Updated Recipe: Vegetarian Liver

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I'm posting an updated NUT-FREE version of this recipe, because I no longer make it the way it appeared on this blog back in 2014, due to a nut allergy.

I've been making variations of this recipe for years, and it's been a big hit with family and guests.

It IS vegetarian, so I'm sure it does not taste like REAL chopped liver, but I haven't eaten chopped liver in over 3 decades, so what do I know? It's our favorite vegetarian version, though.

I hope you'll try it out and let me know what you think!

Vegetarian Liver

1 cup water
1/2 bag frozen green beans (about 400g)
1/2 bag frozen peas (also about 400g)
olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
oregano
1 cup toasted sunflower seeds
salt and pepper to taste

Place green beans, peas, and water in a pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 min.

(watch to be sure you don't boil out the water, add water if needed)

Set aside to cool.

Heat olive oil in a medium size frying pan (I usually use my cast iron pan) and saute onions and garlic with oregano flakes, until caramelized and very fragrant.

Combine peas, green beans, some of the cooking water, onion/garlic mixture, sunflower seeds, salt, and pepper in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse to puree. Add more cooking water or regular water if needed.

(If you don't have a food processor, you might want to consider getting a light duty one for the times you want to make recipes like this! Here's one to take a look at that ships from within Israel (link updated 31.1.2024 so it's valid again!).)

Transfer to a container and refrigerate before serving. Serve with cherry tomatoes, pickles, olives, and crackers!

I'd love to hear what you think of this recipe!

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Pesach Brownies - Repost with updates

This post contains affiliate links. So if you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission, 

but never at any additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!

What is Pesach without brownies?

I first posted this recipe for Pesach 2020. We thought it was awesome then, but this year, I modified it and made it even more amazing!

I hope you like it as much as my family and extended family does!

Pesach Brownies 

(gluten free, non-gebrokts, pareve)

4 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp pesach vanilla (optional)
1 3/4 cups sugar
2/3 cup potato starch
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1/2 bag of chocolate chips

Optional: chocolate frosting (I used the entire (small) jar of pareve chocolate spread)

Mix together eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. In a second bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Make a well in the dry ingredients, and add the wet mix. Mix well with a wooden spoon. If you want to use one bowl, you can, but you'll probably find this needs to be mixed with an electric mixer, rather than a wooden spoon.

Pour into a large pan (I used a lasagna size pan or even bigger. It worked perfectly in the largest baking pan from the new set I bought for this Pesach!), sprinkle chocolate chips all over the top of the batter, and bake at 180 C for about 25 min (160 C if using the convection setting). I've also baked these in my "Shabbat mode" oven on 140 C (the highest I can leave it on Shabbat mode. I know, that's very strange, but that is what it is) for about 35 or 40 minutes, and it was perfect. But not everyone leaves the baking for the chag, so if you're baking on a weekday, go ahead and bake it according to these directions.

Allow to cool before frosting. Cut. Serve.

YUM. Chocolate craving solved. And with the roller coaster ride we've been on here in Israel, I'm guessing I'm not the only one craving a chocolate fix.

Recipe: Pesach Brownies (GF, Pareve)

What is Pesach without brownies?
I mean, this year we are all home in our houses, no guests, and feeling a little out of sorts... It's a very different experience that Pesachs past. (I'm sure one day we'll tell our grandkids about the Pandemic Pesach of 2020, right?) So we needed something to jazz up our day - and I decided it would be a new brownie recipe!

I know that we are the lucky ones, we're not alone - there are six of us living in this house. So there's always someone to talk to when you don't want to feel alone. On the other hand, there's also always someone right there - even when you need some space! I'm sure you understand.

Anyway, brownies have always been a favorite in this house, so for the chag, we had brownies for dessert to help make sure everyone was feeling the holiday cheer! And they were a hit, so I'm sharing the latest variation with you.

