I was at the market the other day, when I came across some very pretty looking lettuce, which I had never seen before. I am not very fond of salads (though I like the Indian versions like kosmalli/ koshimbir, raithas/ pachadi) and lettuce is probably my least favourite part of salads. Yet this particular lettuce was so attractive that I bought some, even though a little voice in my head kept telling me that I really shouldn’t spend good money on something we don’t like.
After coming home, I tried to figure out just what sort of lettuce I had bought. It looks like my lettuce goes by the name of “Lollo Rosso”, and it features in this salad recipe. Does anyone know much about this lettuce and what else I could do with it other than use it in salad? I would appreciate any suggestion or more information.
My lettuce looks like some exotic coral and has ruffled light green leaves with a deep reddish brown colour towards the edge of the leaves.
Some days back, a friend who just discovered my blog and seems to be following it, asked if I could post something which was a bit sweet, had some nuts, was healthy and low on calories. I promised her I would think of something during the weekend, so M (I’m not sure she would want to see her name on the net), this salad is for you.
I had to use up the lettuce, and just made this salad by adding ingredients that I had on hand. I kept adding a bit of this and that, and so I have listed only approximate quantities. Do increase or decrease them according to your preference.
Grilled Bell Pepper / Capsicum Salad (GF)
Ingredients
- 1 green bell pepper capsicum /
- 1 bell pepper yellow
- 1 red bell pepper
- 10 cherry tomatoes about , halved
- lettuce some lollo rosso
- handful spring onion chopped whites
- handful walnuts toasted , broken
- handful golden raisins
- a few mint leaves of
- paneer some low fat , crumbled
For the dressing :
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 to 3 basil leaves , chopped
- to taste salt black pepper and crushed
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl (or a stoppered bottle) and whisk (or shake well a couple of times) and refrigerate till required.
- Brush the bell peppers/ capsicum with the oil and grill them, till the surface starts blistering or light brown spots appear. Turn them a couple of times while grilling so they're uniformly cooked. Allow to cool, cut the peppers and remove the stalks and seeds. Dice the peppers.
- Line your salad bowl with the lettuce. If you are not a lettuce lover, like us, you may prefer to tear the lettuce into smaller pieces or replace the lettuce with shredded cabbage. Of course, if you dislike cabbage then lettuce might be preferable. Lollo rosso lettuce has a faintly bitter taste (though it is not very noticeable in this salad), so you might want to use some other kind like iceberg lettuce.
- Put the peppers and other ingredients, except the paneer, into the salad bowl.
- Just before serving, whisk (or shake) the dressing a couple of times and add to the salad. Toss well so the dressing is well incorporated. Crumble the paneer and sprinkle it over the top. Mix a couple of times and serve.
I'm Aparna and My Diverse Kitchen is my ovo-lacto vegetarian food blog where you'll find recipes, food stories & photography. I've been blogging since 2007 and believe the kitchen, and the dining table (by extension) is really the heart of a home. 
Wow, that lettuce indeed looks very colorful and attractive. No wonder you could not stop yourself from buying it.The salad looks colorful too. Looks like a bowl of that salad can make a meal by itself (for salad lovers!!)
Healthy Salad. I am also not a fan of lettuces. But my son likes those salads.
Love the salad Aparna,i love the combo of grilled bell pepper and lettuce,though I have tried only iceberg lettuce.This lollo rosso is new to me -it looks like curly Kale from the look of it.I wish I could get to know the taste
I must add kale is completely green though
salad looks really nice and colorful!!!
Nothing satisfies you like eating a good salad, specially when we are on vacation and been eating junk!! Salad looks excellent Aparna, enjoy. Have a great weekend, me got to cook for Shiva Ratri! :))
I don’t like lollo rosso either because it’s bitter but I sometimes end up buying it because it’s so good looking.What I do is pair it with another non-bitter lettuce. And my favorite combination so far is lollo rosso/gorgonzola cheese/pears/cranberries/walnuts. The other ingredients blend so well with the flavors that you will totally love it
Your salad is fresh and healthy and is a visual treat too!
Wow colorful salad.. Nothing like a good and healthy salad..
Lovely one Dear Aparna, I was really craving for it. Nice dressing.
This salad over some warm wild rice would be simply heavenly!
Aprna looks healthy and yummy.
I never loved lettuce myself until I tasted it with a honey dressing…love your choice of dressing for the citrusy flavour…
Feed me salad anything I will be ready to eat with pleasure! That is full of godness Aparna!
i simply love salads and grilled bell peppers. putting them together…..perfect. loved the salad
To me it looks quite like lollo rosso. The best thing you could do to it is to eat it in a salad and yours looks wonderful. with grilled bell peppers, yum yum!I like to munch on lollo rosso by dipping it in a good dressing with a teaspoon of hot dijon mustard, a is not sweet like the american one and has a sharpness/hotness which gives the salad a good pep. Lollo rosso, is usually eaten only as a salad. I don’t knowwhat nutritional value it will have aftercooking or if it will taste good. And i know that lettuce is high in nitrates in general another reason not to cook them, but then spinach is also high in nitrates why it should not be re-cooked.
Hi Aparna,Wrote you a long time ago to confirm that you are OK to host T&T in April??? please get back to me ASAP.
What a beautiful salad! Very colorful.
These lettuce surely taste very good in salads.Your looks so colorful,very healthy:)
That is an awesoem salad, just my type, for i like little bites of sweet in it.. today I made a very similar salad but added barley & sweetened cranberries in place of raisin… I have no idea what else u could use the lettuce in. those are pretty!
Thanks, Asha.I saw that you had a wonderful Sivarathri.Lakshmi, A kid who likes salads. That’s really something and you’re lucky.:)Thanks Simran, that’s an idea.I think munching on any lettuce is close to impossible for me, PG. :DSent you a reply, Zu.That sounds good too, Soma, though we don’t get cranberries here.