Archive for the 'salad' Category

Braised Cauliflower and Puy Lentil Tabouleh

Published by Lucina, on 3 settembre 2017 in Cucina regionale, English Recipes, healthy eating, salad, vegetables, vegetarian and Verdure. 1 Comment Tags: , , , .
braised cauliflower and puy lentils tabouleh

braised cauliflower and puy lentil tabouleh

Calling all vegetarians and vegans out there. This is an AMAZING tabouleh which I have made twice already in the last couple of weeks. Packed full of wholesome ingredients and really bursting with flavour. I know it might sound like a bit of a faff, by looking at all the ingredients, but it is so much worth it. Don’t be scared and have a go. You won’t regret it. It comes from the vegan recipe book Peace and Parsnips  by Lee Watson. I will have to check out his other recipes, considering how good this one is. If you want to cook something healthy today or vary your salads repertoire look no further. Continue reading ‘Braised Cauliflower and Puy Lentil Tabouleh’

Puy lentil salad with roasted vegetables

Published by Lucina, on 30 dicembre 2016 in English Recipes, salad, vegetables, vegetarian and Verdure. 0 Comments
Puy lentil salad with roasted vegetables

Puy lentil salad with roasted vegetables

Time to blog something healthy. I fear we have had too many calory laden things lately. As I was entertaining guests for Christmas I made this gorgeous salad courtesy of the  cookery book which my son’s lovely girlfriend kindly gave me for Christmas to add to my collection. Thank you Lucy!! It is called “Mildreds, the cookbook” and it is basically the recipe book of this vegetarian restaurant in London called…surprise, surprise, Mildreds (which is fab, by the way).  The book is full of really interesting, mouth watering vegetarian recipes. I can see me blogging more recipes from it. The good thing about this super healthy  salad is that you can eat it hot or cold and you can add goat’s cheese or feta cheese  to it, if you wish, thus making it a complete meal. I will definitely make it again. I didn’t follow the recipe religiously as I didn’t have all the vegetables, however I am sure there is room for variation. This is definitely something I shall make again…. Here is the original recipe, straight from the book. Continue reading ‘Puy lentil salad with roasted vegetables’

Broccoli, feta and sundried tomato salad

Published by Lucina, on 28 giugno 2015 in English Recipes, salad, vegetarian and Verdure. 0 Comments
broccoli, feta cheese and sun dried tomato salad

broccoli, feta and sundried tomato salad

You must be impressed with me considering the amount of healthy stuff I have been blogging recently. Not a cake in sight for ages! What’s wrong with me, eh? Mind you don’t be fooled into believing I haven’t EATEN any cakes! I haven’t tried any new ones lately, that’s all. Anyway,  to continue in this healthy frame of mind here is a new salad I made last week, which was packed with flavours and one I am happy to share. Definitely a nice change from your average lettuce, tomato and cucumber salad. The original one, from the Cookie and Kate blog I have already mentioned, is made using raw broccoli but I thought they would be too difficult to digest so I parboiled them for a minute and a half. Still plenty of crunch but easier on the old digestive system. You can substitute the feta cheese with black olives if you wish it to be dairy free. Continue reading ‘Broccoli, feta and sundried tomato salad’

Red rice salad with grilled vegetables and toasted almonds

Published by Lucina, on 18 gennaio 2015 in English Recipes, salad and vegetarian. 5 Comments Tags: , , .
red rice salad with grilled vegetables

red rice salad with grilled vegetables and toasted almonds

Yes, my dear Candi! Another healthy recipe from me. I really must stop and blog a highly calorific cake instead. I am getting kind of boring. The thing is  I wanted to introduce to the community of amateur cooks like myself a recipe taken from a very interesting new book I got at Christmas called Persiana by Sabrina Ghayour. As the title suggests these are all recipes from the Middle East, and beyond (apparently). The recipes all look very colourful and appealing. Mouth wateringly so. The only snag sometimes is getting hold of the ingredients. You would struggle to find some of them in your local supermarket. For example in this recipe one of the ingredients was dried barberries. EH? I have heard of many berries but barberries have never crossed my culinary path. I wouldn’t have a clue what they look like. Anyway, no harm done. I used cranberries instead and very successfully too. This dish would make a vegetarian person very happy. It’s healthy, it’s tasty. What more can anyone wish for? Continue reading ‘Red rice salad with grilled vegetables and toasted almonds’

Pseudo panzanella di avocado e melone

Published by Candida, on 24 maggio 2014 in Antipasti, sfizi, finger food..., Chiacchiere/Chatting, Ricette in Italiano, salad and vegetarian. 1 Comment Tags: , , , .

Capita di non essere a casa, di vivere qualche giorno alla settimana  da soli in un piccolo appartamento da studente. Mangi panini o insalate al bar ecc. Questa è una alternativa veloce e sana che aiuta a smaltire l’inevitabile pane avanzato. Quasi ho pudore a postarla tanto è scontata, ma magari serve da promemoria a qualcuno.