Pesach Brownies (gluten free, non-gebrokts, pareve)

4 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp pesach vanilla (optional)
1 3/4 cups sugar
2/3 cup potato starch
1 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Optional: chocolate frosting (I used part of a jar of pareve chocolate spread) or chocolate chips to mix in to the batter

Mix together eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. In a second bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Make a well in the dry ingredients, and add the wet mix. Mix well with a wooden spoon. If you want to use one bowl, you can, but you'll probably find this needs to be mixed with an electric mixer, rather than a wooden spoon. (Optional: mix in 1/2 package of chocolate chips)

Pour into a large pan (I used a lasagna size pan), and bake at 180 C for about 25 min. I actually baked these in my "Shabbat mode" oven on 140 C (the highest I can leave it on Shabbat mode. I know, that's very strange, but that is what it is) for about 35 or 40 minutes, and it was perfect. But not everyone leaves the baking for the chag, so if you're baking on a weekday, go ahead and bake it at 180 C for 25 min!

Allow to cool before frosting.

Cut. Serve.

YUM. Chocolate craving solved.

Hope you are managing this Pesach, and please know that you're not alone, we're really all in this together. Hang in there!

Gluten Free Peanut Butter Bar Cookies with Chocolate (Recipe)

Cookies.

When you're more or less living in lockdown (as we're all doing right now due to the pandemic), sometimes you just need some cookies!

And personally, I can't get enough of these peanut butter and chocolate creations - and the recipe is super simple so ... well, let's just say I've been making them a little too often!

So, for those of you who've been asking as well as those of you who didn't know to ask, here is the recipe:

Peanut Butter Bar Cookies with Chocolate Topping

Cookie bars:
1 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup Demerara sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla

Stir everything together with a wooden spoon until well combined. Spread out in a large pan (9x13 or so). It will be relatively thin and that's all good.
Bake at 180 C for 20-22 minutes. Turn off oven.

Topping:
1 bar bittersweet chocolate. If you want it extra chocolate-y, use 2 bars. You could totally do this with milk chocolate if you prefer, but I like to keep my baking pareve (dairy allergy!)!

Break the bar up and put it on top of the baked cookie layer (uncut). Return the pan to your still-warm (but off) oven. Leave it in the warm oven for about 8-10 min. Remove from oven when the chocolate is warm and spreadable. Use a silicone spatula to spread the chocolate evenly on top of the cookie layer. Allow to cool slightly before cutting into cookie bars.

Cool further before you eat them.

Enjoy!

Please tag me on Instagram (@kosher_frugal) or FB (@kosherfrugalmenus) if you make them!

Potato Kugel!

I'm reposting this recipe, as it's one I make almost every single week. For those of you who think we are boring eating potato kugel every week - we're not! Our house is hopping! And we are innovative, and try out new things all the time! We just happen to associate the taste of a perfect potato kugel with a happy Shabbat, so we make it, time and again.

THIS is the perfect Potato Kugel recipe. I guarantee it will be a hit!

Enjoy!

Potato Kugel

about 1.5 kg of potatoes (8-10 medium size) - I use the lightest skinned ones I can find here, in the States, I used Yukon Gold. -- scrubbed clean, not peeled.
1 large onion
4 eggs
1/2 cup oil (I use olive oil)
.5 - 1.5 T. salt (please adjust to your preference!)
pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 F (220 C)

Scrub the potatoes.

Fit your food processor with the bottom blade AND the shredding disk. In mine, this means that my end result will be partially pureed and partially shredded. If yours works differently -- use the shredding disk, then change to the bottom blade and puree about 1/3 of the potato/onion mixture.


In a large bowl, beat the eggs, oil and seasonings together.

Feed your food processor the onion first, then the potatoes. My bowl isn't big enough, so I do this half at a time, including half an onion with each batch. the pureed onion helps keep the potatoes from oxidizing.



Add the onion and potato mixture to the egg and oil mixture. Mix well to combine.


Pour into a DEEP pan. The trick to this potato kugel is its depth. It does NOT work in a shallow pan. I use a lasagna size disposable pan because I haven't managed to fully stock my kitchen with all the baking pans I want.

Edited to add: I use a foil pan that is 32cm X 26 cm according to the label on the package (5.5 mm depth). Hope that helps!



Place kugel in hot oven. After 25-30 min, lower the temp to 350 F (175 C), and bake for another 30-40 min. Watch to make sure you don't burn the top.

And that is it.
No peeling, no draining, no straining, no adding in just the right amount of starch... 

AND it's perfect for all year round, including Pesach!

