Wednesday, November 5, 2008

All you can eat salad in my bar !

A pineapple, banana, roasted bell pepper salad with a 3 citrus dressing




Do not forget the attention to detail!
Ha! ha!




Or an Asian pear, kiwi, radish salad with a "Mrs Balls bladjang" dressing
.
( I folded the napkin to resemble a fortune cookie)






Or a carrot salad and juice with my hand carve
d carrot and bell pepper palm tree!
Beta carotene taken to the extreme! This carrot juice has a fizzy element of surprise. I make this salad all the time!!!

Click here for ingredients





Or a cucumber, guacamole and tomato salad with sambal oelek (intermittent pangs of spicy pleasure !)



After all that chocolate on Halloween I felt the need to make a colorful salad everyday these past few days. Armed with such healthy and beautiful presentations of fruits and vegetables, one can almost skip the main course which is normally meat and potatoes or a seafood dish! In fact here in "my salad bar" these salads will be the entrees and all you are going to eat ! All the meat and seafood dishes will have to take a back seat!

Pineapple and banana salad : (Please use organic when possible)
  • Scoop out the flesh of pineapple with a melon baller
  • 2 green onions chopped
  • Roast a red bell and green bell pepper, remove the skin and chop
  • 2 bananas diced , squeeze fresh orange over this to inhibit oxidation
  • 1 apple peeled and diced and again coat with some orange juice
  • Half of a small red onion chopped.
  • 1 T chopped cilantro
  • 1 T brown organic sugar crystals
  • 1 orange juiced, 2T lime juice and 1T lemon juice
  • 1 small jalapeno ( seeds removed and minced/ or add the seeds if you like the heat)
Place all the chopped ingredients into a bowl and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Mix the citrus juices and pour over the fruits and veggies. Present inside the hollowed out pineapple.

Asian pear salad:
  • I used 2 Asian pears, 4 kiwis, some radishes and a spring lettuce mix.
I used cookie cutters to cut out Asian pear hearts and just used my garnishing skills to make little radish flowers. "Mrs Balls bladjang" is a South African apricot chutney available at World market. Use the salad dressing packages and make according to instructions. I use brown rice vinegar and olive oil and just mix in some of the apricot chutney. This dressing is killer!


Cucumber and guacamole salad:

  • 2 avocados diced
  • half of a small onion finely minced
  • jalapeno chopped
  • half of 1 t pounded garlic
  • 1 t roasted garlic and bell pepper seeds
  • kosher salt to taste
  • some lime juice (fresh)
Mix all the above ingredients for the guacamole. Do not mash the avos!! Cut cucumbers and arrange on the plate. Place a small pastry ring in the middle of the cucumbers and spread the guacamole on the bottom of the ring and then the chopped tomatoes making sure to season with kosher salt. Remove the ring carefully and you will have a perfect presentation. Dot the cucumbers with sambal oelek.

Mansi over at the Fun & Food cafe is hosting a vegetarian Thanksgiving. Click on her logo below and experience this holiday carnival that would open up a whole new world of culinary delights!



Enjoy!
Nazarina.


For this Sunflower sprout, toasted pine nut, roasted
cherry tomatoes, dried fruit & the star of this recipe,
Sour fig dressing, ( I made the dressing from sour figs)
from South Africa! click here




See this really inexpensive lattice pocket pie mold HERE (William Sonoma)

Only thing is I made my filling a lightly spiced, ground beef



See how easy this train was here. If you can handle a pizza cutter,
you too can make this chocolate gingerbread train. The food
processor did all the mixin! I glued the parts together with chocolate
& I have all the templates for ya!




________________________________________________________



Click on this link & see very latest salads & many more on my new blog: www.giddygastronome.com

& also my cute napkin folding.......So easy, a child could do it!




Tahitian vanilla powder scones












53 comments:

Snooky doodle said...

wow what an artist. these all look amazing :) they surely involved alot of work ha

Manggy said...

You always have the most amazing presentations, Nazarina. Flavor-wise I just know I'll love the pineapple-banana-bell pepper one most of all :)

Anonymous said...

wow! You're very very creative! I specially love the carrot tree with bell pepper leaves! :)

lubnakarim06 said...

Creative, originative, beautiful and awesome presentation dear. You are the perfect example of Beauty with brain. Everything looks glamorously tempting. I left a mail to you. Take time to check it out. Let me know how the omellete turned out. There is magic in your hands. (touchwood)

Mohamed Suhail said...

hey thanks for following my second blog ...but do follow my primary blog as well http://extincthuman.blogspot.com thanks ...keep visiting

Deeba PAB said...

Wonderfully presented Naz...such great attention to detail. Very creative indeed...I'm comin' over!

Unknown said...

how creative of you... :)

vanillasugarblog said...

You have such beautiful presentations. I love coming to your blog to see what you've thought of next. Tell me you do this for a living? You would get paid well for this skill.
I'm sorry about your kitty. I know how much that hurts. It took me almost a year before I could go to the shelter to find my next little furry creature. You have to feel through the pain before it gets marginally better.

The Food Hunter said...

What awesome presentations. I love the carrot and pepper palm tree.

Yasmeen said...

Your are one smart chick,serving healthy salads after Halloween.Kudos to your excelling creativity,I'll skip my main course even for a week for such serving of salads:)

Reeni said...

Your attention to detail is exquisite. Your gorgeous salads make me feel like summer is here again. I try to eat a lot healthier between Halloween and Thanksgiving because I know the holiday feasting is about to begin. Thanks for the lovely and very tasty salads.

