A Fresh Take on a Classic

Tonight's dinner didn't come from a recipe, it just sort of evolved from what I knew I wanted and what I found. It started with the idea of using my current favorite salad *arugula, prosciutto, dried chopped date and shaved parmesan with a semi-sweet tart vinaigrette; but making it into a complete dinner by adding a simple grilled chicken breast and serving the salad on top as is common in Italian restaurants. The salad itself is a really good combination of flavors: bitter fresh arugula, salty, dry prosciutto, sweet chopped dates, parmesan and also chopped pecans. (Thanks to Chef David DiGregorio, my favorite Italian chef)

But then I started thinking that it might be more interesting if I put chicken and prosciutto together. My thoughts naturally turned to Chicken Saltimbocca, the classic Italian chicken, prosciutto and sage dish, usually served with a lemony wine sauce. This wasn't quite the dish I wanted though, I still was thinking of my dinner salad. So I decided to prepare the chicken breast "saltimbocca" style but serve it with a tart vinaigrette and the arugula and date salad.

The chicken is prepared according to this recipe from Bon Appetit. Basically you just pound it thin and lay thin slices of prosciutto across the top. They just stick, no problem. The whole thing is dredged lightly in flour and then the chicken is browned in oil prosciutto-side down in a saute pan. It browns in about 4 minutes, gets flipped and cooked until it is cooked through (165 degrees,) about another 4, depending on the thickness of the chicken.

A vinaigrette is prepared and tossed with some arugula and thin-sliced dates. (I've pointed you to the vinaigrette that I use, but I think one made with lemon juice and zest would be even better. ) The chicken is plated and the salad is served on the side. Parmesan shavings go over the top - to bring it over the top. The chicken turned out really juicy and flavorful. Sometimes you get in your mind what you want and you just have to follow your instincts and trust that you know what you're doing. A nice spring dinner. Arugula is just about in season, so give this a try.

Chickpea and Cherry Tomato Salad with Cilantro Dressing

This simple salad is from one of my favorite cookbooks, Clean Food. There's not much to it besides the chickpeas and tomatoes. but they're held together by a delicious sassy cilantro dressing. A food processor is needed for the dressing.

You could use this as a side next to grilled meat or fish or as a dish to share at a dinner. It also makes a nice green salad by tossing it with some baby spinach and a little more of the dressing. Don't add all the dressing at once when you make the recipe. When I make it for just us, I halve it (using a pint of cherry tomatoes and a can of chick peas.) The real value of this salad is what's leftover that you can eat the next day as a quick lunch.

Chickpea and Cherry Tomato Salad with Cilantro Dressing
adapted from Clean Food by Terry Walters

2 lbs cherry tomatoes (mixed varities make it special)
3 cups cooked chick peas (I use 2 cans, rinsed and drained. for the whole recipe) 4-5 chopped scallions

Dressing

1 garlic clove, peeled
1 large bunch of cilantro (about a cup)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 T lemon juice
kosher salt and pepper

Cut the tomatoes in half, and add to a large bowl with chick peas and scallions

With food processor running, drop in whole garlic clove and mince. Turn of processor, scrape down sides, add cilantro, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Pulse to combine. Drizzle dressing over salad, toss and serve.

Grilled Swordfish with Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette

Those who know me well know that I tend to fixate. I crush hard on things, they consume me and all my thoughts and then, like fleeting summer love, they pass and I move on to obsess on something new. It has always been that way. I've been obsessed with pie making, mexican food, asian food, weight loss (you would figure, after all that pie and mexican food,) healthy eating, vegetarian eating. There's been a pomegranate phase, a mango phase. The creme brulee phase, a kabob phase, potato gratin phase, a whole gratin phase not confined to the potato. Oh, it goes on but that's between me and my therapist.

Right now, it is all about the salad and mostly, the vinaigrette. I've been trying all sorts of new ones, especially those from the book Mediterranean Fresh by Joyce Goldstein ("A compendium of one-plate salad meals and mix-and-match dressings.") Can anything sound better than that in the middle of summer? The sun-dried tomato vinaigrette I'm about to share is from this book. I love it on grilled chicken or swordfish (as I did above and served with swiss chard from our garden). I think it would be good on a steak salad too, especially if one were to add a little chipotle in there.

Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette

1/2 c extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 c sun-dried tomato oil (from the jar)
3 T red wine vinegar
2 T chopped sun-dried tomatoes
salt and pepper

Whisk it all together.

Here I've made a salad of leftover grilled chicken breast, sliced with the vinaigrette spooned over it. Also currently enamored with pickled green beans, which also on the plate.

Here's what the lettuce looked like 10 minutes before it was washed, dried and ready to go into my salad.

