By Hannah Powling
Creamy soups, hot casseroles and pies might be starting to take centre place on your dinner tables at this time of year. It might seem hard to keep on track and really fancy tucking into your healthy summer dinners; but it’s a good thing there are lots of yummy Autumn salad recipes to keep you feeling completely satisfied and on top of the game…
Who said salads were just for summer? Here is proof that they can be just as warming and hearty at just about any time of the year. Here are a few you must try out this Autumn.
Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Fresh Figs
Ingredients
4 small sweet potatoes (2 1/4 lb / 1 kg in total)
5 tbsp olive oil
scant 3 tbsp / 40 ml balsamic vinegar (you can use a commercial rather than a premium aged grade)
1 1/2 tbsp / 20 g superfine sugar
12 green onions, halved lengthwise and cut into 1 1/2-in / 4cm segments
1 red chile, thinly sliced
6 ripe figs (8 1/2 oz / 240 g in total), quartered
5 oz / 150 g soft goat’s milk cheese (optional)
Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 475°F / 240°C.
Wash the sweet potatoes, halve them lengthwise, and then cut each half again similarly into 3 long wedges. Mix with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt, and some black pepper. Spread the wedges out, skin side down, on a baking sheet and cook for about 25 minutes, until soft but not mushy. Remove from the oven and leave to cool down.
To make the balsamic reduction, place the balsamic vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat and simmer for 2 to 4 minutes, until it thickens. Be sure to remove the pan from the heat when the vinegar is still runnier than honey; it will continue to thicken as it cools. Stir in a drop of water before serving if it does become too thick to drizzle.
Arrange the sweet potatoes on a serving platter. Heat the remaining oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat and add the green onions and chile. Fry for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring often to make sure not to burn the chile. Spoon the oil, onions, and chile over the sweet potatoes. Dot the figs among the wedges and then drizzle over the balsamic reduction. Serve at room temperature. Crumble the cheese over the top, if using.
Farro Salad With Delicata Squash And Pomegranate
Ingredients
1 delicata squash, cut into 1-inch slices
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup farro, cooked as per package instructions to make 3 cups and cooled
3/4 cup pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle the squash with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 15-20 minutes, until golden brown at the edges.
Combine the cooked farro, squash, pomegranate seeds, parsley, and onion in a large bowl.
In a small bowl, combine the vinagrette ingredients: red wine vinegar, olive oil and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Whisk until combine. Top the farro mixture with the vinaigrette and season to taste.
Grilled kale salad with beets, figs, and Ricotta
Ingredients
4 small golden beets, peeled and cut into wedges
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. maple syrup
one bunch of dinosaur (lacinto) kale (or green kale), bottoms of the stems removed
12 fresh figs, black mission or Turkish brown figs, stemmed and halved
1 generous cup of fresh ricotta
salt and pepper
Method
Preheat your oven to 425F. Toss the beet wedges with 1 Tbs. olive oil and sprinkle them with salt. Spread them in a baking dish and roast, stirring occasionally, until tender, 20-20 minutes.
Whisk together 2 Tbs. olive oil together with the balsamic vinegar and the maple syrup. When the beets come out of the oven, toss them with the dressing.
Heat your grill and coat the kale with the remaining olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt. Spread the leaves out on the grill and cook them, turning each over once, until they have developed crispy edges and charred splotches, several minutes. Transfer the kale to a cutting board, remove the tough center stems if you wish (I don’t bother, but it definitely means more chewing), and chop it coarsely.
Put a spoonful of ricotta on each salad plate, then divide the kale between the plates. Divide the beets between the salads, and drizzle some of the dressing that is leftover from the beets over each of the salads. Finally, divide the figs between the salads, dollop the remaining ricotta over the salads, sprinkle each with salt and pepper, and serve.
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