WHEAT BERRY SALAD

I really like free things. I’m the girl who tries multiple flavors at the frozen yogurt place, has a collection of toothpicks in hand at a farmers market and shoves all toiletries in my bag when leaving a hotel. Whoever said 'there is no such thing as a free lunch', has never been to Costco/Sam's Club on the weekend. When POM Wonderful sent me a box of 100% POM juice, I felt all blog efforts had paid off. I’ve seen the nubby bottles in the produce section, but breeze right past, as juice doesn’t tickle my fancy. I will start by saying it makes a refreshing slushy after a short stint in the freezer. This grain salad however, packed with bold flavors, is a perfect way to take advantage of the end of cherry season. Wheat berries are easily found at Whole Foods or a local health food store. They look like plump brown rice, but have a nuttier flavor.

The recipe below makes a great vegetarian side dish, and Hugh mentioned he thought it would be great along side of a burger. I made this for a dinner party at my parent’s house and added some crispy, salty bacon into the final toss. I hate to admit this, seeing as bacon doesn’t have a seat in the Sprouted Kitchen, but it was a layer of flavor that put this salad over the edge. The recipe below does not include the pound of crispy bacon I added in for my parent’s party, but if you partake in eating little piggies, just make sure it’s extra crispy. Eish, can't believe I suggested that.

WHEATBERRY SALAD WITH ARUGULA, CHERRIES AND POM DRESSING // Serves 4

1 Cup Wheat Berries

3 Cups Arugula

2 Cups Bing Cherries, pitted and cut in half

1 tsp Kosher Salt

Zest of one Lemon

POM DRESSING // This will look like a lot of dressing and seasoning, but the wheat berries are very dense and soak up a lot of the liquid from the dressing while in the fridge. Use less if you prefer, but it is what gives the wheat berries any flavor.

1 Shallot, roughly chopped

Big Handful of Fresh Fennel Fronds or Dill, Chopped

3/4 Cup Soft Goat Cheese

1/3 Cup POM, 100% Pomegranate Juice

2 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

½ tsp. Cumin

1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt

2 tsp. Fresh Ground Pepper

Rinse the wheat berries in a strainer. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil, add the wheat berries. Boil for about 45 minutes or until tender and split open a bit, add water if they dry out before cooking. Put them in a large mixing bowl.

While the wheat berries are cooking, make your dressing. In a processor or blender, add the shallot, fennel frond/dill, POM, cumin and pepper. Blend to combine. Add the goat cheese and olive oil and give another whirl.

While the wheat berries are still warm add the dressing and mix. Let it cool for a few minutes. Add the arugula and cherries (and bacon if you please) and mix again. At this point, add the lemon zest and taste for salt and pepper. Don't be shy with the seasoning.

~You can either serve at room temp, or chill in the fridge to let the flavors saturate and serve it as a cold side salad.

EMERALD SALAD

Earlier this week I had some lady friends over for dinner. I enjoy cooking for other people, but it’s definitely a bit of a challenge to make things that will please all taste preferences.

If you're over the age of five, there's a good chance you're alright with broccoli and everyone loves the flavor of leeks, even if they've never technically purchased one. So we're off to a good start with this one...

You can only cram so much on the grill, so these veggies are fit for the oven. If the chopping is done before hand, this salad requires little time and attention while you are finishing the rest of your meal. As far as entertaining goes, I like to make things that I can prepare as much as possible ahead of time, so I don't have to leave friends to work. Not only was this big bowl of green-ness a crowd pleaser, but it saves well, so you can throw in a protein of choice and take it for lunch. I had enough leftover to fill a family size tupperware and ate the entire thing the following day. True story, I am a known veggie-binger.

I improved the original with a bit of good quality feta cheese. It's pretty salty, so no need to add salt elsewhere. I'll say it again, using good ingredients yields a better end product. I don’t consider myself a brand snob, but sometimes the generic grocery store cheese will not suffice. And neither will their yogurt, salad dressing, pesto or dark chocolate. or ice cream. OK...only sometimes a brand snob.

