On Fiber

With the disclaimer that I am not a dietitian, just a fiber loving gal.

Welcome to the Friday post for paid subscribers, another winter salad that’s been in the rotation for several years now, which is why we’re using photos older than one of my cats. On Tuesday, all subscribers will receive a missive about my current obsession: cabbage.

I love fiber. I have been accused of being able to handle superhuman levels of the stuff, and that feels so on brand that I can’t even get mad about it. When we travel, I’m vigilant about incorporating as much of it as I can on the go, and I’ve been known to order all sides for dinner if it gets me to the greens and beans situation. The older I get, the more I seek the stuff out. It is my lifeblood, and I can’t live without it.

Jury duty broke me of my good habits. All that I wanted when I got home (from some of the coldest days in Chicago’s winter so far) was comfort food, and I indulged. The time soon came to have a talk with myself about fiber. I’m a huge fan of comfort food, don’t get me wrong, but this human body could not have handled another meal comprised primarily of sweets and carbohydrates, as much as I wanted to stick to my Elf-like diet of brownies, muffins, and pop-tarts.

I got to a breaking point after realizing that it had been a full 48 hours since a vegetable had crossed my lips, and I knew it was time to make a salad. It needed to be a strategic salad, though, because I still needed something interesting and exciting and rewarding. I deserved it, and frankly, reader, so do you!

I know I’m not the only one whose body is crying out for nutrients. Winter is hard, especially in the Midwest, where farmers’ markets are in hibernation and the only signs of life you see from the earth are the squelches of mud that have frozen and melted and re-frozen more times than you can count.

Old! Content!

So, I grabbed a cara cara orange I’d had sitting around, tossed it with a weird assortment of herbs, and made a zingy, Calabrian chili dressing to top it all off. The end result was something so delicious I didn’t even miss the carbs.

For the dressing, it’s important to let the shallots cook slowly so they caramelize as they do so. That way, when you stir in the Calabrian chilis, everything oozes together and becomes the sort of dressing you crave for a salad of sweet citrus and herbs. If you’re looking to buff this up to be a whole meal, add some hunks of crusty bread and plenty of the cheese. If you’re vegan, simply omit the cheese and toss in some toasted almonds for fat.

Spicy Citrus Fennel Salad