Quinoa & Sweet Potato Salad w/ Turmeric Tahini Dressing

It used to be easier to write here. I like imagining who I am writing to and I’ve lost some of that here. I thought Instagram was a more effective place to share, but that place changed for me, as well. So, I want to be back here like I used to be. Every week if I can, which may be lofty, but I’m going to try. Writing about life or nothing, and sharing something that I made with you all. Perhaps not always a meal, even just a dressing we liked or something from a cookbook I’m enjoying. Would love to engage with you all. I just feel like there are almost too many ways now, and I need to keep shifting to find what fits. Anyway. Hi.

Speaking of you and me and connecting. I am doing a short-ish Zoom demo/class with my Cooking Club folks on Sunday morning at 9am PST. Admittance will be the recipe of a donation to Cajun Navy Relief, or any non-profit involved in the relief efforts in New Orleans. Please email or DM a receipt by Saturday. I would love to have any of you non-members along as well. We’re making some kid-friendly things - zucchini and bean taquitos with some avocado dressing to dip and maybe a nectarine crumble crisp if there is enough time.

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Quinoa & Sweet Potato Salad
w/ Turmeric Tahini Dressing

Serves 2

The recipe is tinkered from the Many’s Gourmet Salads cookbook which has some truly excellent ideas for fellow salad lovers. It can take add ins, a swap of olives in for the feta to keep it dairy free, but by all means, double the dressing. It works as a dip and dressing for all sort of things. Have to laugh at home many meals on this site include sweet potatoes and quinoa BUT! Here we are, and it’s so good.

You can cook quinoa and lentils together with 2:1 water to lentil and quinoa ratio. Bring to a simmer, turn down the heat and cook with the cover ajar for about 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool.

This does require a wee bit of prep, so if you are a salad person, I suggest doubling it and having the components on hand to make this salad a few times throughout the week. Everything saves well. I’ve added grilled chicken or salmon or toss extra firm squares of tofu in oil and coconut aminos and roasting it at a high heat until golden, about 20 minutes, for a veg friendly topping. However, it doesn’t need any of these add-ins, it is plenty satisfying as is!

Recipe adapted from Mandy’s Salads

Ingredients

1 large sweet potato - peeled & diced
1 Tbsp. of avocado oil
sea salt
fresh ground pepper

4 cups of spring mix
2 cups of baby kale
1/2 cup of cooked quinoa
1/2 cup of cooked & drained lentils
2 cups of diced cucumbers
1 cup of cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup of red onion - sliced paper thin
4 oz. of crumbled feta
1/4 cup of torn mint leaves
1/4 cup of chopped parsley
1/2 cup of crispy chickpeas - store-bought or homemade
2 Tbsp. of sesame seeds
handful of dill

For the turmeric tahini dressing

1/4 cup of tahini
1/4 cup of room temp water
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
1 lemon - juiced
1 tsp. of turmeric
dash of cayenne
1/2 tsp. of curry powder
2 cloves of garlic - grated
1 tsp. of toasted sesame oil
1/3 cup of flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. of sea salt
fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425’ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the sweet potato chunks in oil, salt and pepper. Spread them in a single later and roast for 20 minutes until tender. Remove to cool.

Combine all the dressing ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste. If making this in advance, keep it covered in the fridge. If the dressing is too thick or the tahini seizes, add water in tablespoon increments.

Combine all the other ingredients in a giant bowl. Drizzle in the dressing in tablespoon increments, toss until well mixed and it is dressed to your liking. Serve your salad with some sesame seeds and dill to finish.

