Happy Friday! Another week has flown by (where does the time go?!) and I’ve bookmarked more amazing recipes. I hope everyone had a safe, fun Halloween. Although I didn’t have a single piece of candy this Halloween (I had some halva yesterday, does that count?) many of you turned to lighter recipes this week to combat the sugar crash. Also, with Thanksgiving coming up and all the ooey, gooey fall comfort food recipes hitting the blogs it’s refreshing to see some lighter alternatives. So the theme of this week’s shout-out and blog hop is salad!
I came across a number of tantalizing salads this week. I know, normally those two words (tantalizing and salads) don’t go together, but these are exceptions. Most I’m mentioning here have a distinctly fall feel, and highlight seasonal ingredients in hearty combinations. This week I also shared a salad dressing recipe with my Mustard-Lime Chicken and Cilantro-Lime Dressing, so I clearly had salad on the brain. I hope you enjoy the following creative salads as much as I have, and share your own salad recipes in the blog hop below.
I only recently discovered Alexandra’s Kitchen, but I love her blog as well as her take on the Zuni Cafe Roast Chicken and Bread Salad. Although I’ve never had the opportunity to eat at this seminal San Francisco restaurant, this recipe alone makes me want to take a trip there. Although she says the salad portion is a little time consuming, it looks totally worth it.
Meanwhile, Brown Eyed Bakers’ Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Warm Cider Vinaigrette is the epitome of a Fall salad. It always has a place on Michelle’s holiday menus and I can see why. In addition to the maple syrup-roasted butternut squash, there’s also walnuts, cranberries, and Parmesan.
I love the simplicity and freshness of the Cucumber Salad by Jennifer at Delicieux. I should mention that Jennifer lives in Australia so it’s spring over there, but I argue that this salad would be great any time of year! In fact, my husband, looking over my shoulder, saw this and immediately asked if we had the ingredients on hand to make it. We do. Enough said.
Over at Joy the Baker, Joy has compiled many of my favorite things in her Apple and Pomegranate Brussels Sprouts Salad. You might now know it from reading my blog, but I’m a Brussels sprouts junkie (they’re just not common in Israel). And I’m sure you’ve figured out how much I love pomegranates. Throw some fennel and apple into the mix, and I’m in salad heaven.
Kitchen Simplicity is another new blog on my radar, and I immediately fell for Cheri’s Pecan-Crusted Chicken and Apple Salad with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette. I know, don’t you just want it now? Cheri says it’s heaven on a plate, and I believe her. Even her three-year-old went nuts for this salad, and I know I will too.
Finally, The Perfect Pantry’s Fennel, Apple, and Walnut Salad with Pomegranate-Orange Salad also called to me. Lydia shaves the fennel and lets it soak in dressing for 15 minutes or so to allow the flavor to mellow while retaining crunch. And I can’t wait to try the dressing, a sweet-tart combination of pomegranate molasses, orange juice, honey, and olive oil.
Thanks so much for including my salad in this great round-up!
Lydia, I was so happy to include your salad! It looks delicious 😀
The salad I am totally loving at the moment is baby greens with assorted snipped herbs, dried cherries, crumbled goat cheese, and ‘goddess’ dressing. Definitely on the indulgent side as salads go, but SO tasty! 🙂
I’m also a huge fan of carrot salads since they can keep in the fridge for a few days after being dressed – much easier to take for lunch than a lettuce salad! Here’s one of my favs: http://cupcakemuffin.blogspot.com/2011/08/carrot-cumin-salad-with-feta-cheese.html
Mmmm that sounds absolutely delicious! And I love carrot salads too, totally agree – they get even better after a day in the fridge! Can’t say that for most salads. Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Salad, that’s my favorite food, NO JOKE!!!! Love this blog hop!
Haha thanks! I completely understand. Salad is my husband’s favorite food, hands down.
Some fantastic salads there Katherine!!! I can’t believe the range. Certainly not rabbit food! Thank you so much for including my cucumber salad in this collection!
I was so happy to include your cucumber salad jennifer! I also love the range of all these salad recipes – well put, certainly not rabbit food!
I’m going to save this link for my future salad recipes. This is great Katherine. I always love trying out new salad and your selections are good, but there are bunch of other recipes shared by bloggers! Thanks for doing this!! I submitted 2 recipes as well. 🙂
Yes, I think this will become one of my most used resources as well! Such great ideas here. I’m so happy you shared two recipes as well! Thanks Nami!
Thanks so much for the shout out Katherine! I appreciate it. 🙂 You have a lovely blog and all the other salads look delicious!
P.S. Just to let you know the link to my salad leads to Joy’s site. 😉
It’s my pleasure Cheri! I’m so happy to have discovered your blog recently, and I really can’t wait to make your salad! So sorry about that link – it’s fixed now! :-O Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Hello Katherine, I love salads, what a fabulous idea to gather all of them in one page! I’m saving the link so I can use it all year round!
The Cilantro-Lime dressing was excellent!
Thank you so much and have a nice weekend!!!!
I’m so glad this is as good a resource for you as it is for me! I love salad too 🙂 And I am SO happy to hear you liked the dressing! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
It is hard to think of salad when it is cold but there are definitely many warm fall salads with squashes and such. Great line-up! Thanks for hosting and have a lovely weekend! 🙂
I know what you mean! But I also love a good fall salad with warm vegetables and maybe even a warm dressing! Have a wonderful weekend too 🙂
Thanks for the shout-out! Beautiful post. So many yummy things to click through and dream about. Yum!
My pleasure Alexandra! I am beyond happy to have discovered your gorgeous blog recently! Thank you for the salad inspiration 😀
What a fabulous bunch of salads! So much inspiration here…thanks, Katherine!
Thank you Liz! I’m super excited by the variety of salads people have posted, it’s great!
Katherine, You are amazing. It’s so fabulous to see the virtual community you are building and you’ve become such a great resource. Thank you!!!
Lori, you are so sweet! I am so thrilled that people share such amazing recipes here and everywhere. What better way to come together than through food?
Gorgeous salads! I’ve really only been eating veggies for about a year and I’m still astounded by the variety of awesomeness they can make 🙂
Vegetables are the best! There is so much more variety available than meat! Still, I’m impressed with your veggie0heavy diet 😉
I’m with you on the Brussels sprouts and going straight to the Apple and Pomegranate Brussels Sprouts salad. Love this array of salads!
I’m in sugar detox, but not from Halloween – we’ve had a couple of Food52 cookbook celebrations here with Amanda and Merrill in town and I’ve indulged in some decadent treats these past few days. I even ate leftover coffee cheesecake for breakfast yesterday and maple custard this morning…time to regain balance!
The Food52 celebrations sound so fun!!! Jealous! But yes, totally understand the need to regain balance 🙂
http://www.castleton.co.uk/activities/