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"When you're green, you're growing."
— Ray Kroc
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Teri in her cabin kitchen
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The Romance of Salads
Salads are like little masterpieces of goodness. Anyone can become a genius salad maker—but a salad is only as good as its ingredients. So, part of the genius lies in becoming a curator of fantastic salad ingredients. Long before I was a cookbook author and blogger, I was known in my circle of friends as the Queen of the Salads because of my devotion to making them spectacular—so I thought, why not devote an entire issue to them? My family so loves salads that I even have a salad I’d make for my children when they were coming home from college or for a visit (and before they were eating vegan) called the Welcome Home Salad, filled with goodness like cottage fries, roasted chicken, and a creamy dressing.
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Welcome Home Salad
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GREENS
Start with a blanket of beautiful greens—and always salt them, no matter which you choose. There are many amazing choices in the spring, so pick the ideal greens for your creation. Romaine (or baby Romaine) gets you off to a crunchy start and provides a lot of body, holding up to something substantial like grilled chicken and a creamy dressing. Arugula (or baby arugula when you can find it) has a peppery, unique taste and is perfect as a base for a Chicken Piccata salad.
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Beautiful greens from my local farmers market
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Freshness matters. Personally, I’m not crazy about buying a bag of already-mixed, prepackaged greens, but I sure do love to mix my own or let my local farmer do it for me--a personal favorite is watercress mixed with arugula. Watercress is one of those greens you can often find in the grocery store actually attached to the dirt it was grown in. Other, softer favorites are green leaf lettuce, red leaf lettuce, Boston, and Bibb. They all make an extraordinary, soft bed for your salad.
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BLT Salad
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And when I’m looking for color, radicchio and red leaf lettuce are lovely. Lettuce is really a personal preference, and there’s no right or wrong, but here are a few of my guidelines: for a Cobb or my BLT Salad, seafood or scallops, I like a softer lettuce. With a Caesar, use Romaine. For a Wedge Salad, always go with iceberg.
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Creamy Clementine Chicken Kabob Salad
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ORGANIC
Certainly, it’s better to use a lettuce that hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals, but if you can’t find organic or if it’s not feasible, give your greens an even more thorough rinse. Make sure your greens are super dry before you begin to assemble your salad. Use a salad spinner if you have one. Handle greens delicately. If you’re prepping ahead, greens can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
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My Whole30 Wedge Salad
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PROTEIN
If you want to make an extraordinary entrée salad, choosing a fabulous protein is the only way to go. My Sizzling Everyday Roast Chicken Breast, which is easy to make ahead, is fantastic for any kind of Cobb or entrée salad, especially my Greek Salad.
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Tropical Cobb Salad from the cookbook
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Some other examples of a fabulous protein that make a salad really delicious include beef for the Eye of Round Salad from my cookbook, and a thinly sliced paillard of chicken like my Passport Chicken, originally from my pal @emmalatelynutrition. Crispy bacon is divine. Poached seafood or sauteed salmon fingers (salmon cut into strips about the width of your finger) are absolutely lovely. And there’s nothing better than fresh seasonal crab on a Crab Louie Salad.
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Eye of Round Salad from the cookbook
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ADD-ONS
A range of textures adds life to your salad—things like fresh herbs, chopped green onions, and fresh chopped chives add some green, crunchy goodness. Jammy eggs not only look beautiful but add an incomparable richness.
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Marinated Red Onions
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Hearts of palm, artichoke hearts, and pepperoncini are great tangy additions, and my Marinated Red Onions Magic Elixirs™ (as well as its marinade) are an absolute must for every one of my salads. If you're doing dairy, a bit of cheese to finish is wonderful, and I specifically love sheep's milk feta in brine. If you’re doing Whole30, add a grated, 9-minute hard-boiled egg yolk. Avocados are always a great add-on!
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Whole30 Chicken Taco salad with Sizzling Pollo Picante and Coconut Lime Vinaigrette
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VINAIGRETTE DRESSINGS
It’s so easy to make a homemade dressing: start with the Marinated Red Onions Magic Elixirs ™ marinade, or if you're making a vinaigrette, use two parts olive oil to one part citrus juice or vinegar (or a combination), and mix it up according to taste. I tend to like fruit juices such as lemon or Meyer lemon, clementine, and grapefruit juice. A tiny sprinkle of sugar adds a nice element. Use a high-quality, extra-virgin olive oil. A high-quality artisan vinegar from your neighborhood farmers market is lovely.
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Lobster Cobb Salad
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Change it up by blending a clove or two of Garlic Confit or a tablespoon of Tomato Confit into your dressing. If you are short of time, here is an easy hack: toss simple greens, macerated Preserved Lemon, and a bit of olive oil or Marinated Red Onions Magic Elixirs ™ marinade. No salt required, because of the salted preserved lemon.
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Chicken Shawarma Salad from the cookbook
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Proportionally, for a half cup of olive oil, start with a quarter cup of juice or vinegar and whisk the olive oil in little by little, then add salt, pepper, and even puréed fresh herbs or a bit of mustard to taste. A spoonful of chevre (soft goat cheese) is lovely. This will dress an ample sized salad, but never overdress your salad. As my mother always said, “A salad is not a swimming pool!”
