I grew up eating a lot of raw vegetable salads overdressed with a sugary mayo dressing. The rotation of salads were usually carrot, broccoli, or cabbage all with raisins and sometimes pineapple. I despised these salads as a kid because 1) ew, raw vegetables, 2) mayo and sugar should not be a combo, and 3) they would sit outside during the summer and the mix of warm mayo and pineapple was not appetizing. It wasn’t until college that I discovered that these types of salads did not have to be dressed with sugar and mayo and that different cuisines had their own version of these salads, usually vinegar based with addition of spices like cumin, caraway, or coriander. This recipe uses vinegar and spices blended into a peanut butter and rather than mixing the dressing with the vegetables, the salad lays on top of the peanut butter for guests to mix themselves. Also, this salad is great for summer picnics and can withstand the heat and not spoil. You can easily swap the broccoli for other hearty vegetables and use other nut butters for different flavors. ––Justin Burke 

Spicy Peanut & Broccoli Salad 

Ingredients
1 batch spicy peanut butter
2-3 small heads of broccoli
2 small cucumbers, thinly sliced
1 watermelon radish, thinly sliced
3 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
Salt and black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoon dried cranberries
Cilantro sprigs, for serving
Crushed peanuts, optional 

Directions 

1. Slice broccoli stems from florets and discard. Cut florets into bite-size pieces and place in a medium bowl. Add cucumbers, radish, oil, and vinegar and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Spoon spicy peanut butter onto a platter and arrange salad on top. Top with cranberries, cilantro, and peanuts.

 

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