11 posts tagged “salad”
To know me is to know I love cheese. In fact, my friend Renea sent me this mug a while back and it pretty much sums up my daily life:
So, when I got an email regarding sampling Ile de France cheese, I was all over it. I had my choice between camembert, brie, and goat. Now, even though goat is my favorite of the bunch, I decided to go with the camembert because it's a cheese I don't really eat all that often and, come to think of it, I don't think I have ever bought.
Camembert is a very mild cheese and it has some nuttiness to it. I would say it is similar to brie in taste and texture (though it has some more punch than brie). It's creamy and, while it's probably "better" to just eat it at room temperature and not necessarily cook with it, there are few things I like better than a nice, melty cheese. Mmm. So, I decided to use it in one uncooked application and 2 cooked dishes (and, of course, I ate some on its own).
This Ile de France camembert was delicious! It's got a fabulous texture and just enough flavor that it lends itself to many pairings, but can stand on its own, too. I'm hoping to order some of the goat cheese next!
Now, onto the dishes!
First, I used it in a porcini risotto. I think the slight nutiness of the cheese pairs well with the earthiness of the mushrooms. Plus, I will take any chance I get to make risotto since we don't eat it all that often. This was so good that I think I may make it again next week!
Porcini and Camembert Risotto
Serves 2 as a main dish
1 (1.5 oz.) package dried porcini mushrooms
1.25 cups boiling water
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup arborio rice
2 sprigs thyme
1/3 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth, kept warm on the stove
2 oz. Camembert
1 Tbsp butter
salt and pepper
Place the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and then add the boiling water. Allow the porcinis to reconstitute for about 15 minutes. Strain them, reserving the water you used, and chop the mushrooms.
Heat a large, heavy bottomed pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Once shimmering, add the shallot and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds before stirring in the rice, chopped porcini, and thyme. Stir the mixture so that the rice is coated with the oil and begins to toast slightly.
Add the wine and deglaze, allowing nearly all the wine to evaporate. A ladle or so at a time, add the porcini liquid and the broth, alternately, stirring continuously and allowing the rice to absorb most of the liquid before adding the next ladle.
Continue adding the porcini liquid and broth a ladle or so at a time, stirring, until the rice is cooked al dente. It should still be slightly firm to the bite, and it should be a little "loose." You're not looking for a rice type dish that has absorbed ALL its liquid. There should be some liquid still in the pan.
Remove the pan from heat and stir in the camembert and the butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary and serve immediately (as if you could wait!).
Next, I made a simple salad. This is an endive salad with toasted walnuts, room-temp camembert, sliced apples (use your favorite kind) and cider vinaigrette. I like my dressings more acid-y than most, so I do equal parts apple cider vinegar & olive oil. (I also added pressed garlic and salt and pepper, of course.) As you know, I am working on having the love for fruits with savory dishes and this one won me over. Delicious! To let the apples absorb the flavor, and to keep them from browning, add the sliced apples to the dressing as you prep the rest of the salad.
And, finally, I made some camembert and maple bacon cups because the only thing better than cheese is cheese and bacon. For this I just chopped and cooked some bacon. I mixed just a tiny bit of maple syrup into the cooked/drained bacon and filled pre-made phyllo cups with that and the camembert. Easy and delicious!
Susan the FoodBlogga has one of my favorite blogs. Everything is always so fresh, simple, and beautiful. When I saw she was hosting a blog event, Beautiful Bones, I knew I wanted to participate. The event asks bloggers to make a calcium-rich dish to bring awareness to osteoporosis.
I was actually planning on thinking something up and making it next week for the event, since I already had my dinners planned out for the week. But, as I was reviewing the event on Susan's blog (and also inputting my meal into SparkPeople), I realized the chicken salad I was making was mighty high in calcium. Cheese? Check. Sour cream? Check. Avocado? Check. Black beans? Check. Lime? Check. Corn tortillas? Check. Tomatoes? Check. Oregano? Check. Tequila? Okay, that's not high in calcium but it's good to have.