Please let me know if you try it. I'd love to hear what you think!

Spicy Lentil Sauce Recipe (Vegan)

I'm always looking for new ways to make quick and easy and healthy weekday meals.
And we all know that rice and legumes is the most frugal way to feed a family, almost anywhere in the world!

So with that in mind, and armed with the knowledge that my family doesn't love their foods pre-mixed for them - they prefer to mix it themselves (or not) - I started serving rice bowls.

That is, rice, and things to go on top of the rice. Because this way, everyone can choose how much of each thing they want to mix into their bowl. Or they can choose to eat each thing separately on a plate. And I don't have to spend any more energy thinking about whether this one eats onions but that one doesn't, and that one eats dairy, but this one doesn't...

So this spicy sauce worked really well with long grain brown rice and roasted veggies (yes, I roasted each vegetable in its own pan, to keep the everything "clean"). I filled up my rice bowl with rice and roasted veggies and then ladeled this on top, and it was just right!

So here's my spicy lentil sauce:

1 cup lentils (picked over and rinsed)
3 cups water
lots of sliced or diced garlic
harissa (hot pepper sauce I buy in a can) to taste
tomato paste (I used about 100g)
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
black pepper to taste
salt to taste
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper powder

Cook the lentils with the water and the garlic till soft.
Add the rest of the ingredients, mixing well.
Simmer for about 5-10 minutes.
Serve hot!

picture taken with my junky phone, sorry

Gluten Free "Bread" Experiment

I was asked to make sure I have a bread substitute for this Shabbat for someone eating here who has recently gone gluten free and is not so happy about it.

Gluten Free breads tend to be very pricey in my neck of the woods, so I figured I should save a bunch of money making my own! But I didn't want to spend a lot of time patchey-ing, and I didn't want to use starch and xanthum gum to figure something out...

So I thought back to that Techina Bread that made the rounds one Pesach in the not-so-distant past, and that I had made using cashew butter for Pesach (as we are not kitniyot eaters). I remembered it being slightly more cake-like than bread-like, so I decided to tweak it a bit. No, this is not a real bread that you can make "hamotzi" on, but I think anyone who really cannot eat gluten doesn't need to make hamotzi, so it's ok (that's my understanding, but I'm not giving you a halachic psak - check with your halachic authority).

The Techina bread recipe calls for eggs, techina, honey, and baking soda. That's it! Hoping to make it a bit more like a hearty, whole grain bread, I changed things up a bit.

Here's my version:

4 eggs
1/2 cup techina
2 tablespoons silan
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp flaxseed
1 tsp chia seeds
1 tsp sesame seeds (+ more for topping, if you want)
pinch of salt

Mix together eggs, techina, silan, salt, and baking soda - mix well with a whisk until thoroughly combined and batter thickens slightly. Fold in seeds.
Fill greased baking pan(s) - I used 3 mini loaf pans, but it can certainly be made in 1 loaf pan for one loaf
 - and sprinkle extra sesame seeds on top (optional).

Bake 25-35 min at 180 C (about 360 degrees F) It turned a rich golden-brown color, and resembles a whole grain bread (at least that!)!

Hoping it goes over well! I nibbled one and it's definitely less cake-like than my last experiment! I liked it! Hoping my picky "customer" enjoys it too!

Let me know if you give it a try!

Mislabeled Products - Missing ingredient and Allergen Warning

Hecht Products Ltd. announced that the following products were mislabeled, due to a printing error:


Brand: Penina Rosenblum
Product Name: Gluten Free Sesame Sticks
Package Size: 150g


Brand: Penina Rosenblum
Product Name: Gluten Free Sesame Cookies (עוגיות מזרחיות)
Package Size: 150g

Despite the fact that the picture on the label shows products with sesame seeds, and the names of the products in English contain the word "sesame", sesame seeds were left off the ingredient list and the allergen list.

These products CONTAIN sesame, and should NOT be eaten by anyone with a sesame allergy!

If you have questions about this recall, please call Hecht Products customer service at 08-684-6620

While they do not mention anything about refunds, I recommend anyone with a sesame allergy who  has purchased one or both of these products should request a refund from the company.

Please make sure you share this recall with anyone who is allergic to sesame and may have purchased these products!

