Somebody lied! Whoever tried to tell you that salads are boring never experimented...in the kitchen, of course. Gone are the days of the tasteless, nutritionally deficient Iceberg Lettuce topped with raggedy tomatoes and drowned in enough salad dressing to kill a mockingbird. Today is all about power greens like spinach, kale, arugula, cabbage, brussell sprouts and more. Romaine Lettuce isn't invited to the party but that is a whole other conversation.
A great salad is like a fine piece of art. It is beautiful in sight, texture and flavors.
This is my Sexy Citrus Salad with Beets and Blue Cheese. I was in my test kitchen one day thinking about ways to incorporate these beautiful grapefruit that I bought from the grocery store into a recipe. Long story short, this is what happened a visually gorgeous, flavorful salad with a symphony of textures. You can also add more crunch with walnuts, almonds, croutons, etc.
This salad starts out with a bed of baby spinach that is washed and dried. It is tossed with juicy chucks of sweet oranges, tangy grapefruit, crisp cucumber, red onion, and earthy roasted beets topped with blue cheese crumbles. In keeping with the citrus theme of the salad, I made a lemon vinaigrette to dress it. I also had it with balsamic vinaigrette and italian dressing and I liked it with all of them.
Here's the recipe:
Sexy Citrus Salad
Yield: 2 Servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 minute (I would say zero but let's just go with it.)
Ingredients:
1 5oz. carton of baby spinach
1 medium red onion, sliced
1 small cucumber, sliced
1 large grapefruit, cut into chunks
2 medium oranges, cut into chunks
1 roasted beet, chilled and cut into chunks
1/2 cup of blue cheese crumbles.
Instructions:
1. Wash and dry spinach and set aside in a large bowl.
2. Slice the red onion and cucumber and put into the bowl with the spinach.
3. Cut the skin from the the grapefruit and oranges and cut into chunks. Put them into the bowl with the other ingredients.
(I use a butcher's knife to cut the very top of the skin off and then cut the skin along the side from top to bottom as I go all the way around the fruit, staying as close to the skin as possible.)
4. Add the beets and blue cheese to the rest of the salad and serve.
(I add the beets last because they will stain the other ingredients.)
5. Serve Immediately or chill until ready to eat.
If you are a fan of citrus like me then you will definitely fall in love with this salad. I would suggest you have fun with your salads. Experiment with different textures, flavors and colors. Make it a Masterpiece! Talk with you guys later!
- Shaun