Couscous Cakes

This recipe for Spinach and Artichoke Salad with Couscous Cakes and Feta is from Fine Cooking #99. I do love couscous; so what could be bad about shaping it into a patty and frying it in a little oil? Plus lately I think this blog could use a post of some substance, like a recipe from a magazine tried and reviewed. My reports on our daily meals tend not to be not so very interesting.

These little couscous cakes are a tasty and substantial accompaniment to a salad for dinner.. They are basically a cake of ground garbanzo beans and grain that's formed into a patty and pan-fried in just a little oil to give the cake a crunchy outer coating. The middle is chewy. Both the crunchy and the chewy textures go well against a fluffy tart salad. When I read the recipe's reviews, the flavor of the cakes was described as a little bland. So I took some liberties and doctored them a bit by adding finely chopped dried cherries and pine nuts to the mixture of couscous, garbanzo beans, garlic and herbs. All in effort to make a really flavorful couscous. Taste the mixture BEFORE you add the egg and make sure that it tastes good to you and is seasoned to your liking.

Also, I halved the recipe for the cakes (and the dressing.) It made exactly 4 (1/4 cup) cakes, 2 per serving. Next time, I would like leftovers so I'll make the whole thing . But just to try it, I would recommend starting with half. Sure, you're stuck with half a can of beans but you can use them on salad.

The salad in the recipe served alongside the cakes is just spinach, canned artichokes, tomatoes and a tart dressing of sour cream, lemon juice and olive oil. Reviewers didn't like the dressing but I thought it was ok on the completed dish. You need that acid next to the bean and couscous cakes, which actually ends up tasting a lot like falafel. And of course you could use any dressing you like. A yogurt based one is what I'm going to try next time I make it.

A good suggestion I saw in the reviewer's comments was to use quinoa instead of couscous and I will try that next time as well. Making these cakes would also be a good way to use up leftover couscous or quinoa. And don't forget you could also take the salad in different directions too, depending on the flavors in the couscous bean mixture. I was thinking with the cherries and nuts in my version of the cakes, I could have used some julienned apple on the salad and skipped the artichokes and tomato. But then I would have had to adjust the dressing too. Well as you can see, there is a lot of room for creativity here. Good choice for a Meatless Monday.

I also wanted to mention that this month's Body and Soul magazine has a great article on salads with some fresh ideas and recipes. Take a look.

Asian Noodle Salad

Like the author of the blog where I found it, I love this salad. love. it. I crave asian flavors and this just does it all for me in one big bowl. There some work to be done in putting it together: washing, slicing, chopping, cooking the noodles, making the dressing, but once done, you have lunch for days and dinner too, if you're so inclined. And you get a bountiful serving of crunchy vegetables every time you dig in. It's vegetarian, if you want it to be, or you can slice up some cooked chicken or pork and add it in too. Make note though, I only make half a recipe and it is still a huge amount. This is also a great dish to consider bringing for a potluck since it makes a bunch and is a pleaser to all.

I always top ours with peanuts. And be careful not to just add all the dressing to the salad at first. You might not need it all. Save it in case you want to dress it a little more tomorrow. Highly recommend.

Grilled Peach Salad

Nothing ground breaking here. Just a reminder that summer fruit can add easy elegance to a salad, especially when paired with a tangy goat cheese or a rich blue. Here I grilled some peaches only enough to get marks but not enough to "cook" them. (I find it easy to do this using my cast iron grill pan where I can keep a close eye on them.) I tossed them with some toasted pecans, crumbled goat cheese, bacon and a champagne vinaigrette for a delicious little salad with a southern twist. You could skip the grilling and the salad would still be fantastic.

Other good combinations? Strawberries, Spinach and slivered almonds. Apples, walnuts, gruyere or other cheese. Raspberries with greens and a raspberry vinaigrette. Figs, Arugula, proscuitto, and shaves of parmaggiano. Figs or dates and blue cheese and perhaps hazelnuts. (?)

Don't forget the bacon or proscuitto when dreaming up combinations. The salty bits make the fruit all the more sweet and we all know about the bacon and cheese, Mmmmm.

Just think of a background of greens (perhaps on the bitter side: arugula, frisee or just baby greens or baby spinach) a little meat for salt, fruit for sweet, nuts for crunch, cheese for a creamy foil and a tart vinaigrette to brighten it all up. Then you'll have the perfect salad.

Toasted Corn, Cherry Tomato and Edamame Salad

This is a featured recipe on Fine Cooking's Recipe Page this month. The salad of Toasted Corn, Cherry Tomatoes and Edamame is part vegetable side dish/part relish, perfect for grilled fish or chicken and perfect for this time of year. It has a nice mix of textures and flavors. There's a little basil and mint chiffonade on top too.