When all is said, calculated, eaten and done for, this salad provides you with a shade under 40% of the recommended calcium intake for the day. w00t! It's good to know I am naturally planning calcium rich foods without really thinking about it.
I suppose this is what is called a "Santa Fe Chicken Salad." Honestly, I have never had one of these concoctions before in a restaurant, but that goes without reason. I love all the components in this salad and it's a nice twist on a boring ol' grilled chicken salad. I haven't calculated the nutritional value for this (other than the chicken itself) because it will really vary based on whether you use full fat cheese, sour cream, ranch, etc. If you don't, this is definitely a light, healthy and filling salad. Take that, osteoporosis!
Santa Fe Chicken Salad
Serves 2
Tequila Lime Chicken
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4.5 oz. each)
1 lime, zested and juiced
2 Tbsp. Tequila
2 Tbsp. orange juice
2 tsp. canola oil
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. chili powder
2 cloves garlic, smashed
salt and pepper
Combine the lime juice and zest, tequila, orange juice, canola oil, spices and garlic and whisk together. Pour into a dish or resealable bag along with the chicken and refrigerate for 30 minutes - 2 hours (any longer and the acid in the citrus could start to "cook" the chicken).
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and then grill or saute the chicken, basting with the marinade, until cooked through (about 4-5 minutes per side).
Nutritional information per piece, if consuming all marinade (which, you probably won't): Calories: 225 / Fat: 7g / Carbs: 4g / Protein: 29g
Dressing
1/4 cup salsa
2 heaping Tbsp. sour cream
2 Tbsp. ranch dressing
hot sauce (optional)
Combine all ingredients (and a few dashes of hot sauce, if you'd like) and refrigerate as you make the rest of the salad.
Salad
3-4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
1 large tomato, diced
1/2 avocado, diced
1/3 cup black beans, drained/rinsed
1/3 cup corn
1/3 cup cheddar jack cheese
2 corn tortillas
cooking spray
Cut the corn tortillas into squares and spray with oil. Bake at 350 in your oven (or toaster oven, as I like to use for these small jobs) until crispy.
Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Toss with the dressing and then stir in the crispy corn tortillas. Top with chicken.
I'm fairly certain that beets are the new black. People used to fear the beet, or so it seems. They'd wrinkle their noses when ordering a Greek salad in one of my family's restaurants and proclaim, "Hold the beets." Those who'd never tried a beet wouldn't even consider giving it a shot. And, I'm pretty sure a large percentage of people wouldn't be able to identify a raw beet if they saw one.
But it seems the fear of the beet has lessened significantly, and lately, they've been popping up everywhere--in magazines, food blogs, cooking shows, healthy eating lists. In fact, I'm pretty sure every restaurant I have gone to in the last year has had some sort of roasted beet appetizer on the menu. Roasted beet and goat cheese salads are the new(ish) thing. And you know what? More often than not, I'll order one. I, for one, have always loved the beet. And coupled with goat cheese? I'm on it. Is this salad so popular that it could one day end up on one of Anthony Bourdain's overrated menus?
I don't think so. It's too unfussy, too pure. It's simplicity at its finest, and its tastiest.
So, of course, that's what I decided to do with the beets I bought on sale last week.
Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad
3 large red beets
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
2 Tbsp. pine nuts
parsley or other fresh herbs, chopped (optional)
salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 425. Wrap each beat individually in aluminum foil. Roast the beets on the middle rack until tender, about an hour to an hour and a half. Once cool enough to handle, peel the beet and dice it.
Meanwhile, whisk together the vinegar, oil, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Let it stand for a bit for the flavors to marry. Pluck out the garlic clove and then toss the diced beets with the mixture.
Top with goat cheese, pine nuts, and parsley.
I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I hate mayo. Loathe it, really. Just looking at the way it jiggles in the cup when someone asks for it on the side of something at a restaurant makes me ill. Ick! So, as you may have gathered, I am not too big on most picnic type foods, like chicken/egg/potato/pasta salads, deviled eggs, etc. When I make potato and pasta salads, I always use a vinaigrette-based dressing. I must admit, though, that I've never made chicken salad. When I saw a recipe for chicken salad with asparagus and sundried tomato dressing from Cook's Illustrated, I knew I had to try it.
