Summer salads

Some of my favourite veganized salads that are perfect for summer barbecues.

Southern Style Coleslaw 

What you need:

1/2 cup vegan mayo

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp celery seeds

1 200g bag of shredded white cabbage or mixed cabbage

1/2 150g bag of carrot julienne

1/4 cup raisins (optional)

Add the vegan mayo, dijon mustard, Apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, onion powder and celery seeds to a large bowl and stir to combine. Add cabbage, carrot and raisins (optional) and mix well.

Refrigerate for an hour before serving, mix again right before serving. 

Keeps in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Original recipe

Ensalada Rusa

What you need:

450g waxy potatoes

2 large carrots

1 tsp salt

1 apple (any variety)

1 small red onion, minced

2 tbsp vinegar

1/2 cup green peas, blanched or canned (optional)

1/4 cup chopped gherkins (optional)

1/2 cup vegan mayo

Salt to taste, to season

Peel the potatoes and carrots, place them in a pan and cover with water. Add 1 tsp of salt, bring the water to a boil and boil the potatoes and carrots for approx. 20 mins.

Drain the water and let the potatoes and carrots cool to room temperature.

Cut the potatoes, carrots and apple into small dice and set aside.

Put the minced onion in a small bowl and add the vinegar. Let it rest until it's time to mix with the rest of the ingredients (at least 10 minutes). Discard the vinegar. This will make the onion less pungent.

Mix potatoes, carrots, apple, onion, gherkins and peas in a large bowl Add vegan mayo and gently mix to combine. Season with salt to taste.

Keeps in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Original recipe

Couscous salad

Inspired by the chefs at work, I made my own couscous salad the other day. Thumbs up!

What you need (1 large portion):
120g couscous
200ml boiling hot vegetable stock (from a cube or powder)
1/2 courgette, diced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, deseeded and diced
100g mushrooms, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced (or 1 tsp garlic paste)
1/2 tsp sambal oelek/harissa/chili paste
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
pinch of cinnamon
1 tbsp dried parsley
salt & pepper to taste
olive oil
1 tomato, deseeded and diced

In a bowl, pour the stock on the couscous. Cover the bowl with some tin foil and let it rest a few minutes until all the liquid has disappeared. Stir with a fork to loosen.
Meanwhile, heat some oil in a pan and sauté the onion, garlic and chili paste until onion has sofetened. Add bell pepper, courgette and mushrooms cook for a few minutes. Add the spices, parsley, salt and pepper to taste and stir until everything is well-combined and spices are starting to give off scent.
Add mixture to the couscous and allow to cool. Stir in chopped tomato.

Try this:
- add a tablespoon of roasted pine nuts
- add a tablespoon of capers (drained)
- add some chopped sundried tomatoes
- add some raisins/sultanas
- add some chopped dried apricots
- add 1/4 cucumber, deseeded & diced
- add 50g faux chicken, diced (add to the pan along with the spices)

Baba Ghanoush (Middle Eastern eggplant salad)

I'm a fairly recent eggplant convert. I never really cared for them until I tasted zaalouk at a restaurant. And with eggplants showing up occasionally in my veggie box, I hesitantly branched out to this pasta recipe.

On a recent trip to Egypt, I had a sinfully good Baba Ghanoush at a local restaurant (If you're in Cairo, go to Felfela and have the Taamia (falafel), Baba Ghanoush, fried eggplant and their flat bread for a great mezze!)
So when I got back, I made it my mission to replicate it. I think this recipe comes fairly close.

What you need (3 servings):
1 large eggplant
2 tbsp tahini (sesame paste)
juice of half a lemon
1 garlic clove, minced (or 1 tsp garlic paste)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried parsley (optional)
salt and pepper, to taste
olive oil, to serve

Preheat the oven at 225C. Prick holes in the eggplant with a fork, place the eggplant in an oven dish and bake for approx. 40 mins. until the skin is completely shriveled and the eggplant is very soft.
Let cool slightly and peel the eggplant. Cut it in pieces and mash with a fork. Add the tahini, lemon juice, minced garlic, dried parsley and cumin, and mix into a smooth (-ish) paste. Season to taste with some salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature with a drizzle of olive oil.
Delicious with pita, lavash or Egyptian flatbread (aish baladi) for dipping.

Pasta salad

I'm somewhat OCD at times, meaning something catches my interest and I tend to go a bit overboard in my enthusiasm... Case in point? Bento boxes. Twilight fanfiction. Robert Pattinson ~sigh~ . 'Quick'-sneakers. (Honestly, I could go on for quite a while...)

My latest 'thing'? Pasta salads.

Personally, I usually prefer warm foods over cold dishes (like salads) and I used to be a firm believer that pasta, rice, couscous etc should ALWAYS be eaten warm. Lately, I've slowly come around and have had to admit to myself that sometimes they actually taste pretty good cold!

In the past I did not come up with anything other than cold pasta, some chopped up sundried tomatoes, a few capers, a drizzle of olive oilk and a sprinkling of roasted pine nuts. Tasty, but not very imaginative.
Fortunately, we recently moved to another building at work, and there is a great restaurant which offers great inspiration for things to try at home.

Just to be clear, the suggestions below are ideas I haven't actually tried out myself yet and I have mercilessly plagiarized them from the chefs at work :)

* buckwheat noodles, marinated chicken breast, sauteed chopped veggies (onion, carrot, cabbage etc) and soy sauce. Would taste great hot, but who would have though it would be this tasty cold??
* penne, pieces of smoked chicken, chopped peppers (red, yellow and green) tossed with curry mayonaise.
* pasta with sauteed mushrooms.
* fussili tossed with fresh pesto and roasted veggies (eggplant, pepper, courgette).
* farfalle with fresh pesto, pieces of chicken breast, cubes of courgette, rocket leaves and grated parmesan cheese.  

Zaalouk (Moroccan eggplant salad)

I never really liked aubergine/eggplant, until I tasted this dip at a restaurant. I googled a recipe, adapted it to my taste and voila: I'm an eggplant convert.

What you need (several servings):
1 eggplant, cut in cubes
3 tsp garlic paste or 3 cloves of garlic, pressed
2 cans of tomatoes, drained
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp cumin powder
pinch of sugar
olive oil
chili powder
parsley (dried is fine)
salt

Boil the eggplant cubes in plenty of salted water for approx. 30 min. so they are nice and soft. Drain and mash with a fork.
Meanwhile, sauté the garlic in some olive oil and add the tomatoes. Simmer for about 15 min. without a lid until most of the moisture has evaporated and the tomatoes have broken down. Add vinegar, cumin, chili powder, parsley and eggplant, mix and season to taste with some salt and sugar.
Serve hot or cold with some pita bread for dipping.