Continue reading ‘Pseudo panzanella di avocado e melone’

Spelt salad with feta cheese and crudités

Published by Lucina, on 7 settembre 2013 in English Recipes and salad. 0 Comments

Spelt salad with feta cheese and crudités

This is a lovely salad that you could make with rice, pearl barley, cous cous or, like in this case, spelt. In truth in a salad you can put anything you want (within reasons) but very often one tends to use the same old things. But there is no need to be boring! This particular salad is very filling and, apparently, very good for you (particular for the  the old intestines) as spelt is a super grain which has many health properties and it is easier to digest than other whole grains. I simply cooked the spelt then added what I had available. You could try different things, of course. Mozzarella instead of feta, or different raw vegetables. Whatever you put I’m sure it would work.  Continue reading ‘Spelt salad with feta cheese and crudités’

Avocado, kiwi and blue cheese salad with toasted seeds and nuts

Published by Lucina, on 30 luglio 2013 in Antipasti, sfizi, finger food..., English Recipes and salad. 3 Comments Tags: , , .

avocado, blue cheese and kiwi salad

Hello everyone I’m finally back from my holidays in the Italian Dolomites. I really had forgotten just how beautiful they are!!! I must make a point of going there more regularly than I have done of late. Last time we visisted those beautiful mountains was over 20 years ago! While I was there, aided by the stunning weather, I did lots of amazing walks, one of them with a lovely ex student of mine and expert climber-Lynne- who coincidentally was in the same area at the same time.  Also, and more importantly for this blog, I tried lots of interesting tyrolean dishes some of which I intend to blog as soon as I have got rid of the excess weight I gained. :-( But how can you not feast on those lovely strudels and canederli  when you are on holiday? You can’t, is the answer but then you have to deal with the consequences which is nearly two extra kilos in my case (and my husband’s!). It would have been even more if we hadn’t gone for punishing walks, I’m sure. ARGH!… Anyway, to cut a long story short I’m back in the UK and on a strict(ish) diet. Continue reading ‘Avocado, kiwi and blue cheese salad with toasted seeds and nuts’

Giant cous cous with green beans and apricots

Published by Lucina, on 25 ottobre 2012 in English Recipes, salad and vegetarian. 1 Comment

giant cous cous with apricots and green beans

I LOVE cous cous and I often make it as a salad, with different ingredients (you can basically put anything you want in it and it always tastes nice). I have been making it more and more ever since we went to Marrakesh (remember, dear Candi???). Sometimes I just serve it plain with some flaked almonds,  pomegranate and fresh coriander to accompany a maroccan stew or tagine. Yummy! Last time I was shopping I spotted a box of giant cous cous on the shelf. I was intrigued so I bought it and had a go at cooking it. I really liked it as it has more of a bite than normal cous cous. It was even nicer the day after as all the flavours had more of a chance to  blend together and develop. Continue reading ‘Giant cous cous with green beans and apricots’

Quinoa, grilled vegetables and feta cheese salad

Published by Lucina, on 28 agosto 2012 in salad and vegetarian. 1 Comment

quinoa, grilled vegetables and feta cheese salad

Candi, I don’t know if you are familiar with quinoa or whether it is known in Italy but this grain is fast becoming a popular super food here in the UK. I confess I had never heard of it until a couple of years ago but now I am a convert and try to use it regularly, albeit not  enough as I ought to. For example I sometimes  use it in soups to make them a bit thicker and to give them a bit of a bite but also, more importantly, as an added source of protein (which soups lack) of which quinoa is rich in. If you are not familiar with quinoa it is considered one of the healthiest, most nutritional grains you can get. And it’s gluten free! It originally comes from the Andes. It used to be consumed by the Incas population and was considered to be food from the gods. I’ve done my research on its health properties and there are many! As well as having a high protein content (which makes it ideal to use in a vegetarian diet) quinoa is also packed full of essential minerals and vitamins, particularly vitamin B. It has internal cleansing properties and helps to regulate bowel functions. You boil it  like rice  and once it’s cooked (I warn you: it looks like frog spawn at this stage and doesn’t taste particularly nice!) you can use it in many different ways.  It’s ideal in salads and can be used where you would use cous cous or bulgar wheat, which is basically what I have done here. I addedd feta cheese for some extra interest but if you are on a dairy free diet you could easily do without it. Continue reading ‘Quinoa, grilled vegetables and feta cheese salad’

Roasted red peppers and grilled goat cheese salad

Published by Lucina, on 10 agosto 2012 in salad. 1 Comment

roasted red peppers and grilled goat cheese salad

During my latest holiday in Corsica (if you haven’t been on this splendid island I suggest you put it on your bucket list. It’s a fantastic place and relatively unspoilt. Truly beautiful!)  it came to my mind I used to do this particular salad a lot in the past albeit I hadn’t done it for quite some time. I don’t know about you, Candi, but I’m cyclical in the way I cook. I might do a particular dish a lot for a while then all of a sudden I get fed up and it disappears from the menu….until something happens or someone says something and I remember it again, sometimes years later.  And that’s what happened with this salad. I noticed that in Corsica salad  with grilled goat cheese seems to be a very common starter. And lovely it is too, by the way. So I decided the time had come to resurrect it. It really is delicious and if you are vegetarian you can leave off the grilled streaky bacon. Continue reading ‘Roasted red peppers and grilled goat cheese salad’