The Studio Mama's Orange and Mizuna Salad With Melon Gazpacho Dressing

November 10, 2023

Rebecca Wood, aka the Studio Mama, cooks with the seasons, sourcing her ingredients from Nashville Grown and S.E. Daugherty & Sons Farm. Her food isn’t precious, canned and clichéd but relevant, fresh and good. She published a cookbook last year, The Studio Mama Cookbook: A Collection of Cherished Southern Recipes, Real-Life Stories and Star-Studded Menus From the Music City. It’s full of studio anecdotes and delicious, sometimes comical recipes, including this one for orange and mizuna salad with melon gazpacho dressing.

Ingredients

1naval orange

4 cupsmizuna or other peppery greens, like arugula

4 cupsbaby tatsoi or other “power greens,” like kale

1/2 cupchopped roasted root veggies

1/4 cuppomegranate seeds

3 tablespoonspepitas, roasted and salted Melon Gazpacho, for Dressing in the book

3 cupsGalia, cantaloupe or honeydew melon chunks

1lime, zested and juiced (1⁄2 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice)

1mandarin orange or clementine, zested and juiced (2 teaspoons zest and 4 tablespoons juice)

1lemon, zested and juiced (1 teaspoon zest and 3 tablespoons juice)

1 tablespoonapple cider vinegar, with the mother

6–8large basil leaves

1 teaspoonground ginger

1 tablespoonchopped mint

1 tablespoonchopped cilantro

Kosher salt and pepper (black or red) to taste

Preparation

1. Place the melon, citrus zest and juices, vinegar, basil, ginger, mint and cilantro to a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process in pulses until the desired consistency. I like it nearly smooth but with a little texture.

2. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and chill until time to serve.

1. Slice off the two ends of the orange and remove the peel and outside skin of the orange with a paring knife. Cut in between the membranes to remove the sections of fruit. Set aside.

2. Arrange the salad greens on a pretty platter. Scatter the oranges cut “sections” around the outside of the platter. Scatter the root vegetables on top of the power greens. Scatter the pomegranate seeds and pepitas over all.

3. Pour the melon gazpacho over the top or serve it to the side.

4. As a main dish, you can double the recipe and top with roasted chicken, shrimp cooked in butter and Tony’s seasoning, or tempeh browned in olive oil. Makes 4 Servings