Two Salads Tonight

(pictured:  Tomato and Onion salad in the center with the Green Bean, Potato and Celery on both sides)

We picked up some beautiful new potatoes and string beans at the farmers’ market on Sunday. When I bought them I was thinking of the pasta dish they make in Genoa, Italy with potatoes, green beans and basil pesto. Of course by the time I got around to cooking I had changed by mind 10 times. This is why I don’t bother to make a weekly menu. Maybe I should try just listing the main ingredients I want to use and then go from there, LOL.  I think that stands a better chance of working for me. ;-)  Here is what I made today:

Green Bean, Potato and Celery Salad
Serves 2 on a green salad

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 cups fresh green beans, cut into bite-sized pieces
8 ounces new potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
3 stalks celery, cut thinly on the bias (added this for crunch)
1 tablespoons capers, drained (rinsed to remove the surface sodium, the nutrition info assumes they are just drained)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Whisk together the Dijon mustard, lemon zest and juice.

Steam the green beans until tender crisp, approximately 4 minutes. Place the green beans in the dressing and toss to coat. The hot green beans will absorb more dressing.

Steam the new potatoes until just tender when pierced with the tip of paring knife, approximately 10 minutes. The exact time will depend on the size you cut them. Place the cooked potatoes in the dressing with the green beans and toss to coat. Again, the hot potatoes will absorb more dressing.

Allow the veggies to cool to approximately room temperature and refrigerate until cold. Now add the celery, capers, and parsley. Taste for seasoning and add black pepper as desired.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 164.83
Calories From Fat (5%) - 9

Total Fat - 1.1g
Saturated Fat - 0.13g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 651.75mg
Potassium - 861.08mg
Total Carbohydrates - 36.98g
Fiber - 8.19g
Sugar - 4.62g
Protein - 5.48g

Comments:

This is good on top a green salad. I like that the potatoes and beans have a lot of flavor. I also like the salty pop from the capers and the freshness from the parsley and greens. Cold cooked potatoes have a low GI than hot potatoes, resulted in less of a blood glucose surge. Not only that but these cold potatoes have a nice flavor. ;-)

Each serving of this salad topping contains approximately 1,400IU of vitamin A, 50mg of vitamin C, 100mg of calcium, 90mcg of folate, 100mcg of vitamin K, 110mg of phosphorus, and 60mg of magnesium.

Next Recipe:

Being female I tend to be a little fickle. What that means today is I felt like I wanted two different salads tonight with dinner. Of course you don’t need to do this which is why I am giving the serving sizes as though you only make one salad not two.

To go with the green bean and potato salad I wanted to make a tomato and onion salad. I dressed it up with some fresh herbs and served it over greens. Here is what I did:

Tomato and Onion Salad
Serves 2

Ingredients:

¼ cup onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
2 cups tomatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
4 olives, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh oregano, minced (or 2/3 teaspoon of dried)
¼ cup fresh basil, julienned
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Toss the onions in the wine vinegar and allow them to marinate for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and olives and toss to combine. Refrigerate until needed. Then add the fresh herbs and toss. Serve on top of greens or alone.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 59.12
Calories From Fat (18%) - 10.81

Total Fat - 1.25g
Saturated Fat - 0.16g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 75.52mg
Potassium - 509mg
Total Carbohydrates - 10.59g
Fiber - 4.09g
Sugar - 5.6g
Protein - 2.22g

Comments:

This is a standard tomato and onion salad only without olive oil. If you like heat this would be good with a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes or hot crushed peppers. We had this salad tonight on greens.

Each serving of this salad contains approximately 1,900IU of vitamin A, 30mg of vitamin C, 65mg of calcium, 35mg of folate, 35mcg of vitamin K, 50mg of phosphorus, and 25mg of magnesium.

Unrelated note:

Today was a bust in terms of attacking my to-do list. I only got about half way through. How does the day get away from me like that? It was nice to spend some time in the kitchen for a change. I do find cooking relaxing. But clearly I should have been multitasking, LOL.

Tomorrow is going to be another busy one. I will try to get at least one post up. I should know whether the teriyaki walnuts worked by tomorrow morning.

Time for me to sign out so that Dan and I can meditate before turning in for the evening. I hope everyone is having a great Monday. Talk to you tomorrow.