Southwest Jar Salad with Roasted Chickpeas, Quinoa
Jerry James Stone
March 25, 2019
Category: Salad
Fig & Cranberry Salad with Goat Cheese
Jerry James Stone
November 7, 2018
Strawberry Avocado Caprese Salad
Jerry James Stone
August 3, 2017
This recipe is fruit salad meets a caprese salad with a twist of fresh avocado, sweet strawberry, basil, and yummy mozzarella balls. All topped off with a wonderful balsamic glaze.
Ingredients
1 ½ cups sliced strawberries
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
8 ounces mozzarella ciliegine
¼ cup olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
⅓ cup basil, chiffonade
1 avocado, cubed
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Balsamic glaze
Directions
In a large bowl add in the strawberries, tomatoes, mozzarella, olive oil, salt, balsamic vinegar, and basil and mix it all together.
Then add the avocado and gently fold it into the salad. Try not to over work it.
Top off with cracked black pepper and the balsamic glaze.
Enjoy!
Avocado Watermelon Cucumber Salad
Jerry James Stone
July 18, 2017
Look at this tasty Rubik’s Cube salad thang. This is a cucumber salad with avocado, watermelon, and cantaloupe mixed in, tossed in a lime dressing that’s a bit spicy. Yum yum! It’s definitely hip to be square.
Ingredients
4 cups watermelon, 1-inch cubes
4 persian cucumbers, 1-inch cubes
4 cups cantaloupe, 1-inch cubes
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 lime, juiced
2 avocados, 1-inch cubes
Chopped parsley
Directions
Cut a piece of tape measured to 1×1 inch and stick it to your cutting board to use as a guide.
Cut 4 cups of watermelon, 4 cups of cucumbers, and 4 cups of cantaloupe into 1-inch cubes, adding them to a large mixing bowl as you do.
Add the ¼ teaspoon sea salt, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and the juice from 1 lime. Mix until everything is coated.
Cut up 2 avocados into 1-inch cubes but do not mix in with the other ingredients. The avocado could get squished or all over the other ingredients and this preserves the aesthetic.
Now the fun part! Carefully stack the fruit and vegetables to create a cube shape. Think Rubik’s cube.
Plate with chopped parsley and enjoy!
Grapefruit Avocado Fruit Salad
Jerry James Stone
July 13, 2017
Avocado salad lovers, get ready to have your mind blown. This fruit salad recipe is sweet and savory, and topped of with a delicious cilantro lime dressing.
Ingredients
Spicy Cilantro Citrus Vinaigrette
½ shallot, minced
½ teaspoon serrano pepper, minced
2 teaspoons cilantro, minced
½ cup olive oil
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 ½ teaspoons lime zest
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
Grapefruit Avocado Fruit Salad
2 grapefruit, supreme
2 avocado, sliced
lettuce
Directions
Spicy Cilantro Citrus Vinaigrette: Begin by prepping the fresh ingredients. Mince ½ of a shallot, ½ teaspoon of a serrano chile pepper, and 2 teaspoons of cilantro.
If you don’t like things too spicy, you should remove the pith and the seeds from the serrano before mincing it. The white pith is where most of the heat comes from, not the seeds. If you can’t tolerate any eat, just leave the chile out.
You can make your cilantro last longer by storing it how I do in the video. Trim the ends of the bunch, and place it in a jar with water, just like cut flowers.
Add the ½ cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons lime juice, 1 ½ teaspoons lime zest, shallots, serrano chile, cilantro, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, and 1 teaspoon sugar to a mixing bowl and whisk together until the salt and sugar fully dissolve.
Grapefruit Avocado Fruit Salad: Begin by supreming the grapefruit. Slice of the top and bottom, and cut away the peel and pitch. Then using a pairing knife, carve out the wedges of the grapefruit.
Layer the lettuce onto a serving plate and then add the grapefruit wedges and avocado wedges. Dress with the vinaigrette as desired.
If you need to quickly ripen your avocados, simply place them in a bag with an apple or banana. Once at desired ripeness, place in the fridge.
Enjoy!
