrange slices of bacon on a tin foil-covered baking sheet and cook for 25-30 mins at 375 heat – keep an eye on it, as thickness of the bacon can vary cooking time
  • when cooked, set aside to cool
  • in the meantime, quarter the tomatoes, thinly chop the red onion, and peel and dice the avocado
  • put all of these ingredients into a large salad bowl
  • next, tear up the bacon slices into and shred the chicken into pieces
  • then, add the protein into the mix
  • drizzle with lots of olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice
  • sprinkle with sea salt and group pepper
  • garnish with freshly chopped cilantro
  • use tongs to mix thoroughly
  • plate and enjoy!

Modifications:

  • I omitted using balsamic vinegar, because I left it at work! Lol!!!
  • Instead, I added in freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice (wanted to use them up!)
  • Also, added in some chicken, because I had made a whole chicken the night before.
  • Finally, I added in some fresh cilantro, just because I LOVE it so much!  (I know Stew definitely
  • wouldn’t as he is NOT a cilantro fan!!!)

I totally encourage you to try this one!  It is so fresh, easy and a solid addition to our weekly repetoire… that is forsure!!!  Devour with love…

Filed Under: Appetizers, Mains, Salads, Sides, Snacks Tagged With: avocado, bacon, chicken, citrus, fresh
« Older Posts

Switch to our mobile site