EMERALD SALAD // Serves 4

1 lb. Broccolini

1 lb. Broccoli

1 Lemon, zest and juice

1 Large Leek

3 tbsp. Olive Oil

2 tsp. Black Pepper

3 Cloves Garlic

6 oz. (about 3 Cups) Fresh Spinach, roughly chopped

3/4 Cup Flat Leaf Parsley, Chopped

3/4 Cup Sliced Almonds, toasted

1/2 Cup Feta Cheese

Oven set to 475'

1. Cut the broccoli and broccolini into roughly two inch chunks, on a bias. Using the white and light green parts of the leek, slice length wise and rinse out the dirt. Slice thin. Toss the veggies with the olive oil, pepper and lemon zest.

2. Slice the garlic cloves as thin as possible, no mincing. Add the broccoli mix to a large roasting pan. You don't want to cram them in a dish as they will end up steaming in their own moisture. Give them space. Sprinkle the garlic slices on top so they feel the direct heat in the oven.

3. At this point, you could cover and wait until you're getting ready to eat. Or, pop that pan on the top rack of the oven for 12 minutes.

4. Pull out the baking pan, and toss in the spinach, almonds, parsley and lemon juice. Toss in the pan so the heat wilts the spinach and the dressing it's created, distributes. Put in your serving dish and crumble the feta cheese on top.

* This may seem like a lot of parsley, but it's a lot of broccoli. I tend to make things how I like them, use less if you're not partial to the parsley kick. You and Hugh can be friends.

PESTO VEGGIE MELTS

I’ve come a long way from the days when Ma would make us tuna melts. You know, the Costco croissants with canned tuna and melted cheddar? Anyone? We led a strict, low cholesterol diet at our house.

Anyone can make a good ol’ brown bag sandwich, but when a sandwich is warm, and with homemade pesto, it makes me want to snuggle up and have another. I think that's one of my favorite things about days off... I get to spend time cooking food that is warm and tastes yummy. The beauty of the open face sandwich is that you get to enjoy the goodies, as opposed to just tasting bread. It seemed the perfect day to blend up a pesto with all of my basil, and was just the flavor punch these veggie melts needed. If you use store bought pesto, you don’t get the kick back that the fresh stuff gives you. It is worth the time, as you can double the recipe and use it in eggs, as a dip, dressing etc.

I layered the lemony pesto with fresh greens, then another flavor punch (caramelized onions), then a thick layer of fresh (heirloom tomatoes) and topped it off with just a bit of crispy mozzarella. Post picture indulgence, Hugh and I wished there were more. It was like having a healthier version of pizza… you don’t need mounds of cheese when you have a great pesto and tasty onions.

PESTO VEGGIE MELTS // Makes 2

1 tbsp. Olive Oil

1 Yellow Onion, chopped

2 Slices Ezekial Bread (or whole grain of choice)

1 Big Heirloom Tomato, cut into 4 thick slices

1 Cup Arugula

4 Thin Slices Fresh Mozarella Cheese

Black Pepper

The Pesto

4 Cups Basil Leaves

1/3 Cup Olive Oil

½ Cup Lemon Juice

1/3 Cup Toasted Pine nuts

1/3 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

2 Large Cloves Garlic

1 tbsp. Black Pepper

In a blender or food processor, add the pine nuts, garlic and lemon juice. Blend until smooth. Add in half of the basil leaves and pulse to combine, add the rest of the basil leaves and pepper and with the motor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Stir in parmesan cheese. Leave the pesto a bit chunky, does not need to be totally smooth.

1. In a sauté pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil. Add the chopped yellow onion and sauté on medium until caramelized, about 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare above pesto.

2. Oven to broil. Toast the bread for one minute. Assemble on each: toast, generous spread of pesto, arugula, caramelized onions, two heirloom tomatoes, sprinkle of black pepper and fresh mozzarella cheese in the center (it will melt down).

3. Broil on top rack for about 8 minutes until the cheese is melted and a bit crispy on top. Then make another one if you have leftover ingredients because you will want it.