Salad of Sugar Snap Peas, Radish and Ricotta Salata

There's a chef's booth at the Evanston farmer's market where each week a chef demonstrates a recipe made of a seasonal ingredients. This week it was this salad made of snap peas and radishes - both very abundant at this week's market. I tried a little sample and was pleased with the crunch and the bright dressing.

Most notable about this salad is that the snap peas are sliced on the bias. They break apart into little ovals and release some of the little peas inside making the snap pea nearly unrecognizable but very interesting looking. The radishes are sliced thin too, so the salad is somewhat labor intensive. If you want to make it for a large group of people, be prepared to be slicing for a while.

The chef at the market (whose name I don't remember (sorry!)) said you could use any salty crumbly cheese. She had used queso fresco (Jeanette! I'm thinking of you) instead of ricotta salata and it was delish. When I made it at home I used feta because I had some to use up. That was also good. You could also use a farmer's cheese and of course the ricotta salata. All are crumbly, salty and very fresh pressed cheeses.

The other thing about this recipe is that it calls for balsamic vinegar. The chef at the market had used champagne vinegar. When I made it at home I went for white balsamic (my fave) I could see using cider vinegar too. You want something with a hint of sweetness, I think.

The main thing is to make this salad now, while its major ingredients are at their peak.

Sugar Snap Pea Salad With Radishes, Mint and Ricotta Salata


3/4 cup sliced radishes
4 ounces sugar snap peas, sliced (about 1 1/4 cups)
4 ounces ricotta salata, crumbled (about 1 cup)
1/2 bunch mint leaves, torn (about 1/3 cup)
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch kosher salt, more to taste
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper to taste.

1. In a large bowl, toss together the radishes, peas, ricotta and mint.

2. Using a knife or a mortar and pestle, make a paste of the garlic and salt. Place in a small bowl and add the lemon juice and balsamic vinegar and stir well to combine. Drizzle in the olive oil, stirring constantly, and add pepper to taste.

3. Pour dressing over salad (I didn't use all the dressing) and toss well to combine. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Yield: 4 servings.

Caesar Salad with Chicken and Arugula

I'm very happy with how this salad dressing turned out. You never know what you're going to get with a Caesar Salad dressing. I guess because everyone's taste is different. I modified this slightly by halving the recipe: using 1 tsp of mustard and about 1/2 tsp squeeze of anchovy paste and halved the rest of the dressing ingredients for a 2-person portion with a little leftover.

Other than making your dressing, there's nothing complicated going on here. You could easily use leftover chicken or leave it off completely for a regular Caesar Salad. I skipped the grilled croutons since I grilled the chicken on a cast-iron stove-top grill. I just made my regular baked garlic croutons. If you don't make your own croutons, talk to me about it. My boys squeal with joy when they hear I'm making them. There's no croutons on the salad in the picture. I forgot to put them until after I started eating. Here's the complete recipe:

Grilled Chicken & Arugula Caesar Salad with Grilled Croutons

by Susie Middleton
Serves four.

4 oz. baby arugula (about 5 cups loosely packed), washed and dried

2 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
4 oil-packed anchovy fillets
2 large cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
1/4 tsp. black peppercorns
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
1/2 cup fresh, finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano

1-1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 3 large), rinsed and patted dry
4 slices French baguette, cut 1 inch thick on an extreme diagonal (6 to 8 inches long)
Cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered (optional)

Heat a gas grill to medium high. Put the arugula in a large bowl, cover with a damp paper towel, and refrigerate.

*Note: you only use PART of the mustard for the dressing, the rest is for the chicken. And I reduced it to 1 tsp. for half a dressing recipe. I also just used about 1/2 tsp of anchovy paste. (Sorry if I keep going on about this, I just want to be clear.)

In a blender, combine the lemon juice and zest, anchovies, garlic, and peppercorns with 6 Tbs. of the oil, 1 Tbs. of the mustard, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Blend thoroughly until most of the peppercorns are well broken up and the dressing is emulsified. Add 2 Tbs. of the grated Parmigiano and blend to incorporate. Leave the dressing in the blender.

In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with the remaining 1 Tbs. mustard and 3/4 tsp. salt. Brush the bread with the remaining 2 Tbs. oil and season with salt. Grill the chicken, covered, until golden grill marks form, 5 to 6 min. (for even cooking, rotate the chicken 90 degrees halfway through cooking each side). Flip the breasts and continue to cook, covered, until golden grill marks form and the chicken is cooked through, 5 to 6 min. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 min.

Grill the bread until dark around the edges and golden brown in the center, 1 to 2 min. per side. Slice the chicken thinly on an angle. Cut each bread slice into 10 cubes. Pulse the dressing in the blender; add a little of it to the arugula, just to coat.

