This may be exactly what one needs after indulging on Super Bowl Sunday. And that one is me. If you over-indulged like I did, this one’s for you – not exactly a detox salad, but close.
Even me, who is not big on football, enjoys watching the game (what a close game it was!) so long as there is plenty of guacamole, chips, and pretzels … food I brought over to our friend’s house (who happens to have a huge TV, perfect for watching a bunch of guys tackle each other, don’t you think?) just in case there may not be anything my family can eat. So, to prevent any awkwardness I usually bring gluten/dairy/soy free food everyone can enjoy … the funny thing is nobody notices it’s gf/df/sf most of the time, they just eat. “Mangia, mangia!”
I also brought over grilled “cheese” sandwiches for dinner (take out pizza full of gluten and dairy won’t cut it) that I heated up (on parchment paper to prevent cross-contamination) in her oven – see here for my grilled cheese recipe. Bringing safe food to a party or event makes it that much more enjoyable, without stress AND food-infractions. A little planning goes a long way when dealing with allergens.
Our gooey, insanely cheesy sandwiches made the take out pizza (they offered gf/df pizza but it contained soy) they ordered look like “triangles of greasy cardboard”, according to my 13 year old. It was nice to see my twin boys watching the game. They actually sat and got into it this year. It was funny to see them laugh whenever the player (with the ball) would get knocked down, probably wondering – “why does that guy keep getting clobbered!”
After a day of major noshing, a light salad with some seared wild salmon was dinner last night (and quick since I didn’t have more than 30 minutes to spare). If you ask me (I’ll pretend you did) this has got to be one of the best winter salads.
Blood oranges taste like a cross between an orange and a grapefruit, and has a sultry look to them … and when freshly squeezed, well, this juice will make one heck of a sexy martini … some lemonade, citrus vodka … uh, yum.
Okay, let me try to get my mind off cocktails for a minute and tell you how light and bright this salad is, without being complicated or pretentious … something we need to get us through the winter.
It will likely have you longing for more – and kind of forget that it’s chilly out. Bringing on a glimmer of hope that spring is just about here.
Yes, a salad of blood oranges and fennel can do that to you. Seriously.
Isn’t it something how Mother Nature offers these foods to brighten our day in the heart of winter? Thank you Mother Nature.
Now about that cocktail …
Serves 6 side salads
Ingredients:
4-5 blood oranges
1 fennel, including fronds
1/2 lemon
1/2 large red onion
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons GF sherry vinegar, or red wine vinegar
2-3 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
1-2 teaspoons crushed black pepper, or to taste
Preparation:
The mandarins almost made it in the salad but the sections fell apart when cut crosswise …
Remove the skin and white pith of the blood oranges with a pairing knife, then slice thinly crosswise. Trim ends of the fennel, cut in half, then slice thinly crosswise, or use a mandolin on 1/8 inch setting. Squeeze lemon over the fennel slices (this will prevent them from browning). Peel and thinly slice the onion crosswise. Arrange on a large salad platter.
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil and sherry vinegar evenly over the salad, then sprinkle kosher salt and pepper evenly as well. Serve room temperature. Enjoy!
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