Older Bolder Life

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Recipe: Salads

the Older Bolder Life Salad Monday: Quick Cucumber Mint Salad

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Now that summer has arrived, or is at least knocking on the door for most of us, we start digging through the digital recipe box for cool, crisp, and interesting salads to accompany the grilled proteins that the summer season demands.

A friend served this Quick Cucumber Mint Salad to us a few weeks back, and my wife and I both pestered her for the recipe before the night was out. This one really is a quick prep; you’re mainly slicing and spicing, with an hour or so of resting the salted cucumbers and onions along the way.

The fresh mint adds a wonderful burst of flavor (and interest), and we like this one just as much without the honey or maple syrup – try it both ways…

3 English cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp kosher salt, more to taste
1 bunch (small) fresh mint leaves
1/3 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
2-3 tbsp avocado or extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1-2 tsp. Honey or maple syrup, optional

Combine the sliced cucumbers and red onion in a medium bowl; sprinkle with 2 tsp of salt, stir to mix well, cover and throw in the fridge for an hour.

Remove from the fridge and drain in a colander, pushing down gently on the mixture to express as much water as possible.

Place in a clean bowl, add the mint leaves, and drizzle with the vinegar and oil of choice; add the pepper, honey or maple syrup if using, and salt to taste, Stir gently and go to it.

Enjoy.

The Older Bolder Life Salad Monday: Red Pepper Cashew Dressing

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A friend recently dined at Lalito in NYC and fell in love with several of the nut-based salad dressings they offer there; she did a bit of investigating and charmed this ingredient list (since adjusted and tweaked) out of one of the staff.

This Red Pepper Cashew Dressing brings together several flavor combinations you don’t often find together, such as cashews and fish sauce and cashews and garlic for example, but it just works, and works really well.

Being long-time fans of a spicy Thai-styled peanut sauce for years, we like this one spiced up with the red pepper flakes, but you don’t have to go overboard with the heat. Leave out the honey if you wish, but it does add just a hint of sweetness that rounds out the flavor package nicely.

3/4 cup roasted, salted cashews/cashew pieces
6 tbsp avocado or mild olive oil
1/3 cup water (or just a bit more)
1-2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp good fish sauce
1 tsp honey
1 large garlic clove
Salt to taste

Add everything but the salt to your trusty blender or food processor, blend/process until smooth and creamy, noting that you may need just a bit more water.

Taste and adjust the seasonings, we nearly always add more salt and red pepper flakes.

Hold in the fridge if not using immediately.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Salad Monday: Creamy Italian Salad Dressing

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Growing up in the generation I did, salad dressings were something you bought at the grocery off the shelf featuring the half dozen or so Kraft flavors that dominated the selections back in the day. As many of the commercially prepared, mass-marketed dressings today, in those days these ubiquitous dressings were built around franken oils and overly-processed, far from fresh ingredients.

To be honest, I can’t ever remember anyone making their own salad dressing at home, unless it was the homemade Catalina version based on a can of Campbell’s tomato soup, canola oil, vinegar, and a handful of sugar (gaaaack).

Even nearly three decades ago when we were starting our own family, making salad dressing at home wasn’t really on our radar, though as a young family we did enjoy the salads at an (in)famous Italian chain restaurant.

Back several years ago I was helping a friend prepare for a large birthday party event, at which the guest of honor had apparently insisted that the menu include a “salad just like at Olive Garden”. My friend was a fairly experienced and crafty home cook, and my task was to help her develop a dressing that would duplicate the flavors requested using healthier and fresh ingredients.

A bit of research and a day of trial and error yielded this recipe, which we’ve continued to reach for to this day. When we first compiled this recipe, we typically added a teaspoon or two of honey to the recipe, though as our tastes have evolved over the past couple of years, we don’t anymore, preferring to enjoy the herbal goodness of the fresh spices instead.

And for those who want their dressing a little creamier, just add your healthy mayo a tablespoon at a time until you have it just right.

