Vegging out
Updated April 18, 2013
This time of year, I find myself craving a dinner that's super light and fresh with lots of vegetables from the farmer's market. So this is what I made for dinner last night. What's in it? This meal-in-a-bowl features baby arugula, multi-coloured tomatoes, mini cucumbers, proscuitto, green beans, purple asparagus and King mushrooms. I blanched the asparagus and beans - quickly cooking both in boiling water then plunging them into ice water, letting them cool completely before draining and patting dry. Blanching (over some other cooking methods) helps veggies retain nutrients and keeps their colours bright - at least for the most part... I'll admit that the asparagus lost some of it's pretty purple hue, but its flavour was still a bit sweeter than the green kind. King mushrooms - available in spring - have a very meaty texture and mild mushroom-y flavour. I sauteed them with a bit of oil, salt and pepper – just as you would with the regular old button kind. I dressed my salad in a simple buttermilk blue cheese dressing (not shown). Here's my recipe: Stir 1 cup (250 mL) buttermilk, 3 tbsp (45 mL) snipped chives and 1/4 cup (50 mL) blue cheese in a bowl. Then salt and pepper to taste. (Gorgonzola or Stilton are great blue options.) This is just one of many salads in my summer rotation. I usually use whatever I've got in the fridge. What are your favourite salad fixings?
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