BREAKFAST SALAD

We’re both pretty exhausted. In an effort to be the “fun mom” and burn up the last of the 3-day So-Cal Disneyland passes we bought to use this spring, I took Curran there on a date last night. I have to be honest with you, I don't love the long lines and droves of people, but I think Curran had fun and we stayed late to watch the electrical parade. Watching him light up and wave at Mickey made it worth it but it is WORK to take this kid anywhere, let alone when there are two of them. They are both "spirited," as they qualify it in all those parenting books. I’m in a really tough phase with Curran. That's what I am surrendering to at the moment. I know there are seasons of parenting - just when you start to feel like you’ve got it, something or someone changes and you feel like you can’t pull it off again. We have good and bad days, on and off weeks. When we're good, it's so good! I can feel the tension in my body release and Curran and I play pretend with the legos and give each other giggly eskimo kisses. But my fuse is so short when he can't kick the whining or after I’ve repeated a direction for the 12th time. I yell often and say I’m sorry a lot. I have never cared for anything like I do my own children, but they simultaneously can put me on (or past) my last nerve. I've been thinking about why lately. On the rare occasion where I am in the car by myself, I don't listen to music or podcasts, I just enjoy the silence and think. Sometimes it's just mental list making, but the other day I was trying to be my own therapist and reflect on why I get so upset, with Curran especially (I haven't figured anything out, in case you want to jump ahead to the recipe).

We are both pretty persnickety and sensitive. Those things manifest differently in an almost 33 year old and almost 3 year old but the basic framework is the same. We like things how we like them and we get ruffled when our realities don't meet our expectations. I can manage those shortcomings as an adult, but to see them in your own kid is strange. How do I help you brush things off, when I know first hand that feels hard? What I have come up with is that we're both in need of more grace and if my job is anything, it is first to give that to him. I'd love to tell you that I've recognized my imperfections as a parent and am a new woman, or offer an easy 3-step solution to not loosing it on your toddler, but I'd been embarrassed by Curran's behavior the day I started drafting this post and already raised my voice before 7am today so I'm here in process, writing anyway. For the past three years as a mother, I have been responsible for keeping little people alive (Hugh is more than helpful, but this isn't about him). I make sure they are fed somewhat nutritiously, clean them and their messes, change diapers, look into preschools, stay up on the diaper stock, organize activities and time with friends, fumble around discipline, make sure they get the rest they need, take them to the doctors and hold them when they're sick. I scrub poop off the carpet and break up fights and literally save lives from someone running in the street or jumping off the top of a playground.

This job is intense and it is every single day and it is all day long. 

So it is all these tasks that I have (some) control of that make me feel like I am doing an ok job. I take good care of them. I think it's ok for me to say that as much as women don't like to admit they are good at things. But my fuse runs out and I see red when it feels like I've failed at some point: taking someone's toy, not wanting to say hello to people, throwing tantrums when things don't go their way. Their behavior feels like a reflection of who I am as their mother. It feels personal. That all feels like my responsibility, when they are really just figuring out their own humanness. The work I put in, how exhausted I feel, there should be something to show for that right? I have been managing so much for these babies, and I can physically feel the fear of raising an asshole. It's the wrong approach, you don't have to tell me. I watch everything going on in our country right now and as small and guilty as I feel for being a person with privilege, the least I can do is put two more humans in this mess who are kind and empathetic. 

So today, perhaps prepping myself for the backlash of last night's 10:30 bedtime, I'm trying to give us both a break. I can step back and see that Sara and Curran and Cleo are three separate people. My job is to guide them and care for them, but I don't get to choose how they react to everything. My toddler will push another kid at a park and life will go on. They are going to be people sculpted by so many influences and experiences besides me. I make mistakes, I say unkind things, and sometimes cry when things don't go how I'd like them to, so for now, all I can do is apologize when I get upset or yell or expect something better than their hands on approach to growing up. I can only focus on myself trying to be kind and patient and gracious and hope that instead of me telling them to be those things, they'll have experienced them. This job, sweet Jesus, it is not for the weak of heart. 

I've learned to be specific with holiday and birthday requests as Hugh, God bless him, isn't huge on celebrations. This year my birthday and Mothers Day are back to back, and I am hoping to get an extra hour of sleep and not have to make food for anyone all weekend with permissions to change my mind day-of if I so please. I'll take one of these breakfast salads, delivered in bed, please. Then maybe we'll head out for a beach walk and I want to be by myself to take a few deep breaths. There will be tantrums and tears and poop anyway. 

// GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED! Thanks for participating. I do love to hear your answers anyway if you feel so obliged xo //

Stone Cold Fox is offering you lovely readers a 20% off discount code for robes! Just use SPROUTEDFOX at checkout if you'd like to treat yourself to a beautiful silk robe. Don't let my morning frizz bun distract you from the pretty lace. You are doing a great job, so I am giving one away as well. Leave me a comment with something you feel you're doing right as a parent. And if you don't have kids, maybe something you appreciated from your own mother now that you're older. Love you people, and happy Mothers Day to every one of you who are just doing your best. 

