ROASTED VEGETABLES WARM SALAD

Sometimes you feel a need to relax and take things easy. I usually end up putting together a light salad for a meal at such times. That really helps.

Today I am sharing one of my favorite salad recipes that fits in perfectly on a day that you really want to take things easy.   

It’s such a simple recipe and hardly takes any effort to prepare it. Use up any vegetables of your choice that you can find in the pantry. I do that all the time.

Zucchini or squash, eggplant, tomatoes, pumpkin, carrots, and so many vegetables go really well in the salad.

The simple dressing for the salad helps to bring out the flavors even better. I have used some lettuce and cucumber for the crunch. You may use nuts too. No rules here. Build your salad according to your taste.

Adding cooked broken wheat or couscous or quinoa to the salad makes it robust. You may even add cooked rice or left over pulao for that matter.

It’s a warm salad, so remember to have the roasted vegetables warm when serving. If you plan to cook the roast ahead, you could just warm it up before mixing up the salad.

I know that you will enjoy the recipe…that is making it and eating it too!

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ROASTED VEGETABLES HEALTHY WARM SALAD             Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the roasted vegetables:

Eggplant / Brinjal – 1 cup cubed

Carrot – 1 large (cut into thick rounds)

French beans – 6 to 8

Small onions – 3 to 4 (cut into quarters)

Tomatoes – 2 medium (cut into cubes)

Bell peppers (Red and Yellow) – ½ each (cut into rectangles)

Garlic – 4 to 5 cloves whole

Celery stalk – 1 (chopped finely)

Olive oil – 4 to 5 tblsp

Pepper powder – to taste

Salt – to taste

For the dressing:

Extra virgin olive oil – ¼ cup

Lemon juice – 1 tblsp

Parsley (freshly chopped or dried) – 1 ½ tsp

Sweet chili sauce – 1 tblsp

Light soy sauce – 1 ½ tsp

Lapsi/Broken Wheat/Couscous/Quinoa (cooked) – ½ cup

Lettuce leaves – a few (torn)

Cucumber – ½ (chopped)

Method:

1.    Wash and chop up the vegetables. Keep them aside.

2.    Take a baking tray and line it with foil. Add the vegetables to the tray. Sprinkle the celery and the garlic cloves.

3.    Sprinkle sea salt and pepper powder to season the vegetables. Drizzle olive oil all over. Give it all a thorough mix and rub. (It’s best done by clean hand)

4.    Spread the vegetables evenly on the baking tray. Put it in a preheated oven to roast at 200 °C till the veggies are cooked. (It took me 30 mins in my oven, your oven time may vary. So keep checking.)

5.    Let them cool slightly for a few minutes. Take out the garlic and remove the skin. Put the pulp back into the vegetables. (You could do this easily by squishing the cloves to extract the cooked garlic like a paste.)

6.    For the dressing, mix all the ingredients and use a whisk to combine them thoroughly.

7.    Take a large bowl. Add in the warm roasted veggies and the Broken wheat (or Couscous or Quinoa). Add in the lettuce leaves and the cucumber. Pour over the dressing (should be just enough to coat everything).

8.    Mix lightly but thoroughly to coat all the veggies with the dressing.

9.    Serve it while still warm as a starter or snack. You could even make a meal of it!

© Rinki’s Kitchen