Ginger Jewel Salad

June 19, 2011

Ginger Jewel Salad Summer = salads! You can have fun with this delicious and light dish by experimenting with any dried fruits, just try to imagine if it will pair well with ginger and go from there. This recipe uses a festive combination of dried fruits with leafy red romaine lettuce and some little gem lettuce. You can use whatever lettuce looks the most vibrant at the store or from your own garden. Feel free to make the vinaigrette the day before.

Ingredients:
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger juice, made by grating a 4-5-inch piece of ginger into a pile and then pressing it against a strainer to extract the ginger juice
• 2 tablespoons white wine or Champagne vinegar
• fine grain sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon jalapeno, very finely chopped
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup dried figs, stems trimmed, quartered
• 1/3 cup dried pluots, chopped
• 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
• 5 big handfuls of leafy salad greens, washed and dried

To Prepare:
1. In a Mason jar or medium bowl make the ginger vinaigrette by whisking together the ginger juice, vinegar, jalapeno, and a couple big pinches of salt.
2. Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the jar, whisking all the while. Stop when the dressing takes on a slightly creamy appearance. Taste and adjust the flavors if needed. Set aside. NOTE: Hold off dressing the salad until just before you are ready to serve it. This will help to keep the lettuce vibrant and lively.
3. In a large bowl toss the figs, pluots, hazelnuts with a generous splash of the dressing. Once they are nicely coated, add the lettuce, a bit more vinaigrette, and a pinch of salt. Gently toss until the lettuce is evenly coated. Taste and adjust if needed. The little bits of fruit and nuts tend to fall to the bottom of the bowl, so before serving scoop them back up from the bottom so you end up with plenty of rice and fruit on top.
4. This recipe also works well with some blue cheese or goat cheese.

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Robin Mallery

Robin Mallery is passionate about food! Starting from where and how it's grown, to how far that food travels to the dinner table, to how it is prepared and savored...Robin blends shopping, cooking, and eating tips with her unique Kitchen Zen and mindful meals approach to enjoying real food.

While you are waiting for her to finish the upcoming book, "Kitchen Zen: The Journey to Nourish Body and Soul in Our Changing World", you can find Robin's sporadic blog posts here or on FaceBook.