At a recent cookout,  I needed a side for burgers. I didn’t want any starch, and a salad seemed too formal. No one around here likes mayonnaise based salads (except me). That delicious cauliflower salad came to mind when my friend texted me from Adele’s during brunch. I looked at the ingredients in their on-line menu and went from there.

Watch the Video for Raw Shaved Cauliflower Salad

Now normally I would not make anything with raw cauliflower, because it has no taste, and isn’t pleasant to eat. However once you add marinate shaved cauliflower in a strong vinegar based dressing, pistachios, golden raisins and scallions, it becomes a pretty addicting salad.

Here’s what I Learned about Raw Shaved Cauliflower Salad.

You almost can’t add enough vinegar and you need to let it marinate overnight. If not, it ends up being fairly tasteless. If you can wait or you plan ahead, it’s amazing, especially if you add nuts for crunch, and dried fruit for sweetness and texture.

You also needs lots of scallions, and a strong mustardy dressing.  I used a ratio of vinegar to oil 1 to 2. Normally I use much less vinegar, but this salad needs a lot of acid. It also needs salt, but add the chopped nuts first (which are salted) before you add too much.

I used a large whole cauliflower and sliced each floret as thinly as possible. I tried both slicing with a knife and a mandolin. The mandolin works better and I use this one also featured below.

As far as nuts, I used chopped, salted pistachios. Harder nuts seem to work better in this salad, and you could also use chopped peanuts or sliced almonds. If you use almonds, sautè them first to intensify their flavor. I added in some red chili flakes for heat.

Tips for the Best Shaved Cauliflower Salad

• Robust Vinaigrette made with Olive Oil and Mustard
• Slice Cauliflower thinly
• Scallions (lot of them)
• Toasted Nuts for more texture
• Add in heat with red chili flakes

Shaved Cauliflower Salad stays crunchy and is the perfect side dish to take to a party or pot luck.

I find that people really appreciate healthier choices at parties. This will be added to my list of salads that travel well, that include this Potluck Autumn Kale Salad and this Brussels Sprouts Salad with Raw Beet Pesto.

 More Spinach Tiger Cauliflower Recipes

• Popcorn Cauliflower
• Cauliflower Parmesan
• Greek Cauliflower
• Cauliflower Bacon Leek Soup
• Purple Cauliflower Salad with Walnut Vinaigrette
• Skillet Cheesesteak with Cauliflower (no bread)

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Shaved Cauliflower Salad with Champagne Mustard Vinaigrette

Raw Cauliflower Salad with pistachios, golden raisins, scallions, and a zesty dijon mustard champagne vinaigrette.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower
• 1/2 cup chopped salted pistachios
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 2 bunches of scallions
• 1/2 cup champagne vinaigrette see recipe below
• sea salt
• pepper
• red pepper flakes as needed

Champagne Mustard Vinaigrette

• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons champagne vinegar more as needed
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Instructions

• Cut out the bottom core of cauliflower. Discard
• Slice cauliflower as thin as you can. Mandolin is best, but you can slice with good sharp knife.
• Toss with vinaigrette.You will want the vinegar to be pronounced. I found that the cauliflower doesn’t hold the vinegar taste.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Add in chile flakes.
• Add golden raisins, chopped scallions, nuts, (reserve some nuts for garnish).

Vinaigrette Instructions

• Infuse olive oil with chopped garlic for 20 minutes.
• Put mustard in a jar and mix well with vinegar.
• Slowly add olive oil. Mix well.
• Add red pepper flakes.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Video

Notes

Depending on how large your cauliflower is, you may need more dressing. Once you taste, you may need to add vinegar, but I found I didn’t need to add in more olive oil.
You might also want to add in more nuts, raisins depending on your own taste.

It’s important to refrigerate this salad for several hours or overnight to marinate the cauliflower.

The post Shaved Cauliflower Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette & Video appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Someone recently asked me what my favorite food was and I had a hard time answering. I thought for a minute about what was the one food I would never want to live without and salad came to mind.  

I grew up on green salad at the nightly dinner table and I’ve done the same thing. My husband was just a ranch dressing person when we married and now he’s all about the salad with oil and vinegar. We never used bottled dressing and never will, as it’s never balanced, usually has sugar which does not belong in dressing, and often too many other odd or unhealthy ingredients like canola oil. Making your own dressing is almost as easy as opening a bottle from the fridge.

My favorite way to dress salad a lot of the time is with a sharp and zesty champagne vinaigrette. All you need is a little dijon mustard, a good quality champagne vinaigrette.