BREAKFAST SALAD // Serves 1

This makes enough dressing and croutons for two, but with more assembly than cooking here, I thought writing it for one would make it easier to scale up. I wanted a dish that was easy enough to throw together in the morning without making a whole thing of it. You could make the dressing the night before and honestly it should take you all of 15 minutes if you start first thing with the croutons or even skip them and go for buttered toast instead. 

// vinaigrette //
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 garlic clove
1 anchovy (optional)
generous pinches of salt and pepper
handful of basil and parsley
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

// torn croutons //
day old loaf or baguette, torn into 1"-ish pieces
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
sea salt

Preheat the oven to 400'. Put the olive oil and bread in a mixing bowl, toss to coat. Sprinkle a few pinches of salt and toss again. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until toasty on the edges. Remove to cool completely. Best the day they are made. 
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2 handfuls tender greens
handful of tomatoes, halved
1/2 an avocado
thinly sliced radish

1 egg, poached or fried

sheeps' milk feta cheese, for serving
sprouts, for serving

In a blender, whiz all of the dressing ingredients together. 
Into your bowl, combine the greens, tomatoes, avocado and radish. Poach or fry your egg and place it on your salad. Drizzle the vinaigrette over everything. 
Top the salad with feta cheese, sprouts, croutons or a buttered slice of toast. 

ROASTED TOMATO + CORN SALAD

Every now and then I do a cooking class or cook for small dinner parties and a version of this salad has happened a handful of times lately. It's not so much that it's a life changing combination of ingredients, as it is an example of how I build a green salad in general. A friend called it "my spiritual gift" so I suppose I may be in the field I was made to be in. I start with greens, often mixing lettuces for monochromatic shades of green (kale and romaine, arugula and butter lettuce etc.). I add another fresh, seasonal vegetable (here, shaved fennel), something sweet (here, both corn and roasted tomatoes), crunch and fat (nuts and cheese). I also keep color and texture in mind, using my mandoline frequently for raw vegetables because a huge chunk of carrot throws off the loveliness and ease in eating a green salad. Dressings are a wild card but this is where I can tie things together. Maybe it only needs oil and vinegar and salt if there is plenty going on or kale slaws can handle something extra lemony. I like heat with corn and tomatoes so I threw a jalapeno into an otherwise basic vinaigrette below. I add a sprinkle of parmesan for depth of flavor and to thicken it up a bit but it by no means tastes super Italian. Perhaps this all makes more sense in my head than written but I feel like once you have a general proportion you like, you can make a great salad with whatever is in your fridge. Sometimes it's helpful to start with a recipe, so tweak the one below however you'd like.  

ROASTED TOMATO + CORN SALAD // Serves 4

I understand roasting the tomatoes takes some time, but I do a double batch in advance and have them on hand for both salads and eggs. You could substitute ripe peaches or nectarines here, as they can stand in for your tender and sweet element (I also love this salad from the archives while we're talking nectarines). I have been really into pine nuts lately but am bummed they have become so pricey. You could sub in almonds or walnuts here. 

1 pint baby tomatoes
2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper
1 head of butter lettuce
1 small fennel bulb, shaved thin
1 ear of corn, grilled and cooled
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
4 ounces sheeps feta cheese

// jalapeno dressing //

1 jalapeno
handful of cilantro
1 clove garlic
1 tsp. honey
1 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
juice of half a small lemon
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
 

Preheat the oven to 350' and line a baking sheet with parchment. Halve the tomatoes and toss them in the olive oil, salt and pepper. If they aren't good ones, you know the type, I'll sprinkle a bit of sugar. Spread them on the baking sheet cut side up and roast for 20-25 minutes until dried on the edges. Remove to cool completely. They will dry up more as they rest. 
Blend all dressing ingredients together and set aside. The dressing can be made up to a week in advance. The remaining salad ingredients are written prepped, so from this point, you just need to dress and assemble. Because butter lettuce leaves are larger, this salad plates best with the lettuce and fennel being dressed, and then the tomatoes, corn, pine nuts and feta cheese sprinkled on top of each portion. This prevents all the heavier goodies from falling to the bottom.