Chopped Salad for Toddlers food recipe

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Chopped Salad for Toddlers

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Chopped Salad for toddlers is loaded with a garden’s worth of vegetables—bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, greens—and dressed with a bright lemon-oregano vinaigrette. This salad is a easy to make hearty meal-in-a-bowl. The addition of chickpeas gives it protein and fibre for more energy throughout the day, and a big dose of folate, a water-soluble B vitamin that helps build and maintain new cells.

Ingredients: Chopped Salad for Toddlers

Lemon-Oregano Vinaigrette
Grated zest of 3 lemons
Juice of 4 lemons
1⁄3 cup (1 oz/30 g) dried oregano
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 heaping tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp kosher salt
1⁄2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1⁄2 cup (4 fl oz/125 ml) olive oil
4 cups (4 oz/125 g) loosely packed baby arugula
6 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
1 English cucumber, seeded and diced
1 red onion, diced
1⁄2 lb (250 g) fresh mozzarella cheese, diced

How to Make the vinaigrette:

combine the lemon zest and juice, oregano, mustard, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a jar, cover tightly, and shake vigorously until emulsified.
Alternatively, whisk together all of the ingredients in a bowl until emulsified.
Taste and adjust the seasoning.
Set aside. (The dressing can be made up to 1 week in advance and stored in a tightly covered jar in the refrigerator.)

How to Make the Salad:

Place the arugula in a large serving bowl.
In a second large bowl, combine the tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumber, onion, and mozzarella and toss gently to mix.
Pour about 3⁄4 cup (6 fl oz/180 ml) of the vinaigrette over the vegetable mixture and toss gently again to coat thoroughly.
Taste and add a little more vinaigrette, if needed.
Add the vegetable mixture to the serving bowl with the arugula, toss gently to combine,
serve.