Gluten Free Vegan Cholent (pareve)

(This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission when you make a purchase. Thanks for your support!)

I modified my black bean cholent to make a GF (gluten-free) version! It was a hit among those guests who needed a vegetarian, gluten free option, and all the others here were happy to eat it as well! So now, it's easy to serve a vegetarian, gluten free cholent to all!

Here's the way I make it - feel free to play around with the recipe!

Gluten Free Vegan Cholent 
(I use a slow cooker with approx. 6L capacity, a.k.a. "crock pot")

2 large onions, chopped coarsely
6 cloves garlic, chopped finely
4-6 medium sized potatoes, cut into chunks
500g raw (green) buckwheat, soaked in cold water for a couple of hours, drained, and rinsed
1-1/5 cups dry black beans,  soaked (overnight), drained, and rinsed (can also use a can of cooked black beans, drained and rinsed)
spices: salt or smoked sea salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika if you don't have smoked sea salt - be generous with the seasonings!
water to fill the pot

Place everything in the slow cooker and let the pot do its magic! I fill my slow cooker about 2-3 hours before Shabbat, and we eat the cholent at lunch in the late morning.

If you want, just before Shabbat starts, add frozen vegan kishke to the pot. You'll have to modify the recipe by substituting the oat bran with a GF mix of something like corn meal and rice flour, or quinoa flour. This is the perfect Shabbat morning cholent accompaniment! 

Note the "slow cooker" links in this post take you to a 220V version. If you are in the USA and want a 110V version, click here!

GF Noodle Kugel (pareve)

Lately, we've been doing a lot of Shabbat hosting - every week we find ourselves with a houseful of guests! It's really amazing to do this, and reminds us that we have a direct line to the tradition of hosting, passed down from Avraham and Sarah...

I won't lie and say it is simple, though. It's a lot of work to host all the time, so I decided to try to streamline my cooking -- I found I was getting overwhelmed -- even more than before. And I think I've done it! Shabbat prep isn't quite as overwhelming as it used to be (granted, some of this is related to the fact that it's Summer, and Shabbat starts late, but I'm trying to convince myself that it's more than that!)!

One of the things that I have begun to do is make several kugels in multiples (and I do this on Thursday) - so all of our side dishes Friday night and Shabbat morning are actually identical.

Most weeks I make 4-6 kugels, but it's not that much work.

Here's one of my new go-to recipes, because it's so easy, and works for almost everyone's food issues (but not vegans, sorry) and is not expensive at all to make. I also take shortcuts and don't make lots of dirty dishes in the process.

noodle kugel, not yet baked

GF Noodle Kugel (makes 1 large pan or 2 small pans)

1 package of thin rice noodles
5 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 Tablespoon salt
pepper to taste 
(1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar, optional)
(1/4 cup raisins, optional)

Boil a pot of water and cook rice noodles. I tend to undercook them and then turn off the fire to let them finish absorbing the water in the pot.
Allow noodles to cool somewhat (do something else while waiting - it's enough time for me to chop some veggies or check Facebook...).

Then I do the rest of the prep RIGHT IN THE POT so I minimize the dirty dishes I've got piling up in the sink!

Add the rest of the ingredients to the rice noodles, stir with a wooden spoon. When fully mixed, transfer to baking pan(s).
Bake at 200 C for about 1 hr.

That's it! It's so easy, and everyone seems to enjoy it!

Price breakdown: 
Rice noodles - 5-8nis. (Depending where I buy them. Obviously I prefer to get them for 5, but that's not always an option.)
Eggs - just under 5nis
oil - 1nis perhaps
seasonings - minimal, let's round up to 1nis
if you use raisins, add a few shekels to the cost.
(Baking time in the oven -- costs a bit too)
Total: less than 20nis (12 - 15 for basic ingredients)!!

The other kugels I make are usually Potato Kugel, and Vegetable Kugel. All are big hits among kugel eaters. The thing about kugels are they are totally comfort food for many of us...

Then I add random other things to the menu: Usually roasted whole chickens or cut up chickens (spicy or with date honey, depending on my mood) for Friday night, and Cholent and Spicy Chicken Breast for Lunch. And salads, using the abundance of cheap veggies available! If I get enough requests, I'll make soup for Friday night, too, but right now, its so hot I think it's fine to skip it!

