Roasted Broccoli & Radicchio Winter Salad

We’re big fans of eating seasonal foods.  It  gives rhythm to our recipes and meals throughout the year. There’s something so refreshing about tossing berries on a salad in summertime and something so comforting about a hearty stew with kale and sweet potatoes when the weather cools down.

During these last few months of winter, we encourage you to take advantage of these seasonal, nutrient-rich ingredients for delicious winter salads. Here are a few winter salad ‘greens’ that give you big taste and great nutrition!

• The purplish red and white leaves of radicchio, a member of the chicory family, add a slightly bitter, astringent flavor to salads.  If it’s too bitter for your taste, just grill, roast or sauté the leaves, which brings out the sweet side of this vegetable.
• When you hear Brussels sprouts, you probably don’t think salad.  But this cruciferous vegetable can be shredded and used just like cabbage, to make a Brussels sprouts slaw. 
• Like almost all nutrition lovers, we have a love affair with kale, and other dark, leafy winter greens like collards and Swiss chard.  While we love kale sautéed or added to soups and stews, one of our favorite preparations is to include it in a simple salad.  Just massage the destemmed kale leaves with a little salt and lemon juice, and the tough and slightly bitter leaves become silky and sweet.  Simply dressed with a little olive oil, it’s divine.
• Red, green and savoy cabbage are good for more than just cole slaw.  Thinly sliced or shredded, they make a great base for a variety of salads—your imagination is the only limit!  Cabbage makes a great base for make-ahead salads—great for taking to work—since they just get better as they set and marinate.

Here is a recipe to help you get started in creating your own winter salad.  In general, we like a salad that stimulates and balances all of our senses and tastes—something sweet, savory and bitter; something soft and something crunchy.  This winter salad is that perfect combination. 

Roasted Broccoli & Radicchio Winter Salad

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 head broccoli, cut in small florets

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 small radicchio*, cored and very thinly sliced

½ cup toasted pecans, chopped

½ cup pomegranate seeds

6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (optional)

3 tablespoons sherry vinegar

1 tablespoon maple syrup

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2.     Place broccoli florets on a large sheet pan.  Sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.  Place in the oven and roast for about 20 – 25 minutes, or until the broccoli is caramelized and cooked through.  Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

3.     To make the dressing, whisk together the sherry vinegar, maple syrup and extra virgin olive oil.  Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste.

4.     In a large bowl, toss together the sliced radicchio, cooled broccoli florets, chopped pecans, pomegranate seeds and feta cheese (if using).  Pour over the vinaigrette and toss to combine. 

This salad can be made up to 12 hours ahead.

*If you don’t like the bitterness of radicchio, you can substitute any of the other winter greens in this recipe.

White Bean, Leafy Green & Chicken Soup

For many of the dinner meals I've made in my twenties, I’ve only really had to cook for one. While roommates, friends and family members have often shared a spot with me in the kitchen and at the dinner table, frequently preparing single-portioned dinners has just coincided with this phase of my life. 

There were times I would pull out all the stops for my meals by preparing elaborate casseroles, pasta dishes and vegetarian stews (which make for the best leftovers for myself and others) after watching an inspiring episode of Martha Stewart. But, admittedly that wasn’t a commonplace occurrence. Let’s just say I’ve really mastered egg scrambles, stuffed baked potatoes, and hearty bowls of oatmeal – all choices that have proven to be suitable when you’re looking for a single-portion meal.

Now, I’m most often preparing dinner for two. It’s amazing how adding one person to your dinner table really makes you step it up a notch. I’ve re-kindled my love of discovering new recipes, of trying out different preparation techniques, and experimenting with unusual fruits, veggies, herbs and spices in the kitchen.

But, every so often, I’ll have the night to myself. And rather than opting for a bowl of cereal, I now embrace these nights as a good excuse to make a home cooked, comforting meal. While cereal does kind of fit that bill, I now turn to good quality ingredients and my spice cabinet for single-serving recipes that makes me feel special (with minimal effort).

This soup recipe – like most of our recipes – is a simple one to make and is so good for you. So, next time you’re enjoying an evening alone, cozy up on your couch and enjoy this nourishing bowl of soup. It feels like a warm hug.

White Bean, Leafy Green & Chicken Soup

Pair this soup with a slice of hearty whole grain bread and you can stretch out this single-serving recipe to two servings! Yay to that!

Ingredients:

 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon salt free seasoning
½ teaspoon dill
pinch of black pepper
1 ½ cup low sodium vegetable broth
1 cup cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup dark leafy greens, washed and cut (I used Cut ‘N Clean Greens’ Rainbow Chard)
3 ounces of organic chicken breast, cooked and shredded

Instructions: 

1.      Heat olive oil in medium-pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until golden brown. Add garlic, spices and herbs and stir 1 minute.

2.      Add the remaining ingredients and simmer on the stove for about 20 minutes.

Makes 1 to 2 servings.

Are you ever on the hunt for more single-serving recipes? If so, let us know! We’d love to share more of these with you.

