Saturday, 24 March 2012

Cheese and wine crunchy salad

We didn't have a lot of interesting cooking last week.  Not one new dish.  Last night found me feeling exhausted by the week but I just don't where my energy went, aside from the usual child-wrangling, work politics and trying to keep the house in some sort of order.  Last Sunday night we had leftover pizza so I made a cheese salad to go with it.  I made the salad the week before and loved it but was too lazy to photograph it.  This time I got out my camera and was pleased that it was every bit as good.

The salad suits my current mood.  It is easy to throw together quickly.  It is perfect for when a bike ride around the block (Sylvia on the bike not me) turns into a visit to the neighbours and then a trip to the park, stopping along the way home to watch a cat, a lawn mower, a stick insect and a cheeky gomnie.

The cheese gives all the vegetables some extra flavour and omits the need for an oil based dressing.  Any vegies can be used.  I had some chopped green beans in the first version which worked very well.  Despite the cheese, the salad made the pizza seem more healthy.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Shanghai Noodle House - dumplings on the run
This time two years ago: Sydney - a gaytime and some lessons
This time four years ago: St Patrick, Soup and a Shamrock

Cheese and Wine Crunchy Salad
serves 2-3

50g cheese, grated
1 carrot, grated
1/2 tomato, diced
handful spinach, thinly sliced
half tin of corn, rinsed and drained
1 spring onion, finely sliced
1/2 green capsicum, diced
1 tsp seeded mustard
2-3 tsp red wine vinegar

Mix all ingredients together.  Taste and add seasoning if required or add a little more vinegar if it is too bland.  This salad needs the acid of the vinegar to complement the creamy cheese.

On the stereo:
Halloween: Wade Denning and Kay Lande
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12 comments:

  1. Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella24 March 2012 at 18:15

    Isn't it funny how our blogs reflect the current moods that we are in! This looks colourful and delicious Johanna! :D

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    1. Johanna GGG26 March 2012 at 20:54

      Thanks Lorraine - yes, mood affects so many things - what I eat, what music I listen to, what I post on my blog - powerful stuff

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  2. Kari24 March 2012 at 19:14

    Believe me, it doesn't take an abnormal week for there to be no new meals in this household! It happens more often than I would like in fact. I like the ingredient pairing here and love the title, even though the cheese aspect would no doubt be omitted from mine.

    Now, one important question for you though: What is a cheeky gomnie?!

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    1. Johanna GGG26 March 2012 at 21:01

      Thanks Kari - I usually try to make at least one new thing a week - got halfway through one this week and the recipe went into comfort food mode rather than looking like the recipe - ie I got as far as roasting the veg and ate them! Now a cheeky gomnie - see if you can find two gomnies in the photos in this post - http://gggiraffe.blogspot.com/2008/04/nut-roast-in-history.html

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  3. Katie24 March 2012 at 23:24

    Sounds like a lovely salad. I like the idea of the grated cheese instead of an oily dressing. I love the crunch of fresh veg like this in salads, makes it seem more satisfying. You always have such lovely meals.

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    1. Johanna GGG26 March 2012 at 21:02

      Thanks Katie - it was a very satisfying meal - wish I had the energy and veg in the fridge for this more often

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  4. Hannah25 March 2012 at 13:59

    I've been on a serious cheese kick this past week, after not having had much of it for months. My current obsession is blue cheese, but I definitely wouldn't turn this down! Hope you get some good sleep and this week treats you better :)

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    1. Johanna GGG26 March 2012 at 21:02

      Thanks Hannah - I would be interested to try this salad with blue cheese - I am not much of a blue cheese fan but suspect it might work with the vinegar

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  5. Cakelaw26 March 2012 at 17:18

    I know exactly what yoy mean by feeling too exhausted to fuss over meals. I have the luxury of not having to please anyone but me, so if I want baked beans on toast, I can have it.

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    1. Johanna GGG26 March 2012 at 21:04

      Thanks Cakelaw - beans on toast does happen occasionally here and also pasta with bottled tomato sauce which was dinner on Friday night - but it is so much easier to have exactly what you like when you cook for yourself

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  6. eatme_delicious29 March 2012 at 06:30

    Oo I would love a bowl of this to go with my soup right now. I used to always pick new recipes to make every week but I've started to re-make things and it's decreased my stress level! I just make 1 or 2 new things a week now.

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  7. Ricki31 March 2012 at 10:51

    Your week last week (or is it 2 weeks ago now??) sounds like all my weeks! (minus the child wrangling, of course). I never seem to know where the time goes--I mean, how is it almost Saturday ALREADY?? Oh, well, always nice to have a good salad when things are otherwise chaotic, right? :)

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