Despite the recipes I have posted that include sausage and cheese, we eat pretty clean at home. Most of those recipes are ones I learned to cook with and can easily tell you how to make. We do eat them, but only occasionally.
These days we use mostly organic or non-GMO produce and meat. (I wrote a blog post about this a few months ago — read it here) We are also gluten-free, sugar-free, soy-free and almost dairy-free at home. (I know! What is there left to eat?)
This salad is one of our favorites. It’s a mix of a couple of salads that we had tried but didn’t love. One night I decided to throw them together and see what would happen.
It was love at first bite! The combination of the warm potatoes and the melting goat cheese make a perfect pairing. A great meatless meal – it is satisfying and yummy. We think it is a winner.
Ingredients:
- 2-3 large heads of romaine lettuce
- 2.5 lbs. of baby potatoes — I have used Yukon gold, red, and fingerling. All are good, but we like gold the best. (I used tri-colored baby potatoes for this blog. They were on sale, plus they are pretty.)
- Flat leaf parsley, about half a handful
- 1 T. olive oil
- 1 T. garlic powder
- 1 14 oz. jar of artichoke hearts
- 16 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup Sweet & Salty Pecans (recipe below)
- 4-6 oz. goat cheese, (crumbled)
- Salt & Pepper
- Raspberry Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Preheat oven to 375
- Half the potatoes.
- Finely chop the parsley. It should make about 2 T.
- Toss the potatoes and parsley in a bowl with the olive oil. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix well. Pour onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes until potatoes are tender and beginning to brown. (We sometimes broil them for ten minutes more just to get them crispy.)
While potatoes are cooking
- Half the lettuce lengthwise. Wash and allow to dry.
- Drain artichokes reserving liquid. Chop in chunks.
- Half tomatoes
Make Raspberry Vinaigrette
- ¼ c. balsamic vinegar
- ½ c. artichoke liquid (or you can just use olive oil)
- 2 heaping T. raspberry fruit spread (the no sugar kind)
- Salt and Pepper
Gently warm ingredients on stovetop and mix thoroughly. (I have also mixed in a lidded jar that I shake vigorously, but the warm dressing tastes wonderful.)
Make Sweet & Salty Pecans
- 1 c. sliced pecans
- 1 t. butter
- 1 – 2 T. of honey or agave
- Sea salt
I had a bit much honey in this and had to drain a bit.
Melt butter in a skillet. Add sliced pecans. Heat until they start to brown. Add honey and stir until toasted and almost burnt. (They burn quick so watch carefully.) Spread on wax paper and sprinkle with sea salt. Let cool. They should harden up, and clump in soft bunches, almost like a runny nut brittle. Break them into bits to toss on salad.
On a large platter, layer the lettuce, potatoes, tomatoes and artichokes. Spoon on the dressing. Sprinkle on the pecans and goat cheese.
This is best served immediately. We love the mix of warm potatoes, melting goat cheese, sweet dressing and crunchy pecans. In the beginning I always halved the romaine and plated it — it looks more impressive and was something I saw Martha Stewart do with romaine hearts once. (I did it for this blog photo.) Lately, I have been just chopping it and tossing everything together in a large bowl. Either way works fine.
This is after the photos. Dumped in a big bowl, chopped and ready to eat.
Serves 2-4.
Hope you love it!
