Welcome to our Divergent menu! The Mister and I just moved from our first apartment to our very first house this weekend, so things are pretty crazy around here (SO MANY BOXES). But even though most of my kitchen is still packed up, I was super excited when it came time to start this menu. I know Divergent is a pretty big departure from our usual classic books, but Tris has such strong mental associations with certain foods (and I loved the book so much) that I thought it’d be a shame not to make a menu for it. So here it is! 🙂

We’re starting off with an appetizer after Amity’s own heart. Since the Amity faction is in charge of agriculture, you can bet we’re making something close to the earth and super fresh. Hearty kale makes the base for this salad, dressed up with crisp apples, toasted pine nuts, soft and delicately sweet goat cheese, and deeply juicy pomegranate seeds. And since apples are so closely associated with the Amity faction, we included them in the dressing too: a light, healthy pomegranate-based dressing with a touch of apple cider vinaigrette for flavor, developed by The Gracious Pantry. I consider this one of my most successful recipes, not just because it tastes good, but because it got me thinking about the book all over again. The fresh, earthy mix of kale, goat cheese, pine nuts, and apples had me recalling all the Amity moments from the book, and I was like, “THIS. This is exactly what they would eat in Amity!”

P.S. We have a yard now, so I get to practice taking nature pictures! An Amity recipe seemed like a great place to start. 🙂

 

Amity’s Autumn Apple Salad

“Robert waves to me, and again I see another possible life in my mind’s eye. I see myself in the back of the truck, singing with the girl, though I’ve never sung before, laughing when I am off-key, climbing trees to pick the apples, always peaceful and always safe.”
— Divergent
 

 

INGREDIENTS:

• For the Salad
  • 3 cups kale, de-stemmed and coarsely chopped
  • 1/2 Honeycrisp apple
  • 1/2 Bartlett pear
  • 1/2 pomegranate, seeded (work gently so as not to get the juice everywhere—it stains like crazy!)
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp crumbled goat cheese
  • 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
• For the Dressing
  • 1/4 cup pomegranate juice (I juiced my own, but buying a bottle of POM is easier)
  • 1/8 cup canola oil or some other light oil
  • 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/8 tsp each of salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Makes 2 small salads

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Dice your pear into 1/4″ cubes. Cut your apple into thin slivers then cut the slivers in half width-wise (they’ll look like little sails).
   
2. Combine all your salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. Divide the salad evenly between two smaller bowls for serving.
   
3. Pour all your dressing ingredients in a small sealable container (like a mason jar or Tupperware container). Tightly seal the lid and shake vigorously to combine. Drizzle the dressing lightly over your salads

   

4. Serve to promote peace and harmony within the factions.