A whole lotta ensalada

As the weather heats up (I think Austin saw an afternoon in the nineties last week), I crave lighter meals. I don't know if I am alone in this, but it is really convenient. I pig out heavy meals up until the thermostat tops 75 degrees and swimsuit weather is lurking around the corner. My concern for a swimsuit bod' isn't what drives the change in my taste, I just want to cool off with a nice salad or light soup in the evenings instead of filling up on warm gooey deliciousness! This change in my apatite has encouraged me to try a few new salad recipes to get ready for the real scorchers that are a soon approaching inevitability. Here are a few of the meals I had last week!

"Jicama-Watercress-Avacado Salad with Spicy Citrus Vinaigrette"

From: Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

I made this salad with spinach instead of watercress the first go round. Watercress looks like it goes bad pretty fast, so you have to time it just right to find a nice looking bunch at the grocery store. I did make it with the watercress this week and it was delicious! This is officially Parker's favorite salad. Imagine Pad Thai but healthy and refreshing.

"Ginger Sesame Pasta Salad"

From: Get it Ripe by Jae Steele

I added marinaded grilled tofu to the salad to make it a little more filling. We really liked the snow peas! I tried gluten free noodles for the fist time with this salad... I won't be trying them again.

"Beet and Green Bean Toss"

From: Get it Ripe by Jae Steele

This recipe was yummy and quick. There isn't too much chopping involved. The only annoying part was peeling the beets. I used up the rest of the beets from our winter garden, so they were very dainty little roots. It wouldn't have been such a chore if they were normal sized though. I served this salad over quinoa with a side of blanched greens. For the dressing, I used the "Simplest Salad Dressing" from the same cookbook. It is like it sounds, simple. Lemon, oil, and garlic are the main ingredients and it tasted great on this salad!

"Corn and Edamame-Sesame Salad"

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"Butternut Squash Rolls"

From: Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

I had never made spring rolls until I made these "Butternut Squash Rolls"! They were yummy and really fun to make. I felt crafty while I was cooking! They tasted great too! I think I may be getting the wrong kind of sesame oil. The dressing on the edamame salad was really heavy and definitely not refreshing. It didn't do the poor little edamames justice. I should have known that I wouldn't like a dressing with sesame oil as a main ingredient, but at least now I know for sure.