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International salad cookbook a collaborative global effort
"SuperSalads." THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO,The Reader's Digest
1 day ago
To accompany all the food available from around our world, cookbooks too are going global.
A recent example is "Super Salads" (Reader's Digest). "This new book is an international effort," explains its Canadian editor, Pamela Johnson, who is based in Reader's Digest's Montreal office.
She is one of four editors. The others are based in New York, London and Sydney, Australia.
"We all get together by video conferencing and teleconferencing or email and decide what recipes to submit," says Johnson. "And from there we come up with a huge list of things that absolutely have to be included from each country."
"Super Salads" was published in Australia. It contains 250 salad recipes with mouth-watering photographs by Christiane Kruger and Ian Hoffstetter.
As explained in the book's introduction, many countries have their own signature salads that highlight particular salad greens, herbs or other seasonings.
Some include rice, pasta, beans or grains while others use bread as a way to add valuable nutrients and to help make a little go a long way.
"You never know when you go too far in a salad," says Johnson. "That's why it's good to have a salad cookbook because sometimes one thing just overpowers the other and I like the proportions readers will find here."
Sections include explanations of various salad greens, herbs and dressings and what equipment is needed. There are recipes using meat, poultry, fish and seafood as well as dessert salads.
Here is one of Johnson's contributions to the book.
Watercress and Baby Spinach With Goat Cheese
3 slices light rye bread, crusts removed
30 ml (2 tbsp) butter
1 large clove garlic
125 g (4 oz) firm goat cheese
125 g (4 oz) watercress
125 g (4 oz) baby spinach leaves
1 shallot, finely chopped
30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil
30 ml (2 tbsp) balsamic vinegar
2 ml ( 1/2 tsp) Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
To make croutons, cut bread into small cubes. Melt about 22 ml (1 1/2 tbsp) of the butter in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic, saute for 2 minutes; discard. Add bread cubes; cook until golden brown on all sides, taking care butter does not burn. Set aside; keep warm.
Slice goat cheese into four equal pieces. Heat remaining butter in a pan over medium heat. Add cheese; cook until it begins to melt and develops a golden-brown crust, about 4 minutes each side.
Divide watercress, spinach and chopped shallot among 4 serving plates.
In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper until combined. Drizzle over salad greens. Place a piece of cheese on each plate and top with croutons.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition information per serving: 288 calories, 7 g protein, 22 g total fat, 9 g saturated fat, 35 mg cholesterol, 15 g carbohydrates, 3 g fibre.
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