Market District Recipes: 3 Delicious Salads

After all that turkey, you may want to change it up a bit. Market District Chef Ben D'Amico stopped by PTL to show off three delicious salad recipes!

Winter Spinach Salad
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Serves: 4-6 Prep Time: 20 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Baby Spinach
• ¾ cup Roasted Balsamic Onions, chilled (recipe below)
• 1 ½ cups Roasted Wild Mushrooms, chilled (recipe below)
• 8 oz Crumbled Goat Cheese
• ½ cup POM Arils
• ½ cup Pecans, pieces, toasted
• 1 cup Blackberries (optional)
• ½ cup Pomegranate Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl toss the spinach with the pomegranate vinaigrette.
2. Place the spinach on individual plates of a large "family style" plate.
3. Evenly place the roasted mushrooms and balsamic onions over top and around the spinach.
4. Garnish with a sprinkle of crumbled goat cheese, pomegranate arils, pecans, and blackberries on each salad.

Pomegranate Vinaigrette
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: 2 cups Prep Time: 5 min.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup POM Wonderful Pomegranate Juice
• ½ cup Red Wine or Raspberry Vinegar
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1 cup Canola Oil or Vegetable Oil
• 1 tbsp Sugar
• 1 tbsp Shallot, minced
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ½ tsp Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients except the oil in a medium mixing bowl.
2. Slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking to create a temporary emulsion.

Roasted Balsamic Red Onions
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: 1 cup Prep Time: 5 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 large Red Onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp Market District Balsamic Drizzle
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ½ tsp Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Toss the onions in the balsamic drizzle, olive oil, salt & pepper.
3. Place the onions onto a foil lined baking tray and roast for 15-20 minutes.

Roasted Wild Mushrooms
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: 1 ¼ lb Prep Time: 10 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz Oyster Mushrooms, trimmed into small bunches
• 8 oz Maitake Mushrooms, trimmed into small bunches
• 8 oz Shitake Mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
• 8 oz Crimini Mushrooms, halved
• 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Fresh Thyme, minced
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ½ tsp Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Rinse and dry all the mushrooms before roasting.
3. Place the mushrooms in a medium mixing bowl, drizzle with oil, and toss with thyme, salt, and pepper.
4. Place the mushrooms onto a foil lined baking tray.
5. Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until brown and slightly crisp. (halfway through the roasting process its generally good to mix the mushrooms with a utensil for they more evenly roast)

Roasted Sweet Potato, Kale, & Asparagus Salad with Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Serves: 4-6 Prep Time: 20 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Baby Kale
• ¾ lb Roasted Sweet Potatoes (recipe below)
• 12 oz Roasted Asparagus (recipe below)
• 8 oz Cranberry Stilton, crumbled
• 3 tbsp Dried Cranberries
• 2 tbsp Toasted Almonds
• 18 pieces Croutons
• ½ cup Honey Dijon Vinaigrette

Directions:

1. In a large bowl toss the baby kale, sweet potatoes, and asparagus with the white balsamic vinaigrette.
2. Place the salad on individual plates of a large "family style" plate,
3. Garnish each of the plates with crumbled cranberry stilton, dried cranberries, toasted almonds, and a few croutons.

White Balsamic Vinaigrette
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: 1 cup Prep Time: 5 min.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• ½ cup White Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Honey
• ½ tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 1/8 tsp Kosher Salt
• 1/8 tsp Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl, except the olive oil. Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mixture while whisking to create an emulsion.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes (or Asparagus)
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: ½ cup Prep Time: 10 min. Cook Time: 20 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Sweet Potatoes, peeled, ½ inch dice
• (1 lb Asparagus, bottom trimmed, and sliced into1 inch pieces)
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ¼ tsp Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Toss the potatoes with the oil, salt & pepper.
3. Place the potatoes onto a foil-lined baking tray and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.

Italian "BLT" Salad
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Serves: 4-6 Prep Time: 20 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Baby Arugula
• 2 lbs Roasted Tomatoes (recipe below)
• 1 large Shallot, thinly shaved
• 12 oz Roasted Black Olives (recipe below)
• 8 oz Danish Blue Cheese, crumbled
• 8 oz Crispy Prosciutto
• 8 oz Beech or Enoki Mushrooms (optional)
• 2 tbsp Toasted Pine Nuts
• 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 tbsp Cucumber Infused Vinegar (or red wine vinegar)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl toss the arugula with a drizzle of olive oil and a good flavored vinegar.
2. Place the arugula on individual plates of a large "family style" plate.
3. Evenly place the roasted tomatoes around the salads, then top with the shaved shallots, crumbled Danish blue cheese and crispy prosciutto.
4. Garnish each of the plates with a few roasted olives, toasted pine nuts, and a few mushroom pieces if desired.

Crispy Prosciutto
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: ½ cup Prep Time: 2 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz Prosciutto, shaved

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Place the prosciutto onto a foil-lined baking tray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until crisp.
3. Once out of the oven place onto a paper towel to soak up the excess fat.
4. Crumble by hand into medium sized pieces.

Roasted Black Olives
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yields: 1 cup Prep Time: 2 min. Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 can Medium or Large Black Olives
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ½ tsp Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Drain the olive then toss the olives in olive oil, salt & pepper.
3. Place the olives onto a foil lined baking tray and roast for 10-15 minutes.
4. Olive will be slightly shrunken and wrinkled.

Roasted Tomatoes
Compliments of Market District Chef Benjamin D'Amico

Yield: 1 ½ lbs Prep Time: 10 min. Cooking Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs Plum, Roma, Grape or Campari Tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
• ¼ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• ½ tbsp Kosher Salt
• 2 tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Place the sliced tomatoes, flat side up, on a parchment or foil-lined baking sheet.
3. Drizzle each of the tomatoes lightly with olive oil.
4. Then sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic powder over each of the tomatoes.
5. Roast the tomatoes in a 350F for 30 minutes. Tomatoes will be significantly shrunken and slightly charred.
6. Allow to cool at room temperature before storing in an airtight container.