Ready, Set, Weekend with Simply Beautiful Eating

Yep. Another salad made with everything I had in the fridge. It’s clearly my favourite way to throw together a recipe with only one small hitch. I have to remember what I put INTO the bowl.

From time to time, I find I need to look at the finished photos to piece together the ingredient list. A very non-professional way of recipe development that I’m not proud of admitting.

Thus, the theory that my mom taught me still holds true. A little bit of this and that is always a win win, especially when the end result is as simply beautiful as this.

Alrighty, how is everyone this week? Still pretty darn cold here and our famous groundhog saw his shadow, so six more weeks it is. Ugh. I’m getting tired of the coat, hood and boots and longing for the warmth of summer. I figured if I buy some spring and summer clothes now, the heat may come sooner no matter what that dang groundhog says.

Oh, wait. I have news. Did I tell you that I’m revamping the basement? I think I did. Did I? What’s wrong with me lately? I think I’m over reno’d and my brain has turned to dust.

So, I’m really, really excited about this one. I can’t wait to have my new prop room ready, so I can showcase all the goodies used in my photo shoots.  Much easier than stuffing everything into all spare spaces I have in the house right now.

The basement is now at a point where my husband won’t be selected to be featured on any TLC shows for hoarding. That’s not to say that he still hasn’t hung onto items that are totally not necessary. For instance, yesterday I caught him trying on a VEST that was something one might have worn in the ’70’s. Why does he feel he needs to store this and other items? If you ask him he will say, “you never know when I will need it”. The only way he would need a vest like the one he stashed back into the cupboard is if he was going to a Halloween party as MC HAMMER.

Sorry, we were talking about salad and I got sidetracked for a change. I added so much colour into this by including pomegranates, but you have no idea how much they frighten me. Now, I know what you’re thinking. How can fruit be intimidating? I will tell you. It’s because of the “ALL WHITE FACTOR” in my kitchen. If one of those arils goes flying, it’s a done deal. But colour is everything in this recipe, and they were 100% a prerequisite for this salad. Also included in this bowl of heaven are roasted yellow beets, clementines, green apples, mixed greens, candied pecans and crumbled goat cheese.

Now, by all means, if you’re not into any of the above ingredients, just omit what’s not up your alley. The dressing is so good that you can pour it out of the container  onto a bowl of lettuce and you’re good to go.

I think you have heard me say, we eat with ours eyes first, and looking at this salad you will just want to devour this.

Standard rules of healthy Salad Making 101: B.B.C.B. – Bright, Beautiful, Colourful and BOOM!

WINTER SALAD WITH CRUMBLED GOAT CHEESE & FRUIT

- 4 - 6 cups mixed greens
- 4 small yellow beets, roasted & sliced
- 1 pomegranate, seeded
- 1 granny smith apple, sliced
- 2 clementine oranges, peeled & sliced
- ¼ cup crumbled goat cheese         

• How to roast beets: Preheat oven to 425F. Wash stemmed beets thoroughly and wrap tightly in tin foil. Bake 45 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly, and peel with your fingers. The skin should just slip off easily.
• Add all ingredients to a serving bowl and toss with dressing (recipe below)

ASIAN BLACKBERRY VINAIGRETTE

- 1 cup blackberries (use fresh or frozen, if using frozen make sure you thaw them first and drain liquid)
- ¼ cup water
- ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey, maple syrup or agave
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 small clove of garlic, minced
- salt and pepper to taste

1.    Combine the blackberries and water in a food processor or blender.

2.    Process until the berries are pureed then press the berries through a fine sieve to strain out the seeds.

3.    Combine the berry puree with the remaining ingredients in a tightly lidded container and shake well. Season to taste and add salt and pepper.