Green Goddess Dressing

This is great on a salad, or just as a dip with veggies. It is very light and fresh. It is unbelievably easy to make, and I don't think I will ever buy one out of a jar again. Try it with different herbs, but make sure they are fresh. Dried herbs won't give it the same flavour.

1 cup fresh herbs (I used parsley, basil and dill)
1 cup plain yogurt
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic

In a blender, combine all ingredients. You're done!

Bean and Rice Fiesta Salad

1 cup brown rice, cooked according to package directions
1 19oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup diced tomatoes
3 green onions, finely sliced
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp lime juice
¾ cup frozen corn, thawed
Salt to taste

Place all ingredients in a bowl, and mix well. Let it refrigerate for a couple of hours so that the flavours really come out.

Southwestern Salad

One question that constantly plagues my husband and I is “what do you want for dinner?” This is one of my most hated questions, especially when we can’t seem to come up with a good answer, and even after suggesting all recipes that I have in my repertoire, we still can’t come up with something that we really want to eat. If I were to leave it up to my husband, he would make his flank steak and potatoes with broccoli. Not really my type of meal.
So, with the weather getting nice, and summer just around the corner (although looking outside, it looks like it is about to rain), I felt like a salad would make a good dinner. But, I didn’t want just your standard lettuce, tomato and cucumber type salad. Can you say b-o-r-i-n-g?? I started searching for different salads on the internet, and combined a few that I saw into this salad.
You know that feeling that you get after eating your traditional salad? The one that makes your feel not even close to being full, and leaves you thinking about walking to the fridge to see what else you can eat? This salad doesn’t do this. You actually feel satisfied after this salad because of the protein in the black beans. Next time, I might even add black eyed peas as well…

Makes enough for 4 people

Salad
3 cups romaine lettuce, finely chopped
2 Roma tomatoes, finely diced
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
3 green onions, chopped
¼ cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated
½ green pepper, finely chopped
1 19oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

Dressing
¾ cup salsa
¾ cup sour cream

In a large bowl, combine all salad ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix together salsa and sour cream to make the dressing. Pour dressing on top of salad.

I served it with corn muffins. Actually, I crumbled the corn muffins into the salad sort of like croutons. I usually make things from scratch, however, today I was lazy, so I used an organic corn muffin mix. If you are doing this, try to stick to an organic brand. Some of the traditional brands have too many ingredients in them that I can’t pronounce, therefore I don’t buy them.

You could make this without the corn muffins, but I found that it gave the salad a sort of sweetness that seemed to complete the salad. I know it sounds strange to crumble them into the salad, but try it, you may like it.

Potato Salad

For years my husband has been asking me to make potato salad. I don’t love potatoes, but decided that I would try to make it anyways. I wasn’t sure how the recipe would turn out, but for someone who doesn’t like potatoes a whole lot, I actually really liked this recipe! It is a little different from your traditional recipe (with the addition of white beans), but still has some of the traditional ingredients that you would normally find in potato salad (like hard boiled eggs). If you are looking for a healthier twist to the generally high fat potato salad that you are used to, try it out – you may be pleasantly surprised.

Salad
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped*
1.5 lb bag of new potatoes (I prefer to used new potatoes, but any potato will actually do)
3 stalks celery, diced
¼ cup red onion, diced
1 19oz can white kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Dressing
½ cup plain yogurt
3 tbsp light mayonnaise
1 tbsp dijon mustard
¼ cup fresh dill, finely chopped
½ tsp salt

Wash and scrub potatoes thoroughly. Boil in water until fork tender.

While potatoes are cooking, chop celery, onion and rinse beans. Add to a large bowl. Add chopped hard boiled eggs.

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for dressing.

Once potatoes are cooked, drain and let them cool. Once cooled, add to celery, onion, beans and eggs. Add dressing and mix until it is evenly coated. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving.


*fill a pot with COLD water. Add eggs to cold water, and turn on stove to medium high. Once the water begins to boil, set a timer for 10 minutes. At the end of 10 minutes, strain water, and place eggs in cold water. Once they are cooled, dice up the eggs.

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Summer Shrimp Salad

Yes, this blog is about vegetarian recipes, but my husband loves shrimp, so I do make it (and eat it) sometimes. Yesterday was beautiful outside, and salad seemed perfect for dinner. This absolutely hit the spot! It is so light and fresh.

Shrimp
About 20 shrimp
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp orange juice and lime juice
2 garlic cloves
1 ½ tsp chili powder

Salad
About 4 cups of lettuce of your choice. I used mixed greens
1 avocado, diced

Dressing
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lime juice and orange juice
1 tbsp rice vinegar
Salt to taste

In a medium frying pan on medium/high heat, heat up olive oil. Add shrimp and cook for a couple of minutes. Add juices, garlic and chilli powder. Continue to cook for a couple of more minutes, or until shrimp are fully cooked.

