Winter Salads

Le sigh....the last of those wonderful summer veggies are gone and now I need to turn to winter vegetables.  Course I didn't expect 10" of snow at the end of October!  Gosh a 5 pound bag of carrots is less than $5 and they go everywhere on our table.  Soups, stir fry, side dish, souffle, salads....

Above left are barely roasted green beans, diced hard cheese, toasted hazelnuts, slow roasted summer tomatoes from the freezer, all tossed with a balsamic vinaigrette.

Above right photo is barely roasted slivered carrots, dried cranberries, toasted walnuts, chunks of blue cheese, tossed with a honey mustard vinaigrette. 

Each salad is a balance of crunch from veggies and nuts, smooth taste from a cheese, punch of tang from the dressing.

Oven roasting keeps veggies nice and dry for salads.  Roast to your liking.  Carrots or beans, get barely roasted.  Potatoes or tomatoes can go into the well done stages.  Cool and toss with robust flavors and textures...all mixing and matching!

Above is a salad of shredded raw brussel sprouts, gorgonzola, some sweet roasted nuts all tossed with a lemon vinaigrette.  That was in a small Italian place in Brooklyn, NY.

Greens tossed with vinaigrette, then layered with roasted beets, sliced winter citrus, toasted goat cheese.