Summer Pasta Salad with Green Beans

1/2 of red onion, sliced

3/4 pound green beans, trimmed and broken into 1.5 inch pieces

2 large tomatoes, cored and chopped

1.25 pound of small ravioli (Got this from our local pasta shop Gallettas.)

Big handful of fresh basil, chopped

3 Tablespoons of balsamic fig vinegar

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

2 Tablespoons olive oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Saute the red onion in some olive oil until it caramelizes.  Add to a big bowl.

Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Add the ravioli and green beans.  Cook until the ravioli is done and the green beans are nice and bright and still have a little crunch to them. (Note, you may have to stagger the addition of pasta to beans depending on the size of your ravioli and the cooking directions that come with them.)  Drain and rinse under cold water to halt further cooking.  Let all the extra water drain off before adding to the big bowl.

Add the diced tomatoes and fresh basil to the bowl.

Whisk together the balsamic vinegar and mustard.  Slowly add the olive oil and whisk until combined.  Pour over salad and toss to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.

I apologize for the delay in getting this picture up. I know promised some of you that it would be there yesterday. I had some internet issues that were beyond my control, but now we are good to go.

Winter French Lentil  and Root Vegetable Salad

1 large red onion, sliced

1.5-2 lb root vegetables, diced (turnip, beet, parsnip, celeriac, carrot, etc…)

1-2 Tablespoons olive oil

Salt and Pepper

¾ cup French lentils, rinsed

1 bay leaf

1 small shallot, minced

1 tsp Dijon mustard

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced

3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

3 Tablespoons olive oil

1 Tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic

beet greens, removed from stems and coarsely chopped

Preheat your oven to 425.  Toss the onions and root vegetables with the olive oil, salt and pepper in a large roasting pan.  Roast for about 35 minutes, or until the vegetables are lightly brown.  Give the pan a good shake once or twice while roasting so they brown evenly.  Remove from the roasting pan and place in a large bowl.

Place the lentils and the bay leaf in a medium saucepan.  Make sure the lentils are covered by at least 2 inches of water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let the lentils simmer for 15-20 minutes.  If the water level in the pot gets to low, just add more water so the lentils are covered.  Once lentils have reached the right consistency, drain them and place in the bowl with the roasted vegetables.

If the salad is to be enjoyed immediately, dress the lentils and vegetables while they are hot.  If you are making this to enjoy later, let the lentils and vegetables cool to room temperature and then dress them.

To make the dressing, combine the shallot, mustard, parsley and balsamic vinegar in a bowl and whisk together.  Once combined, slowly whisk in the olive oil.  Pour the dressing over the lentils and vegetables and toss to combine.

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan.  Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds.  Add the beet greens and saute until it wilts and the garlic is evenly distributed among the leaves.  Add the beet greens to the rest of the salad and toss together.

Dark Greens Salad with Roasted Beets and Oranges

5 ounce salad mix that contained baby spinach, baby arugula and radicchio

1 small bunch of beets with greens

2 oranges

3 Tablespoons raw sunflower seeds

1-2 ounces of crumbled feta cheese (optional)

Balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper to make the dressing

Clean the salad greens and place in a large bowl.

Remove beets from greens. Remove greens from stems; wash, chop and add to the bowl with the rest of the greens. For the beets, peel them and slice in half. Slice each half into 1/4 inch half moons. Place on a dark roasting pan, toss with olive oil, and roast for 20 minutes at 425. Remove from oven and allow the beets to cool completely.

Cut each orange in half along the equator and use a citrus knife to cut out the sections. Reserve the sections for the salad and squeeze the remainder of the juice in the oranges into a separate bowl.

Toast the sunflower seeds in a small, dry skillet on medium until they just start to brown. Remove from heat and allow them to cool completely.

To make the dressing, take 3 Tablespoons of the reserved orange juice and whisk in 1 Tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Whisk in 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Very slowly whisk in 3 Tablespoons of olive oil until the dressing is combined. Taste and adjust any of the seasonings as you feel are necessary.

Pour the dressing over the salad greens and toss to combine so all the greens are covered. Sprinkle the roasted beets, orange sections, toasted sunflower seeds, and feta cheese if you are using it, over the salad greens. This salad served 6 with no leftovers.