Organic Greens Salad with Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette and Roasted Green Beans

All you need for this is some 18-year aged balsamic vinegar from Arizona and some citrus oil…

No, don’t worry. That’s not mandatory. It just turns out that there are some amazing balsamic vinegars being made on this side of the ocean…in a desert. You could also take a pretty cheap un-aged balsamic (flavoured or not) and just reduce it over medium heat in a pot until it’s thick and sticky and a whole lot sweeter, then you add it to an equal amount of olive oil, shake, and voila salad.

For a large salad I’d go with just:

2 tbsp thick balsamic vinegar (reduced on the stove if it’s regular balsamic – thin and watery and acidic)

2 tbsp olive oil

About 8 cups of organic mixed greens

2 cups green beans, edges trimmed if desired

salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Toss the green beans with 1 tbsp of the oil and roast in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 25 minutes, or until they’re softened but still a little crunchy. Add them to the washed organic greens.

Shake together the vinegar and the remaining 1 tbsp oil, and pour over the mixed greens and green beans. The vinaigrette should be sweet enough on its own, and won’t require extra sugar, honey, or maple syrup. It may need a little salt and pepper. You can also whisk in half a head of roasted garlic, as I did, for some depth of flavour and to cut the sweetness (cut the top third from a head of garlic – yes a head, not a clove – and wrap it in aluminum foil. Stick it in an oven at 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 40 minutes, or until the cloves are softened). Garlic powder is fine, too, but the roasted garlic also stretches the vinaigrette further and coats more of the greens. It also tastes less metallic and bitter. Try using different oils too – lemon-flavoured oils, or walnut oil, or hazelnut – whatever you have or want to invest in; adding lemon juice straight will just dilute the vinaigrette, so I don’t recommend that.

Today my tomato squeaked…It’s from Lufa Farms. It was a beefsteak. It was a far cry from the best pesticide-free tomato I’d ever eaten, but dear lord it squeaked it was so fresh. The cherry tomatoes, however, are little balls of sweet, though unsqueaking, joy.