Roasted Cruciferous Slaw (Raspberry Pear Balsamic, Lemon Olive Oil)
/Side Dish Club recipes were designed to be produced by weight in grams so that nutrition information could be calculated so you will need a scale to replicate them.
Each recipe produces four servings for a side dish next to a main dish. This size is 115 grams or about 4 ounces (1/4 lb) in weight and about 3/4 cup in volume. For a full meal, you would double the serving size, and this recipe would produce two.
I became aware of cruciferous vegetables when I began to modify my diet for high cholesterol. These veggies are high in vitamin C and soluable fiber and also contain multiple nutrients. Soluable fiber helps to lower cholesteol by binding to it in the small intestine and thus preventing it from entering your bloodstream. The cruciferous veggies in this slaw are: Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, kale, and cabbage.
What you will need:
Brussels sprouts (about 16-18)
Broccoli (about 1/2 a head)
Cauliflower (about 1/2 a head)
Black kale (about 1/4 of a small bunch)
Asparagus (about 12 spears)
Purple cabbage (just need a small piece from a head)
Grated parmesan cheese
Raw sunflower seeds
Raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
Raspberry Pear Balsamic Vinegar
Lemon Olive Oil
EVOO
Kosher Salt
Roast the veggies.
You will be roasting your brussies, broccoli, cauliflower and asparagus. How many grams to roast in order to end up with the amount of grams in roasted veggies for the recipe is tricky as the water loss in roasting is not completely predictable. In this recipe I estimate high for the amount of raw veggie to roast but you may end up with a little extra roasted veggies at the end. No worries, just drizzle them with balsamic and eat them up!
First wash all of your veggies and tamp them dry with a (paper) towel.
Cut the broccoli and cauliflower into florets.
Clean any bad leaves off or your brussies and cut them in half.
Toss all of the veggies in EVOO and a pinch of Kosher salt. Make sure they are well coated in oil.
Lay the brussies, cauliflower and broccoli out on one baking pan and the asparagus on another. The asparagus will cook faster. Put them in a 375 degree oven for 15 minutes. Test the asparagus to see if it is just fork tender and if so remove and set aside to cook. Check the other veggies for fork tenderness. They will probably need another 5-10 minutes so keep them in the oven and check them about every 5 minutes.
Wash, dry and prepare the kale and purple cabbage.
You can do this while the veggies are roasting
I always thoroughly wash my garden ingredients before using them. I create a vinegar wash (about 1 cup of white vinegar to a gallon of water) and place the garden ingredients into the vinegar wash for about 5 minutes before rinsing. This is just “me” as I worry about germs on fresh veggies. But the vinegar wash is certainly optional.
Also thoroughly dry your veggies before using. You want to avoid using wet vegetables because the water on the vegetables will water down your dressing and thus your flavor. I usually just set my leaves out to dry, but if you are in a rush, you can pat the leaves dry with a towel or use a fan to blow air over them.
For the kale:
Kale is easier to wash if you remove the center spine before washing. A small pairing knife works well. Just lay the leaf out on a cutting board and cut down the side of each spine. I usually start a little below the top of the leaf where the spine starts to thicken.
Measure out about 35 grams of leaves.
Massage the leaves by rubbing them in a bunch onto a cutting board until they are soft and you no longer feel them breaking down as you massage them.
Finely chop the massaged kale and place into your large bowl.
For the purple cabbage:
Measure out 25 grams of cabbage.
Finely chop the cabbage and place into your large bowl.
Prepare and measure your other ingredients.
For measuring I suggest the following:
Set your scale on the counter and turn it on.
Make sure it is set to grams.
Set a large bowl on the side to hold all of your measured ingredients.
Set a smaller container on the scale to collect your individual ingredients
Tare out the scale to remove the weight of the container on the scale.
Next …
Raw Sunflower Seeds: Measure out 30 grams into the bowl on the scale and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Raw Pepitas (Pumpkin Seeds): Measure out 15 grams into the bowl on the scale and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Grated Parmesan cheese: Measure out 30 grams into the bowl on the scale and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Roasted Brussies: Chop them coursely. Place the chopped Brussies into the bowl on the scale until you have 100 grams and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower: Chop them coursely. Place them in equal amounts into the bowl on the scale until you have 114 grams and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Roasted Asparagus: Cut into small bite sized pieces. Place the pieces into the bowl on the scale until you have 71 grams and then put into larger bowl. Return the bowl to the scale and re-tare the scale.
Make your dressing.
Place a medium size mixing bowl on the scale.
Pour in 34 grams of raspberry pear balsamic vinegar
Pour in 13 grams of lemon olive oil.
Remove bowl from scale and whisk using a wire whisk briskly until ingredients are fully emulsified, i.e. thick, creamy, and not separating.
(Note that I tend to go light on dressing. Many side dish customers wanted a little more dressing and for them I would add extra on the side. For the dressing rich flavor increase the amount of each ingredient by 50%. Just note that this will affect the nutrition information.)
Assemble your side dish.
Pour your dressing over the ingredients in the large bowl and mix thoroughly.
Nutrition Facts.
