It’s Salad Weather Again

It is once again that time of year when we lighten up as much as possible. The warmer days and bright sunshine call for more activities outside. They also call for lightening things up in the kitchen. No more heavy dishes and rich sauces for the time being. Instead, it is time for more brightly colored salads of all kinds.

I made yet another Southwestern steak salad that was full of all kinds of healthy colors and fresh goodness. I mention colors because it is a good rule of thumb that the more “colors” your foods contain, the more healthy they are too. The reasoning behind this school of thought is that you are are eating a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. So color up your foods, especially during spring and summer when there are so many fresh fruits and vegetables from which to choose.

I would have added fresh avocado slices too, but I didn’t have any at the time, and I didn’t feel like going to the store just for avocados.

I marinated the steak first in some of my leftover balsamic vinaigrette I had made earlier. I marinated the steak for about 3-4 hours before grilling it up. That made it very tender and flavorful.

Next, I made a jalapeno-lime vinaigrette for my salad.

Jalapeno-Lime Vinaigrette

1 large jalapeno, minced fine

2 tsp garlic

1 tsp chili lime seasoning

1 tsp cumin

salt & pepper to taste

2 TBSP lime juice

2 TBSP lime olive oil, optional

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar

1-2 TBSP honey

1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro.

Whisk everything together until well blended and set aside until ready to use.

The Salad

Rather than lettuce, this time I chose to put everything on a bed of spinach instead. Larry likes a lot of cheese on his salads, and I don’t like any on mine. This is just a simple salad, filled with simple items. Put together, they were all delicious. I made these salads for two, and didn’t really measure anything. You can use as much or as little as you like, depending on how many people you are making it for.

fresh spinach, stems removed and chopped in a rough cut

black beans, drained and rinsed

frozen corn, completely thawed

red onion, sliced very thin

tomatoes, cut into wedges

cheddar cheese, optional

cooked steak or chicken, sliced into thin strips

jalapeno-lime vinaigrette

toasted pepitas or fried tortilla strips, optional for topping

Layer it all up, from the spinach up, finishing with the sliced steak or chicken and your toppings and then drizzle on your dressing. !Delicioso!

This is a perfect summer salad, and is made even more perfect when dining al fresco. It is so colorful and fresh and just captures the essence of summer. You get a little bit of summer in every bite. I served it with a red blend since I was eating steak.

Color up your days and color up your foods. Make life as colorful as you can. Stay safe and stay well everyone. ‘Til next time.