I spend so much time writing about salads that sometimes I forget to write about salads. By this I mean that there’s nary a post that goes by when you don’t see salad of some sort, either as a side dish or as the main event. And I mention frequently that most of the dinners you don’t see on my blog, either because I ate on a night when I couldn’t snap photos, or because my meal was too dull to blog about—are nutrient dense salads (NDS’s). But in all of that writing about salad, I seldom write about them exclusively; they’re so much a part of my diet and lifestyle at this point that I tend to take them for granted.

Every now and then, though, I make a salad or a dressing that’s so tasty I can’t help but dedicate an entire blog post to it. And that’s how I feel about my fig and white balsamic vinaigrette, which I’ve already made twice and intend to add to my list of dressings I make almost weekly (the list already includes my zucchini dressing, my maple cinnamon dressing, and my spicy thai dressing.

Confession: I don’t like fresh figs. Every September, whilst every foodie I know writes sonnets to his or her favorite fig dish, I stand aside, staring at those slippery, seedy little fellows with an air of suspicion. Dried figs, though, are another story: I love them, and could eat them till doomsday. I love them in baked goods, in salads, in raw trail mixes and snack bars, and on their own. I’d never thought to put them into a salad dressing until one recent afternoon at Whole Foods, when I noted that one of their new vinaigrette flavors was a fig balsamic. Hmmm, I thought: isn’t that a pretty idea?

Pretty it was. This dressing is sweet, deep, and delicious. It’s especially good for sweeter salads – like roast beets and endive, which is the first salad concoction I served this on—but it works really nicely on bitter or spicy greens like arugula, too, because its natural sweetness cuts the bite. I imagine it would go well on massaged kale, too—in fact it’s shocking that I haven’t tried that yet! No matter how you serve it, this one’s a keeper.

Fig and White Balsamic Vinaigrette (makes about 1 1/4 cups)

6 very large dried figs (if yours are small, add a few more), soaked for about 8 hours and drained
1/3 white balsamic vinegar (sub regular if need be)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 water
1 small clove garlic
1 tbsp dijon mustard
Salt and black pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender till totally smooth and creamy. Add more water if it’s too thick.

If you don’t have a high-speed blender, just go ahead and boil the figs for about ten minutes: that should get them soft enough to blend in a conventional blender.

Here, I served the drinkable stuff over an arugula salad. And it rocked.

If you’re wondering what I ate it with, that happened to be pretty tasty, too! I made a quesadilla with one large Ezekiel wrap, and a filling of sliced avocado and a butternut squash and white bean dip that I threw together totally on the fly: 2 cups steamed b-nut squash, 1 can organic, BPA-free cannellini beans, 2 heaping tbsp tahini, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp curry, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and a dash of cloves. Loved this combo!

A very satisfying Sunday brunch, if I may say.

It’s funny how ingredients we don’t usually like (figs, for me) can win our hearts over in a different form or as a part of a dressing or soup. Blending in general, I think, is a pretty good way to cozy up to foods you fear. I don’t think I’d ever have gotten over my aversion to cilantro (which is now one of my favorite flavors) if I hadn’t dumped some of it into a salad dressing lo these many years ago.

Do you have any foods you don’t like in one form, but do like in another? (I find that many fruits I don’t like fresh taste delicious dried.) And how were your weekends?

xo

Is it Monday already?

I think I’m the only person I know who hasn’t spent the last 24 hours in LOST withdrawal. Never got into it–though I’m sure I’ll change my tune one day when I Netflix the whole series five years after the fact, as I’m wont to do.

I don’t think I have to tell you all that I am obsessed with salad. And the obsession extends to all things salad-related: salad bowls, salad spinners, salad bars, and salad dressings. Especially salad dressings. If you’ve spent any time here at CR, you’ve seen some of my favorite dressing creations: carrot miso, maple cinnamon vinaigrette, spicy Thai, raw ranch, and crowd pleasing Asian are just a few of them. And of course, who could forget my zucchini dressing, most beloved of all my veggie-based dressings? I’m always looking for new dressings to spice up my salads, and tonight’s creation wins in the “best newcomer” category — for this week, at least

A while back, my friend Diana made a tomato tahini soup for me. It was love at first sip, and I’ve been looking forward to the summer so that I can make it (and make it again, and again, and again). That recipe really demands fresh, in season tomatoes (preferably heirlooms). But this recipe is doable with any old tomato — you can use tomatoes out of season (if you must), or you can use cherry tomatoes (which have just begun to make a regular appearance at my Sunday farmer’s market), as I did. You can even substitute canned, organic tomatoes, if you’d like to. No matter what tomatoes you use, a little tahini, nutritional yeast, ACV (apple cider vinegar), and a whirl in the blender will transform them into a heavenly salad dressing base. Observe:

Tomato Tahini Dressing (yields 1 1/2 cups)

14 cherry tomatoes (a heaping cup)
8 sundried tomatoes
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tbsp + 1 tsp nama shoyu or tamari
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup water

Blend all ingredients in a blender on high, till they’re creamy and smooth. Check the consistency: if it’s too thick, you can add 1/4 cup water or so to thin it. You can also adjust the acid by adding more ACV if you like.