I  like both Kimberly Organic Champagne Vinegar and Sparrow Lane Champagne Vinegar. Both have five stars on Amazon.

As far as olive oil, you have to be careful not to use a very heavy oil that overtakes the dressing. I recently discovered the Bellucci brand and it’s everything I could ever hope for in an extra virgin olive oil. 

Champagne vinegar is made from champagne and white wine vinegar is made from white wine. I find champagne vinegar to be very sharp and acidic, even though the internet describes it as a mild vinegar. 

Champagne vinegar has typically 5.5 % acidity, where wine vinegar has 6 to 7%.  I  did a tasting of three vinegars, champagne vinegar, red wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar. The champagne vinegar came across as sharpest, but in a good way.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil for Champagne Vinaigrette

I  am very picky about my olives oils. I  use a high quality extra virgin olive oil for my vinaigrettes, where I  might use something a little differently in my cooking. I  love several brands and right now am hooked on Bellucci Italian Organic Olive Oil. It’s only about $19 at Whole Foods and a few weeks ago I  bought six bottles when it was on sale.  Look for a harvest date and location of Italian vineyards to get a decent finishing oil. 

What if I don’t have champagne vinegar? You can any of the following to get that sharp vinegar taste. Do not use balsamic vinegar, as it’s not the same and is too sweet. 

• Sherry Vinegar
• White wine vinegar
• Red wine vinegar
• Lemon juice, always a nice sharp substitute

How to Make a Champagne Vinaigrette

Fat, Acid, Salt

I  can honestly say I  make salads that people love, because I understand the umami combination of fat, acid and salt. This trio is what heightens pleasure and delights tastes buds. While the dijon mustard adds in a bit of acid, its main job is to emulsify or bring the opposing liquids together. 

The secret lays in the balance of these ingredients. You not only need to balance the ratio of vinegar to oil, you have to make a decision as to how much vinaigrette to dress the lettuce leaves. Part of this is tasting. Go lightly at first, toss and salt Salting is imperative before adding more dressing. You can always add more, but not take dressing away. 

There are only three ingredients in this vinaigrette. Many people think vinaigrettes have to have a long list of ingredients, when less is best and most authentic. The balance and application is much more important. 

I  like to start with a 1 to 4 ratio, vinegar to olive oil. The vinegar should be mixed with the mustard first and then the oil streamed in. Admittedly, I will add all the oil in and give the vinaigrette a good shake. 

Storing Champagne Vinaigrette. 

Place in closed mason jar and leave on counter to use for the week. If you refrigerate, the oil will solidify. No need to do that.

Try these salads that work well with a champagne vinaigrette.

Shaved Cauliflower Salad.

Beet Greens Salad with Beets

Spinach Salad with Peaches

Playing Around

You can add in some minced shallots, minced garlic, or your favorite herb. Try placing your favorite herb such as tarragon in your jar for a few hours for real treat. 

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Champagne Vinaigrette

Zesty dijon mustard champagne vinaigrette.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Keyword vinaigrette

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

Champagne Mustard Vinaigrette

• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons champagne vinegar more as needed
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• dash salt
• dasg black pepper

Instructions

Vinaigrette Instructions

• Infuse olive oil with chopped garlic for 20 minutes.
• Put mustard in a jar and mix well with vinegar.
• Slowly add olive oil. Mix well.
• Add red pepper flakes.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Notes

If you want to make this a little more zesty add a minced garlic clove and or a little bit of red pepper flakes.

The post Champagne Vinaigrette Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

What is a Shallot?

Shallots look more like tear drops than round spheres (like onions). Their skin can be orange or red or a combination of both. They are slightly sweet, milder than onions and have just a hint of garlic. In other words, the perfect addition to a beautiful vinaigrette.

A member of the allium family, shallots are closely related to onions, garlic and chives. They are the perfect thing to use when you want a little onion, a little garlic and a little umami. I  cannot explain that extra something a shallot has over an onion, but this recipe won’t be the same trying to sub garlic or onion for this shallot vinaigrette.  Shallots have a milder taste and importantly a milder smell. 

Why Champagne Vinegar

Champagne vinegar is a mild, slightly floral vinegar very suitable for delicate lettuces, yet will deliver an umami experience, especially with shallots. You can substitute with a sherry vinegar or a white wine vinegar.

The funny thing is that while I  love shallots in a vinaigrette, I  detest raw onion in salad. Just recently I  ordered a Cobb salad that had strips of red onion hidden and lunch was ruined for me. I  can’t even take the smell of raw onion, but loved caramelized onions and grilled onions. Shallots, however, are a different story, and are always found in my pantry.

