Hail Cesar Salad

I’m going to tempt fate a bit and say that Spring has arrived. The crocus is blooming, the tulips are poking their heads up and my eyes are starting to itch which means something is growing. Nothing on the garlic front yet but that is to be expected.

If you are in the Midwest and thinking about cleaning up your garden - don’t do that yet! The bees and other pollinators are still in their nests and aren’t ready to be moved so please please wait, you’ll need them later in the year to pollinate your flowers, fruit trees, and some of your veggie crops. 

I am close to finishing my Master Gardener program - I have 2 modules left to review and 4 more Q & A sessions - then we get to the fun part - volunteering - I can’t wait.

A while ago my friend Ann Wasescha gifted Ellen Holtwick and me a vegetarian cookbook called First Mess by Laura Wright. It lived with Ellen for a while and has recently come to live with me. There are so many wonderful recipes that I want to try, I hardly know where to start. 

Dan is not a huge fan of tempeh, he says it has a bitter taste - I don’t taste it but I usually steam the tempeh first, which removes the bitterness and he’s good to go. This was a delicious salad and pretty easy to make. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Dressing (makes more than you need):

2 T raw cashew butter

2 T water

1.5 T fresh lemon juice

3 cloves garlic - grated 

1 t dijon mustard

1 t minced capers (I left this out)

1 T nutritional yeast

3 T olive oil 

Salt and pepper to taste

Salad:

1 1/2 crowns of broccoli - chopped into florets

1 t sweet paprika

1 t smoked paprika

1 t maple syrup

1 t apple cider vinegar

1/2 t soy sauce

2 t olive oil

1/2 block tempeh

Instructions:

In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, add the cashew butter, water, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Shake until combined. Add garlic, dijon, capers (if using), nutritional yeast, and oil. Shake again and set aside

Steam (or roast) the broccoli. In a small bowl combine the paprikas, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and soy sauce set aside. 

Heat olive oil in a skillet until shimmering add crumbled tempeh and spread out into a single layer. Cook approx. 2 minutes (until brown), then stir it up and let brown on the other side. Add paprika mixture and toss until tempeh is coated. Remove from heat.

Place broccoli on a platter and drizzle cashew butter dressing over it. Add tempeh and garnish with nutritional yeast and fresh ground pepper. 

Thanks for stopping by!