Happy New Year! Did you miss me? I can’t believe we are in January 2014. Its Crazy! With a new year comes a new start, a new outlook on life and a chance to re-prioritize things. This year I have decided to do a re-do here at Kitchen Belleicious. I started this blog because I love to cook and I wanted to share that love. Over the years I got sucked into the food blogger mold of HAVING to post X amount of times, visiting X amount of other food bloggers, posting X amount of photos and writing detailed accounts of each recipe or else being left with the feeling of being inadequate in my role as “food blogger”. Inspired by a incredibly amazing and close friend of mine Jackie at Marin Mama Cooks, I am tired of it. NOT tired of cooking, not tired of talking and sharing my recipes, not tired of creating amazing dishes but tired of the pressure to fit this food blogger mold. I am not just a food blogger, I am a mom, a wife, a friend and a servant of Christ who wants to do more in life than stress over taking pictures and posting, If you are a daily follower of Kitchen Belleicious- THANK YOU! Thank you for trusting in me and my recipes, thank you for supporting me, thank you for sharing your recipes with me and thank your for your day in and day out visits. Kitchen Belleicious IS NOT ENDING in fact it IS JUST BEGINNING!
I want to inspire and be a light to this world and that is exactly what I am going to do! I am going to be a light in the kitchen, a light in my recipes, a light in my writing, a light in my life. I am going to shine, shine, shine!!!! Regardless of my new found freedom:) one thing for sure is that when you leave this blog each visit you will leave with a 100% certified, honest and true, down right delicious and fully capable recipe for anyone.
NOW LET”S START THIS NEW YEAR OFF RIGHT with something simple and yet light and diet friendly. I like it call it my Loaded Broccoli Salad. By loaded, I mean chocked full of flavor disguised as edamame, roasted pecans, sweet raisins and an out of this world dressing that is ideal for any cold salad of your choice. I always like to point out the star of my dishes and in this case it has to be the butter roasted pecans. I received a butt load of pecans from my sweet belleicious grandmother over Christmas and after a day of cracking I finally got them all ready to be (what I say is the only way to eat a pecan) ROASTED! The pecans are tossed in a rich concoction of butter, Worcestershire sauce, cracked pepper and sea salt and roasted til toasted and golden. Oh my mouth waters just thinking of it. The perfect flavor of the roasted pecans alongside the fresh broccoli and out of this world tangy dressing make the most delicious salad. If you don’t believe me try it! If you do believe me try it! If you don’t even like broccoli- still try it! It is the best thing in the world!
The dressing was inspired by Jamie Deen’s own broccoli salad he shared on his show a few months back but with a few inserts from yours truly. Take my peach white balsamic. Jamie used Red Wine Vinegar but I like the subtle peach flavor against the mustard and oil. The oil I used is pecan oil, a delicately blended oil with the sweet aroma of pecans, and then I added in a pinch of salt, pepper and my little helper Dill! I love Dill! It is my helper because it brings such a unique flavor to certain dishes and always takes them to the next level. If you are a dill hater 🙂 then by all means swap it out with parsley or basil and if you don’t have pecan oil or peach white balsamic then using regular EVOO and red wine vinegar will still do the trick:)
- 1 pound broccoli crowns, cut into florets
- 1 quart of cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup of pecans
- ½ cup raisins
- 8 ounces of steamed edamame ( I just use the steamable bag)
- Dressing:
- 3 tsp Saucy Mama Tarragon and Lemon Mustard
- ¼ cup EVOO
- ⅛ cup pecan oil ( or you can use EVOO)
- 2 tsp peach white balsamic or apple cider vinegar
- pinch of salt and pepper (about ½ tsp)
- 2 tsp dill (start with 2 tsp taste and see if you want to add another at the most. Some people aren't as keen to dill as others)
- For the Pecans:
- 6 TBSP butter, melted
- 3 tsp Panola All Purpose Marinade or Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tsp pepper and salt each
- For the Pecans: mix together the all the ingredients then toss with the pecans. Place pecans on a roasting pan and bake in the oven at 300 for 30 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool. Once cool, roughly chop the pecans.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and quickly add the broccoli in batches and boil until bright green, 1 to 2 minutes. Add to a colander in the sink and run with cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and place in a large bowl.
- Combine the pecans with the broccoli, tomatoes, raisins and steamed edamame. Whisk together your dressing ingredients and toss with the salad. Keep at room temperature until time to eat!
I honestly don’t think I have used dill before in my cooking. This salad looks really good though:)
So happy to see you posting and these pictures are amazing. I love a good broccoli salad.
Thanks Val! Love ya
I love broccoli and have a ton of pecans on hand!
This looks so fantastic! I definitely want to eat healthier and this looks like a great way to start! I hope you are doing well my friend. This year I have chosen to be a food blogger who does it only when she feels like it and not out of any pressure or guilt. It has been a blessing and now I am back to loving the cooking and writing albeit, it can be sporadic.
We need to eat more broccoli and you’ve talked me into it by including my favorite nuts – pecans.
Sam
I can never get enough of fresh salads! This is a gorgeous one packed with freshness and flavours.
Such a beautiful salad! I love broccoli! I would eat a plate of this salad as my main, love all the ingredients in it!
