The Grain and Bean Salad Formula

I'm trying out a new salad "formula" that's an amalgamation of this post on Mark Bittman's website and this post on a website called Three Many Cooks. Essentially, they both suggest that if you use certain proportions of certain types of ingredients you can come up with a virtually limitless variety of delicious salads. That's my kind of thinking! I love the idea of being able to work with what I've got on hand or dream up fancy new creations with these proportions as guidelines.
Here's the basic formula:
2 cups cooked grain
2 cups cooked beans
3 cups chopped veggies (raw or lightly steamed or a combination of both)
1/2-3/4 cup "extras" (nuts, cheese, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, dried fruit, etc)
1/4 cup fragrant/oniony things (red onions, shallots, green onions, maybe some garlic or ginger or lemongrass mixed in)
1/2 cup chopped soft herbs (basil, cilantro, parsley, mint, dill, etc, use one or a combination)
1/4 cup oil (I'd recommend using olive as the main base and then adding other oils in smaller proportion for flavor)
2 Tbs acid (lemon juice, lime juice, orange juice, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, rice vinegar, etc.)
salt and pepper (and any other spices you desire; cumin, chili-powder, etc)
Put the acid you are using in a large bowl. Add a little salt and pepper (and spice if desired). Add your fragrant oniony things. Add oil in a slow stream and whisk until you have a well-mixed dressing. Add the grain and beans and mix well. Add all other ingredients and stir until well mixed. Add a little more salt and pepper as needed (will vary depending on what extras you've added). Serve

For the salad I made tonight: I used pearled barley, kidney beans, green beans (lightly steamed), toasted walnuts, feta, shallots, parsley, olive oil, and white wine vinegar. Pretty darn tasty!

Easy Dinner: Baked Potato With Cottage Cheese and Salsa

Last week I snapped a photo of this super easy dinner I made. It's not really a recipe, just a great tip that a friend shared with me long ago. Instead of putting butter, sour cream, or cheese on a baked potato, try using low-fat cottage cheese and salsa. It's super tasty, and when paired with a big salad, makes a filling, easy, and inexpensive meal.

Tomato, Basil, and Millet Salad with Black-Eyed Peas

I tried out another millet salad recipe tonight- it has a balsamic dressing, black-eyed peas, and cherry tomatoes. It's super delicious, though a bit ugly, and comes from the Whole Foods recipe collection that they have on their website. I wish the recipes were sorted by type of food (salad, main dish, etc), but you can search by ingredient, and they also have them grouped by rating and date posted. I have been pretty impressed with their recipes; they almost always taste great, and they are generally quick and easy to put together. This salad is much more "wet" than the one I posted a few days ago. I suspect that's because millet drinks up moisture, and starting out with a salad that has slightly more liquid in it will keep it at a nice consistency for a few days. This makes a great big bowl and it would be an ideal side to take to a picnic or potluck.
Tomato, Basil, and Millet Salad with Black-Eyed Peas
from wholefoodsmarket.com

1 cup uncooked millet, rinsed and drained

3 cups vegetable broth

1 (15-ounce) can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained

1 cup chopped green onions

1/3 cup thinly sliced basil

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Ground black pepper, to taste

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

salad greens

Toast millet in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and just golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and carefully add broth. Return to heat and bring to a boil over medium high heat then reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed and millet is tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Transfer millet to a large bowl, fluff with a fork and set aside to let cool. 

Add black-eyed peas, green onions and basil to millet, toss gently and set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, then pour dressing over millet mixture and toss to coat. Add tomatoes, then spoon over salad greens and serve.

Millet Salad with Shiitakes, Peas, and Spinach

The recipe below is a millet salad I tried out a few nights ago. I've been wanting to experiment with millet, as quinoa has gotten so incredibly expensive over the past few months (quinoa is currently over $6/lb, the millet was $1.64/lb). Millet, though technically a seed (like quinoa), has all the great nutritional benefits associated with whole grains. including reducing your risk for heart disease and lowering your risk for type 2 diabetes. There is in-depth information about nutritional benefits and cooking with millet here and here.
In terms of preparation, to make fluffy millet salads, you will want to let the millet cook in peace and NOT stir it while it is cooking (even if you really really want to stir it). Stirring leads to millet being sticky and creamy, which some people like for breakfast porridge, but it's not what you're looking for in a grain salad!
Anyhow, my first attempt at a millet salad was pretty good. I  adapted this recipe to incorporate seasonal ingredients I wanted to use, and to give the original recipe a little more flavor. I used delicious shiitake mushrooms and exquisitely fresh spinach grown locally by the super sweet Terry Bunce of Alpine Mushroom Company and the super sweet Terry Stewart of Stewart Organics, respectively. I served the millet salad on a bed of greens with some baked tofu on top. Pretty tasty, inexpensive, and very filling and nutritious.