For dessert, I have been keeping watermelon on hand, and if there's enough time, I'll bake a couple of cakes.

What are your favorite, EASY crowd-pleasers for Shabbat?

Updated Pesach Brownie Recipe (gluten free, pareve)

Brownies are a pesach staple in my house. There seems to always be a pan of them waiting for someone to inhale.

Here's how we make them:

(This makes 3 smallish square brownie pans if you like them thin. You could make them thicker and do 2 pans. All of my Pesach recipes are "for a crowd" - my apologies to those who don't cook in large quantity. Feel free to adjust as needed.)

6 eggs, beaten
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Mix well.
Add:
1.5 cups cocoa powder
1 cup potato starch
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
chocolate chips (I used half a bag because I'm careful with my chocolate chips)
nuts if you like (I make them without nuts.)
 
Mix well, with a wooden spoon.
Pour into baking pans and bake at 325 F (165 C) for 20-25 min
Enjoy!
 
Note: this recipe needs some adjusting if you are doing higher altitude baking. I developed it when I lived more or less at sea level. Now that we're a bit higher up, I bake it for less time.

If you like this, please be sure to stay in touch by following my blog and find me on Facebook!

Sweet Potato and Carmelized Onion Kugel (GF, Pesach friendly, pareve) Recipe

Here's a really yummy way to use those sweet potatoes! I don't know about you, but I got some sweet potatoes this week for less than 4 shekels/kilo! That means a lot of yummy orange foods on our table. 

While I really love spicy roasted sweet potatoes and even sweet potato muffins, sometimes I find myself relying on the good ol' kugel to coax my family into eating their veggies - somehow the act of turning a vegetable into a kugel makes my children less attuned to their vegetable-ness...

So here's our Pesach friendly, gluten-free, pareve sweet potato kugel recipe!

my sweet potato pile

Sweet Potato and Carmelized Onion Kugel

2 LARGE sweet potatoes, diced and steamed (I use a steamer basket in a pot on the stove)

2 LARGE onions, sliced or diced, cooked in a heavy pan (I used my cast iron pan, my favorite) with olive oil till they begin to carmelize.

4 eggs
1 cup non-dairy "milk", like coconut milk, soymilk, almond milk or whatever you prefer
1/2 cup water mixed with 2 tablespoons of potato starch.
fresh basil (lots) - torn into pieces
salt and pepper to taste


 

First spread the sweet potato out, covering the bottom of the pan. Then, layer the carmelized onions on top of the sweet potatoes.

Mix the eggs, non dairy milk, water and potato starch mixture, and seasonings together. (mix very well)

Pour the mixture over the sweet potatoes and onions.

Bake for about 1 hour at 425 F. 
This kugel is best served warm, but it's decent when cold, too.

Enjoy!

Let me know what you think!

Vegetable Kugel - pareve, GF, kosher for Pesach

Here's a Pesach friendly, gluten free vegetable kugel that the whole family loves!
It's a bit of work chopping veggies, but it's worth it!

Vegetable Kugel

a lot of vegetables, peeled and chopped
(use whatever vegetables you like - be as creative as you want! I've used kohlrabi, summer squashes, garlic, red and green peppers, cauliflower, and more)
1 (or more) onion, peeled and chopped
several garlic cloves, chopped coarsely
1-2 tablespoon (approx) olive oil
6 large eggs
1/4 cup potato starch
1.5 cups water
salt, pepper to taste


Place chopped vegetables (including the onion and garlic) in a bowl and toss with olive oil. Spread the veggies out in a single layer on a baking sheet (or 2). Place in hot oven (210 C) and roast till browned. Remove from oven.

Transfer roasted vegetables to a deep casserole dish.

Mix together potato starch and water, add eggs and seasonings, and whisk it all together. Pour egg mixture over vegetables.
Bake in a 200C oven for about 1 hr.

Serve warm or cold.

Enjoy!

I'm making this for the vegetarians at our seder as a main dish.

Roasted Vegetable "Quiche" (pareve, gluten free)

I have been trying to be more creative with my sug bet/cheap vegetable hauls, and one thing I've started making with them is pseudo-quiche. And it's a hit!

