Category:  Salads

When I created this recipe I was in the mood to fine-tune brown rice into something exciting. I combined organic brown rice, colorful bell peppers, onions, carrots, lime juice, olive oil and white Balsamic vinegar. It’s vegan, too!

This “speckled” brown rice salad makes for a perfect side dish at our upcoming barbecue on Labor Day weekend. Have fun!

Cook time (rice): 25 to 35 minutes
Prep time (chopping ingredients): 10 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:
1 cup raw, organic, long grain rice
1-3/4 cups water
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper or Pasilla pepper
3 green onions, cut into thin circles (including light green stems)
1 tablespoon white Balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1 lime or lemon
salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. In a 12-inch, nonstick skillet, combine the rice and water. Cover and bring rice to a boil.

2. When rice comes to a boil, lower heat to simmer and stir the rice once.

3. Cover the rice and simmer for 25 to 35 minutes or until rice is al dente or crunchy-tender.

4. When rice is cooked it will be puffy and dry. Immediately transfer it to a glass or porcelain bowl.

5. Gently stir 1 tablespoon olive oil into the rice.

6. Set rice aside to cool for 10 minutes.

7. After 10 minutes, gently stir remaining ingredients into the rice. Taste and, if needed, adjust seasonings.
Text and Photograph ©2015 Nancy DeLucia Real

These days, the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market and other farmers’ markets in California provide us with fresh, seasonal cauliflower. Cauliflower is high in Vitamin C, low in carbs and fat and rich in dietary fiber. The longer cauliflower is cooked, the more its nutritional value dissipates. Therefore, it is recommended to cook this vegetable until it is barely “al dente” or crunchy-tender.

 
Prep time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6 (as a side dish)

Try this exciting cauliflower salad, flavored with olive oil, lemon, bits of fresh oranges, raisins and fresh oregano. Serve it at a barbecue, lunch or dinner this summer. Vegan or not, they’ll all chow down this colorful, healthy salad in minutes!

Ingredients:
One cauliflower head, leaves removed & discarded and white florets separated into 2-inch chunks
3 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lime or lemon
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1 orange, peeled, rind removed and fruit cut into 1-/4-inch pieces
3 tablespoons white or dark raisins
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves

Directions:
1. Place the cauliflower florets in a 4-quart saucepot; barely cover with cold water.

2. Cover the sauce pot and bring the cauliflower to a boil.

3. Boil the cauliflower for approximately 2 minutes.

4. After 2 minutes, pierce one cauliflower floret with a fork to check for tenderness. Do not overcook the cauliflower.

5. If fork resists piercing, it means the cauliflower is still raw. If needed, cook for an additional 1 or 2 minutes.

6. After 1 minutes, check doneness of cauliflower with fork and/or taste it. The cauliflower should be “al dente” or crunchy-tender.

7. Drain the cauliflower in a colander set over a sink. Let it cool slightly, for 5 minutes.

8. After 5 minutes, transfer the drained cauliflower to a glass or porcelain serving bowl.

9. Add the olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper, raisins and fresh oregano leaves. Stir to combine.

10. Taste the cauliflower salad and adjust seasonings, if needed.
Text and Photograph ©2015 Nancy DeLucia Real

Sometimes I just don’t know where my tastebuds are headed – do I want sweet or savory foods? Maybe I want both. For this salad, I used three types of melon: cantaloup, honeydew and watermelon. Then, I added red onion, lime juice, salt, pepper and Feta cheese. The flavors in this salad definitely satisfy a sweet or savory palate. Enjoy this refreshing salad all summer long!

Prep time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients:
1 cup red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 to 1/3 cup lime juice
1-1/2 cups diced cantaloup
1-1/2 cups diced honeydew melon
1-1/2 cups diced watermelon
1 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
salt, to taste (if needed)

Directions:
1. Place the sliced red onion in a bowl with lime juice; set aside for 5 minutes.

