Category Archives: salads

Sriracha Coleslaw

Looking for something to kick up the flavor for your Memorial Day weekend ? This is the just the recipe. It’s the perfect combination of creamy coolness with just a undernote of a little heat. I’ll be making this side dish for my weekend barbecue, how about you ?

From by the bay wishing you some food memories with kick !

Maryann

blog sri slaw 2

Sriracha Coleslaw

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon fine granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon fine grey sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons Sriracha Sauce
  • 1 teaspoon canola oil
  • 16 ounces shredded green cabbage
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Directions

Make dressing In a small bowl by whisking together mayonnaise, lime juice, sugar, salt, sriracha sauce and oil. In a large bowl add cabbage, cilantro and dressing. Toss until combined. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arugula, Strawberry and Ricotta Salata Salad with Balsamic Dressing

a strawberry salad 004

 

Arugula, Strawberry and Ricotta Salata Salad with Balsamic Dressing

Serves 4

 

Dressing:

  • ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

 

Directions for dressing:

Take a clean jar with lid, place all dressing ingredients into jar and shake well. Put to side.

 

 

Salad:

  • 6 cups arugula
  • 4 ounces ricotta salata, grated using large hole
  • 4 ounces sliced fresh strawberries
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds

 

Directions for toasted almonds :

Use a small dry fry pan heat and add the almonds stirring until they are golden brown. Remove from heat and let cool.

 

Directions to assemble salad:

To a bowl add the arugula and then half of the following ingredients: ricotta, strawberries and almonds. Shake jar with dressing and add to bowl. Combine gently and divide between four plates. Top with remaining ricotta, strawberries and almonds on top of each plate.

Fresh Confetti Corn Salad

Fresh corn is such a treat, nothing beats the taste of corn just picked in the morning and on your plate later that day. I’m at the farm stand straight away when the first ears show up. As the summer progresses and tomatoes are added at the stand well then it’s time for the perfect combination of flavor: corn, tomato and basil salad. It really doesn’t get better when all three are available locally fresh from the farm!
From by the bay wishing you farm fresh food memories!
Maryann
blog corn salad
Fresh Confetti Corn Salad
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
6 ears of corn, cooked
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
3 heirloom tomatoes, seeded and chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
handful of basil ( about 1/4 cup)
Directions
Cut corn off the cob and place in bowl . Use hands to separate kernels. To the bowl add the remaining ingredients, except basil. Leave at room temperature. When serving add torn basil leaves, mix again and serve.

Iceberg Lettuce Salad with Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing

It’s interesting to sometimes look back on how your food tastes develop over the year. I grew up eating iceberg lettuce – it was on everything and it was a garnish on many a plate I ate in restaurants. As I grew up and discovered all the other lettuces available, it was easy to toss iceberg lettuce to the side and never touch it again. I recently rediscovered this misunderstood lettuce. There is nothing like a cold crisp iceberg lettuce salad on a warm day topped especially topped with this creamy blue cheese dressing and shards of crumbled bacon tossed on top. I like this buttermilk and greek yogurt dressing, both are low fat so its lighter in calories but not light on flavor. I try to use a good quality blue cheese and bacon for the recipe. I used for my dressing Jasper Hill Farms Bayley Hazen Blue and nice thick Berkshire bacon. If your food journey has taken you away from iceberg lettuce, give it another try!
From by the bay wishing you crisp food memories.
Maryann
blog buttermilk dressing

Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing

Serves 4

Ingredients
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
Directions
In a medium size bowl add all dressings ingredients, except the blue cheese and whisk together until smooth. Next fold in the crumbled blue cheese.  Keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Serve with lettuce, tomatoes or use as a dressing on cold sliced roast beef or top a grilled hamburger.
Iceberg Lettuce Salad with Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 recipe Buttermilk Blue Cheese Dressing
1 head medium iceberg lettuce, cut into 4 wedges
4 slices thick bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 tablespoons chives, minced
To assemble the salad place each wedge of iceberg on a plate, top with buttermilk blue cheese dressing. Sprinkle the top of each wedge with crumbled bacon and chives. Serve immediately.

Red Cabbage and Beet Slaw with Goat Cheese

I love looking for inspiration and sometimes the source can be surprising. Such is the case for this delicious slaw made of beets and red cabbage. Both ingredients were left over from “experiments” with natural dyes for color Easter eggs a few weeks ago. I decided to combine the ingredients with really fantastic results for a modern twist on a traditional classic. The color is vibrant and the taste is crisp and fresh. This will definitely be a a go to side dish for many of my summer barbecues.
From by the bay wishing you vibrant food memories!
Maryann

blog red caabage beet slaw

Red Cabbage and Beet Slaw with Goat Cheese
Serves 4 -6 
Ingredients
1 head red cabbage, finely shredded
4 tablespoons red beet, coarsely grated
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
fine sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
2 ounces crumbled goat cheese
Directions
Place red cabbage and grated beet into a bowl. In a medium sauce pan add the oil, vinegar and sugar and bring to boil until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the hot dressing over the cabbage and beet, add salt and pepper and mix well. Let stand for 1 hour at room temperature before serving or cover and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Sprinkle the crumbled goat cheese on top of your salad right before serving.