Millet Salad with Shiitake Mushrooms, Peas, and Spinach
adapted from Gourmet, January 1996
4 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup millet

2 cups water

1/2 onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

½ pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps finely chopped (about 3 cups)

1 cup snap pea pods, chopped into bite-sized pieces

2 cups spinach leaves, washed and chopped into small ribbons

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon tamari

1 tablespoon seasoned rice-wine vinegar

1/3 cup fresh parsley leaves, washed well, spun dry, and chopped fine

salt and pepper

preparation

In a large saucepan heat 1 tablespoon oil over moderately high heat and cook millet, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes, or until it makes popping sounds and begins to turn golden. Add 2 cups water to the millet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 20 minutes or until water is absorbed. Transfer to a large bowl and fluff with a fork.

In a large skillet heat 1 tablespoon oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté onions and garlic, stirring, until softened. Add shiitakes and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add peas and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add spinach and cook until just wilted. Stir in curry powder, tamari, vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons oil, and parsley, and add to millet. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  

Chickpea Salad with Lemon, Parmesan, and Fresh Herbs

A few nights ago, I whipped up this sweet little bean salad and ate it with sliced veggies. I was planning to have a yam for dinner, but it was taking too long to cook and I was hungry, so I made this while I was waiting. The recipe is from Bon Appetit (courtesy of epicurious), and it's awesome in its simplicity. It's  probably the easiest thing you could make to throw on top of a plate of salad greens, and I will probably make it a lot this summer.
Chickpea Salad with Lemon, Parmesan, and Fresh Herbs
Bon Appetit, April 2011

1 15oz can chickpeas, rinsed, drained

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 small garlic clove, pressed

1/3 cup (packed) freshly grated Parmesan cheese

salt

pepper

Combine rinsed and drained chickpeas, chopped fresh basil, chopped Italian parsley, fresh lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, and pressed garlic clove in medium bowl. Add grated Parmesan cheese and toss gently to blend all ingredients thoroughly. Season chickpea salad to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  

Inspired Salad:Black Rice with Mango and Peanuts Topped With Scrambled Eggs

Tonight I made a fantastic salad. I wanted to try out a recipe I found that combines black rice with mango and peanuts. I decided to serve it on a big plate of salad greens. Grain salads are delicious and healthy, but I like to eat them on a bed of salad greens so that I don't make them into my entire meal (which is easy to do, especially if they are as tasty as this one). I also really wanted to top this with some tofu for extra protein, but I didn't have any, so I scrambled up some eggs instead- what a happy accident! The eggs are the perfect complement to the rice, the texture of everything together is just wonderful. The black rice salad does take a little time to prepare, but it makes a great big batch- perfect for taking to a potluck or just having around for a quick and easy lunch or side dish.

P.S. Unfortunately, the photo didn't load properly and I've already deleted it. I guess you'll have to make it yourself if you want to see how pretty it is!

Black Rice with Mango and Peanuts 
2 cups black rice
juice and zest of 1 orange
juice of 2 limes and zest of 1lime
1 Tbs tamari
1 tsp brown sugar
a few drops toasted sesame oil
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
2 Tbs oil (I used avocado, but any oil will work)
2 cups diced mango (fresh is preferable, but thawed frozen mango is fine)
1 cup chopped onion
6 green onions, finely sliced
1/2 cup peanuts, toasted and chopped
1 cup cilantro, chopped

To make it into a super-awesome inspired salad you will also need:
salad greens, washed and torn
eggs, scrambled (2 per person)
avocado, cubed (about 1/4 per person)
red pepper slices (about 1/2 a red pepper per person)

First get the rice started: combine 2 cups rice with 2 3/4 cups water in a medium-sized sauce pan. Bring  to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Cook covered for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit covered for 5 more minutes.
While the rice is cooking, prepare the dressing for the salad: combine juice and zest of orange and lime, tamari, brown sugar, toasted sesame oil, and jalapeno. Whisk together. Add the 2 Tbs of oil in a slow stream, whisking as you go. Set aside.
When rice is done, mix rice and dressing in a large bowl. Add mango, onion, green onion, peanuts, and cilantro and mix well. Serve as is, or if you are making this into a super-awesome inspired salad, fill each plate with a generous serving of salad greens, top with 2 cups of black rice salad, avocado cubes, and scrambled eggs. Garnish with red pepper slices if desired.