This dressing is superb: super tangy, but given a nice mellow flavor from the tahini.

It’s a beautiful dressing for any greens. A few nights ago, it was the dressing of choice in this week’s featured nutrient-dense salad of the week (yes, I did just create a new CR tradition):

Spinach, beets, juice pulp crackers, fermented macadamia “goat cheese” (the last of my leftovers!) and tomato tahini dressing in action.

Yum.

Speaking of Ms. Diana, I ask you to observe the feast she made for me last week:

That’s acorn squash stuffed with brown rice, veggies, and guac, next to a big ‘ole kale salad. Diana knows her audience: she makes Gena food better than I do!

Speaking of guac, I had a chance to revive one of my favorite summer combos at lunchtime today: guac + sprouts, served up in a gigante salad:

Hello, beautiful. How I’ve missed you.

And finally, speaking of avocados: they are without question my favorite source of healthy fat (though let the record show that I enjoy many sources of healthy fats, including, but not limited to, nuts, seeds, nut butters, and oils). My pal Katie happens to be hosting a little initiative this month called “hug a fat,” which you can read more about on her blog! While I don’t have a photo of me hugging an avocado to share, I hope that the photos above are an adequate testimony to my love affair with this dreamy fruit. Kudos to Katie for spreading love for healthy fats!

On that note, I bid you go-make-some-tomato-tahini-dressing.

xo

Some time back, a friend of mine told me that his girlfriend’s sister doesn’t eat salad dressing. Like, never. Not even a drop.  There’s not a single dressing she likes, or a single kind of salad she’ll choose to dress. Not even oil and vinegar. The weird thing is, this young woman isn’t a particularly health conscious or picky eater in any other way: she eats totally without discrimination. But when it comes to dressing, she opts out.

This story bewilders me, mostly because I cannot imagine life without salad dressing. While it’s true that I’ll throw regular old flax oil and lemon juice on my salads about 75% of the time, I put a lot of effort into making a bunch of dressings whenever possible. I use them not only to dress salads, but to dip raw sushi rolls in, to snack on with veggie crudites, to adorn wraps or sandwiches, to pour over steamed veggies and grains, and to dress up spiralized veggie noodles. There are so many uses for a good salad dressing, so many uses that go far beyond salad itself. And of course, a terrific dressing can, as we know, be the difference between a salad that’s a winner and a salad that’s a dud.

Most salad dressings are composed of a mix (usually in a 1:2 ratio, but sometimes a 3:4 or a 2:3) of a fat and an acid. The fat is usually oil, and the acid usually vinegar, but of course this doesn’t have to be true. The fat base can be nuts or nut butter, the acid lemon or fruit juice. There are tons of ways to experiment, and tons of dressings to enjoy.

My favorite dressings are oil based, for the most part. And this is good, because I’m always happy for a chance to use my favorite healthy oils, like flax, hemp, and cold-pressed olive. The former two are rich in Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids. If you invest in a special blend, like Udo’s 3-6-9, you’ll also be getting the DHA acids that are so very tough for vegans to obtain otherwise. And you know by now that I’m a firm believer in the power of healthy fats in general.

This said, some of my clients are either specifically trying to lose weight. And these clients are a little more conscientious of fat and density than others, so I’m always looking for ways to help lighten up their meals without depriving them of good taste. And this is where my veggie dressings come in.

That’s right: vegetables can make a terrific base for salad dressing! If you use a veggie that’s easily blended, like zucchini, cucumber, or a steamed root vegetable, you can add terrific taste with only a fraction of the oil. If you’re a purist, you can add no oil at all, and thicken with a touch of flax seed or chia seed. And voila: perfect dressing that’s also low in fat and easy to digest.

Today, I want to offer you four vegetable based salad dressings that are also delicious and satisfying. All have proven popular with clients and stricter raw foodie friends who, unlike yours truly, are a little shy about oils. And all are regular faves in my kitchen–especially the zucchini dressing, which I’ve blogged about before. All dressings yield 1 1/2 cups. Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Dressing

1 heaping cup cooked butternut squash
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp nama shoyu
2 tbsp water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cumin
1 heaping tbsp agave nectar

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender till smooth. This one is especially delicious served over dark leafy greens, or when paired with pumpkin seeds!