5 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp avocado or olive oil mayonnaise
1 medium garlic clove, finely grated
Oregano: 1 tbsp + 1 tsp chopped fresh OR 1 and ½ tsp dried
Parsley: 1 tbsp + 1 tsp chopped fresh OR 1 and ½ tsp dried
Thyme: 1 tsp chopped fresh OR ¼ tsp dried
1 tsp onion powder
Good salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

½ cup avocado or extra virgin olive oil

Optional
1-2 tsp of sweetener of choice, see note

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a small bowl or lidded jar, stir or shake to combine. Now whisk in (or pour into shaker jar) the oil of choice until well emulsified; adjust spices, salt, and pepper to taste.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Salad Wednesday: Primal Green Bean Nicoise Salad with Tuna and Crispy Sweet Potatoes

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Like many of you, we’re always on the search for new and interesting salads, slaws, and other ways to enjoy lots of colorful, healthy, and tasty vegetables.

Here’s a nifty primal / paleo spin on a classic, what we’re now calling our Primal Green Bean Nicoise Salad with Tuna and Crispy Sweet Potatoes. The sweet potatoes are subbed in for the baby russets or red potatoes in the classic version, and you’ll use eggs from pastured chickens, healthy oil in the dressing, add a burst of lemon, fresh dill, and radishes (use several varieties for interest, taste, and color). It’s also a piece of cake to crumble some wild caught canned tuna onto this one to up the protein component and add some wonderful flavor to the dish, though you don’t absolutely have to have it.

Three quick thoughts on this recipe: One, consider prepping and cooking the sweet potatoes, eggs, and green beans ahead of time; then chill and hold (separately) in the fridge until ready to put the salad together. This recipe at first glance seems a bit complicated, but in reality, it’s really not at all, and by following the sequence I’ve laid it, it flows very well. Doing a little cooking ahead will just shorten your assembly time later in the day.

Two, the dressing is outrageously good, consider making a double recipe and holding for other salads this week. And three, the crispy capers (pictured below) sounded a little fussy to me at first, though they’re incredibly simple to prepare, and really add a nifty taste and texture element to this one.

My lovely wife enjoyed this one so much, she’s insisting it become a standard in our summer rotation…

1 medium sweet potato, cut into 1-inch thick slices
4-5 pastured eggs
1 and 1/2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and washed

For the dressing
1 medium shallot, trimmed, and minced
3 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp + 1 tsp good Dijon mustard
2 tsp honey or maple syrup
2 tsp fresh lemon zest
2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1/4 tsp good salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or avocado oil)

To finish the salad
1-2 bunches breakfast (or other) radishes, trimmed, larger ones quartered
1/2 cup or more Nicoise or Kalamata olives, pitted, halved if large
1/4 cup capers, drained, crisped in pan (see below)
1-2 cans wild caught tuna, drained, crumbled
1 tbsp (or more) fresh dill, chopped

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; prep the sweet potato and greens beans while waiting.

Parboil the sweet potato slices for 10-12 minutes until a fork penetrates easily; remove from the water, drain, and cut into medium dice when cool enough to handle. Sauté in butter, avocado, or olive oil until edges are crispy and browned, then set aside to cool (when cool hold in fridge).

When the sweet potato comes out, drop the eggs into the boiling water and boil for eight minutes for perfectly jammy yolks (or longer to suit you); when done, drop into an ice-water bath, then peel when cool.

When the eggs come out, bring the water back to a full boil, then cook the green beans 2-4 minutes until bright green and crisp-tender; remove immediately to an ice-water bath, chill for 5-7 minutes, drain, and pat dry.

If you haven’t during the cooking sequence above, whisk the dressing ingredients together, save for the olive oil, which is poured slowly in a steady stream while whisking away. Set aside in the fridge.

If using the crispy capers, and you should, pat the capers dry, then sauté in 2 tbsp of the oil of your choice over moderate heat until they being pop and get brown and crispy. Set aside.

To assemble the salad, begin by drizzling roughly 1/3 of the dressing over the green beans in a large bowl, toss to coat, then arrange on a large platter. Repeat with the potato pieces and then the radishes, using 1 tbsp of dressing for each in the same bowl you tossed the green beans in, and arranging each artfully on the platter.

