Pear and Spinach Salad with Balsamic Maple Vinaigrette

I have been trying to eat more salads. I find it can be a challenge. Not because I don't like salads. I do. I love salads. I could eat multiple salads every day....if someone else made them for me. They take a lot of time. All the washing, preparing, chopping, slicing and mixing. I often take the time to do those things at dinnertime, but at lunchtime I'd be lucky to pop a baby carrot in my mouth as I hurriedly dished food out to the children.

Several weeks back I met my husband for lunch at a local restaurant. I ordered a salad with my lunch (because someone else was making it) and was delighted at how simple but delicious it was: spinach, green apples, dried cherries and feta with a light vinaigrette. It was divine. I wanted to try the same thing at home but found two hurdles in my way: I can never justify spending $$ at the grocery store on sugar-free dried cherries (have you ever checked the price?!?) and I am supposed to avoid dairy. I don't always avoid dairy and I'm fine with it in small doses, but for something as daily as I was hoping to make a salad, I couldn't justify feta. I knew that if I was going to throw together a salad at lunch it would have to be quick and easy with ingredients I always have on hand: organic baby spinach from Costco, pears, pecans and raisins. I also knew the dressing would need to be quick to whip up. It is! Three main ingredients and I'm ready to toss!

So here it is. My daily salad. I plop my big bowl down next to my 2-year-old and give her a big fork ("just like Mommy's") and we nibble away. She gets more raisins than anything, but the occasional spinach leaf makes it to her mouth and I shout a silent victory.

Organic baby spinach
1/2 D'Anjou pear, cut
handful of pecans
handful of raisins

For the dressing, mix equal parts balsamic vinegar (I like Trader Joe's brand), olive oil and maple syrup. Add salt and pepper to taste and mix. That's it! My amounts are usually 1/4 cup each vinegar, oil & syrup with about 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt (also from Trader Joe's). I don't usually measure my pepper, but I always use freshly cracked and I don't skimp.

Toss the spinach with a light drizzle of dressing and mix to coat all the leaves. Top with the remaining ingredients and you're good to go!

There are so many possibilities with this salad. Cranberries, pine nuts, chicken, fresh strawberries, candied pecans...oh, the possibilities! Bon Appetit!

Oatmeal Buttermilk and Banana Pancakes

We woke up to a delightful world-of-white surprise this morning. We don't get much snow here in the Pacific Northwest so when we do, everything shuts down. We went to bed expecting rain, rain, rain and woke up to the phone ringing at 5:50 a.m. with the district telling us school would be two hours late. Three hours later they called again telling us school would be closed for the day. The shouts and cheers that followed could be heard all throughout our canyon!

A happy, special morning calls for a happy, special breakfast. We debated what to call these. Ethan thought they should be called "The World's Best Pancakes". Evan opted for "Heart Pancakes" and Alainna thought "B.O.B. Pancakes" would be appropriate (Buttermilk Oatmeal Banana). Clara thought we should call them waffles. Whatever you decide to call them in your house, I hope you enjoy them as much as we did! This makes a nice large batch, with plenty of leftovers to store in the fridge or freezer for a hurried morning or quick snack before bed.

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup melted butter
2 mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
2 cups flour (I used spelt & millet)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoons baking powder

Soak oats in buttermilk for at least 30 minutes (you can soak them overnight if you like). Add honey, butter, mashed bananas, vanilla extract and eggs. Mix well.

In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Add wet ingredients and mix well.

Bake on skillet set to 350 until edges are bubbling and start to cook. Flip and cook until done.

Enjoy!

If you like the heart shapes, I have heart pancake molds. They make a fun shape and I love the thickness it gives the bananas. My mother-in-law gave me one of them and I think I found the other two at Ross. I'd imagine you could find them online or at a specialty kitchen shop.

Happy March 1st!