Happy New Year and wish you a wonderful 2014!
Happy New Year! Yes, you were missed! I completely understand your wanting to break away from that “food blogger mold.” It is very pressure-filled, and runs counter to what you want your blog to be about. You just gotta do the best you can–that’s how I am approaching it.
Now, this broccoli salad is indeed loaded with healthful, delicious things—the kind of dish that I Need to make a meal out of, post-holiday indulgences.
Thanks for your support and feedback Nancy! i always admire who you are and the recipes you create on your blog. I am glad to know others have felt the same way at times! Lets just stick to doing whatever makes us happy and for us its cooking!
Toasting pecans do indeed take them to the next level, nicely done! Happy new year to you too Jessica, all the best for 2014.
Hi Jessica,
Wishing you a very Happy New Year! The broccoli salad looks amazing! I have a ton of broccoli at home. Need to whip this up.
Oh my goodness this salad looks amazing! I love balsamic vinegar but have never had peach. Where did you find it? I am really excited to try this recipe. I just made a salad that called for pecans and a Pomegranate vinaigrette and it was delicious so now I am wanting to make this asap! Good for you for starting a new beginning! I was feeling bad for not posting all that often also but our lives are quite busy especially from our business and that’s a good thing. I enjoy blogging but I am not going to feel bad about how many posts I write. Being a good wife and mother requires a lot of enjoyable time and work so I admire you for this stand. I pray that the Lord bless you in all that you endeavor to do this coming year!!
Happy New Year! Glad to start a new year with something fresh and healthy! I know how you feel to balance life between blogging and family. Just feel good with what you’re doing is good enough and I’m glad that I found you from this blogging community! Cheers!
Gorgeous, healthy and delicious salad!!! Blogging has overtaken my life, too, and I need to follow your lead! I’m trying to cut back a bit…but I still have guilt when I don’t get back to all who comment on my blog. I know I need to let it go, but it’s not easy!!
Oh , salad… great! should eat healthy this year…. this looks great….
It is so easy to get caught up in comparing yourself with others, but girl you are AWESOME the way you are!! And I always love coming here and seeing what you’re cooking. This salad is a beauty. I feel like it could totally get non veggie lovers to eat broccoli!!
I like this recipe and your new look.
Best,
Bonnie
Yes to doing what you want to do! For the record this salad looks duh-licious!! Can’t wait to see what else 2014 will bring for you 🙂
Happy New Year!! This is a perfect salad – after a few weeks of over-indulgence from the holidays! Thanks for sharing a great recipe and I love the addition of toasted pecans in there!
Thanks girls! Hope ya ll had a great christmas!
SHOOT!!! This was the year I PROMISED to start making things with more than 4 ingredients. BUT! I capped it at 6 ingred, so I’m out 😉
~Sara
I was thinking you are already pretty shinny! I am with you – I adore blogging but worry too much 🙁 I’m here to stay – thanks for blogging when you can! I love your posts, your inspiration and your stories. Lovely!
What a fantastic salad! Happy New Year to you and your family 🙂
I find roasting any nuts always improves their flavor, this is a fabulous salad!
Your broccoli salad looks great, I love broccoli salad! I bookmarked your page so that I can come back and make this salad. We eat a lot of broccoli and I am always hunting for new recipes. I enjoyed browsing your site, great recipes and wonderful pictures!
I hope you will visit my site sometime, if you like cheesecake you might like the recipe I just posted.
Michael 😉
thanks michael and yes of course I love cheesecake will definitely have to visit!
I am glad to see you back
Thanks so much RUTH!
Hi There, This is a terrific post! The salad is looking so perfect and healthy. It’s always wonderful to see your each and every post. Hope to see more of your creative endeavors ! Bookmarked this one :))
Wish you and your family a very Happy and Blessed New Year!!!
Love & Regards, Sonia !!!
Oh girl! I have so much to say to you! First off, thank you for your amazingly sweet and uplifting email. No, you did not scare me away. I love your enthusiasm and your willingness to help and listen. My life has been full of changes and some big and scary girl, but I have faith and knowing that I’m doing the best thing for myself as well as my family, and that the universe and God is right there beside me showing me the path I need to take.
With all that being said, I’m so proud of you for listening to your heart regarding the blog. Nobody puts pressure on us to blog and post, but ourselves. We put the pressure to keep up and take amazing photographs and create these amazing recipes, but our readers and public don’t put any pressure on us. When I realized that my readers didn’t care how often I posted, it gave me such a sense of relief and love that it gave me a whole new look at my life as a blogger. We started these blogs to share and that’s what we do each time we post a recipe, we share our love of food as well as health. We do it becuase that’s just who we are and we’re not looking for anything in return.
Enjoy your family, kids, church and life girl and post when you can. I will stop by and say hi when I can as well. I’m starting my new full-time job today and I have to say that I’m a bit nervous, but exhilarated at the same time. Life is an adventure and I feel like I’m on a new chapter and I can’t wait to see what awaits me next! I love you and love that I found such a great friend in this world of blogging! Have a wonderful week sister! 🙂 xoxo, Jackie
What a great way to start off 2014, with a fresh attitude and a renewed enthusiasm! You already do shine, but I have no doubt that it will be even brighter this year.