Divide the arugula among four plates and sprinkle with a little Parmigiano. Toss the chicken with the remaining dressing and arrange over the arugula. Sprinkle with the remaining Parmigiano and arrange the croutons and tomatoes (if using) around the salad.

From Fine Cooking 65, pp. 86
July 1, 2004

Wheatberry Salad

Here's a nifty little salad I copied from Whole Foods deli. It is comprised of wheatberries, dried currants, toasted walnuts, Fuji apples and a vinaigrette made from apple cider vinegar. It is crunchy, tart and very satisfying. A wheatberry is the whole wheat kernel, just stripped of its outer hull. It's a whole grain, full of fiber, and when it's cooked it has a chewy, but not crunchy texture. It's all about the texture really.

So when I tasted this salad (at $7.99/lb) at Whole Foods, I knew that it would be great to make it and have it sitting in the fridge for a quick lunch. I looked online at Whole Foods and found a similar recipe to what I'd been tasting, but I didn't think it was the same. I'm pretty sure the salad I buy doesn't have cinnamon and nutmeg in it. So I just skipped those. The ingredients lists Fuji apples and currants (instead of raisins) so I used those instead. Dear husband has been taking this salad to work for a quick lunch at his desk. And honestly, I've been known to have a bowl for breakfast. With whole grains, apples and walnuts, how can you beat it?

Make a Beet Salad for your Valentine

I've talked about the beet salad before on this blog. But I thought I'd bring it up again today because it is my Valentine's favorite salad and because, for their color, beets are frequently a feature in the Valentine-themed meal. And if you tend toward those ways, you could slice your beets and punch out little red hearts. As this is not my way, I'll just talk about the salad. The basic components are roasted beets, greens, nuts, a creamy cheese and a tart vinaigrette.

The Beets:

I'm going to leave it to your googling abilities if you don't know how to roast beets. I will say they're simple to do but you do need to scrub them well. Also, I've taken to peeling them, roasting first under foil, and then removing the foil toward the end so they can caramelize. They're even sweeter this way (but be careful they don't burn.) But just doing them in foil and slipping the skins off after is the easiest and gives good results. For Valentine's Day, you might want to stick with red. But I like to use different colors of beets. Whatever you do, don't mix the red with the others. Oh, and don't worry about stained hands, it comes off. And your lover will see the pains you've gone through to make them this wonderful salad.

The Greens:

Do what you like here. I usually use spinach. But if you want elegant, Frisee' is the way. It has a little bitterness and a great texture. It also looks fabulous.

The Nuts:

You could do walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts... those would be my top choices. You need to toast them. I like them whole, but you could chop them a little too.

The Creamy Cheese:

In our house, we like fresh goat cheese (chevre) crumbled on top. But often in restaurants, they'll use a blue cheese, like a Gorgonzola, Cabrales or Maytag. (Make sure the cheese has sat on the counter for a little while, so it isn't too cold) For a fancier dish, you can make a little goat cheese cake, coated in breadcrumbs and pan-fried till toasty and warm. If that doesn't say Valentine, I don't know what does.

The Vinaigrette:

For a salad with a sweet component, I like a white balsamic vinegar in my vinaigrette. Regular balsamic or champagne vinegar is also a good choice. And in a pinch, I think a cider vinegar would work. It might be interesting to play around with raspberry too.

For the oil, I like a grapeseed or canola or a really light olive oil. I wouldn't do First pressed extra virgin here. Too much peppery flavor - you want neutral.

For this vinaigrette, you'll also need some minced shallot.

The basic formula for a vinaigrette is 1 part vinegar to 3 parts oil. I like mine tart so I rarely use 3 parts oil, especially with the kinds of vinegars I've suggested. Try 1:2 and taste it. Start with your vinegar, add some salt and a grind of pepper, your minced shallot. Mix it all together and start to drizzle in the oil. Taste along the way until you find the right balance of tart. You might need to add more salt.

The Plate:

Cut your roasted beets into attractive pieces: quarter, slices, hearts. Toss them in a tiny bit of the vinaigrette. Don't mix red beets with beets of other colors or you will have all red beets.

In another small bowl, give your greens a little salt and toss them with a TINY amount of vinaigrette, just to coat.

A white plate will best reflect your efforts toward making this salad. Put a small bunch of dressed greens in the middle of the plate, arrange your beets attractively around or nestled in the greens. Sprinkle on some toasted nuts, and crumble your cheese on top. Or if you've make a goat cheese cake, seductively prop it up on one side of the greens as if to say "Come and get me, baby" ;) Happy Valentine's Day!

