In the depths of winter, I find it hard to warm up to tender, leafy, summery salads. In fall and winter, I find myself craving a heartier crisp and crunch to my salads, and more robust flavors. This classic combination of crispy apples, crunchy cabbage, and toasted walnuts satisfies completely every time.
I especially find myself reaching for this recipe after the holiday season of rich foods. The bright, tangy flavors reawaken my palate after a steady diet of Christmas cookies and egg nog! Also, apples, cabbage, and walnuts are foods that naturally support liver function, which means you can skip the shady detox teas and detox supplements and just eat this tasty salad instead.
This salad typically tastes best the day you prepare it, but there are some ways you can jump start your prep ahead of time.
JUMP START:
- toast the walnuts
- make the Maple Tahini Dressing (Even better – offload this task to someone else if possible. Conscript your kids, your spouse or significant other, roomate, whatever.)
If you’re going to spend time making this recipe, you might as well leverage your efforts and make a little bit extra of some of the ingredients to repurpose in other meals during the week. I like to call these my “Now & Laters” – I’m prepping some for now, and some for later use in other meals, with hardly any extra effort.
NOW & LATER:
- In addition to the chopped apples for this salad, slice up an extra apple or two, and store in the fridge for snacks during the week. A little squeeze of fresh lemon will keep them from browning.
- Good news: the dressing recipe included below yields plenty extra, which means you can store it in the fridge and enjoy it all week long. It’s delicious over roasted chicken or roasted squash, as a salad dressing, or even as a dip for veggies.
- Toast extra walnuts, and store in the fridge for adding a little sprinkle of tasty, crunchy healthy fats to your plate now and then. They’re great on your morning oats or Greek yogurt, or sprinkled on a salad or a bowl meal.
- Slice/shred the remaining half head of cabbage, and repurpose it into a stir fry or a classic slaw the next day or two.
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as a side
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- 1 large or 2 medium crisp apple, chopped
- 1/2 medium - large head green cabbage, shredded or thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons toasted chopped walnuts
- 4-6 small scallions, chopped
- 2 or so tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- juice of half lemon
- 2-3 tablespoons water (thin to your preference)
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 cup tahini
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
Ingredients
Slaw:
Dressing:
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- Combine slaw ingredients in a large bowl.
- Combine dressing ingredients in a medium jar or bowl, and whisk to combine.
- Add Maple Tahini Dressing to the salad, and toss gently to combine. (I used about half of the dressing amount on the salad.)