Tomato Curry Dressing

This recipe was inpsired almost exactly by a recipe from my friend Ingrid. I changed the paprika to curry and loved the resulting flavor! The dressing is very delicate, so I recommend serving it with mild greens that will let you enjoy it’s flavor, but its sweetness also pairs nicely with the bitterness of arugula. (Or, as pictured, on top of a hasty work week salad!)

2 large tomatoes, roughly chopped, or 2 cups cherry tomatoes
¼ cup cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 pitted dates
1 small clove garlic (optional!!)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Pepper to taste
1 teaspoon curry powder

Blend all ingredients on high. This is a great way to use summer tomatoes, though they’re so perfect it seems sad to eat them any other way than sliced and sprinkled with salt!

Beet dressing

2 cups cooked beets, chopped
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp flax oil

Blend all ingredients on high. This dressing is sweet tart and surprisingly creamy. I love it over romaine salad with carrots and cucumbers!

Zucchini Dressing

This is one of my all time favorite dressings. I nearly always prepare a double batch on weekends and use it up throughout the week, in various ways. You’ll be shocked that it’s as low in oil as it is, and the flax seed goes a long way to thickening it naturally. A serious Choosing Raw fave!!!

For the dressing:

1 large zucchini, chopped½ cup lemon juice¼ cup nutritional yeast2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or flax oil1 tbsp organic mustard (optional)3 pitted dates or 1 packet stevia3 tbsp nama shoyu or tamari3 tbsp ground flax seed¼ cup water½ tsp coriander

Blend all dressing ingredients on high till smooth and creamy. Mix salad ingredients and top with the dressing as desired.

This post is just yet more proof that veggies are versatile beyond our wildest imagining. Is there ever any end to what we can do with them? I also hope it proves that there’s a lot more to dressing than oil and vinegar. So take those leftover and extra veggies out of your fridge, and start experimenting! Let me know what you come up with.

Finally, do you want to win the ultimate bloggie gift? It’s a free blog makeover from Zestycook, and you can enter to win here! Good luck!!!

xo

My friend Mary seems to be giving me lots of culinary inspiration lately!

Last week, you guys saw firsthand that Mary knows how to concoct a good salad. This week, she serves as the inspiration for what is fast becoming a new favorite dressing: raw carrot miso dressing.

See, there’s this dressing Mary loves. It’s the carrot miso dressing from Candle 79, and I can see why: the stuff is delicious, neutral for food combining, and oil free (for those of you who have a reason to be seeking out lower fat dressing options). Mary loves this dressing so much that when I recently visited her at the Jersey Shore, I witnessed her whip out a bottle of it from a lunch cooler she had packed in the middle of a restaurant lunch. Clearly, Mary won’t settle for mediocre restaurant dressings.

A girl after my own heart.

In honor of Mary, I decided to take a stab at my own quick version of the dressing at home. Full disclaimer: my dressing isn’t *quite* as scrumptious as the real thing. But it is pretty darn tasty, it’s nearly oil free, and it doubles as a great dip for salads and veggies. It’ll remind you of a slightly less salty version of the house carrot dressing you get in Japanese restaurants — only you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that you made it yourself! Behold, the recipe:

Carrot Miso Dressing (makes 3 cups, or so)

3-4 very large carrots (or 7-8 small — size varies dramatically from carrot to carrot, so estimate accordingly), chopped
1 cup water
3 tbsps mellow white miso
1 tbsp nama shoyu
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 large, pitted medjool dates
1 inch ginger, peeled
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Blend all ingredients save the sesame oil in a Vitamix. You’ll have to start on low and work the speed up; your machine will sound a little angry, but once it gets blending, it’ll simmer down! When you have a creamy, even mix, turn the speed to high and drizzle the sesame oil in. Check the texture: if you’d like it thicker, add some more chopped carrots! Otherwise, serve on top of a salad or as a dip for some veggie snacking (as I did), and enjoy!

Now, I know what you guys are thinking: will a regular blender work? The answer is no, it won’t, not with raw carrots. Don’t try. But if you want to make a raw-ish version of this yummy dressing, you could use steamed carrots in a normal blender. Just wait until they cool off before you make the dressing. You could also use carrot juice in lieu of carrots and water and follow the rest of the recipe, but in this case you’ll want to reduce the liquid to 3/4 cup and prepare yourself for a thinner consistency.

Hope you give one of these options a try at home. A big thank you to Mary for being my culinary muse this week!