Soup and Salad

I've tried a lot of butternut squash soup recipes in my day and I'll be honest, there hasn't been many I didn't like. If they're pureed and seasoned right, well, I'm a happy girl and I won't complain. But one of the best I've ever tried is a gingery one from Vong's Thai Kitchen (VTK) in Chicago. It is so aromatic and delicious that I have to order it everytime I go. Recently I found the recipe and decided it's high time I had those flavors at home. In the restaurant, they garnish the soup with roasted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds.) The recipe link doesn't give you directions for doing that, so I will. Oh, and by the way I used low-fat sour cream in the soup with no noticable difference.

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Spiced Roasted Pepitas (adapted from Bobby Flay, Mesa Grill Cookbook)

Heat oven to 325

Toss 1 c raw pumpkin seeds with 2 T of canola oil (I used less.) Sprinkle on 1/2 t chile powder, some pepper, a little cayenne pepper and a healthy amount of salt. Mix a bit.

Lay on a sheet tray and toast for 10-15 minutes until they just show a tiny bit of golden brown and look a little puffy. Let cool and sprinkle on to your bowl of soup. (Do your damnest to not eat them all before you serve the soup) I also gave my soup a little dollop of plain, unsweetened yogurt and a drizzle of sriracha. (IIRC, in the restaurant, the soup gets a drizzle of coconut milk a dusting of spice and the pepitas served on the side so you can put them on yourself. I need to go have it again to make sure)

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My salad today comes courtesy of Cat Cora and her book Cooking from the Hip. This is the first recipe I've tried from the book but I've made it 4 times already. In fact, everytime I find myself with some leftover chicken or turkey this salad comes to mind. There's no meat in the actual recipe for salad. But the salad is so adaptable, you can just follow the model and make it how you like. Her recipe is for Fuji Apple, Walnut and Dill salad, a take-off on the classic waldorf salad. It also has celery, grapes and some dill that makes it a little different. Leftover diced turkey (or chicken) is a natural add-in and makes for a great hearty salad. The tart dressing is the best part. For the creamy component, she uses plain yogurt, instead of mayo or sour cream. Then there's rice vinegar, orange juice, oil and mustard. Really good.

Chef Cora notes that you can play around with this recipe. Use different apples or even pears. Try a different vinegar. Use a different nut. I like it with toasted pecans. Adjust the amounts of things as you please. Like I said, add diced turkey or chicken. Also if you don't like dill, leave it out or use fresh tarragon. The salad is good the next day too. There's enough acid in the dressing to keep the apples from turning brown right away. It is at its best standing in front of the open fridge eaten right out of the rubbermaid container.

Fuji Apple, Walnut and Dill Salad

Dressing

2T rice wine vinegar
2T almond oil, walnut oil, or olive oil
2T plain, low-fat yogurt (greek yogurt will give you a thicker, more coating dressing)
1t dijon mustard
1T finely grated orange zest
2t fresh lemon or orange juice
1/4t kosher salt
1/4 t fresh ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients and sit in fridge until ready to use

Salad

1c walnuts (I used pecans) toasted
2c chopped apples (fuji or other)
2T chopped fresh dill
1/4 c thinly sliced celery
1/2 c seedless grapes (red or green, cut in half or left whole to your liking)

In a medium bowl, combine walnuts, apples, dill, celery and grapes. Pour dressing over the mixture and stir to coat. Arrange over endive leaves or other lettuce greens or not.

Salmon/Salad

Salmon and salad is a frequent summer dinner at the Donahue household. Dear husband grills up some salmon fillets and I toss together some salad stuff and we call it dinner. It is a great way to accomplish dinner on a summer night when there's more important things to do, like catching fireflies or riding bicycles. So when I received the current issue of Fine Cooking (95), I was happy to see a salmon/salad dish on the back cover. The interesting take on this recipe is that it nudges the salmon/salad into fall. Here salmon, rubbed with lemon zest, is roasted with mushrooms and leeks. The vegetables are then tossed with arugula to make an earthy salad to serve alongside your fish. A squeeze of lemon brightens everything and essentially becomes the dressing, (there's also some oil from when you roast the mushrooms and leeks.) It is a simple, light dish that speaks of the warm days and cool nights leading into fall.

Tomato Salads and Yard Chard

Besides herbs and lettuces, I only planted two things in my garden plot this year: as many tomato plants as I could squeeze in my tiny plot and Rainbow Swiss Chard. As anyone who has grown tomatoes will tell you, there's little more gratifying than going out and picking you own tomatoes. It is just a joy to nurture a little plant into a five-foot tall monster stooping under the weight of its meaty fruits. This year I planted Romas (plum tomatoes,) Sweet 100's (cherries,) Champion Reds (hybrids,) two Brandwine (my heirloom fave,) a yellow variety, a heirloom variety called Goliath, and Green Zebras (a tasty heirloom, green-when-ripe with yellow and green stripes.) It has been a good year and the plants have been generous. Tomatoes cover most flat surfaces in my kitchen and for a while I was even setting them on the dining room table.