Quarter the eggs; place the eggs and the olives on the green bean bed, then place the tuna as well . Now drizzle the salad with the remaining dressing, top with the crispy capers, and finally the remaining fresh dill.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Salad Wednesday: The Texas Mini-Wedge Salad with Buttermilk Sour Cream Dressing

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I’ve shared in many a recipe post here on the Older Bolder Life about growing up in the South; the South has a wonderful food culture and history and boasts some of the hottest and most innovative food scenes in the country (Houston, NOLA, Atlanta, and Charleston to name a few).

Much of what I remember eating during my childhood and early adulthood was truly simple yet delicious Texan and Southern fare, like great low-and-slow BBQ, fresh-off-the-boat Gulf seafood, mouth-watering Tex-Mex, and even iconic sides like the Texas Wedge Salad.

Nostalgia-invoking powers aside, there’s nothing very fancy about a classic Texas-style wedge salad – it’s a literal wedge of cold, crisp iceberg lettuce, classically drenched in some version of Ranch dressing, with crumbled bacon, fresh-cracked pepper, and if you were dining in a place that was really uptown, maybe even some blue cheese crumbles too.

We still serve up a wedge salad now and again around our camp, but now do this Texas Mini-Wedge Salad with Buttermilk Sour Cream Dressing, topped with bacon, avocado pieces, toasted pepitas or pecans, and some of that “uptown” crumbled blue cheese. You can see from the image that this one perhaps isn’t the “prettiest” salad you’ll serve this week, but it very well might be the tastiest.

Cutting a head of crispy iceberg lettuce into 8 wedges instead of 4 makes this salad easier to manage on the plate and lets more of the tangy, lemony buttermilk sour cream dressing coat everything. By the time you trim a head of lettuce down and remove the wilted outer leaves, you’ll probably want to count on a head of lettuce serving two hungry diners.

A recipe of Buttermilk Sour Cream Dressing
4-8 pieces of thick-sliced bacon, fried crisp, drained and crumbled

2 tight, medium heads of iceberg lettuce, root-end trimmed, wilted leaves removed
2 medium, firm avocados, cut in wedges
1 bunch fresh chives, but into 3/4” pieces
Good salt and fresh-cracked coarse pepper

Optional
Roughly 1/2 cup of toasted pepitas or pecans
Handful of grape or cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup or so of good crumbled blue cheese
Lemon quarters for squeezing

Prep the dressing (hold in the fridge); fry the bacon, crumble, and set aside.

Prep the lettuce, cut into quarters, then cut each quarter into 1/8-head wedges. Cut each mini-wedge crosswise into 2 to 3 inch pieces, and plate artfully. Drop a few tomatoes in if using.

Work a few avocado wedges among the lettuce on each place, drizzle with dressing, then top with the toasted nuts, chives, and blue cheese if using. Spritz with a lemon quarter and go to it.

Enjoy.

Recipe Update: Thai Inspired Celery Salad

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Like most of you, we love to fiddle around with recipes in the kitchen, and we’re constantly tweaking most of our recipes around the edges, just trying to make them a little bit better.

Here’s a great example, our Thai Inspired Celery Salad that I posted back in November. Our buddy Chef Libby in Austin suggested trying it with another dressing (rice wine vinegar, organic toasted sesame oil, crushed red chile flakes, with good salt and pepper). We whipped that up yesterday to accompany a couple of grass-fed ribeyes, and it was delightful.

Never be afraid of fiddling around with a recipe to suit your (or your family’s) palate, or what happens to be in the fridge or pantry today – you might just craft something magical.

Updated recipe options at the link above.

the Older Bolder Life Salad Monday: Naomi B’s Greek Salad

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This salad has been part of our family food lexicon for the better part of three decades now, and is still one of our all time favorites in the rotation.

We first had this salad served to us by friends John and Naomi one summer evening, sitting out on their stone patio with a stream running not 15 feet away, with lamb kabobs roasting on the grill nearby. It was a part of one of those magical meals you remember for a long, long time, and we’ve often recreated it at home.

John was a practice partner, mentor, and fly fishing and woodworking compadre for many years; he and I launched the first practice of its kind in Utah back in the day, and spent many an hour grinding it out and developing our systems. John was a true gentleman; quick to laugh, impressively bright, and a great communicator in a relaxed, folksy sort of way.

