For some reason I have developed an incredible craving for salads, and I really try to listen to my body’s cravings, (unless they are obviously unhealthy) so I’ve been experimenting with some of the local produce over the last few days, and also taking advantage of my carb loading meals to use some different cereal grain products and legumes. This salad came about when I had some left-over chick-peas that I’d soaked and cooked off last night in advance of making some chick-pea patties, (I’ll post that recipe this weekend). I taste-tested on of the little guys, and fell in love with the nutty, buttery flavor all over again. I’ve been promising myself that I would work on some non-meat recipes while in India, but this really is the first one that I’ve come up with since I’ve been here. A great book to have in your library if you aren’t trained in nutrition is, “Becoming Vegetarian” by Melina Vesanto and Brenda Davis. It’s very easy to read, is full of great recipes, and really breaks down the nutritional value of foods, what an amino acid is, how to balance vegetable proteins to complete them, etc. I recommend it to students who aren’t even vegetarian but who are eager to know more about what food is all about.
what you need
for the dressing
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 lime
splash of coconut milk
salt
for the salad
1 teaspoon minced shallot
1/4 red bell pepper, julienned
6 -7 small grape tomatoes, cut in half
3 french radish, cut into matchsticks
1/2 sweet carrot, cut into matchsticks
1/4 small white cabbage, chiffonade
1/4 chinese cabbage, chiffonade
rough chop cilantro, 1 – 2 tablespoons
1 tablespoon raw sunflower seeds
1 tablespoon crumbled feta
1/2 cup cooked chickpeas
Put the ingredients for the dressing in the bottom of your dinner bowl. Cut up all your vegetables and toss them in the bowl with the dressing, add your chickpeas, sunflower seeds and feta on top and enjoy! You can adjust the lime and salt according to your own taste of course…
I have feedback for this, too š It is ridiculously easy to prepare and absolutely delicious. Even tastier the second day! The only variation: I did not know what chiffonade means so I used an old fashioned, manual “mouli julienne” my mom and grandma used and that I brought with me from Europe. It probably cut the veggies a bit finer than in your picture but I liked it.
Keep posting these awesome recipies and I’ll keep trying š
Chiffonade is a type of cut that applies generally to leafy greans and large flat-leaf herbs like basil. It is very thin ribbon-shaped cuts. A julienne cut is also a very thin cut but would apply to a firmer vegetable like a carrot…I have just discovered the joys of the white lentil Katja…my new favorite pulse!
Thank you!! I love lentils – can you recommend a good recipe?