We eat tomatoes one way or another just about every night. The funny thing is that even at restaurants, I can't resist ordering a Caprese Salad. I just want to check out the tomatoes they're using and how they are serving it. Plus often they'll serve a nicer cheese like a buffalo mozzarella, instead of a plain old cow's milk one. We don't only eat caprese salad, but they're always so pretty, they beg to be photographed.

I've planted chard before, but only just a plant or two. This year, I bought a packet of seeds and went to town. Rainbow Chard is also a real pleasure to grow. It is beautiful, for one. And for two, you can cut at it and (if you have enough plants) gather enough mature leaves for a night's dinner and still let the plants continue growning (the cut-and-come-again method.) You get to go out with a scissors and fill up your arms with a colorful stems and fluffy leaves and walk back inside with a gorgeous bouquet that will become your dinner or part of it. I have probably harvested 6 nights worth through July and August and my plants are thriving. Chard will do well for you through the fall in the midwest. You could even put some seed in now and get a harvest in October. The chard below is nice and young, but it will get more sturdy and the leaves, more leathery if you let it mature. It is good both ways, you just have to cook the older leaves longer. We like to call it "yard chard" to differentiate it from the store-bought kind. Even my plants can't keep up with the amount of chard we consume, so we still buy it from the farmers market or grocery store too.

Warm Peach and Prosciutto Salad with Arugula

Peaches and plums are what is good (in the midwest) right now. So here is an exceptionally good and seasonal salad from Michael Chiarello of the Food Network. It is Warm Peach and Prosciutto Salad with Arugula. The peaches and arugula are simply warmed briefly with a balsamic vinaigrette and plated over prosciutto. You get warm sweet from the peaches, bitter crunch from the arugula, salty chewy from the prosciutto and a pop of tartness from the vinaigrette. With all those flavors happening at once in your mouth, you gotta love it.

Turkey Joes and more

I'm so behind on posting that I think I'll do just a short recap of some of the recipes I've tried recently. First off, here's another new cookbook that I've really been enjoying. And NOT because Rick Bayless does the intro, but that is a plus. Molly Stevens is one of the editors and Fran McCollough, the other. Stevens is an acclaimed chef and cookbook author in her own right and McCollough too has authored cookbooks, though many seem to have to do with low-carb eating. (not my thing.)



The book is a diverse collection of recipes tried and hand selected from 2006. It's fun because the recipes are an interesting mix from magazines, cookbooks, newsletters and the internet. Many of the recipes from this book have gotten good reviews at CooksTalk . And I found it new on ebay for $10 and couldn't pass it up. I'm enjoying it so much, I think I will watch for the earlier editions of "Best Recipes" and pick them up if they're cheap

One recipe we've enjoyed is what we've called Turkey Joes, aka Sloppy Joes made with ground turkey. These were delicious and with a whole wheat bun, a savory, healthy weeknight dinner.


I also made a nice blueberry cobbler from the book. This time I played around a little with proportions because I wanted to make a small one in my 6 inch cast iron skillet. It turned out good to eat but not quite what I expected it to be (i.e. not cobbler-esque enough for me.) This was more like a blueberry clafouti. But I'm blaming myself and not the recipe for this. I will give it another try. I also made some TDF banana muffins from this book but failed to take pictures. But I promise I'll make them again soon and post picts and the recipe.

From Fine Cooking, I finally got around to making the Seared Scallops on Pea Puree from a few issues back (92). I wanted to wait until I could get some nice young fresh peas at the Farmers Market and that didn't happen until late June. This dish turned out really good. The seared scallops are delicious with the creamy sweet puree and there is some crispy pancetta and a gremolata to top it off. The pink pancetta pops on the green puree for a gorgeous plate. I won't wait for fresh peas to make this again. I think frozen would be fine.


I've also been doing a lot of beet salads because we really love them. Chioggia Beets are the ones with the candy stripes on the inside and they are really sweet. I love them next to a bitter green, some goat cheese and a tart vinaigrette, particularly one made with a white balsamic or champagne vinegar.

Finally, James Peterson, in his book, Fish and Shellfish, taught me that sometimes the simplest approach can be very rewarding indeed. Here I did his fish Bercy, which is basically a classic preparation of fish cooked gently with butter, white wine, lemon and herbs. It really brought out the best in these grouper fillets.




I'm done for now, but not caught up. We haven't yet talked about grilled pizza on the Fourth of July . . .

Sufferin' Succotash

If not for a sample offered by a nice person at Whole Foods, I would have never tried this salad. It is Edamame Succotash. Classic Succotash is a Native American dish usually made with lima/butter beans and corn and served warm. But Whole Foods version really brings it into the 21st century. It is a cold salad made with edamame, corn, dried cranberries, roasted red bell pepper and shiitake mushrooms. But that is not all, my friends: this is one global salad. It is dressed with a spicy mixture of sweet Thai chili sauce, red curry paste and toasted sesame oil. Sounds weird, huh? Yeah, that's how I felt too. But Jeesh, is it good.