Zucchini Salad with Toasted Pine nuts and Shaved Asiago Cheese

blog zucchini

Zucchini Salad with Toasted Pine nuts and Shaved Asiago Cheese
Serves Four
Ingredients
2 medium size zucchini
1/4 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, such as Maldon
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons basil
Asiago cheese , shaved to taste
Directions
Place a dry small pan on medium heat, add the pine nuts and toast in pan until they start to brown. Remove from heat and keep to the side. Take the zucchini and cut off the ends. Use a mandolin or box grater to slice thinly the zucchini length wise. Place on platter. Dress with the olive oil,  lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix well. Let sit at room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving, allowing the zucchini slices to marinate. When ready to serve, top with the pine nuts, basil torn into pieces and the shaved Asiago cheese and then serve.

blog zucchini salad

 

Lime Sweet Potato Salad

My sister Nancy loves sweet potatoes! I don’t usually think about making sweet potatoes in the summer, it always seems like a fall food for me. So when we were planning a barbecue one weekend, Nan suggested I try making a sweet potato salad. I knew I had to use the flavors of summer which include for me lime and cilantro. Below is the salad I came up with and it was a big hit, so much so that it’s now requested all the time. Hope you enjoy this as much as we do!
From by the bay wishing you sweet (potato) food memories!
Maryann
blog sweet potato 2
Lime Sweet Potato Salad
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
2 pounds sweet potatoes cut into cubes
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped chives to garnish
Directions
Add sweet potatoes to a large pot of cold salted water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook potatoes until tender about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and let cool. While potatoes are cooking, add the remaining ingredients into a large bowl and blend. Add the cooled potatoes and mix throughly, making sure all the potatoes are coated with the dressing. Let sit covered in the refrigerator for at least one hour before serving.

Dad’s Favorite Blue Cheese Dressing

I wanted to remember my Dad this Father’s Day by blogging about one of his recipes. Dad did not cook a lot but he had a few special dishes. I turned to my sister Nancy the other day and said, “What should Dad’s Blog be about? ” We both turned to each other and said simultaneously, Blue Cheese Dressing! My Dad was in banking, think Don Draper giving out loans instead of managing an ad agency and that would be Dad. Lunches and dinners with clients, often at the top steakhouses in the city. When Dad liked something he dined on , he often would come home and explain it to my mother. Mom is amazing, she had a very high success rate recreating dishes for my Dad. There were rare occasions where my father would try a recipe out himself. It usually would be outdoors on the grill or to accompany something cooked on the grill. Here is a favorite – the absolute best blue cheese dressing you have ever had. This is courtesy of Dad and whatever steakhouse inspired him. Dad would ambitiously make this dressing in a mason jar, shaking vigorously to get the right consistency. I’m going to suggest grilling some romaine lettuce and sliced heirloom tomatoes to accompany this dressing in honor of Dad’s passion for steakhouse dining and grilling! Enjoy!

From by the bay, wishing you a very Happy Father’s Day and making fond food memories!
Maryann
blog blue cheese dressing
Dad’s Favorite Blue Cheese Dressing

Ingredients
6 ounces Maytag Blue Cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon sour cream
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Directions
In a medium size mixing bowl crumble in the blue cheese add the remaining ingredients and whisk together until emulsified. Pour ingredients into a glass covered jar and keep in the refrigerator until ready to use. Shake ingredients well before spooning onto your favorite salad.
For salad pictured:
Take Romaine lettuce leaves and brush with olive oil, place on grill until lettuce starts to wilt and brown. Remove from grill and place on platter along with slices of heirloom tomatoes.
Lettuce can also be roasted in a 400 degree F oven. Place oiled lettuce leaves on to a baking sheet and roasted about 10 minutes until lettuce starts to wilt and brown, then remove from oven.

Grandma’s Coleslaw with Warm Dressing

When I think about perfect no fuss side dishes for the summer my grandmother’s coleslaw always comes to mind. My paternal grandparents were Gottscheers, descendents of a small colony founded in 1350 with only 300 families. Gottscheers lived in a small area within the Austro- Hungarian Empire only 331 square miles. Customs and ltheir own dialect was handed down generation to generation, as were recipes. My grandparents were part of the large emigration from their homeland to the United States in the early 1900’s. Gottscheers remained close once they arrived in the United States. My grandparents were part of the Gottscheer group living in Ridgewood, Queens. My grandparents and their friends would socialize often, which included Sunday night card games. this coleslaw was served many, many sunday nights and it brings to mind love, friendship and just having a good time.
From by the bay wishing you happy food memories with your friends and loved ones!
Maryann

foodgawker coleslaw

Grandma’s Coleslaw with Warm Dressing
Serves Six

Ingredients
1 medium head of cabbage, quartered removing core
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup fine granulated sugar
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions
Using a mandoline over a large mixing bowl, finely shred one head of cabbage. Set aside. To make dressing bring to a boil in a small medium sauce pan  the vinegar, sugar and sea stirring occasionally. Boil until the sugar and salt have dissolved.  Slowly add the oil and bring back to a boil. Remove pan from heat and pour dressing over the cabbage. Add caraway seeds, celery salt and pepper. Mix well. Place into a mason jar or container. Store at room temperature or
in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.

Kale Caesar Salad

blog kale caesar
Kale Caesar Salad
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 pound kale leaves, coarsely chopped
toasted croutons
large shavings parmesan cheese
1 recipe Caesar Salad Dressing – see below
Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions
Place kale in a bowl , mix well, add salt and pepper. Mix again. Top with croutons and using a grater top with large shavings of parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
You can use the exact recipe using chopped romaine lettuce for a Classic Caesar Salad.
Caesar Dressing for the Faint of Heart ( also known eggless)
Ingredients
7 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 teaspoons anchovy paste
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
Directions 
Place all ingredients in a jar with a tight cover and shake well to emulsify. Use for Caesar Salad.