What Kind of Salads are Well Suited to Shallot Champagne Vinaigrette?

Endive salads, red cabbage salads, crunchy vegetable salads are especially suited, but any kind of green leaf lettuce salad would be fine too. I  especially love shallot vinaigrette on salads that include bacon. 

My Perfect Green Salad with Shallot Champagne Vinaigrette

This shallot vinaigrette is suitable for delicate and sturdy lettuces. If using a delicate dressing, go very lightly, adding a little at at time. I tend to keep delicate lettuces simple, adding only one extra ingredient like a sprinkle of feta, blue or goat cheese.

Shallot vinaigrette is very suitable with heavier greens, chards, kale, or romaine, and that’s the time to add in more ingredients such as nuts, apples, pears, grapes, cheese, bacon.

The Key to the Perfect Green Salad

I’m known for my salads. I am the one that brings the salad to every event, and it always disappears quickly. I can tell you why with these important tips.

• Dress and Toss the salad before serving. There’s nothing worse than being served lettuce and expected to dress it yourself. It never takes hold properly.
• Taste along the way. Delicate lettuces do not need much dressing, and do best with vinaigrettes vs. creamy dressings.
• FAT – SALT – ACID – This is a general rule of cooking and balanced taste. You get the fat from the oil, the acid, from the vinegar and lemon and you MUST USE SALT. The trick is the combination of these. Most cooks go too lightly on the acid and forget how important salt is.
• TASTE – I can’t emphasize enough how important tasting is to success. Take a piece of the lettuce you are using, and dip it into your vinaigrette and make adjustment as needed. Salt that bite before you try. Once you dress the greens, taste again. You can always add a sprinkle of vinegar if the acid seems too low.
• Practice these tips and I promise you salad will become something your family and friends love.

Ingredients for Recipe

• Champagne Vinegar
• Olive Oil
• Dijon Mustard
• Shallots
• Lemon Juice

More Vinaigrettes from Spinach Tiger

• Warm Maple Cider Vinaigrette
• Maple Vinaigrette
• Champagne Vinaigrette
• Lemon Honey Vinaigrette
• Red Wine Vinaigrette
• Chive Vinaigrette

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Shallot Vinaigrette

How to Make the Perfect Shallot Vinaigrette

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

Shallot Vinaigrette

• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots
• 1/4 cup champagne vinegar
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil more as needed
• sea salt
• pepper

Instructions

Shallot Vinaigrette

• Mix mustard, shallots, lemon juice and vinegar.
• Add oil. Shake in jar or use whisk to incorporate.
• Make sure you taste and adjust to your liking.

The post Shallot Champagne Vinaigrette for the Perfect Green Salad appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

If you know me by now, winter brings out the lemon cravings in me and lemon everything dances in my head. Last winter I made lemon cake and recently lemon budino.

One way to satisfy the desire to pucker up a bit and feel that zing that lemon gives is a good lemon vinaigrette recipe on the right green salad.

Growing up in an Italian household, the green salad was a part of every single dinner. Sometimes it was just oil and red wine vinegar and sometimes it was oil and lemon.

Note: there are amazon affiliate links on this site which earn Spinach Tiger a small commission but do not raise your price. 

I do break a few rules however, as I like to add champagne vinegar, which marries very well with lemon. I mix this up with some dijon mustard, which makes everything better. Dried herbs such as herbs de Provence  compliments a lemon vinaigrette.

This salad with lemon vinaigrette recipe is not complicated.

but requires the right balance of fat, acid and salt. This means you will need to taste along the way.

In this salad I used  feta cheese that was packed in brine from Trader Joe’s. The olive oil has to be extra virgin and on the milder side. There is nothing worse than a a heavy olive oil dominating a salad except a salad with too much dressing.



Tips for a Green Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette Recipe  

• Acid to oil ratio. The ratio of acid (lemon and/or  vinegar will be anywhere from 1 to 4 parts olive oil to 1 to 3 parts olive olive oil. I go by taste, and you should too. A good rule of thumb is to start with 1 part acid to 2 parts oil. You can always add more oil if the dressing is too acidic.
• Use an emulsifier. I use dijon mustard which keeps the dressing together. Mix with acids first, then add the oil half at a time. Shake and taste.
• Sturdy lettuce such as romaine and iceberg require more dressing  Spring greens will use one fourth to one third the amount. The heavier lettuces do very well with lemony vinaigrettes. A mix of sturdy romaine lettuce with delicate arugula is fabulous. It’s pretty. The arugula adds a peppery flavor and the mixed textures work.
• Dried herbs marry well with a lemony vinaigrette and I recommend herbs de provence or a dried thyme or tarragon.
• Salad needs salt. Keep that in mind when tasting.
• Sheep Cheeses like a good crumbled feta or shaved Pecorino Romano complement a lemon vinaigrette well.
• Soft Hard Boiled eggs can serve as a protein.