Cauliflower Rice Tabbouleh Salad
Jerry James Stone
August 18, 2015
Is there anything cauliflower can’t do? Aside from standing in as a gluten-free alternative, like this twist on a traditional tabbouleh salad, cauliflower is also great if you are trying to eat more drought-friendly, which you should. California is in its worst drought ever, which not only sucks for us here in Cali, but the rest of the nation too, as we supply 40% your fresh produce. Yup, that much!
This content was developed in partnership with Whole Foods Market. Both Cooking Stoned and Whole Foods Market are concerned about sustainable eating and the effects of California’s drought on our food choices. Let’s all eat better.
Ingredients
1 Head cauliflower
1 ½ pounds cucumbers
1 pound Cherry Tomatoes
⅓ cup chopped parsley
½ lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon sea salt
Pinch black pepper
Directions
So the first thing you are going to do is rice the cauliflower. This is easy breezy if you have a food processor, less so if you do not. Trim off the greens and remove the stalk. You only want to use the florets here. Add them to the food processor and chop up the cauliflower until it is all in small bits, as shown below. FACT: Cauliflower only requires 8 gallons of water for every 100 grams grown. In comparison, the wheat typically used in a recipe of this sort requires over 30 gallons of water for every 100 grams growns. If that’s not reason enough to dive into this Cauliflower Rice Tabbouleh Salad, you should also know it is hella tasty!
This stuff is pretty versatile. Outside of making this delicious salad, it’s great for pizza crust too! Transfer it to a large mixing bowl.
Trim and peel the 1 1/2 pound of cucumbers, slice them in half, and then again. Then chop the cucumber into small pieces. I leave some of the peel on as I prefer some of the bitterness, but your call.
Finely chop the parsley.
Now here is the fun part. Take your cherry tomatoes and place them on a small plate. Then cover them with another plate, that is face down. You should have a small gap between the two plates. Take a very sharp knife and slice through, applying a lot of pressure to hold the top plate in place. This should cut all of the tomatoes at once.
Add the cucumbers, parsley, and tomatoes to the mixing bowl with the cauliflower rice and then the juice of half of a lemon. Add in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Mix everything together, adding salt and pepper to taste.
How gorgeous does this look?
Enjoy!
Apple, Kale & Pomegranate Salad
Jerry James Stone
February 20, 2015
Sometimes, it’s the little things. This salad was inspired by one of my favorite sandwiches. It’s easy to make, fun to eat, and just pretty to stare at. Who knew so few ingredients could look so elegant? Not me.
Ingredients
1 apple
½ cup chopped kale
1 tablespoon pomegranate arils
2 ounces goat cheese
Directions
Choose an apple that can easily stand up right or just trim the bottom so it does. And you can use any apple you want here. I used a honey crisp one because I always have them on hand.
Cut the apple width-wise, into rings.
Take out the core on each ring.
On the top of each ring, add some goat cheese, chopped kale, and pomegranate seeds. Do so for every ring.
Persimmon, Pomegranate & Quinoa Salad
Jerry James Stone
November 23, 2014
Looking for a Thanksgiving salad that just screams fall? Well, get out your ear plugs because this Persimmon, Pomegranate & Quinoa Salad is just that. Beautiful, crisp, and damn tasty!
Ingredients
1 medium beet
2 fuyu persimmons
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
1/2 cup pecans
2 1/2 ounces baby arugula
¼ cup cooked quinoa
1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Wash and trim 1 beet and wrap it in foil. Place it on a baking sheet and roast it for about an hour at 375 degrees F until fork tender. FACT: Did you know that beets were considered an aphrodisiac by the ancient Romans? And they were on to something. Because of their nitrates, these tasty little gems can increase blood flow…all the way down there. Also, they contain high amounts of boron, which is directly related to human sex hormone production. Sounds like the only thing this hummus recipe is missing is some Barry White.
Trim 2 fuyu persimmons and cut them into wedges. I like to call them wedgies for the obvious reasons. Oh, if it isn’t obv … it’s because I have the sense of humor of a 13-year-old boy. NOTE: Persimmons come in two major categories: astringent and non-astringent. It’s all due to the tannin levels in each variety. Fuyu persimmons are non-astringent, meaning they are low in tannins, and can be enjoyed before they are fully ripe. You can eat them like an apple. Hachiya persimmons are astringent. So, they need to be over ripe or eating them is a very unpleasant experience. When ripe, Hachiya persimmons are very soft and sorta feel like a water balloon. That’s why they won’t work here. It would be like cutting into jam. In fact, persimmons have such high tannin levels, they are used to brew sake. So be sure to thank a persimmon the next time you are throwing back a sake bomb.