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Gomasio from the cookbook
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Celebration Salmon Salad with 999 Island Dressing made with Tessemae's Ketchup
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The Rémoulade Sauce from my Whole 30 Shrimp Niçoise Salad is fabulous, and the Creamy Horseradish Dressing from my Pepper Steak Salad is absolutely wonderful. Salads can be taken over the top with deliciousness like Gomasio and Smoky Pepitas from my cookbook.
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Shrimp Louie Salad with Louie Dressing made with Tessemae's Buffalo Sauce
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Sometimes homemade simply isn’t possible, even for me! My partner Tessemae’s has created more than 40 delicious dressings, condiments, and pantry items, many of which are currently in my fridge. Tessemae’s makes it possible to find something you love when you don’t have time to make your own.
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Some Tessemae's products I have on hand
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ASSEMBLY
Assembly is my favorite part. I prefer not to toss everything together. Instead, I lay the elements out as if for a kindergarten art project, then artfully assemble. Frankly, we ended up developing the nocrumbsleft Platters because so many of you saw mine and wanted one too! I enjoy hearing how much families love serving salads like this. Kids love being able to choose their favorite elements from a platter to create their own dishes.
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Pepper Steak Salad with Creamy Horseradish Dressing
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EPIC SALAD
This personal favorite from my cookbook is called Epic for a reason. Although it is an epic undertaking, it is almost bewitching, everyone loves it so much. Marinated grilled chicken, hand-cut hand-fried tortillas, matchstick carrots, hunks of feta, olives—only in this particular salad—in a Wasabi-Lime Vinaigrette.
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Epic Salad in the cookbook
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I’ve asked a few of my favorite vegans, including my son, @nocrumbslefts_otherkid, who is an amazing cook in his own right, to share their vegan salads below.
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Vegan Inspiration From This Week's Contributors
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Patrick's Vegan Feast with Cashew Crema
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Choose the best quality living produce available and be swayed by what’s local, fresh, and in season. I don’t think about what I’m going to make when I go to the farmers market, but instead I let the produce inspire. A great base for a dressing is equal parts olive oil and citrus juice with maple syrup (or wildflower honey) blended together with pink salt to taste. Garlic scapes or other fresh herbs, a piece of fruit (like a peach or strawberry), cashews, walnuts, or my favorite addition to dressings, the Kite Hill Almond Ricotta, will give it a twist.
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Vegetables Patrick picked up at the farmers market
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Patrick Hartman
Teri's son, Vegan Enthusiast, Songwriter
@nocrumbslefts_otherkid
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Anja's delicious vegan salad
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When creating an epic vegan salad, I consider flavor—no plain, dressing-less greens around here! But we mustn't forget about texture, mouthfeel, and contrasting add-ins. Think dainty greens paired with hearty roasted vegetables, smooth dressing, crunchy seeds, and tasty additions such as beans, avocado chunks, or marinated tofu. I’m loving this simple yet flavorful salad for spring:
- Fresh arugula tossed in citrus vinaigrette
- Lightly grilled watermelon radishes
- Marinated cannellini beans
- Toasted pine nuts
- Crusty homemade bread
Anja Grommons, MA, RDN
@vegcentricdietitian
http://vegcentricdietitian.com
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Zwilling Rocking Santoku Knife
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This week we are giving away a Zwilling Rocking Santoku Hollow Edge Knife. Click below to enter.
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Triple Prep Bowls in the Drippy Collection
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Triple Prep Bowls are perfect with platters for salads! They're great for everything from parmesan, fresh herbs, and chopped nuts to jewelry or paper clips. You can now get them in sets of the same color in Robyn's Egg Blue, Cherry Blossom, or Pearl. Click here to view the shop.
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nocrumbsleft Platters in Robyn's Egg Blue and Azul
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Crumbles love the elusive nocrumbsleft Platter. These beauties are made in small batches and absolutely worth it! Available in Oatmeal, Black, Azul, Malachite, and Moondust, they will eventually be available in Robyn's Egg Blue, Cherry Blossom and Pearl. As a blog subscriber you have priority for these beauties. Click here to DM Teri and get on the VIP waitlist.
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This Week's Table Talks Podcast
S1 E13 It Takes a Village
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Lucy, Teri and Patrick
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In this episode from Season 1, I talk to two of my favorite people, Lucy, aka @nocrumbslefts_kid, and Patrick, aka @nocrumbslefts_otherkid, to discuss family traditions, the role the music and song has filled in their lives, how important change is to keep memories alive, how we can be at the same place and yet have totally different experiences, how we can all learn from each other, and how love and passion is what keeps us going.
Listen on:
  
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Weekly IG Live Cooking Class
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Teri cooking during her IG Live cooking class
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Each week we're doing an Instagram Live cooking class at 7pm CST. To sign up, click here. If you would like to see Wednesday's class, check it out here on IGTV, along with all the others.
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"I just received my No Crumbs Left cookbook and can't wait to re-create these delicious, healthy recipes and take mouthwatering photos! I'm a self-taught cook and baker with a passion for homemade food with lots of flavor. I love rolling up my sleeves, experimenting with new recipes, and hopefully inspiring a love of food in others. Teri's Magic Elixirs are calling my name and I'm certain they'll be game changers and staples in my kitchen."
Jenn Palkert, Photographer & Food Stylist
Fort Collins, CO
@home.made.studio
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