Chopped Holiday Salad Food

CONTEST-WINNING FESTIVE TOSSED SALAD

Steps:

• For dressing, place first five ingredients in a blender; cover and process until blended. While processing, gradually add oil in a steady stream. Add poppy seeds; pulse just until combined. , To serve, place remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Toss with dressing.

HOLIDAY LETTUCE SALAD

Steps:

• In a salad bowl, combine the first five ingredients. , For dressing, in a small bowl, whisk lemon juice, oil, corn syrup, onion, mustard and salt. Pour over romaine mixture; toss to coat. Sprinkle with cashews.

CHOPPED HOLIDAY SALAD

Steps:

• Place beans, sweet peppers, cucumber, radicchio, and radishes in separate self-sealing plastic bags. For dressing, in a screw-top jar combine oil and lemon juice. Cover and shake well. Add honey, salt, and cracked pepper to taste, covering and shaking well after each addition. Pour 1 to 2 tablespoons dressing into each bag. Seal bags. Chill 2 to 4 hours, turning bags occasionally (beans, green peppers, and cucumber may be chilled up to 24 hours).
• To serve, arrange vegetables and dressing along with feta cheese in strips on a serving platter. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and/or mint. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Vegetables:
• Place a rack in the middle of oven and preheat to 350°F. Cut squash into quarters and scoop out seeds. Place skin side down on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Whisk lemon juice, honey, and 2 Tbsp. oil in a small bowl and rub all over cut sides of squash; season with salt and pepper. Roast until very tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Let cool.
• Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Arrange brussels sprouts cut side down in skillet and cook, undisturbed, until well browned, about 4 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally and reducing heat as needed, until browned all over, about 5 minutes longer. Reduce heat to medium; add butter, thyme, rosemary, and garlic. Tip skillet toward you so butter pools on one side and cook, spooning butter over brussels sprouts, until butter smells nutty, about 4 minutes; season with salt. Add vinegar and toss to coat. Cook just until vinegar and butter form a glaze over sprouts. Let cool; discard herbs.
• Vinaigrette:
• Combine vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, and a big pinch of salt in a medium bowl. Finely grate in garlic and whisk to combine. Let sit 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat red pepper flakes, oregano, and 1/4 cup oil in a small saucepan over medium until oil is warm but not yet sizzling. Add remaining 2/3 cup oil to cool down infused oil.
• Pour infused oil into vinegar mixture; whisk until smooth. Season vinaigrette with salt.
• Assembly:
• Toss chickpeas in a medium bowl with ¼ cup vinaigrette; season with salt. Let sit, tossing occasionally, until chickpeas taste like they've absorbed some vinaigrette, at least 10 minutes.
• Toss scallions, salami, caciocavallo, olives, and dill into chickpeas. Scoop out bite-size pieces of roasted squash until you have 2 cups; save remaining squash for another use. Add to chickpea mixture along with brussels sprouts and glaze. Add radicchio and lettuce and toss to combine. Add more vinaigrette to taste; season with salt.
• Serve salad topped with ricotta salata and pomegranate seeds.
• Do Ahead
• Squash and brussels sprouts can be cooked 3 days ahead. Cover and chill separately. Spoon pan juices for each on top. Vinaigrette can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Blend 1/3 cup feta, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon each lemon juice, water and dill, 1 small grated garlic clove, and salt and pepper to taste in a mini food processor. Toss with 1 chopped romaine heart, 1 small chopped cucumber, 5 chopped radishes, 1 drained can chickpeas, 2 chopped celery stalks, and 1/3 cup each thawed frozen peas and toasted sliced almonds. Season with salt and pepper.

CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Chop the vegetables into small 1/4 inch pieces. Place in a big bowl.
• Stir in the nuts.
• Quarter the olives; add to the vegetables.
• Stir in the crumbled cheese.
• Chop lettuce into fine pieces; combine with vegetable mixture.
• Chill several hours before serving.
• This recipe is flexible. Add or delete vegetables and/or nuts to your liking. Diced zucchini, red peppers, fresh herbs, pumpkin seed kernels can all be used in any combination that appeals to your family.

CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Mix all the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
• Combine the vinaigrette ingredients in a small glass jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake well.
• Toss the salad with the vinaigrette and serve immediately.

HOLIDAY JEWELS CHOPPED KALE SALAD WITH MUSTARD-SHALLOT VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Make the vinaigrette: Add everything to a blender, and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Prepare the kale: remove the leaves from the tough stems (discard the stems), then stack the leaves and cut into ribbons. Add to a very large salad bowl, drizzle with a little extra-virgin olive oil and a pinch of kosher salt, and use your hands to massage for about a minute, until the kale has reduced a bit in size and is bright green and glossy.
• To the bowl, add all other ingredients, reserving a bit of each one to use as topping at the end.
• Pour over half the vinaigrette, and use your hands (or a big spoon) to mix everything together really well. Top with the reserved ingredients, drizzle a little extra dressing over the top and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or place in the fridge for up to 6 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Add walnuts, sugar, and water to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, give it a good stir, then turn down heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer the walnuts to the baking sheet. You want a little bit of the syrupy water to come with the walnuts onto the sheet pan, as this will add to the caramelization. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes, or until the nuts are fragrant and lightly caramelized. They'll harden and get nice and crunchy as they cool.
• I like to store these in the freezer, or you can use immediately on the salad.

CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Whisk together lemon juice, sugar, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl, then add oil in a stream, whisking until combined.
• Toss remaining ingredients with dressing.

CHOPPED HOLIDAY SALAD

Steps:

• Place beans, green peppers, cucumber, red cabbage(or radicchio), and radishes in separate self sealing plastic bags.
• For the dressing:.
• In a screw top jar combine oil and lemon juice. Cover and shake well. Add the honey, salt, and pepper to taste, covering and shaking well after each addition. Pour 1 to 2 tbls. dressing into each bag and seal. Chill 2 to 4 hours, turning the bags every so often. The beans, green peppers, and cucumber may be chilled up to 24 hours.
• To serve, arrange vegetables and dressing along with feta cheese in strips on a platter. Sprinkle herbs over all.
• Serves 8 to 10.
• Enjoy!

CHOPPED LEFTOVER TURKEY SALAD (PERFECT FOR POST-THANKSGIVING!)

Steps:

• Add all dressing ingredients to a lidded jar and shake until it is well mixed. Then, chill the dressing in the fridge while you prepare the salad.
• Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spread the pumpkin seeds on a foil-lined baking sheet. Coat with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika, then toss to combine.
• Roast the seeds for 40-45 minutes or until they are nicely toasted. Remove the seeds from the oven, then set them aside to cool.
• To a large bowl, add romaine, green beans, bacon, red onion, turkey, pumpkin seeds, parsley, and cracked pepper. Stir in the dressing, then toss until thoroughly combined. Enjoy!

HOLIDAY CHOPPED KALE SALAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine chopped kale, red cabbage, chopped fennel, and red onion; toss together and set aside.
• Prepare the dressing: in a measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the Dijon, salt and pepper. Add the oil and whisk again, then slowly whisk in the pomegranate juice and then the balsamic vinegar.
• Pour half the dressing over the vegetables and toss gently-reserve remaining dressing for another use.
• Add the remaining ingredients (feta, candied pecans, pomegranate arils and dried cranberries) and toss again. If you like, add a little more dressing to the salad.