I have never eaten a salad quite like this. When I first took a look at the recipe, I thought it was going to take a tremendous amount of work to put it together, but as it ends up, it really wasn’t that difficult after all. Of course, there was drama involved, which I’ll tell you about now.
We found this recipe online. It’s one of Gordon Ramsay’s. I have prepared a few of his dishes in the past and I found them to be delicious and very high quality. Looking at this recipe on his website sold the idea of me preparing it. The only problem was, he neglected to put any ingredient amounts in the recipe instructions. I really don’t know why this was the case. What I do know is that I was forced into a lot of guessing and experimentation. Luckily, I believe I hit the nail on the head when it comes to the quantities I used, so I’m more than happy to pass what I discovered onto you below. I think it was worth the effort because the salad is really good. It’s quite healthy as well, so please read on and consider giving this salad a try.
The Recipe
Gordon calls this dish a “Superfood Salad” and I believe that’s for good reason. As you’ll see from the ingredient list below, there are a few items that have some very good health benefits. Butternut squash, red cabbage, broccoli and quinoa are just to name a few. All of these goodies combines on one plate can really pack a punch.
As far as flavors go, I was surprised by this as well. I honestly didn’t think it was going to work. My mistake. It did and it did very well. The dressing is a simple yogurt and lemon juice combination with a pinch of salt. Extra-virgin olive oil is drizzled over the top of each serving and the medley of flavors is quite pleasing. I was shocked at how something so simple could taste so pleasant.
Overall, this is one very filling and great tasting salad. I have no reservations about making it again. Next time though, I’ll use the recipe I share here as opposed to the one Gordon shared. Mine will offer explicit instructions and ingredient amounts. His, well…his didn’t.
Ingredients
Serves: 4
3 Heads of Broccoli, Trimmed and Sliced Lengthwise Down Stem
1 Medium Sized Butternut Squash, Trimmed, Peeled and Sliced into 1/2 Inch Pieces
1 10 Ounce Package Frozen Edamame Beans
3 Cups Packed Red Lettuce, Torn
3 Cups Packed Red Cabbage, Sliced Thin
2 Cups Packed Romaine Lettuce, Sliced Thin
1 1/2 Cups Quinoa, Divided
2 Cups Vegetable Stock
4 Tablespoons Fresh Mint, Chopped
1 Cup Parsley, Chopped
1 Cup Alfalfa Sprouts
1/4 Cup Plain Yogurt
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
Salt
Ground Black Pepper
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
Step-by-Step Instructions
Even though I did have some issues with the original recipe, I do have to thank Gordon Ramsay for it. It really is a wonder salad and credit is given where credit is due. So thank you Gordon.
Pre-Heat the Oven
Arrange one oven rack so it’s in the center position and pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees.
Roast the Butternut Squash
Trim, peel and cut the butternut squash into 1/2 inch pieces. Place those pieces in a large bowl and add two tablespoons of oil to the bowl as well. Also, add a few pinches of salt and a few pinches of pepper to the squash. Toss to coat.
Place the squash pieces on a large baking sheet and put the sheet into the oven. Let roast for 35 minutes. When that’s done, remove the tray and let everything cool down while you’re taking care of the remainder of the recipe.
Blanch & Grill the Broccoli
The prepping should already be done for the broccoli. Basically, you want to simply separate each broccoli floret from the others. Instead of chopping the florets off of the stem, you’ll cut each one lengthwise, down the stem, so that’s included. You’ll see what I’m referring to in the photos below.
Add 4 quarts of water to a large pot, along with one tablespoon of salt. Bring the water to a boil over high heat on your stove top. When the water is boiling, add the broccoli to it. Wait until it’s boiling again and then set your timer for two minutes. Blanch the broccoli for that time and then dump the contents into a colander in your sink to drain.
When that’s finished, place the broccoli into a large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, a few pinches of salt and a few pinches of pepper to the broccoli. Toss to combine these ingredients and to coat the vegetable with the oil.
Next, heat a large griddle pan over medium-high heat on your stove top. When the pan is to temperature, add some broccoli to it. Use a spatula to push the broccoli down lightly until there are griddle marks on one side. When that happens, flip each piece over and do the same to the other side. After each piece is finished, place them all in a bowl and allow them to cool.
Cook the Quinoa
Bring the two cups of vegetable broth to a boil in a medium sized saucepan over high heat. When the broth is boiling, add one cup of dry quinoa to the pot, cover and reduce the heat to low. Wait 15 minutes and turn off heat. All the liquid should have been absorbed into the quinoa. Fluff with a fork and add one tablespoon of olive oil to the pot. Fluff with a fork again to coat everything with the oil. Let cool.
Next, warm a large skillet over medium heat on your stove top. When the pan is to temperature, add the remaining half cup of raw quinoa to it. Let cook for about 15 minutes while shuffling the pan a few times so nothing burns. The goal here is to toast the quinoa to add a nutty flavor to the salad. Once the quinoa begins to pop or turn brown, remove the pan from heat and let cool.
This quinoa will be crunchy, but will soften slightly once it’s added to the salad and has been given some time to settle.
Blanch the Edamame Beans
Add four cups of water to a medium sized saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add the edamame and let the water return to a boil. Once that happens, let the beans blanch for two minutes. After that, strain the contents of the pot through a colander in your sink. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.
Set aside.
Prepare the Dressing
In a medium sized bowl, add the yogurt and lemon juice. Also add a pinch or two of salt to the bowl. Mix well with a fork.
Prep the Remaining Ingredients
While everything is cooling, you can prep the remaining ingredients. I did that and took a few photos. First, I have the thinly sliced red cabbage.
Next, I have the alfalfa sprouts.
Finally, I have the red and romaine lettuce that I already added to the large bowl.
There are other ingredients that needed to be prepped too, but I didn’t get photos of them.
Combine Ingredients
Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and toss well. Make sure the dressing coats everything. When that’s done, drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil over the salad as well and toss again. I snapped a photo of this process about half way through.
I believe this was before I added the roasted squash.
Plate & Serve
Divide the salad between plates and serve. You may want to season the individual servings with salt, pepper and olive oil to taste.
The Final Superfood Salad
Boy, it sure seems like there are a lot of ingredients that go into this salad. It’s worth it though. As I mentioned above, this one is really good for you and it tastes great. If you decide to give this recipe a try, please let me know your thoughts down below. Thanks for reading!
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