Simply Cilantro Salad Dressing

One of the last things I did before my second cilantro plant bolted, was to make a simple dressing with it. A simply delicious dressing. If you are one of the many people that don't like cilantro, you probably won't find this tasty in the least. The rest of us, who do like cilantro... will love it.

Simply Cilantro Salad Dressing

Adapted from: simplefoodhealthylife

1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 garlic cloves
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1 bunch/handful cilantro
1/2 tsp ground pepper
sea salt to taste

Mix everything but the salt together in a food processor. Taste the dressing, then start adding the salt, a 1/4 tsp at a time, tasting as you go. When you're happy with it, transfer the dressing to a bottle or jar and store in the fridge. It should keep at least a couple of weeks.

Notes: We've been using this on lots more than just salads... tacos, quesadillas, even omelets and baked potatoes. It's great for a bright little touch of flavor almost anywhere.

Maya's Quinoa Salad

When I first saw this salad late last May, I couldn't wait to make it. But while the calender said it was virtually summer, we were still being rained on and ripe tomatoes were months away. All summer I have impatiently waited for both good weather and the perfect occasion to make this salad. Last weekend was it: sunny and warm, and our cherry tomatoes* were at their peak. The salad was not only worth the wait, but I think it tasted even better the next day.

Click on over to the lovely Maya*Made blog for this super healthy Quinoa Salad recipe, and if you're feeling a little crafty, make a few of Maya's Picnic Bowl Scrunchies too... they're fun, easy, and the perfect thing for potlucks and picnics!

My Notes: Used red quinoa. Shredded the carrots instead of dicing them. Zested the limes before juicing them for the dressing. Added the lime zest, a splash of basil oil and a couple cloves of minced garlic to the dressing. 

Here are some other quinoa recipes that look good...

• A tasty Quinoa Salad (plus tips and ideas for hot weather meals) at Peace Love & Muesli
• Seven Quinoa Recipes from The Kitchn
• Sweet Potato and Quinoa Salad from Mark Bittman
• Quinoa Tabbouleh also from The Kitchn... one of my favorite salads made even healthier 
• Quinoa and Avocado Salad with Dried Fruit, Toasted Almonds, and Lemon-Cumin Vinaigrette at FineCooking.com

Pronounce it: Quinoa = KEEN-wah 
*"Sun Gold" cherry tomatoes... little bursts of sunshine. Even this year, this very weird-weathered year, they out-produced all the other tomatoes we planted.

Whole-Citrus Vinaigrette

The flavors in this salad dressing recipe bring to my mind the words "sunshine" and "summer". Not exactly sure why. Citrus fruits are actually a winter crop, and their bright bursting flavors are the perfect foil for all those hearty winter foods that we tend to prefer during the cold months.

But what about spring and autumn? Citrus flavors are complimentary to the foods we eat at those times also. Indeed, citrus flavors seem to be at home in any season. Perhaps growing up in the southwest (longer growing season, virtually no winter) is what makes me think of citrus as season-less. Now that I live farther north, I am more aware of the seasonality of things (and the cost of buying things out of season). Thankfully, I'm a quick learner and don't require annual snowfall in order to gain this valuable awareness.

As you can imagine, I was delighted to learn that Meyer lemons bear fruit year round. I'd never even heard of a Meyer lemon before I moved here. A lemon was a lemon. A Eureka lemon to be exact. Well, my little dwarf Meyer lemon tree on the patio now has a dozen or so golf ball sized green fruits on it and is still pumping out flowers. The blossoms smell insanely sweet and my mind reels at the thought of thousands of full grown potted citrus trees inside the Orangerie at Versailles* circa 18th century France. It must've been intoxicating. Yep, it's good to be the king (at least until the peasants find out what you've been up too).

Just reading this very simple salad dressing recipe from the Napa Style website made my mouth water. Add some grilled chicken to either of these salads and call it dinner (whatever the season).

• Mixed Greens Salad with Whole Citrus Vinaigrette
• Raw Corn, Arugula, and Pecorino Salad
  

*Read more about the history of orangeries. Check out this flickr slideshow for views inside the Versailles Orangerie, then go to this web page for some great photos of the Parterre Sud (south garden in front of the Orangerie) where the trees live during the more temperate times of the year. Lucky trees. I do wonder how they managed before the forklift was invented though. Oh, and just in case you were curious... what the heck is a parterre?