So good, that after treating myself to a little, overpriced container for lunch each time I went to Whole Foods, I would say "I've got to make this salad." One thing about the salad at the WF deli is that somedays it was great and other days, not so much. The edamame need to look bright green and fresh looking. If the salad has been sitting in the deli case a few days, the beans take on a sallow, olive color and the flavor really suffers. I even returned a container one day because I swear the beans had started to ferment. (Of course, they were more than gracious about accepting my return.) But this is an even a better reason just to make your own. Dear husband loved this salad and took it for lunch two days in a row. I halved the recipe and we had no trouble finishing off the batch while it was fresh looking. It is a great way to work a nice portion of veggies into your afternoon. It is also a good way to use up leftover cooked corn on the cob (better if it hasn't been buttered and salted.) or best to just cook an extra ear. If you use frozen edamame, you need to blanch them and then shock them in cold water to stop the cooking. I cooked mine for about 4 minutes. The bag said 5, but I think they were tender enough for a salad at 4. Cook them to your taste.

The link to the recipe is above. But it may not work forever. WF changes their recipe offerings all the time; so what is available now, may not be a month from now. I urge you to copy and save it. Then try it - and let me know what you think.

Salad 2.0

Here is another salad that I've got say is TDF. If you like thai flavors, you'll love this. I've had this recipe for a while but it just so happened that I found myself with a savoy cabbage and some leftover chicken. I was looking through my recipes for something to do with them and this looked like just the thing. Luckily I have a great market two blocks down so I could easily obtain mint and cilantro and the other veggies needed.

The Vietnamese Chicken Salad is traditionally served this way, as sort of a stunning composed salad. The dressed chicken goes in the center and you make neat piles of the different vegetables all around and garnish with peanuts and fresh herbs. You place the platter on the table and then toss everything together.

Dear husband was a little unsure of a cabbage salad for dinner but he came around. And that is because the dressing for this salad is so perfectly balanced. Sometimes with Thai and Vietnamese dishes, the fish sauce can be a little strong. Here it is aromatically present but not in your face. There's lime juice and chile paste with garlic, sugar and other flavors that balance it out beautifully. You could toss this with some lawn clippings and I would eat it. It is truly memorable.

*Originally posted by Mean Chef from the Cooks Talk forum

"Here is my version of a Vietnamese chicken salad. It is light, peppy and very refreshing. You can adjust quantities and types of vegetables as you like. Just keep the dressing, cabbage, cilantro and mint. "

VIETNAMESE CHICKEN SALAD

Serving Size: 4

4 bone in chicken breast half breasts
1 tbsp Lee Kum Kee Chili Garlic Sauce (or other chile paste)
1 clove garlic -- minced
3 tbsps sugar
2 tbsps rice-wine vinegar
6 tbsps freshly squeezed lime juice
4 tbsps fish sauce
6 tbsps peanut oil
1 large head savoy cabbage -- shredded or chiffonade
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves -- finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves -- finely chopped
1 small red onion -- thinly sliced lengthwise
1 small fresh red or green hot chile pepper -- diced
1/2 seedless cucumber -- julienned
2 large carrots -- julienned
1 red bell pepper -- julienned
1/2 c roughly chopped roasted peanuts

1. Salt, pepper and roast chicken breasts at 400 until done. Cool.

2. Make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together chile paste, garlic, sugar, vinegar, lime juice, fish sauce, and peanut oil until well combined. Set aside.

3. Remove chicken meat from bones and slice each breast thinly on the bias.

4. In a medium bowl, toss together cabbage, mint, and cilantro. Add 1/2 of the dressing and toss. Place on a large platter or 4 individual platters. Top cabbage mixture with onion, pepper, cucumber, carrots, bell pepper, and chicken. Drizzle with the reserved dressing, garnish with peanuts and cilantro sprigs, and serve.
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In addition to the ingredients called for, I added some blanched and shocked snow pea pods that I julienned. (those are the dark green veg. in the picture) The only negative to this salad is the prep. There is quite a bit of julienne-ing. But hey! Look at it as an opportunity to hone your knife skills - pun intended.

You'll have leftover dressing. I've found a great thing to do with it is to toss it with broccoli slaw that can be bought in a package at a regular supermarket. This stuff is great. It has 25 calories per 3 oz. serving and tons of fiber. I like to use it to add to my regular salads, but if you toss it with this dressing and some cilantro you can make a simple, tasty salad in a flash. Here I used it as a side to an spicy orange salmon dish. I added some red pepper and garnished with peanuts.

