As spring has arrived and the Lansdown Farmers Market has moved outdoors, there are many vegetables arriving at the market to make great fresh salads. Here is an easy grilled salad that makes a great side for any summer dish.
Ingredients:
For the salad:
- Seared cherry tomatoes – 2 to 3 cups
- Rainbow swiss chard – 1 to 2 bunches
- Leeks – 2 – sliced in half
- Zucchini – 2 to 3 – sliced in half
- Butter – 1 tbsp
- Olive oil – 1/4 cup
For the dressing:
- Ginger – 2 to 3 tbsp grated
- Lemon – 1 zested and juiced
- Olive oil – 1/3 to 1/2 cup
- Garlic – 2 to 3 cloves crushed
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
For the seared cherry tomatoes:
- Slice the cherry tomatoes in half.
- Put butter in large cast iron pan and melt.
- Put cherry tomatoes sliced side down in pan. Sprinkle with sea salt Cook tomatoes without moving them for 5 to 10 minutes. The tomatoes have finished cooking when they are have started to caramalize (when they have browned).
- Remove from heat and set aside.
For the dressing:
- Mix grated ginger, olive oil, lemon juice and zest, crushed garlic, salt and pepper.
For the salad
- Soak rainbow chard for a few minutes in water.
- Rub zucchini and leeks with olive oil.
- Grill the rainbown chard until starts to brown. Remove from heat. Cut the leaf from the stem. Slice stem thinly (into 1/2 to 1 cm slices). Roughly tear the chard leaves.
- Grill the leeks and zucchini until softened. Remove from heat. Slice leeks and zucchini thinly (1/2 to 1 cm slices).
- Mix the rainbow chard leaves, stems, zucchini, leeks and tomatoes.
- Add dressing to salad.
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If you have any questions about your diet, foods, meal options or how Naturopathic Medicine can help you, please call 613-290-6115.
Graham Beaton is a Naturopath practicing in downtown Ottawa.
