Cooking, as my regular readers have probably gathered, is one of my favorite pastimes. Experimenting in my kitchen to — potentially — create a delicious meal is one of the most simple and satisfying endeavors of my day. But of course, life can be pretty busy and sometimes I can only spare a minute to whip up a nice lunch or dinner.
So, for the occasions when I don’t have time to cook for myself, I keep a steady supply of Kashi frozen dinners on reserve and consequently have come to adore their signature 7 Whole Grain Pilaf. Imagine my delight then when I found that Kashi sells the pilaf on its own! This development immediately got the wheels turning in my brain about how I could spice up their original blend.
One answer came to me during the weekend, and the results were good enough that I thought them worth sharing.
Warm weather always makes me crave light, fresh food, and our recent lovely days were no exception. That, combined with an impending busy week during which time will be tight, led me to the idea of a light, spring/summer salad featuring my favorite seven whole grains. The great thing about this sort of salad is that during the weekend, when you have a little extra time, you can make up a large quantity of pasta salad — or pilaf salad in my case — and munch on it all week long. Make a few different salads for variety, and you’re good to go for a hectic week when you don’t want something heavy weighing you down.
The really nice thing about this pilaf is that its nutty, slightly malty flavor goes well with just about anything. Whether you’re in the mood for spicy, sweet or savory, the seven grains will complement it beautifully. Furthermore, the folks at Kashi had the presence of mind to package the pilaf pre-cooked. This saves a lot of time that would otherwise be spent trying to get the whole grains cooked through. For me, throwing together a salad was relatively quick and painless. For executing a nice warm-weather salad, a few different flavor combinations intrigued me, but a strong craving for cilantro inspired the following recipe:
Ingredients:
1 Package Kashi original 7 Whole Grain Pilaf, prepared as directed
1 tbsp minced cilantro
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large clove garlic, pressed through a garlic press or finely minced
The juice from 1/4 of a large lime
Freshly ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste
A few shakes of hot sauce for some kick (I recommend original Cholula)
3/4 Red Bell pepper, chopped
1 Roma tomato, cleaned of seeds and chopped
1 tbsp minced red onion
1/2 can black beans, drained and rinsed
Avocado*
*Some care is necessary to achieve the best results for the avocado. Picking the right avocado is an important first step. Hass avocados are what you find most often at the grocery store. You want to look for one with black and firm skin but gives slightly to a gentle squeeze of the hand. I personally abhor overripe fruit and thus would err on the side of one that is too firm than one that is too soft. Avocados do not keep especially well after they’re exposed to air and/or acidic ingredients like the limes used in this recipe. The avocado will begin to discolor and break down, diminishing its ability to provide a firm and cool, yet creamy contrast to the other ingredients. I therefore recommend cutting up the avocado as needed as a garnish to be tossed with the salad right before it’s eaten.
This salad is simple to prepare — just prep and add the ingredients in the order they are listed, toss them together and you’re good to go. As is typical of my cooking, all the above proportions are subject to variation as desired. If you’re in a spicy mood, more hot sauce or some chili powder can always be added to taste. The flavors will typically mature by sitting for a while after they’re all mixed together, so keep that in mind if you’re spicing it up.
As always, I encourage you to experiment, and most importantly, enjoy!
Sarah’s column runs biweekly Wednesdays. She can be reached at s.brummett@cavalierdaily.com.
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