Salad ideas -- any new favs or old T&T (653 views)

Southwestern bean salad is my favorite bean salad.
I also like the cauliflower/bacon salad and I love tabuleh (sp?) with LOTS of parsley and fresh lemon juice.

Here are three of our favorites...

Cranberry Walnut Quinoa Salad
Recipe courtesy Juan-Carlos Cruz

1 cup quinoa
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup frozen green beans, defrosted
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Combine quinoa with 2 cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and continue cooking until all water is absorbed.
In a medium bowl, combine cooked quinoa, dried cranberries, green beans, walnuts, and green onions until well mixed. In a small bowl, whisk the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and garlic until well blended. Pour over the quinoa mixture. Toss until well blended. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving
Nutrition Information
Calories 158; Fat 5; saturated Fat 0;Carbohydrates 24; fiber 6

Massaged Kale Salad

Ingredients
FOR THE SALAD:
5 cups Kale (looks like a lot but the size will decrease significantly when dressing is added)
½ cups Walnuts (I have used pecans and almonds, liked the walnuts the best though)
¼ cups Dried Cranberries (I have also used dried cherries in place of cranberries)
1 Apple, Chopped
Salt And Pepper, to taste
FOR THE DRESSING:
¼ cups Olive Oil (I have used a Lime Flavored Olive Oil instead of EVOO)
2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
1 Lime, Juiced (I have used about 3-4 T from bottled Lime Juice when I didn’t have fresh limes)
1 clove Garlic
3 Tablespoons Honey
Preparation Instructions
For the dressing:
Combine the olive oil, vinegar, juice from the lime, garlic and the honey. Set aside while you prepare the salad.
For the salad:
Put chopped kale in a large bowl and pour the vinaigrette over the beautiful leaves. Massage the vinaigrette into the kale for about 5 minutes. The size of the kale will decrease and you will feel the kale becoming more tender.
After the massage stir in the nuts, cranberries and chopped apple. Add a bit of salt and pepper to taste..goat or feta cheese might be good if you feel you need a little more substance.

Couscous Chickpea Salad with Ginger-Lime Dressing (CL 2004)
Couscous is great for make-ahead salads like this one. Turmeric lends a golden hue to the pasta, but it can be omitted.
Yield 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)
DRESSING:
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

SALAD:
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups uncooked couscous
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 cup chopped tomato
1 cup chopped peeled cucumber
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

Preparation
To prepare dressing, combine first 8 ingredients, stirring with a whisk.
To prepare salad, bring 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan, and gradually stir in couscous, raisins, and turmeric. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place couscous mixture in a large bowl. Add tomato and remaining ingredients. Drizzle with dressing; stir well to coat. Cover and chill at least 1 hour.
Nutritional Information
Calories: 345 (23% from fat) Fat: 9g (sat 3.4g,mono 3.8g,poly 1.2g) Protein: 11.2g Carbohydrate: 56.2g
Fiber: 5.6g Cholesterol: 17mg Iron: 2mg Sodium: 529mg Calcium: 137mg