Hello friends! I am sorry I’ve disappeared for a while. I’ve been reworking the focus of Get Cultured Kitchen and getting ready to post a series of really useful posts I’m really excited about! So far Get Cultured Kitchen has been mostly focused on bringing seasonal recipes and teaching you how to source food ingredients that are ethical and sustainable. I am so proud of the work I’ve been able to bring to you all and I hope you guys all find it useful! I mean, the whole point of this blog is to produce material that will make it easier for you to live a sustainable life. However, for that reason I’ve decided to switch the focus of my posts up a little bit and cover the foundations. Expect posts and infographs from me in the near future covering everything from questions to ask yourself before you buy fish to check lists for reducing energy consumption in your home. These tools will be things easy to use on a day to day basis. All your questions answered in one go! If you have any suggestions for these foundational posts please email me! So keep an eye out for that stuff, but meanwhile I’d like to share with you this delicious Rainbow Spring Salad!
If you recall I brought you all a delicious Citrus Winter Salad, but we are well into Spring and there is a lot more available to us this time of year. We’re talking sweet peas, strawberries, golden beets, cucumbers and radishes working in harmony to nourish your body and kick allergy season in the behind! Sweet, sour, spicy, savory all wrapped up into one perfect marriage. Plus the dressing for this salad basically tastes like sour cream and onion dip except somehow even better? It’s FULL of fresh garden herbs and love! The flavors really out did themselves and you’ll find yourself falling in love all over again… with salad dressing. I know it sounds silly, but you just wait and see!
I mean, I want to brag, but really that’s the beauty of eating in season and eating homegrown or locally grown food. It’s grown for flavor and nutrition as opposed to the super market varieties that are grown for durability and appearance. The flavors of these foods are at their peak right now; all I had to do was throw them in a bowl!
Sourcing Rainbow Spring Salad Ingredients:
Vegetables and Herbs: Always try to source locally grown or homegrown produce! The average persons produce travels over a 1,000 miles to get to them. That’s a completely inefficient use of gas, and the reason most vegetables are grown for durability above all else. Fresh food is healthier for you and better for the environment. Plus it usually tastes better too so it’s a win win!
Mayonnaise: I haven’t found a mayonnaise brand that I completely trust. It’s so much better tasting and healthier to make at home so that’s exactly what I do! It’s easy and rewarding.
Buttermilk: When buying dairy products look for grass fed. There are so many issues with the industrial dairy industry that the best thing you can do is know your farm and farmer personally. But that will be different for every person depending on location. This website is really helpful in finding local farms near you! Just type in your zipcode and what you are looking for.
Yields 8 servings
Get lot's of vitamins and minerals with this easy Rainbow Spring Salad healthy recipe. Strawberries, radishes, cucumbers, and beets are a perfect marriage of sweet, savory, refreshing and a little spicy. This Spring recipe is a stable all season!
10 minPrep Time
10 minCook Time
20 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- For the Salad:
- 2 1/2 beets
- 1/2 cup sweet peas
- 1/2 basket strawberries
- 2 small cucumbers
- 1 bundle radishes
- Handful of mint
- Bag of mixed greens
- 1/3 cup mayo
- 1/2 scant cup buttermilk
- 1/2 tsp dill
- 1 tbsp minced chives
- 1/4 tsp thyme
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 rounded tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Cook the beets with preferred method. I cooked my beets in the microwave in a bowl sitting in water and covered for about 10 minutes (4 minute cycles). Until the beets were tender, but not super soft. See notes for link to how-to
- WHILE BEETS ARE COOKING slice radishes, sweet peas and cucumbers into thin slices.
- Run beets under cool water to cool off.
- Cut beets into thin slices
- Tear mint roughly into thirds.
- Put all salad ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
- Mix all dressing ingredients together and drizzle desired amount over salad.
- Toss salad and serve immediately.
- Enjoy!
Notes
http://www.womansday.com/food-recipes/cooking-tips/tips/a4756/all-about-beets-105239/