I served this over some swiss chard and also with crostini (with goat cheese spread on it). Overall, the flavor on this was good. I think it needs more dressing (at least when it's served over greens) but I admit I did reduce the amount of olive oil slightly to make it a little lighter, so that contributed to it being underdressed, no doubt.
While I liked the asparagus and sundried tomatoes in this chicken salad (and, of course, the goat cheese and pine nuts!), I think I prefer chicken salad I had at a local coffee shop, which has since closed. Their chicken salad had pesto and hearts of palm. So, at some point, I will try to make a copycat version of that. But, overall we did like this recipe.
Chicken Salad with Asparagus and Sundried Tomato Dressing
Cook's Illustrated
Serves 5-6
3.5 lb. whole chicken, seasoned with salt and pepper (I actually just used a roasted chicken I picked up at my grocery store)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus an additional tablespoon
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup oil-packed sundried tomatoes, drained, rinsed and chopped
1 small clove garlic, minced or pressed (I used 2)
1/2 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces
1 cup chopped fresh basil
3 ounces crumbled goat cheese (optional)
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted (I probably used closer to 1/4 cup)
If you are roasting your own chicken, season it with salt and pepper and then roast it in the middle of a 375 degree oven until done. When cool, pull the meat from the bones and set aside 5 cups. If you have more, just save it for a different use.
Puree the oil, vinegar, sundried tomatoes, garlic and 1/4 tsp salt and 1/s tsp pepper in a food processor/blender until smooth. Transfer for a bowl.
Heat the remaining oil in a skillet and cook the asparagus (seasoned with salt and pepper) until almost tender, about 3 minutes. Let cool.
Add the cooled asparagus and the basil to the vinaigrette, stirring to combine. Add the chicken to combine and let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with goat cheese and pine nuts, if you want.
I think I've mentioned before that I don't like to cook on Fridays. Any other day I have no problem with it and often look forward to it. But on a Friday, the last thing I want to do is make anything that requires anything over incredibly minimal effort. We tend to go out or eat a crockpot meal on Fridays because of this.
Tonight, I decided to make a really simple meal. I grilled up some chicken (marinated in EVOO/balsamic vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper and Italian seasoning) and placed it on top of Tyler Florence's watercress salad with roasted tomato dressing and goat cheese croutons. By the way, they are not really croutons so much as crostini with goat cheese. But bread + goat cheese under any name = good in my book.
This was a really simple, really good, healthful meal. I really liked the tomato dressing as something different than the ordinary vinaigrette. I wasn't necessarily blown away by it but it was refreshing and flavorful. I'd make it again. The only thing I did differently was double the garlic.
Tonight was pretty easy as far as dinner goes, thanks to the box of burger patties in my freezer. The last time I was at Trader Joe's I picked up some chile lime chicken burgers that my friend Julie recommended. I don't usually get pre-mixed/seasoned things like that but at about $3.50/box (there are 4 1/4 lb. patties) it was actually cheaper than buying ground chicken and making the patties myself.
Originally my plan was to grill the burgers and then wrap them completely in a whole wheat tortilla with some cheese, and then grill that whole thing. Shamefully, this is an idea I totally ripped off fromTaco Bell (grilled, TO GO!). But, I didn't realize the patties were so wide and they definitely didn't fit in my tortillas that way, so I ended up halving them after I cooked them, and just using them as a taco filling. So, they aren't quite as pretty, but they tasted good :) I added cheese, salsa verde and tomatoes, but this would definitely benefit from some avacado/guacamole or sour cream, neither of which I had on hand.
We had this with a corn salad. I absolutely love corn salad, and the grilling in this salad makes it even more flavorful.
