Annual Thanksgiving Salad

 Mixed Greens with Toasted Nuts, Boucheron & Fruit 

For the last 5+ years (and possibly longer), I have been making the same salad for Thanksgiving dinner. I'm not sure why this became the Thanksgiving salad, but I suppose it has to do with how nicely it rounds out the meal while still feeling fall and festive. This year was no exception to how delish this salad really is. Everyone at the table had some, and everyone enjoyed it thoroughly. In fact, it made me realize that I should make this salad more often as it can easily be served anytime of year. Hope you enjoy as much as we did. Bon appetit!

Ingredients: (serves 10-12) 

• 2-4 cups mixed greens
• 2-4 oz Boucheron cheese (type of goat cheese found at most local supermarkets)
• 1 Asian pear, thinly sliced
• 1/8 cup chopped pecans 
• 1/8 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries (fruit juice sweetened)
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• red wine vinegar
• dijon mustard
• 1 egg yolk
• salt & pepper, to taste

Salad dressing: I don’t measure this, but you want about 1 part olive oil to equal parts balsamic and red wine vinegars, and roughly 2 Tbsp mustard. In a jar combine olive oil, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, mustard, egg yolk, salt and pepper. Shake until yolk is disolved. Keep adding vinegar of choice or mustard to taste (more balsamic = sweeter, more mustard and red wine vinegar = tangier).


Place greens in large mixing bowl and toss with dressing. Top greens with pear, cheese, nuts & cranberries. Serve & enjoy!

Rustic Baby Kale Salad

Rustic Baby Kale Salad

with Dried Apricots, Dried Cherries, Roasted Pecans & Feta

This week was loooong. Not the unenjoyable long, but the I bought groceries for the week on Sunday and still haven't found the time to cook most of it cause I've been going around the clock long. So when Thursday night rolled around and I realized that I hadn't planned a salad for this week nor made one yet, I started to rummage through the kitchen looking for goodies. It's only fair to admit here that I keep a pretty well stocked household, especially when it comes to nuts, dried fruits and cheeses, and that has helped to provide last-minute healthy meals on a number of occasions. Tonight's salad was no exception. I had some baby kale in the fridge which I had never used as a salad base before (and boy was it good!), so figured a rustic, rummaged route was the way to go. Turned out to be pretty delish and def filling. And yes, it really is the worlds easiest salad- no chopping even! Bon appetit!

Ingredients:

• 1-2 cups baby kale
• 1/8 cup dried, unsweetened cherries
• 1/8 cup dried, un-sulfured apricots
• 1/4 cup roasted pecans
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette (use dressing of choice here- I used a bottle this week)

Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well until evenly coated. Plate and serve. Enjoy!

On the Saltier Side

Sauteed Shrimp & Mixed Olive Salad

with Ossau-Iraty Cheese

I'm not sure if it was the snow or my awesome training sesh, but something about yesterday had me craving a salty salad. I have to admit that I went to the store without a clue of what I was going to make, and dragged the bf with me (which was a wise choice seeing as the first three ideas didn't appeal to him as a dinner option) hoping to find inspiration at Whole Foods. Yes people I admit, I sometimes can't resist the overpriced produce and cheeses they offer and it seemed a better place to glean inspiration than say Shaw's. After aimlessly walking around the produce section for what felt like hours, I decided that the cheese counter was where I was going to start. My instinct was a good one as after tasting two cheeses, the idea for a salad emerged. The cheese used in this recipe is Ossau-Iraty, a raw sheep's milk cheese from the Basque region of France. It has a really nice nutty flavor to it which lent great balance to the salad. I will warn you, the salad as is is salty & tart, but both of those flavors can be modified by using different seasoning on the shrimp and a different dressing. Hope you enjoy, I know we did! Bon appetit! 

Ingredients:

• 1-2 cups Spring Mix (or other mixed greens of choice)
• 1oz Ossau-Iraty, cubed
• 2-3 Alfonso olives
• 2-4 Arbequina Spanish olives
• 2-3 Castelvetrano olives
• 2-4 Kalamata olives
• 1/4 lb raw, de-veined shrimp
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/4-1/2 cup chicken broth or water
• 1-2 Tbsp Goya Adobo seasoning
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 tsp olive oil
• pepper to taste

In a large sauteed pan, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil and minced garlic. Once heated add shrimp and sautee for 2-3min or until slightly pink. Add Adobo and chicken both or water and continue to sautee until fully cooked. While shrimp is cooking, combine all other ingredients in a large bowl, toss together until evenly coated and plate salad mixture. Place fully cooked shrimp on top of salad mixture. Voila!

Roasted Mushrooms & Poached Egg Salad

Roasted Mushrooms & Poached Egg Salad

with Arugula & Fresh, Shaved Parm

I don't know where the inspiration for this one came from, but I think I was craving a poached egg and new I needed a salad for this week. When describing the salad concept to friends and the bf, I realized that it sounds like an incredibly fancy dish. However, I promise you it is a super speedy and easy recipe! I'm not going to delve into how to poach an egg below as there are a gazillion methods (if you don't know how to do this there are numerous websites and probably YouTube vids that can guide you step-by-step). I will admit to using an egg poacher for this dish. I'm not sure that it's my preferred poaching method, but I had one and thought I'd give it a shot. The eggs came out pretty good but I think I like the old school way of submerging them in water better. What I can say is that you want to make sure you don't overcook the egg. The whole point of this dish is for the yolk to act as the dressing so you wan tit to be as runny as possible. I had a friend over dinns and made this and we both loved it. I hope you enjoy it too! Bon appetit!

Ingredients: 

• 1 egg, raw
• 1 cup arugula
• 1/2 pckg (about 1/2 cup) excotic mixed mushrooms (or any mushroom of choice)
• 1 slice fresh, shaved parm or pecorino (I used pecorino)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/8 tsp truffle oil
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt & pepper to taste

Turn over to Briol-Low heat setting. In small sautee pan, heat 1 Tsbp olive oil and 1/8 tsp truffle oil. Once oil is warm, add mushrooms and sautee until soft. Remove mushrooms from pan and place on broiler pan. Place mushrooms in oven on top rack and broil until lightly browned. 

While mushrooms are broiling, poach egg. While egg is poaching, place 1 cup arugula on plate and drizzle 1 tsp of olive oil (add salt & pepper to taste). Pull mushrooms from the oven and place on top of arugula. Shave one slice of fresh parm and break into shaving pieces. Lay parm shavings over mushrooms. Pull egg from water and place on top of cheese. Lightly salt & pepper egg. Voila! Enjoy.