Two Ways to Make Soft Hard Boiled Eggs

• Place in cold water, bring to boil, reduce to a simmer for no longer than three minutes. Soft, but no runny yolk.
• If you want a runny soft boiled egg, place in boiling water for 6.5 minutes.

I added some seared salmon to this salad, but any fatty meat likes this too.

You can also use the lemon vinaigrette for vegetables like green beans, kale, roast chicken, potatoes, etc.

More Vinaigrette Recipes from Spinach Tiger

More Salad Recipes from Spinach Tiger

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Lemon Vinaigrette Recipe

A very lemony vinaigrette with added champagne vinegar and herbs de provence, perfect for a bright crisp salad.

Course Salad Dressing

Cuisine French

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• juice of 1/2 lemon
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 6 to 8 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon herbs de provence
• sea salt black pepper

Instructions

• Mix lemon juice, zest and vinegar together with dijon mustard.
• Slowly add olive oil or add and shake in jar.
• Add herbs, salt, pepper to taste.
• You can reserve the herbs for the salad along with the zest.
• Toss greens first with just enough dressing, not overdoing. How much you use will depend on how many greens you use.

Notes

In this salad, I used one bag of romaine lettuce and three to four handfuls of arugula.
I added in crumbled feta cheese and soft hard boiled eggs.

There are Amazon affiliate links on this page, which aid in the running of this site and do not raise any prices.

The post Lemon Vinaigrette Recipe and Soft Hard Boiled Eggs appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

When I was a little girl, my family switched the way they made green salad and started putting onions in it, to my horror, I might add. I would make them keep my salad separate. Onions can make me cry, and they did, but not how you think. They started lying to me and I would bite into my salad and taste the onion which led to tears. Why didn’t they understand that I hated raw onions, and I loved salad.

I only use vinaigrette for salad and just like in childhood, I still eat a salad with every dinner. This means I have to find creative twists to not get into a salad rut. I know you do too, because this honey lemon salad dressing is always in my top ten ranking posts. Knowing how much  just a little honey can do for a vinaigrette, I featured it in this recipe. A little goes a long way in helping the oil and vinaigrette bond together.

I stumbled onto chive vinaigrette by sheer accident. I grew one chive plant last year and over the winter I saw it blossom and grow beautiful flowers. I didn’t know about chive flowers and when I talked about it on social media, someone sent me a link for making chive vinegar. I had no idea and I made the vinegar that very day using champagne vinegar as a base, but a white balsamic or a white wine vinegar works too.

The recipe called for storing the vinegar with the flowers for two or three weeks, but I didn’t want to wait. My vinegar had enough chive flavor for me by the next day. The vinegar turned a beautiful color resembling  soft pink tourmaline.

The chive flower vinegar became chive flower vinaigrette using only two other ingredients, honey and olive oil. So far, we’ve been eating this dressing for the past week, stored in a mason jar, and I’m loving it.

It makes ordinary baby lettuce taste better with no additional ingredients, but it pairs really well with chopped green apple with cheddar or blue cheese. The bite of this vinaigrette would also complement beets in a salad.

To further the chive experience, serve with these  bacon cheddar chive biscuits.

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Making Homemade Chive Flower Vinegar for a Chive Champagne Vinaigrette

How to make Chive Flower Vinegar and a Vinaigrette

Course Salad Dressing

Cuisine American

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• VINEGAR INGREDIENTS
• 10 chive flowers
• 1 mason jar
• 1 cup white vinegar or champagne vinegar
• VINAIGRETTE INGREDIENTS
• 2 ounces chive flower vinegar
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 4 to 6 ounces extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

• Wash chive flowers thoroughly, rinsing in cold water twice and drying. Bugs can easily hide inside the flowers, so wash well.
• Place flowers in mason jar. Fill up with vinegar. Store in dark place up to three weeks. I used the vinegar within two days and it had enough flavor and color.
• VINAIGRETTE INSTRUCTIONS
• Shake chive flower vinegar with honey until thoroughly mixed. Stream in olive oil and mix well.
• Store in mason jar, not refrigerated. It will keep for several weeks.

The post How to Make Homemade Chive Flower Vinegar for a Chive Champagne Vinaigrette appeared first on Spinach Tiger.