While cooking, listen to this: Touch the Sky by Kanye West

I spent two hours last night writing and re-writing this post.

Writer’s block — it happens more often than I care to admit. Usually, I can defeat it by sitting down, shifting into “writing mode” and typing out whatever story comes to mind. But last night, that was not working. I wanted to tell you guys a funny story that started with a friend setting off a smoke alarm at midnight while cooking chicken and ended with me bragging about how I’m my father’s (the homebuilder) handiest child.

Yeah, that didn’t work. Transitioning from hammers and screws to pistachios and pomegranates was a bit of a stretch, to say the least. Should have taken a page out this salad’s playbook — sometimes, the best things are the most simple.

I’ll admit there are times Rina and I have been known to try to be the fanciest bloggers with the fanciest ingredients. On those occasions, the fact that we’re cooking in a tiny kitchen and shooting over a folding table covered in contact paper is all but forgotten. Sometimes we even break things or spend hours depitting tiny green plums (I’ll never let Rina live that one down!). But at the end the day, we just embrace who we are — very unfancy and here for the good times

Sure, some of recipes are more involved than others, but those are for special occasions. Looking for a solo weeknight dinner that doesn’t require turning on the stove? Or a quick and easy dish for a holiday or celebration that encompasses all of fall’s best produce? Well look no further.

Well, maybe a little further…

Rina actually made this for last year’s Yom Kippur break fast. I was so starving by the time she served it I sort of forgot I even ate it. Oops. Thankfully, she remade it for Blog Day and it was just the zest-filled light lunch I needed. Plus, it’s vegan — that’s what I call a win-win-win.

Once again, simplicity takes the cake — er, I mean the salad. There’s not much legwork required here, and the ingredient list is easy and interchangeable (i.e. go for pepitas if you have a nut allergy). My only recommendation? Keep the avocado. Because honestly avocado is once of life’s simplest pleasures. And we are all about keeping it simple (stupid!).

xo, Alyssa

fALL sALAD WITH aPPLE, pOMEGRANATE & pISTACHIO

Yield: 4-6 servings

Total Cook Time: 20m (see note)

Category: Salad, Fall, Vegan, Gluten-Free, Rosh Hashana

Note: the time above includes all the chopping and de-seeding you might have to do. If you use pre-chopped lettuce and your pomegranate is already de-seeded, this will take you closer to 5-10 minutes.

Ingredients

salad:

2 heads romaine lettuce

1 large or 2 small green apples (or tart apple of choice)

1 large or 2 small pomegranates (or 1-2 cups fresh pomegranate seeds)

¾ cup roughly chopped pistachios

1 avocado, cubed

dressing:

½ cup olive oil

¼-⅓ balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon mustard

Salt and pepper, to taste

Red pepper flakes, to taste

Honey (optional, may not need)

Instructions

Make the dressing: in a jar or other container combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and, if using, honey. Shake well to combine and emulsify. Set aside.

Chop lettuce (if necessary): if you’re using a fresh head of romaine, take off all the leaves, wash and dry. Stack them flat on top of each other, and slice into vertical strips, then chop into small pieces. Add to a large salad bowl.

Chop apple: cut up your apple into pieces roughly the same size as your lettuce bits. Add to your bowl.

De-seed pomegranate (if necessary): *If you’re deseeding your own pomegranate, an easy way to do it is to cut the pomegranate into quarters and remove the seeds in a large bowl filled with water. The pulpy bits will float to the top and the seeds will sink to the bottom. Skim the bits off the top and drain the seeds. Add to your bowl.

Assemble! Add the roughly chopped pistachios and cubed avocado to the salad bowl and dress when you’re ready to serve.

To keep: if you like soggy salad (some people do!) you can keep this in the fridge after it’s dressed for a day or two, but it should really be eaten immediately.