La Cuisine d'Helene said...

Oh my. Beautiful salads that looks really yummy.

Recipeswap said...

I couldnt take my eyes off the bell pepper and carrot palm tree......wow its so good......I have no words to describe your art.

Anonymous said...

Wow! What beautiful and artistic salads- they're almost too pretty to eat!

Live.Love.Eat said...

Wow, you are definitely creative& talented. These all look delicious too on top of being pretty!!!!!

thecelticcookinshanghai said...

This is so impressive. Think I could impress my friends someday soon with it. Hoe could anyone resist.

Jo A. T.B. said...

Beautiful presentation as usual! My neice made a friut salad like yours. What is the salad by your carrot juice? I love salad, we eat it often!

Nazarina A said...

Thanks everyone for paying me a visit!

Jo, if you click on the words just above the picture, it will take you to the ingredients of that salad.

Thanks!

Michele said...

everything looks so beautiful and so healthy! I agree with Dawn...you always have the most amazing presentations. :-)

Hopie said...

My goodness. Each of those is a work of art for the eyes and the palate! I love drooling over the photos. :-)

ICook4Fun said...

You are so creative. With something so simple but you made it into something so BEAUTIFUL! Simply stunning.

The H.I. said...

You're a talented girl. Very imaginative presentations. They all look so tasty.

Bunny said...

I think you pretty much took care of ALL the details WOW!!!

Unknown said...

absolutely jaw-dropping!

ochikeron said...

What a nice presentation!!! You always amaze me!!! Great idea to make a palm tree with bell pepper ;) I never thought of that.

I saw your past post, your hubby building your atelier! How nice!!! I love your life ;)

Fifi Flowers said...

Those are all too pretty to eat! YUM!

Mohamed Suhail said...

looks good ...Thanks for visiting often ..and do keep visiting and commenting :-)

Anonymous said...

What beautiful salads! They look delicious.

Anamika:The Sugarcrafter said...

Hi nazarina
wow..thats the expression that came immediately ! You have stunning pictures and the visual appeal is great. You are very creative in your work. Loved your salad bar.

Anjum said...

wow...i have got my mouth still open...its superb...u r really creative!!!!..love ur blog

Salt N Turmeric said...

oh my! Those look like something fr the Food Network! Bravo Nazarina!

Unknown said...

They're so beautifully elaborate! Love it.

Mansi said...

boy Girl!! are you TALENTED or not!! this is seriously good! and I love the flavor combos you've sued..brilliant!:)

hey, would you mind sending these in to my Vegetarian Thanksgiving recipe event! they will rock the thanksgiving table!:)

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Wow, terrific! Those salads are fabulous! I particularly like the carrot one! Amazing...

Cheers,

Rosa

sj said...

amazing! Those are not only beautiful but delicious looking! Wow!

Darius T. Williams said...

Wow - how good does this look. Sometimes I wouldn't want to eat this - just look at it.

-DTW
www.everydaycookin.blogspot.com

Jean Chia aka Ms.Yummy~licious said...

nazarina, you're such a creative cook! i love your presentation alot. The food looks apetizing anf im sure it's yummy~licious! :)

Cynthia said...

Now this is a salad bar that would turn me into a salad lover :)

Anonymous said...

You are an artist indeed! I love the palm tree!!
I've meme'd you on my blog, check it out...
http://cocoakisses.wordpress.com/2008/11/10/our-first-meme/

Natalie Que said...

Hey! Thanks for your comment and support and I'm sorry I forgot it was YOU who gave me that great award! I put it up today.

Your photography on this post is just gorgeous. So many great ideas! It truly looks like this took hours -even days!

Laurie said...

Darling napkin folding! Your salads look wonderful.. especially the one in the pineapple! :) And did you carve up your carrot palm tree with bell pepper palm leaves yourself! Awesome Job!!

Gloria Chadwick said...

Your salads are so AWESOME! Just amazing. You're one talented lady.

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

That pineapple is gorgeous… and I love the palm tree!

Katherine Roberts Aucoin said...

I am blown away by your creativity and photography. Fantastic job.

Lori Lynn said...

My, you are so talented! I love napkins folds, your idea with the fortune cookie is adorable.

Anna said...

No sé si entenderas mi mensaje, pero he entrado en tu blog y he quedado impresionada por la presentación que le das a tus platos, m ha encantado y te felicito...you always have the most amazing presentations...have no words to describe your art. Besos.

Anonymous said...

Hi Nazarina ..
First time to ur blog ..U got a great and wonderful blog.The presentation is fantastic .Pictures looks amazing .....Go head and keep posting wonderful recipes for us ..
And thanks a lot for dropping lovely comments in my blog :)
love
veena

HangryPants said...

I love these salads. You have a great blog here. I can't wait to read more and catch up!

Thanks for commenting on my blog by the way!

Chandani said...

amazing photos!! first time visiting your blog, all the recipes look so mouthwatering...

Tny said...

All 'em look great and sadap!

ERrrmm.. If they are mine.. I dont' feel like eating at all!!! The decoration is so awesome!!! Sayang!!!

:P

Jaya M said...

naz,
They all look absolutely stunner.
specially the palm tree made with bell pepper and carrots.
You are so talented and creative..
hugs and smiles

a quiet life said...

very fun presentations!

Anonymous said...

Aloha! Just got back from Maui and that carrot tree is amazing! Love it! I blog about healthy eating as well. It is great to find you. I just posted a blog about eating anything and everything on Maui though. Come over and check it out.
Dana Zia
http://danazia.wordpress.com/