Kaledorf Salad
This is a sugar-free, dairy-free version of your classic waldorf salad. Rather than a heavy mayo based dressing and iceburg lettuce, this recipe has some liver supporting cruciferous vegetables like kale and cabbage and a protein packed cashew cream dressing. Cashews are my new favourite sauce maker. I love that you can keep them in the fridge/ freezer for long term storage and then when needed, just soak em and use them. I find sometimes that having yogurt on hand all the time either gets eaten or goes bad and you don’t always use a whole can of coconut milk right away. With cashews you can just take what you need and save the rest for later. I also use cashews when I don’t have anything in the house and need to whip something up. You can pour boiling water on the cashews to speed up the soak time and literally make this salad in 10 minutes or less. If a recipe calls for a little bit of nut milk, I will just blend up some cashews and hemps seeds for 30-45 seconds and voila! Problem solved.
As you know, I am a huge fan of boosting your greens and finding new and exciting ways to incorporate the leafy buggers into your life. I add greens to everything and encourage my clients to do the same. Finding a new way to eat vegetables makes them much more enjoyable to eat and enjoyable to cook with. Lots of people hate salads because they think of your classic ice burg lettuce with carrots sticks and cherry tomatoes, smothered in ranch. However, salads may be the most versatile cook category out there.
Try adding
a new type of vegetable - jicama, radish, arugula, endive, broccoli and celery are great in salads. Left over roasted vegetables are also delicious - try beats, sweet potato, squash or Brussel sprouts
greens - romaine, kale, beet leaves, mustard leaves, arugula, red cabbage, napa cabbage and spinach
nuts - almonds, cashews, walnuts and pecans
seeds - pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and hemp
strong grass-fed cheese - goat, feta, blue, sharp cheddar
fruit - orange, grapefruit, apple, pear, cranberry, cherry
legumes - black beans, chickpeas, lentils, white beans, edamame, peas
grains - milley, buckwheat groats, quinoa, pearl barley, couscous, wheat berries,
various spices - ginger, soy, Italian herbs, lemon, lime, cilantro, rosemary, curry, parsley
acidity - lemon, lime, orange, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar, red or white wine vinegar
fats - olive oil, tahini, peanut putter, avocado oil, walnut oil, flax oil, sesame oil, pumpkin seed butter
These can all be use in different variations to create a hearty salad that is packed with nutrients. You can take your boring side salad and make it into a flavour packed meal. Make your own salad dressing too so you have control of the ingredients and you can tailor it perfectly to match your salad. Lots of store bought dressings have extra fillers, gums and artificial colour that does much more harm than good in the body. Lots of the time too, its the dressing that makes a salad unhealthy and backed with oxidized fats.
Pro tip: make a large batch of salad dressing for the week and store it in a jar. You can mix it up every week so you don’t get bored, but having it on hand and ready to go will make it more likely to want to make a salad. (sometimes I make a salad just to eat the dressing!).
Kaledorf Salad
Ingredients
2 cups kale
2 cups napa cabbage
1/4 purple onion - diced
2 lg stalks celery - chopped
1/2 small apple - chopped
1/4 cup chopped walnuts - optional
1 tbsp hemp seeds
Dressing
1/4 cup raw cashews -soaked
1 tbsp hemp seeds
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp dried parsley
1 clove garlic
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp stevia
Directions:
Chop kale and cabbage and add to a large bowl. Add in celery, apple and onion.
Place dressing ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. You may need to add a bit of water to thin
Toss the greens in dressing and top with additional hemp seeds and walnuts if using.