Today's dish started with kishuim (summer squash) and kohlrabi from the sug bet rack (2 shekels/kg) and onions - about 3 shekels/kg.

I'd actually already cooked the kishuim on Sunday - those were just sitting in my fridge waiting to be used up.

Here's what I did:

2 kohlrabi, peeled and chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
(other vegetables as desired)
1 tablespoon (approx) olive oil
1.5 cup already cooked kishuim
6 large eggs
1/4 cup potato starch
1.5 cups water
salt, pepper to taste

Lightly fry the onion and kohlrabi (and/or other veggies as desired) in the olive oil.
Transfer to a casserole dish.
Add the cooked kishuim (optional), and stir it all together.
Mix together potato starch and water, add eggs and seasonings, and whisk it all together. Pour egg mixture over vegetables.
Bake in a 200C oven for about 1 hr.

Serve warm or cold.

Enjoy!

Chick Pea/Chummus Fritters (Vegan/Pareve, Gluten Free)

I made a ton of homemade chummus on Friday, and it was more than we could possibly use up quickly enough (homemade chummus spoils much faster than store-bought).

So today I decided to see if it could be repurposed into Chick Pea Fritters.

And it worked - they are quite flavorful!

I made a rather large batch - here's what I did:

Chick Pea Fritter Recipe

3 cups chummus (already made)
2/3 cup brown rice flour
spices - salt, black pepper, granulated garlic (and whatever else you want), to taste

Mix well.
Heat some oil in a frying pan. Drop the chick pea mixture by the large spoonful onto the frying pan, leaving a bit of space between each fritter, and pan fry on both sides. Continue until you've used all the mixture!

Serve hot. Or cold. With whatever dipping sauce you like (we use techina, or ketchup. I'm sure it can work with other sauces too)!

These make a great snack or can even be part of a meal.
Now I just need to remember to make these anytime we have leftover homemade chummus - before it spoils!

Pesach Banana Cake (pareve, non-gebrokts)

This year, I gave up eating wheat when I realized I was having a mild allergic reaction to it. So while I'll still bake my kids their favorite Pesach treats (like mandel bread and pesach rolls), I needed to come up with something I could snack on too!
{So I stood in my kitchen and spotted a bunch of ripe bananas}
And I decided to try to change up my banana cake recipe!
Here's what happened:






4 large bananas, mashed
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1.5 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
1.5 cups ground coconut
1.5 cups potato starch
1/4 tsp salt
1.5 tsp baking powder

Mix bananas, sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract, if using and make sure they are combined well
Add dry ingredients. Mix well.
Divide batter between 2 loaf pans and bake at 185 C (about 370 F) for 45 minutes or until done.

This was so easy and really came out delish. It's perfect and I'm going to make it all year long!

Black Bean Salad

This is one of my new favorite salads. I love dishes that are simple, easy, dairy-free, and wheat free, soy-free, and nut-free so that we all can enjoy them together.

The inspiration for this dish was a salad I had years ago when we lived in Texas, and I decided to finally figure out my own dressing for it - for truly the dressing is what completes this salad!

For the salad:

2 cups black beans, already cooked and drained
2 cups frozen corn kernels, lightly steamed or roasted and cooled
2-4 red peppers, diced (you can use a mix of red/green peppers, too if you like)
4 tomatoes, cut into cubes
(the original dish had raw onions in it, but raw onions are a major source of food poisoning, so they scare me, and my picky family won't eat it anyway)
(You can totally adjust this and use more or less of something as you like - go ahead and make this "your own"! - it's great with acocado, or lettuce, or quinoa, or all, or whatever inspires you!)


For the dressing:

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
juice of 1 orange or clementine (I had a clementine in the house)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
Chili pepper flakes (to taste)
Smoked paprika (to taste, I used about 2 tsp)
salt (to taste)
ground black pepper (to taste)

Place all the vegetables in a pretty salad bowl. Mix the dressing together in a jar, bowl, or container. Mix really well. Pour dressing over vegetables and gently toss it all together. Serve cold. 

This salad can actually be a meal in and of itself, or is a great accompaniment to anything at all.
Let me know if you give it a try!