Crispy Orange-glazed Salmon with vietnamese-flavored broccoli slaw.

The sweetness of orange juice tempers the heat of the chile pepper and red pepper flakes in this Thai-inspired dish, but it still has quite a kick. Prep: 15 minutes; Stand: 30 minutes; Cook: 9 minutes.

2/3 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lite soy sauce
1 small red Thai chile pepper, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, grated
4 (4- to 6-ounce) salmon fillets
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons honey
Hot cooked rice
Garnishes: sprouts, fresh cilantro, carrot and pepper strips, and edamame*

1. Stir together first 6 ingredients in a glass baking dish or shallow bowl. Add salmon, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, turning to coat evenly. Marinate at least 30 minutes. Remove salmon, reserving marinade, and season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, and add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cook salmon 3 to 4 minutes per side or until fish begins to flake with fork; remove from pan. Pour reserved marinade into skillet, and add honey. Heat about 3 minutes or until syrupy. Serve salmon warm over a mound of rice, topped with sauce. Garnish, if desired.
*Edamame is available in the freezer section of most supermarkets.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Cottage Living, MARCH 2007

Salad of the month

I think I've made this salad four times since the beginning of the year. I found it on a nifty food blog called Under the High Chair. She calls it Winter Salad of Russet Apple, Pomegranate and Pecans. A fancy name, but it is just a simple combination of apple, celery, pomegranate, shallot and pecans with an apple cider vinegar vinaigrette. I just love it and I want to call it Waldorf Salad Nouveau. For a few days last week I couldn't find a pomegranate at any market. I learned that pomegranate season runs from September to January. And I feared that my salad days were over. But, ever diligent, I kept going to different markets until I found some and then I bought a bunch to hold me over for a while.

The recipe calls for juicing the pomegranate and then reducing the juice to a syrup for drizzling over the salad. I cheat on this step by buying Pom juice and reducing that (much less messy than juicing a pomegranate.) The blog writer calls it her "play-date" salad because she makes it for moms when they meet for playdates. So for the first time, I made it with some girlfriends during a little lunch "play-date." It went over well. You can also put it this salad over greens (like baby spinach or romaine) to make it more substantial. But I like it best just as a composed little course of a salad.

The salad is simple elegance defined. S make it while you can. Also if it is still possible to get pomegranates near Valentine's Day, I could not imagine a more appropriately gorgeous first course to a romantic dinner for two.

Winter Salad of Russet Apple, Pomegranate, and Pecans - from Under the High Chair

1 russet apple, julienne
1 pomegranate, seeds removed
1 stalk firm celery, julienne
¼ cup pecans, lightly toasted and roughly chopped
1 shallot, julienne
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons grape seed oil
Salt and pepper

In a very small saucepan, bring apple cider vinegar to a boil. Pour over julienne shallots and allow to cool to room temperature. Mix in grape seed oil and set aside.
Reserve about ¼ cup of the pomegranate seeds and crush the rest to extract the juice. Pour off the juice into a wide, shallow bowl and place in microwave. Microwave on high for three minutes, then scrape down sides with a spatula a stir slightly. Juice will be reducing and thickening. Microwave, one minute at a time, checking consistency between each minute until juice is consistency of maple syrup. Cool.

In a bowl, toss together the apple, reserved pomegranate seeds, celery, and shallots and some of the apple cider marinade. Season with salt and pepper and add more vinaigrette if needed. Add pecans, toss and mound onto a plate. Drizzle with pomegranate reduction and serve.

Borrowed Salad

Recently at Metropolis, I picked up a Frisee Salad with cranberries, candied walnuts and manchego cheese. It was accompanied by a little cup of shallot vinaigrette. I didn't know, when I opened that clam shell box, that I'd be getting the best packaged salad of my life (so far.) Sure the ingredients appealed to me that's why I bought it to begin with. But it was better than that. That little container held an tangy dressing that stood up to the slightly bitter frisee and accentuated those cranberries and walnuts. The dry manchego balanced it all. After devouring the salad I went back to look at the label. It had come from the Southport Grocery and Cafe'. They sell their products wholesale to companies that apparently care about quality, like Metropolis. I wrote Southport Grocery to comment on the deliciousness of their salad and then I promptly set out to make a similar vinaigrette.

So far the closest thing I've found to mimic that flavor is a very simple minced shallot, white balsamic vinegar and vegetable oil mixture. Olive oil is definitely wrong here, unless maybe it is just my peppery extra virgin. Still I think I'm missing something, maybe a squeeze of lemon, but I'm close to what I remember. This salad is done with spinach, dried cherries, non-candied walnuts and manchego. Dear husband enjoyed it quite a bit and that's good because he will continue to see it until I get that vinaigrette perfect.