The Taste Traveller

beet and carrot salad

Here is a fresh-start, light-eating, wintery crunchy salad. Minimal ingredients, easy to put together, a great weeknight side. Served with pork, chicken, fish, or even your favourite vegetarian main - adjust the seasoning to suit. Falafel or veggie 'sausages' come to mind too. This has just a little bite to it (or not if you care to tone it down) and is just so good for you! The colour alone draws you in - vibrant purply-red and bright orange! This salad is very simple but won't get mixed up with any bland cousin of a salad you might see around. Add some seeds for extra crunch and nutrition too - sesame, sunflower and pumpkin (pepitas) are great options, 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (250 ml) beet (raw), grated
• 1 cup (250 ml) carrot (raw), grated
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) balsamic vinegar
• 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 ml) red wine vinegar
• 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 ml) Dijon mustard (start with one and taste before adding)
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) lemon juice, freshly-squeezed
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Optional:

• sweetener added - agave nectar, maple syrup, honey, sugar
• pumpkin seeds, raw or toasted
• sesame seeds, raw or toasted
• sunflower seeds
• walnuts or almonds

Method:

Grate beets and carrots (or use food processor). 

Add other ingredients. 

Taste. This is where it's to your taste - more mustard? More vinegar? More lemon? 

Cover or put in a sealed container and refrigerate until needed. This will keep well for a few days. 

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taco salad

Here's another great summer 'recipe' that you can just pull together with what you have handy and make it to your liking. Here I used ground turkey but the week before I used ground beef. I made a guacamole for this one, but used store-bought salsa. The week before I added pan-cooked mushrooms along with zucchini and mixed bell peppers, this time I skipped them. Green onions (scallions) are great here but this time I used chopped red onion. Plain yoghurt works instead of sour cream and I had some radishes to use up so included those as well. You could use shredded iceberg or another crunchy lettuce but I used a mixed greens variety here. This is a great way to use the taco seasoning (homemade!) I wrote about last week too. 

Here's a list of ingredients to give you some ideas but you can take away or add any you like of course! 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb (or any amount you want) of ground meat - turkey, chicken, beef or pork
• enough lettuce for the number of servings you require
• chopped tomatoes
• chopped or sliced onions - green, white or red
• sliced avocado or guacamole (go here for my recipe)
• lime wedges
• zucchini, chopped
• bell peppers, sliced or chopped
• salsa
• taco seasoning
• sour cream or plain yoghurt

Other ingredients ideas:

• celery, chopped
• radishes, chopped or sliced
• corn, grilled and sliced off, canned or frozen
• carrots, sliced or chopped
• grated cheese
• crumbled tortilla chips

Method:

In an appropriate-sized saucepan cook the ground meat until no longer pink.

Add about two tablespoons (30 ml), more or less according to your taste, of taco seasoning, per pound of meat.

Add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water and simmer until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. 

Meanwhile chop and slice all other ingredients. 

In another saucepan cook all of the vegetables you want to serve cooked (such as zucchini and bell peppers). 

Make the guacamole, prep the lettuce/greens you'll be using as the base (bed) of the dish and place all in an area for everyone to assemble as they wish. 

Once each plate is put together with everything layered, eat right away for the best taste and texture. 

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tasty and easy long weekend eating

I've got a few things up my sleeve to make and get on here to tell you about, but in the interim I thought I'd come up with a list of some ideas I've already written about that might inspire you for the upcoming long weekend (or any weekend for that matter!). 

If it's a little on the chilly side why not try a different twist on your usual chili and try an Asian-inspired version? Or, dream of somewhere exotic and hot like Morocco and whip up some chickpea and turkey meatballs to serve inside pita bread, or alongside some egg noodles, rice, couscous or quinoa. Or make these veggie and turkey meatballs to go inside a pita pocket with some hummous or yoghurt, or alongside a crunchy salad. 

Here are some fun salads I shared with you previously:

Quinoa with Sundried Tomatoes, Chickpeas and Lemon

Sweet Potato, Feta and Tomato Salad

Curried Rice with Celery and Almonds

Here's a tangy and tasty homemade BBQ sauce that can easily double as a sauce over grilled chicken breasts, legs or thighs.

Fish Tacos anyone? 

 

If it's grilling weather for you, here's a few variations on hummous to serve alongside your main course. 

 
Finally, drift off in thought to Hawaii and try this salsa for a tropical variation. 

 

Have a great long weekend and watch out for a few more easy, tasty and fun recipes coming your way.