Grilled corn salad with cumin-lime vinaigrette
4 ears corn, husked/cleaned
1 red pepper
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
1/4 cup fresh minced parsley or cilantro
Canola or olive oil, for grilling
salt and pepper
3 Tbsp. lime juice
1.5 Tbsp. olive or canola oil
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
small pinch of sugar
1 garlic clove, pressed or finely minced
salt and pepper to taste
Make vinaigrette by combining the last 5 ingredients.
Boil corn for approximately 2-3 minutes (as a sidenote, I usually flavor my water with both salt and sugar when I am boiling corn on the cob). When it's cool enough to handle, rub it with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Rub pepper and tomatoes with oil and salt/pepper. If you are doing this on an outdoor grill, skewer the tomatoes so they don't fall through the grates.
Grill corn, peppers and tomatoes until they get char marks. Set aside to cool slightly.
Once cool, cut corn off cob and slice red pepper.
Toss corn, red pepper, tomatoes, green onion, black beans, cilantro/parsley with the vinaigrette. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Between the country ribs and the bacon, this entry certainly won't be getting a "light" tag. I know, I know, I am *supposed* to be eating healthier now that I'm back to cooking, but these country ribs were just staring at me from the freezer. I bought them a month or two ago really, really cheaply and froze them. I've never made ribs before. Actually I never really liked ribs all that much until fairly recently.
Since this was my first time making ribs, I went the easy route and used bottled sauce. Our favorite is Sweet Baby Ray's. I accidentally bought the hot and spicy kind, but it was great.
As for the country ribs, I just rubbed them with some salt, pepper, cumin and garlic powder. I cooked them at 250* for about 2.5 hours.
Then, I brushed some sauce over the ribs, covered them with foil and continued to cook them an additional 45 minutes, basting once with more sauce halfway through.
These came out tender and delicious, but next time I would probably increase the time in the oven by another hour or so, just to get them even more tender.
Now, I love grilled meats and attending barbecues but I tend to not like barbecue food all that much. See, most of the picnic/barbecue food I have been privy to, like coleslaw and potato salad, is swimming in mayo-based sauce. I don't know if I have ever mentioned this before but I really, truly HATE mayonnaise. More than a hate, it is actually a fear. I cannot even look at it without getting a little queasy.
So, to keep with a barbecue theme but keep myself from becoming ill, I decided to make a vinaigrette-based cabbage slaw and a German potato salad. Not much to the slaw. The dressing was just red wine vinegar, oil, mustard, salt, pepper and garlic.
The German potato salad recipe is one of Bobby Flay's. I modified it slightly. We both loved it. But then, how can you NOT like potatoes and bacon?
1 to 1 1/2 pounds new potatoes (I used baby Yukon golds)
1/4 pound bacon
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped (I omitted)
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup cider vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
Fresh snipped chives, optional garnish
Minced parsley, optional garnish
Hard boiled eggs, optional garnish
Scrub potatoes and cook in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and, while hot, skin and cut into 1/4-inch slices. You should have about 4 cups. Set aside.
Place bacon in a skillet and fry until almost crisp. Remove bacon from pan and add onion and celery, cook until tender and transparent, remove from pan.
Drain off all but one tablespoon of bacon fat; add flour, sugar, salt and pepper to skillet stir until slightly browned. Add vinegar and water and cook until mixture is slightly thickened. Add back the bacon, onion, and celery.
Pour hot dressing over potatoes; stir gently to blend. The potatoes should look glossy. Garnish with hard-boiled egg slices, sprinkle minced parsley, and chives over top. Serve warm.
To keep myself from eating the entire loaf of French bread I bought yesterday, I decided I had to plan a meal for tonight that would use it up. That way, I would be dinnerless if I was a piggie and ate it all :)
I decided to go with a fresh, summery panzanella salad with lemon-basil vinaigrette. We had this with some grilled flank steak. Nothing terribly exciting there. Just marinated it with some Mediterannean flavors and grilled it.
The salad makes 2 big portions, or 4 smaller portions
Panzanella Salad
4 oz (about a 5" long chunk) French or other day-old bread
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 vine ripened tomatoes, cut into chunks
1/2 large cucumber, cut into chunks
2 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers
4 stalks asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-2" pieces
8 kalamata olives (which I forgot to add until after I took the pic :)
Lemon basil vinaigrette (recipe follows)
Make the vinaigrette first so the flavors can meld as you are prepping the rest of the salad.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook until just tender, about 2 minutes max. Immediately put asparagus into an ice bath to stop the cooking.