2. After 5 minutes and in a separate bowl, combine the diced melons with red onion and slightly toss.

3. Top the melon and onion with Feta cheese and black pepper. Taste.

4. If needed, add a little salt (1/4 teaspoon); taste again. Adjust seasonings and serve immediately.

5. This salad pairs well with fish or poultry.
Photograph & Text 2015 Nancy DeLucia Real

Prep time: 20 to 25 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6 (as a side dish)

How many of you love lentils? FYI, lentils been around for about 13,000 years and are an important staple o the Mediterranean diet. You can find different varieties of lentils that range in color – orange, brown, black, yellow and green.

For this recipe, I prefer the green variety. After cooking for a few minutes, the lentils are combined with tomatoes, garlic, parsley and olive oil. Pretty healthy, right? Check it out…

Ingredients:
4 medium tomatoes
1 medium yellow or white onion
2 cloves garlic
3 to 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces green lentils, soaked in cold water for 3 to 4 hours
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped Italian, flat-leaf parsley

Directions:
1. Cut tomatoes in half; discard seeds and pulp.

2. Chop tomato flesh into ¼-inch pieces; set them aside in a small bowl.

3. Finely chop the onion; set it aside in a separate bowl.

4. Peel the garlic cloves and split them open; remove & discard the hearts.

5. Using a garlic crusher, crush the garlic over the chopped onion in bowl; set aside.

6. In a 12-inch skillet, heat 3 to 4 tablespoons of the olive oil (do not let it smoke).

7. Using a wood spoon, stir in the chopped onions and garlic mixture.

8. Stir fry the onion-garlic mixture over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until onions are translucent.

9. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

10. Meanwhile, drain the soaked lentils in a colander; add them to the tomato mixture in skillet.

11. Cover the lentil mixture with cold water.

12. Bring the lentil mixture to a boil and cook it for 15 to 20 minutes on medium heat (it should simmer-boil). Stir occasionally.

13. After 15 minutes, stir in the salt and pepper; taste the lentils. If lentils are a little raw, cook them for an additional 5 minutes.

14. After 5 minutes, taste the lentils and adjust seasonings. They should be cooked. If not, cook lentils 2 to 4 minutes longer.

15. Transfer the cooked lentil mixture to a colander set over a bowl.

16. Let the lentils drain and cool for about 30 minutes.

17. After 30 minutes, transfer the lentil salad to a porcelain or glass bowl; stir in the chopped parsley. Taste and, if preferred, add a little more olive oil.

18. Serve this lentil salad as a side dish to chicken, meat or fish. Alternatively, it can be served alongside other vegetables.

Text & Photograph of Lentil & Tomato Salad ©2014 Nancy DeLucia Real
Photograph of Lentil Varieties ©2014 en.wikipedia.org

During the winter months, we either eat comfort foods that are super-rich or we grab snacks that turn into extra pounds very quickly.

To get back into a low-fat regime, try this delicious cucumber salad. The cucumbers are marinated in distilled vinegar, water and honey. This Marinated Cucumber Salad takes just a few minutes to prepare. It’s a non-fat recipe and you can also enjoy it as an appetizer or a snack.

Prep time: 10 to 15 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients:

1 cup cold water
1/2 cup distilled vinegar
3 tablespoons honey
3/4 to 1 teaspoon salt
Dash ground black pepper
8 to 10 Persian cucumbers
1 medium carrot
1/2 cup thinly-sliced red onion, soaked in cold water and squeezed dry

Directions:

1. In a 2-quart glass or porcelain bowl, whisk together the water, vinegar, honey, salt and black pepper; set aside.

2. Meanwhile, rinse the cucumbers in cold water. Cut off and discard cucumber tips.

3. Peel the cucumbers and slice them into 1/8-inch thick circles.

4. Add the cucumber circles to the marinade in bowl; set aside.

5. In the meantime, rinse the carrot in cold water. Cut off and discard tips.

6. Peel the carrot and slice it into 1/8-inch thick circles.

7. Add the carrot slices to the cucumbers in bowl.

8. Add the drained onion slices to the cucumber mixture in bowl.

9. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

10. Refrigerate the cucumber salad for 2 hours – this will allow time for marinating the salad.

11. At serving time, drain the salad and transfer it to a serving bowl or platter.

12. Serve Marinated Cucumber Salad immediately.

Note: Should the Marinated Cucumber Salad stay in refrigerator overnight, the cucumbers will become soft and watery.

Text and Photograph ©2014 Nancy DeLucia Real