Naomi and John lived up a little side canyon off the main Ogden Canyon along the Wasatch Front, on a little level bench with a year-round creek running through it; he had an amazing woodworking shop in the old barn on the property.

This salad is great anytime of the year, though when the freshest produce graces your favorite farmers market – or better yet your own garden – it’s outrageously good. By the way, we almost always add more dill and olives, and using a fresh slab of feta (we used a Bulgarian sheep’s milk feta this week) makes it even better.

And as always, you can fiddle and adjust the recipe to suit your (family’s) palate as you wish.

4-5 medium-sized firm-ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges, OR
2 big handfuls of grape tomatoes, various colors
3-5 garden cucumbers, peeled, cut into 1/4-inch slices
2 green bell peppers, trimmed, cut into 1/4-inch slices
2 red bell peppers, trimmed, cut into 1/4-inch slices
6-8 green onions with tops, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
30-40 good Kalamata olives
6 anchovy fillets, drained, rinsed, smashed or chopped
1/2 lb (or more) good feta cheese, crumbled small

The dressing
1/2 cup avocado or EV olive oil
5-6 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup fresh dill, snipped (at least this much, likely more)
1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp fresh oregano
1/2 tsp good salt (or more)
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper (or more)

This one couldn’t be easier. Prepare and combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl, then toss to combine. Add the crumbled feta last, then toss gently once again.

In a small canning jar (or your favorite shaker) combine the dressing ingredients and shake well until emulsified. Pour over the salad, toss to evenly coat, and taste – you may want more dill or need to adjust the seasonings.

Best served pretty much immediately, though this salad is amazing for 24 hours or more.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Feast Salad Sunday 13 January: Homemade Catalina Dressing

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I’d venture that if you’re like most of us, if you’ll take the time to truly remember and be absolutely honest about it, you’ll have certain foods that graced your childhood table that seem to be indelibly etched into your memory. (There’s some genuine physiology at play there – taste is critically dependent upon the sense of smell, and certain smells are often tightly bound to unique memories…).

One of those remembered foods for me, as strange as it might seem, was the bright red bottle of Catalina salad dressing, probably a Kraft product and no doubt made in part with the cheapest seed oil available on the market at the time. The dressing was tomatoey, slightly sweet, and dominated by a burst of mouth-puckering acidity.

To be honest, I have no idea why that particular flavor combination resonated so persistently for me; we in reality weren’t big salad eaters in my early childhood. I do seem to recall the family or friends occasionally shaking up a version (in a mason or mayonnaise jar of course) which was based on a can of tomato soup.

Especially while our kids were still at home, no one in my own family adopted my taste for this dressing; despite their disinterest I’ve kept an eye out for a recipe with the same tang and rich tomatoey goodness that I’ve held out as the ideal from days gone past.

We’ve revisited several recipes for Homemade Catalina Dressing over the years, most of which were close but not the one I was looking for. This one is probably the closest I found, and is based on the unsweetened version of the ketchup posted a week ago.

There’s a nice burst of acidity from the red wine vinegar, and of course the spices can be dialed up to suit you. It keeps a bit longer if you use the onion powder by the way, and allows you to shake it up in a jar just like your Mom may have done back in the day.

Two other notes; one, as with just about every recipe we post, adding a small amount of the sweetener of your choice is optional. As our palate has changed over the past few years, we do without and relish the other flavors. And two, using a full-flavored, good extra virgin olive oil here can overpower the tomato flavors – I like to use avocado oil for half or two thirds of the oil…

1/3 c Older Bolder Ketchup No. 1
1/3 c red wine vinegar
1/2-1 tsp onion powder or 1/4 c finely chopped onion
1/2-1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2/3 c oil of choice
Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: honey/maple syrup to taste (start with just a tsp!)

This one couldn’t be easier. Combine all ingredients in your trusty blender, a jar, or a bowl. Then blend / shake / whisk until combine and emulsified. Adjust seasonings and mix one final time. Keeps in the fridge (note comment about the onion flavor above) for at least a week.

Enjoy.