In a large bowl, combine lettuce and avocado. Top with cooked shrimp and dressing. Toss well, and serve.

Lentil Salad

This salad is super filling, and great as a lunch on its own, or as a side dish.

Salad
1 ½ cups green lentils, cooked according to package directions
3 tbsp crumbled goats cheese
1 avocado, diced
¼ cup red onion, finely chopped

Dressing
2 tbsp minced sundried tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp maple syrup
½ tsp salt

Additional Ingredients;
4 cups lettuce, any will do, I used mixed greens


Make dressing in a small dish. Combine salad ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour dressing over salad and toss well.

Refrigerate lentil salad with dressing for a couple of hours.

Serve on top of the lettuce.

Bell Pepper Salad

This is a super easy and quick salad.

2 bell peppers, thinly sliced (I used red and orange, but any colour would work well)
½ cup red onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well, and enjoy!!

Quinoa Salad

I added shrimp to this for my husband, but it could easily be left out as well. Next time, I think that I will add a can of chickpeas (rinsed and drained of course) for me.

About 30 large shrimp (I used frozen)
2 cups quinoa
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped
12 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup goats cheese, crumbled

Cook quinoa according to package directions. Sometimes I use vegetable stock to give it more flavour.

While quinoa is cooking, prepare sundried tomatoes, olives, pine nuts and goats cheese in a large bowl.

Once vegetables and cheese are assembled, cook shrimp in a frying pan. Drain the water from the shrimp if you are using frozen.

Once the quinoa and shrimp are ready, add them both to the sundried tomato mixture. You can either serve this warm or cold.

Chickpea Caprese Salad

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 200g tub pearl bocconcini balls
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
fresh black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and enjoy!

Black Bean Salad

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup tomato, chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup corn
1 avocado, diced
2 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. olive oil
Juice of half a lime
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well and enjoy!

Caesar Salad

Dressing
1 egg yoke
¼ cup of olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
½ tsp. anchovy paste
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Salad
1 head Romaine lettuce
1 cup whole grain croutons
½ cup Parmesan cheese


Whisk all ingredients together for dressing.

Cut up Romaine lettuce into bite sized pieces, top with croutons and Parmesan cheese. Add dressing and enjoy!

Carrot and Beet Salad

2 cups cooked beets, peeled (canned works fine), julienne
2 cups carrots, julienne
¼ cup red wine vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Serve.

Asparagus and Tomato Salad

1 pound asparagus
1 pint cherry tomatoes
½ cup feta cheese
½ cup toasted pine nuts.
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil

Trim asparagus ends. Chop into one inch sections. Boil in salted water for approximately 6 minutes.

Combine oil and vinegar together in a bowl.

Place cooked asparagus, tomatoes, pine nuts and feta cheese in bowl. Pour dressing on top. Chill for a couple of hours before serving.

Arugala Salad

Dressing
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp maple syrup
salt and pepper to taste

Salad
4 cups arugula
¼ cup Parmesan Cheese slivers
1 sliced pear
¼ cup of crushed walnuts

Combine all ingredients for dressing. Mix until smooth.

Combine all ingredients for salad. Top with dressing.

Cold Sesame Noodle Salad

1 package tofu
1 tbsp olive oil
4 tablespoons tamari or dark soy sauce
2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced ginger
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp Asian chili sauce or to taste
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 package soba noodles
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper sliced
1 cup sugar snap peas
3 green onions
½ cup raw cashews
¼ cup sesame seeds


In a pan, sautee tofu in olive oil until golden brown. Cook soba noodles at the same time. Add cooked noodles and tofu to a large bowl.

In a small bowl, mix soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, chili sauce and lime juice to make sauce. Add sauce and all other ingredients to tofu and noodles, and combine until coated evenly coated. Serve cold.

Taco Salad

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 pkg. veggie ground
1 bell pepper diced
1 clove garlic
¼ cup frozen corn
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can tomato paste
3 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped finely
2 tomatoes, diced
½ red onion, diced
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
Large handful of taco chips crushed (I like to use organic, yellow corn)
Catalina dressing

Cook veggie ground, garlic and bell pepper in a pan with olive oil until vegetables are tender.

Add corn, black beans, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper to pan. Add water if sauce is too thick (about ½ to 1 cup)

Place lettuce, onions and tomatoes on a plate. Top with veggie ground/meat mixture, tacos and cheese. Add Catalina dressing to taste.