Cut bread into 1" pieces. I decided to leave about half the crust on, but that's your call. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the EVOO and the garlic, cooking until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add bread and a pinch of salt. Toss the bread around to coat with the oil and cook until browned, about 6 or 7 minutes (alternatively you could spray/drizzle the bread with the oil and bake in a 300 degree oven for 8-10 minutes). Remove the garlic.
Toss asparagus, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, peppers and feta and toasted bread with vinaigrette and serve.
Lemon-basil vinaigrette
Now, most vinaigrettes recipes call for anywhere from a 1:2 to a 1:4 ratio of vinegar to oil. However, I really love a tangy, acidic vinaigrette so I tend to go for the exact opposite. The added bonus is there is less fat :)
1 clove garlic
1-2 Tbsp fresh basil
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1-2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, or to desired consistency/taste
Combine garlic, basil, lemon juice and vinegar into a food processor. Pulse until garlic and basil are in small pieces.
Stream in olive oil until desired consistency.
Well, we are almost settled into our new place but we still have plenty of unpacked boxes and my computer is currently sitting on 2 of them since we haven't bought a desk yet :)
Unfortunately, the kitchen is not nearly as nice as the one in our old place. (Well, in general it is a slightly smaller/older apartment but hopefully one that will let us buy a house sooner since it's much cheaper than our old place). The worst part is the oven/stove. It is really old and practically impossible to cook anything over a low flame without the flame going out completely. I cannot tell you how many times (already) I have left something simmering and come back a few minutes later to find it...well, definitely not simmering. Oh and it sits crooked, which we need to fix before I start having food that is half raw and half overcooked!
I'm still working on making my kitchen functional. I can't seem to find the right place for the trash can, or the garlic, or the prep site. It is definitely going to take some getting used to.
I just went on a wild goose chase so I could find my USB plug in thingamajig to my camera, so I could update the blog. Not a particularly exciting update, but an update nonetheless.
With the weather finally getting nicer, I have been craving salads. So tonight I decided to make a salad topped with sliced flank steak. Not exactly a recipe, but I marinated the steak in an olive oil/balsamic/garlic/Italian seasoning/s&p mixture and ended up broiling it (about 4-5 minutes per side for medium rare).
The salad had baby spinach, toasted pine nuts (which I almost burned, thank you crappy stovetop!), asparagus (cut it into 2" pieces and blanched, boiling for about 2 minutes before putting into an ice water bath), herbed goat cheese, grape tomatoes and roasted red peppers.
I had a little Italian focaccia with it...not homemade. The breadmaker is in one of the aforementioned unpacked boxes :)
Tonight we had steak fajitas and southwest corn salad. YUM.
Tequila-lime steak fajitas
Note: I used a piece of flank steak that was about 8 or 9 oz. so if you use a whole piece, you should probably double or triple the marinade.
8-10oz. flank steak
1 tablespoon olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 tablespoon tequila
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. oregano
2 cloves garlic, smashed
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
salt and pepper
Combine all ingredients and marinate for an hour or longer. Grill along with your favorite veggies. I used yellow and red peppers, and onions (the onions were for the hubby, since I don't particulary like them).
Roll into a tortilla with your favorite toppings.
The corn salad was basically a (completely unmeasured) mixture of corn, black beans, green peppers, green onions, tomatoes, onions, garlic, cilantro, a squeeze of lime juice, a pinch of cumin, and a splash each of vinegar and oil.
A random hint: I was always throwing away tortillas because they tend to come in packs of 10 or 12 and we never use them. Now what I do is wrap them in twos using saran wrap, then put those in a ziploc bag and freeze. This way you can thaw as many as you want at a time. If you freeze a whole pack, you will probably have to thaw the whole thing to get them to pull apart from one another, so this works great.