I’ll be back before the weekend with a very special Choosing Raw interview. Then it’s off to the New York Capital Region Vegetarian Expo, where I’ll be an exhibitor this weekend! That’s right, I’ll be in Saratoga Springs, NY, hocking my wares and spreading a little bit of raw love. I’ll be back next week with a full recap of the event and my mini-vacation upstate!

And I’d like to close by sharing this link, which my buddies Heather and Diana sent to me not long ago. Look familiar?

Hey, at least raw soft serve is getting the popularity it deserves.

But I’ll pass on the cow’s milk, thanks

Is it just me, or does every single deli and sandwich shop have a wrap or sandwich labeled “the California wrap”? At the very least, I can think of three delis in my neighborhood that sell somesuch thing, usually involving grilled chicken and avocado.

Well, today I’m sharing my own version of a “California” sandwich, so called primarily because it uses Napa cabbage leaves as the bread, and secondarily because of the sweet ranch dressing and avocado stuffed inside.

When I don’t use Ezekiel bread or collard wraps for sandwiches, Napa cabbage leaves are my “bread” of choice. They’re big, sturdy, and flatter than romaine leaves, so I find that they make more stable and sliceable foundations for sandwiches. (For the record, Napa cabbage is also loaded with vitamins K and C). I often pile them with nut pate, guacamole, or raw hummus, but simple shredded veggies and a zesty dressing taste great, too.

This particular sandwich is brought together by a sweet, tangy ranch dressing. There are plenty of raw dressing variations floating around online, but this is my own version–and my favorite! It’s rich and fresh tasting, and it’s dotted with spring herbs, so it’s perfect for this time of year. It’s a little greener than your traditional ranch dressing, but that’s just the dill and parsley making their presence known!

Raw Ranch Dressing (Yields 1 ½ cups, or so)

¾ cup cashews, soaked for at least two hours
½ cup water
2 tbsp lemon juice
¼ cup apple cider vinegar (a little more if you like it more tart)
3 tbsp olive oil
¼-½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. dried thyme
½ tsp dried oregano
*1 clove garlic
*½ tsp onion powder
3 tbsp fresh dill
3 tbsp fresh parsley

* You all know me well enough to know I’d never include these! But if garlic and onion don’t, um, make you gag, use them for a more traditional “ranch” flavor.

Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender – OR blend all ingredients except for the oil in a food processor, and drizzle the oil in until the mixture is creamy and emulsified.

When dressing is blended, chop an additional few tablespoons of herbs and mix them in. Enjoy on top of a big green salad, or in…

Gena’s California Ranch Sandwich:

Take two generous leaves of Napa cabbage. Pile one of them high with red cabbage, cucumber, tomato slices, and some thinly sliced avocado (sprouts or carrot would also be a nice addition). Drizzle generously with raw ranch dressing, cover with the other cabbage leaf, and serve.

Close up:

A note to all of my food combining friends: technically, this sandwich combines a nut-based dressing with some avocado. Most of you should be able to get away with it, since the avocado used is very minimal. But if you’re highly sensitive to food combinations (like me), I would serve this sans avocado, or with avocado and an avocado-based or neutral dressing.

This sandwich makes a perfect, light lunch, and it would be easy to take to work: just pack your cabbage leaves and shredded veggies into one container and your dressing into another, and assemble at the office!

So, switching topics for a moment, many of you have been inquiring about my coaching services lately. This is great! One of the more frequent inquiries I’m getting is, “Do you only work with people who want to go totally raw?” And the answer is a big, resounding no! I work with clients at all levels and with all dietary habits: the only prerequisite is that you have an interest in adding more raw or high-raw foods to your life. Depending on what your goals are, I’ll help you to prepare raw meals (whether that’s once daily or once weekly), talk to you about green grocery shopping and meal planning, and help you understand the raw lifestyle better. I encourage a gradual transition process, and I’m also here to help you develop strategies for dietary pitfalls, such as sugar addiction or emotional eating.

If you’ve got lots of questions and want to work on eating more raw, I encourage you to shoot me an email at gena@choosingraw.com to inquire about my rates and packages. Email counseling is a great option for those of you who are far away and have questions that need answering; I’m getting so much curiosity from you, but I can’t always answer your queries without a detailed sense of your history and needs. Which is where coaching comes in

Alright my friends. I hope you’re all enjoying a nice, early summer weekend! My plans include:

•Lots of work
•A trip downtown to hear Victoras Kulvinskas speak with my friend Cassie
•A rooftop party
•Waiting for Time Warner Cable to replace my cable modem
•A run, some yoga

Have a great day!

xo

P.S. Speaking of dressings, check out my friend Lindsay’s Zukay Dressings giveaway!!