It’s Week 6 of Dinner Plans and we are gearing up for more rain in the North Bay. It rained non-stop on Saturday and all I wanted to do was cozy up with blankets, hot cocoa, and a book. Always rainy day weekend goals.
Seasonal Cooking Tip: Winter Salads Still Work
When it comes to seasonal cooking, this year I'm sharing a weekly tip here focused on preparing ingredients, preserving foods, and kitchen hacks that help you save time.
This week we're talking about winter salads. Salads always used to be something I thought was reserved for summer. These days, I'm starting to play with the ideas that salads can be for all seasons.
The key to great winter salads rests in understanding texture and dressing options. Additionally, it also helps to build heft in protein and fiber.
Winter Salad Tips
Here are a few salad ideas I keep in mind during these cold and dreary winter months:
- Warm Salads. I think about braising greens or sautéing them quickly to add to a bed of roast vegetables. Salads don't always have to be cold and in winter it's a way I'm seeking warmth when I start to mildly burn out on soups. To braise greens, sauté aromatics like onion and garlic in a bit of olive oil. Add greens like chopped kale, spinach, or mustard greens and sauté for a minute. Next, add your stock of choice for the braising liquid and simmer the greens until they've wilted about 5 minutes. Add to your bowl or plate with the rest of your ingredients.
- DIY Salad Mix: With our CSA greens this week, DIY salad mix is my go to move. As we better understand the textures of our greens I've become keener in storage and separating greens. First, I'll store little gems and butterhead lettuce together. Next, I'll store the kale, mustard greens, and beet greens together. Those work well for sauté greens or adding heft to salads.
- Roast Veggies. Sometimes I don't want to braise the greens and that's okay. I'll rub the leaves with a squeeze of lemon juice and olive oil with a tablespoon of olive oil. This helps to tenderize the kale for better texture. Add in roast veggies like diced butternut squash, beets, or carrots. Toss with a zesty dressing and enjoy.
- Dressing Options. Dressings help make a salad stellar. It's what helps bring all the flavors together. For robust leafy greens like kale or dandelion greens, I like a Caesar style dressing for this. Our local olive oil shoppe also has some delicious infused balsamic vinegars that make for simple, delicious dressings.
Dinner Plans for Week 6
We picked up our Riverdog Farm and Stepping Stone Farm CSA boxes this week. Between the two boxes we've got enough leafy greens to make our own DIY salad mix. I've saved enough oranges for fresh squeezed juice for baking, drinking, and dressings. Carrots to be roasted for warm salads or in our Carrot Tart in Puff Pastry.
Here’s what we picked up for our CSA shares this week:
Riverdog Farm:
- Navel Oranges
- 2 heads of Napa Cabbage
- 2 pounds of Cauliflower
- 1 pound Little Gems
- Yellow Carrots
Stepping Stone Farm
- Red Frills Mustard
- Touchstone Golden Beets
- Field Pea Shoots
- French Butterhead Lettuce
- Dazzling Blue Kale
Our Game Plan for Dinner this Week:
Sunday: Braised Short Ribs Over Herby Polenta (herby polenta recipe here)
Monday: Roast Carrot Tart in Puff Pastry with Winter Greens Salad
Tuesday: Tostadas with Chipotle Lime Cauliflower, Turkey Chorizo, and Refried Rio Zape Beans
Wednesday: Pasta with Black Truffles and Bacon Ends
Thursday: Roast Golden Beets Salad with Greens
Friday: Osso Buco with Risotto Milanese for Date Night In ❤️
Saturday: Pizza Margherita with Roast Tomato Sauce from our Freezer Stash of Early Girl Tomatoes
From favorite recipes to new things with a wide variety of ingredients, cooking delicious food with our CSA definitely gets us out of a dinner rut and reduce food waste. I share meal ideas for our busy weeks with our weekly newsletter. Finally, Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to be in the know when they’re live. 😉
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