Two Colourful, Seasonal Salads

When asked if I can bring a plate to a Barbecue or Pot-Luck (not including hors d'oeuvres,  which, as you can see, I am obsessed with) I will more often than not volunteer myself for salad duty.

Sure, bringing a main dish or dessert might be seen as the more glamorous task – one where you can really flex your culinary muscle – but I think salad duty comes with its own merits, specifically creativity and ease of transportation.

What better way to get as much seasonal produce into one plate than via a salad?  You can also be the one responsible for the table decorations if you make a salad colourful enough.

It’s a double-duty that will make your heart sing.

I chose to make these two salads simply because the weather was grey and I needed to get some colour in my life. 

Let us first draw our attention to this roast beetroot and sweet potato creation.  Let’s imagine you are eating it: at first bite you have a cube each of earthy rosemary scented beetroot and sweet potato.  You are drawn to this morsel because the colours remind you of a sunset – especially as the beetroot has tie-dyed some of the sweet potato. You drag these veggies through some of the goat’s curd that happens to have a streak of extra virgin olive oil and caramelised balsamic vinegar slashed across it. You close your eyes and sigh. Next bite is a juicy segment of orange that has a shiny caramelised walnut perched on top. The mint that you spear with it on its way to your mouth creates a herbal foil for the burnt sugar crunching between your teeth.  And of course, there are the greens, peppery rocket in this case. Each bite you take is different and yet you never have a bite that does not seem so perfectly right. 

Now, on to the slaw. I was drawn to this after seeing Jamie Oliver make it on Jamie At Home years ago when it was on TV. He had a food processor with an attachment into which he just fed beautiful, raw, seasonal veggies – like a wood chipper. Next he made a tangy dressing using yogurt and mustard; I wanted a little sweetness in my adaptation and added a little honey. I don’t have a big food processor to churn out this slaw in five minutes flat, and instead it took me somewhere in the vicinity of forty minutes to julienne everything via my new mandolin. There was something rather Zen about this exercise that required utter concentration to avoid losing a finger and yet it was as rhythmic and soothing as (I imagine)Tai Chi would be.

I have had this with fish – eh, it’s not the best combination. But try it with some slow roasted chicken or pork, or a medium rare steak, and you will be glad you underwent such rigorous discipline to get to this point. 

A note about the below recipes: When I make a salad, I don't use specific weights or measurements for most ingredients. I have indicated quantities and a method for certain components such as the candied walnuts or for the cooking time of the beetroot and sweet potato. Adjust things to suit your taste and try to use seasonal ingredients. Most components of each salad can be adapted to suit the season. 

Beetroot, Sweet Potato, Candied Walnuts, Orange and Goats Curd Salad

Sweet Potato

Beetroot

Fresh Rosemary – finely chopped

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - EVOO

Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1 cup raw Walnut halves

½ cup Caster sugar

Rocket (Arugula)

Orange – segmented – here is a good tutorial if you want to learn how to do this

Fresh mint leaves – roughly torn

Goat’s curd

Caramelised balsamic – I used a chocolate balsamic here which was sublime, but regular caramelised balsamic works a treat too.

Candied Walnuts

In a dry pan over a low to medium flame, lightly toast the walnuts for a few minutes, constantly tossing to ensure they don’t burn. Once you can smell them and see a little brown on them, quickly transfer them to a bowl. 

Now add the sugar to the pan over a medium flame. Stir the sugar until it has melted and become the colour of amber. Quickly add the nuts and stir to coat them in the toffee. Quickly transfer the nuts to a baking tray lined with baking paper and separate them using two forks. Leave to cool completely.

Roasted Beetroot and Sweet Potato with Rosemary

Peel and cube the sweet potato and rosemary. Mine were about 2cm and they shrank once roasted. Cut the veggies into whatever size you like but note that the larger you cut them, the longer the cooking time. I usually cut them on the smaller side because I am extremely impatient.

Preheat the oven to 180C and either oil or line a baking tray with baking (parchment) paper. Toss the sweet potato and beetroot with a little EVOO and the chopped rosemary, and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are done.  The corners might be slightly caramelised – this is a very good thing, go with this.

Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Building the salad

Arrange the Rocket (Arugula) on a flat serving platter, top with the roasted veggies, orange segments, walnuts, mint leaves and dollops of goat’s curd. Finally, drizzle with EVOO and caramelised balsamic right before serving. 

Autumn or Winter Slaw

Adapted from this Jamie Oliver Recipe

Note: it is highly recommended you use either a mandolin with a julienne attachment or a food processor with the julienne attachment. I would never put myself through the task of chopping this all by hand. Life is way too short. 

1 Celeriac

4 Radishes

2 Granny Smith Apples

1 Red Cabbage – finely sliced

3 Carrots

1 large Fennel bulb with fronds

4 Shallots, finely sliced

Chervil

Parsley

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

250ml Greek Yogurt

Honey – about a tablespoon

Mustard to taste – about 1½ tablespoons

Extra Virgin Olive Oil – about a tablespoon

Salt and Pepper

Using your tool of choice, julienne the celeriac, radishes, apples, carrots and fennel bulb and add them to a large salad or mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice and toss to coat. This will prevent the celeriac and apple from going brown. Add the shredded cabbage and shallots.

Finely chop the chervil, parsley and fennel fronds and toss them through the salad along with the lemon zest.

In a jar, add the yogurt, honey, mustard, EVOO, salt, and pepper and screw the lid on tight. Shake the dressing until fully incorporated. Taste and adjust your ingredients to suit.

Pour over the slaw up to an hour before serving. Toss to coat.

Perfect with any meat – especially pork.