Disclaimer: I was given some boxes of Cut 'N Clean Greens to experiment with in the kitchen. I've always loved dark leafies for their nutritional content, but having access to these nutrient-packed, pre-washed, and pre-cut greens has really inspired me to get a little more creative when it comes to cooking with them. Here are some of my latest kitchen concoctions: 

A (very) Green Smoothie: 

3/4 cups kale, 2 celery stalks, 1 very ripe Bartlett pear, juice of half a lemon, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 1/2 cups chilled water, 1 tablespoon chia seeds & a drizzle of honey.

A frittata made with chopped bell pepper, onion, kale, and pasture-raised sausage.

Kale, cherry tomatoes & onions sauteed in a veggie broth with Italian seasoning & a pinch of cayenne pepper. Served with organic chicken and a sprinkling of feta cheese.

For more ideas like this, take a peek at our Instagram account here.

Leafy Green Vegetables Take the Spotlight

Spinach and kale, Swiss chard and collard greens—these leafy greens pack a powerhouse of health-protective nutrients.

Perhaps Popeye was doing his body right when he ate spinach to replenish his superhuman strength. Green leafy vegetables are chock full of phytochemicals, vitamins, and minerals. In fact, many health professionals believe that leafy green vegetables deserve a special focus in the produce world for the volume of nutrients tucked into their low-calorie, low carbohydrate, low-glycemic index package. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recognizes the benefits of dark green vegetables on the basis of color, and recommends incorporating at least three cups (cooked, or 6 cups raw) in your diet every week, based on 2,000 calories per day.

Glorious vitamin-rich greens. The nutritional perks of leafy green vegetables are bountiful. Greens, such as collard and mustard greens and spinach, are rich sources of vitamins A, C, K, and folate— a water-soluble B vitamin that supports cell production, such as for hair, skin and nails, and may protect against cancer and neurological and cardiovascular diseases. Many varieties of vegetables supply 20 to 30 percent of your daily recommendation for calcium in a one-cup cooked serving.


Protective plant compounds. A host of health-promoting phytochemicals, such as betalains, quercetin, and carotenoids, including lutein and zeaxanthin, are found in leafy green vegetables. Consumption of lutein, for example, has been found to protect against the risk of age related macular degeneration, according to a 2012 review published in the British Journal of Nutrition. Quercetin appears to have anti-inflammatory ability, which may help protect against the development of atherosclerosis, a root of heart disease, as reported in a 2013 study in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition. And researchers from Italy found that betalains have remarkable potential to protect against oxidation.

Get your greens. All of these antioxidants and nutrients in leafy green vegetables work together to fend off disease. Consumption of these vegetables is linked to protection against mental decline, and improved heart, bone and eye health. At about 25 calories per one cup serving (uncooked), adding leafy green vegetables to your daily diet is an excellent way to promote optimal long term health.

 

Vegetable	Culinary Tips	Star Nutrients*	Health Benefits
Collard greens	Steam or sauté as a side dish or add to soups	Fiber, vitamins A, C, and K, folate, calcium, and manganese, quercetin,	May protect against heart disease and cancer, maintains healthy bones, supports digestive health
Kale	Steam or sauté as a side dish, add to soups and stir-fries, or use raw in salads	Vitamins A, C, and K, manganese, glucosinolates	May help boost immune function and protect against cancer
Romaine Lettuce	Serve raw in salads, add to sandwiches, or use to wrap fillings	Vitamins A, C, and K	May help boost immune function, supports digestive health
Mustard Greens	Steam or sauté as a side dish, add to soups, or use raw in salads	Vitamins A, C, and K, folate	May help boost immune function and protect against cancer and heart disease
Spinach	Use raw in salads; add to soups, casseroles, pasta dishes, and side dishes.	Fiber, vitamins A, E, and K, folate, riboflavin, calcium, iron, magnesium, and manganese, lutein and zeaxanthin	Maintains healthy bones and eyes
Swiss chard	Use raw in salads or boil, roast or sauté as a side dish	Vitamins A, C, and K, iron, magnesium, potassium, manganese,	May help with blood sugar regulation, supports bone health
Turnip greens	Steam or sauté as a side dish, add to soups and pasta dishes	Fiber, vitamins A, C, and K, folate, calcium, and manganese	Maintains healthy bones, supports digestive health
Watercress	Serve raw in salads or add to sandwiches	Vitamins A, C, and K	May help boost immune function and protect against cancer
*At least 10% of the DV, based ½ cup cooked or 1 cup raw serving; Source: USDA

                                                 

This article was written by McKenzie for the February 2014 issue of Environmental Nutrition.

Get your dose of leafy greens with some of our recipes:

Kale Salad with Fennel, Radish & Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Wild Rice & Massaged Kale Salad (with Pomegranate Seeds)

Kale & Walnut Pesto

Kale & Banana Smoothie

Spinach and Basil Pesto, Roasted Tomato & Ricotta Pizza

Creamy Mushroom & Spinach Pasta