Now let’s prep 1 pomegranate. Just check out my How To video on the quick and easy way to seed one. You’re only going to need 1/4 cup of arils for this recipe but if you want to use more, I won’t tell. FACT: The word grenade comes from the French term for pomegranate; it’s spelled like the weapon but is pronounced gruh-NOD, you know, because it’s French and all. In the 16th century, European armies used round, fist-sized bombs filled with large grains of gunpowder. Their shape, and the gunpowder’s resemblance to pomegranate arils, is how they got their name. Oddly enough, newer grenades, with their segmented shell and oblong shape, are sometimes referred to as pineapples.
Take 1/4 cups of whole pecans and simply spread them in a baking pan and bake at 350 degrees F until golden brown, stirring often. Generally, nuts will be toasted in 6-10 minutes. Remove and let cool.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the persimmons, pomegranate arils, 2 ounces arugula, 1/4 cup cooked quinoa (it should be cold), pecans, 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil, and 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar. Toss until all ingredients are coated. Then just salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!
Mango Avocado Salad
Jerry James Stone
April 25, 2013
It doesn’t seem like it but, by all intents and purposes, this is a fruit salad, mostly. I think most people forget that avocados (like tomatoes) are a fruit. I think it’s because of what we are used to having them in–guacamole, tacos, etc. This mango avocado salad is hearty and just slightly spicy from the Cilantro Lime Dressing.
Ingredients
2 mangos, cubed
2 avocados, cubed
¼ cup red cabbage, chopped
Cilantro Lime Dressing
Directions
First thing you want to do is cube your mangos. You should watch my video on How to Cut a Mango for that. If you are looking for other mango recipe ideas, try this Spicy Mango Popsicle!
Now you basically want to do the same thing to the avocado. I have a video here on How to Safely Pit an Avocado. Something to consider with the avocados for this recipe. You want them to be just ripe. If they are overly ripe, they will get all mushy when you are getting your salad tossed (I had to say it that way). So you want them firm but ripe to avoid this.
Now add the 2 mangos cubed, 2 avocados cubed, 1/4 cup chopped red cabbage and just enough dressing to coat.
How yummy does that look?
Brussels Sprout & Tangerine Couscous Salad
Jerry James Stone
March 27, 2013
Toasted Israeli couscous with roasted brussels and crisp tangerine make this salad the perfect representation of winter meets spring.
I sort of discovered this pairing by accident. See, I eat a lot of weirdest combinations when it comes to food. I’m a food blogger and it sorta comes with the territory in order to avoid food waste. Well, this recipe was one of those instances. And thank God. Yum!
Ingredients
2 cups Israeli couscous
4 cups water
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon salt
1 lb Balsamic-Glazed Brussels Sprouts
½ cup cilantro, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tangerines
Sea salt, to taste
Directions
Step one is to make my Balsamic-Glazed Brussels if you have not already. The one thing here, you don’t want the parmesan cheese and pine nuts. So exclude those.
Now we are going to toast the 2 cups of Israeli couscous. This name is a bit of a misnomer as, well, this stuff is just pasta. Add the tablespoon of butter to a sauce pan and melt it over a medium heat. Then add the couscous, stirring occasionally. It’s toasted when it looks like the picture below.
Now add the 4 cups of water and the teaspoon of salt and bring it to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and let cook for about 10 minutes until the couscous is tender. Then remove it from the stove and let it cool.
Add the couscous, the 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro and 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a large mixing bowl. Mix it together. This is the step where I salt this dish too. So add your sea salt and work that in.
Add the roasted brussels sprouts and fold them in. I admit, I ate about 6 of these before I even got to mixing them in. You might want to make extra for this reason. These things are super duper good.
Peel your tangerines and separate the wedges, removing any extra pith. Then fold them in. Yup, I ate some of those too. I musta been hungry! It is a wonder this salad got finished at all.
Once it is all mixed together, place it in the refrigerator to chill. In fact, go chill-out yourself. You’ve been working hard and deserve it! Then come back in a few hours and this thing will be ready to eat.
Enjoy!
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