Tag: Salad
Nectarine and Tomato Salad
I was in the kitchen listening to the radio the other day- which, by the way is my favorite thing to do- when I heard someone talk about summer tomatoes. They were saying how good the crop is this year because of the hot hot weather. I realized it to be true as I thought about the bumper tomato crop I have been harvesting from my backyard. The tomatoes have been unbelievable. I mostly grown cherry tomatoes- I love them. They are super versatile and delicious.
Anyway, the radio person suggested a peach and tomato salad- and that is where I got my inspiration. It is so simple that I am almost embarrassed to post it as a recipe.
The key ingredient is balsamic glaze. You can buy it at a specialty store- I bought my from Italy but you can make your own as well. It is as simple as cooking regular balsamic vinegar down on a medium heat until it cooks down to a syrupy consistency. That is all this salad has- salt, really good olive oil and thyme.
It is very delicious- the combination of tomatoes and nectarines is unbelievable. Before summer is over- try this super simple salad…
- 2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1 to 2 nectarines cut into ½ inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons balsamic glaze
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme
Add the cherry tomatoes and nectarines into a medium bowl. Add the salt and olive oil. Let them sit for at least an hour. Add the fresh thyme and balsamic glaze and serve.
Spicy Calamari Salad
This is my version of a spicy calamari I had at a new Thai restaurant in Chatham- Thai Passion. I reviewed it a couple weeks ago.
This salad got my attention- it was fabulous- although I realized it was a bit over the top with the flavoring. I really enjoyed it but while I was trying to decide how to replicate this salad, I decided to tone it down a bit. At the same time, I didn’t want to lose the essence of the dish- which was a lot of spicy, savory, tangy and a bit of sweet. Writing about it makes me want to eat some- my mouth is salivating. If you live in the area- you should go try it in Chatham. If you don’t live in the Jersey area, try the recipe I have created.
As I mentioned before, this version is a bit toned down. I used tamarind concentrate, lime juice,Worcestershire sauce, palm sugar, sriracha sauce, etc. Once the dressing was made, all I had to do was to cook the calamari. I will attach the video that goes with this recipe.
Try this salad- it is a great dish to make in the summer time…
- ¼ pound calamari, defrosted and cut into ½ inch rings
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Heat a non-stick frying pan and add the olive oil on high heat. Add the calamari and sprinkle salt. Saute on high heat for two minutes just until the rings turn opaque. Turn the heat off and drain on a paper towel.
- 2 cups mixed greens
- ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
- ½ cup green beans, blanched
- 1 medium tomato, cut into 1-inch squares
Toss the mixed greens with the basil, mint, green beans and tomato. Add the calamari and mix well.
Vinaigrette
- ½ teaspoon tamarind concentrate
- Juice of half a lime
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon tamari
- 2 teaspoons sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon palm sugar
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
Add the tamarind, limejuice, Worcestershire sauce, tamari, fish sauce, sriracha and palm sugar into a small bowl. Drizzle the olive oil while whisking the dressing. Pour the dressing on top of the salad and toss lightly before serving.
Israeli Couscous with Cranberries and Pecans
This is yet another great side dish to serve with any kind of protein. It will go really well with burgers, hot dogs, steaks and fish.
I made it with some grilled chicken. I used the harvest grain blend from Trader Joes which includes a few different grains including Israeli couscous.
I kept it simple with dried cranberries and pecans.
I made a quick orange dressing with fresh orange juice, orange zest, white wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. I mixed the yummy dressing into the cooked couscous blend and I had a delicious and healthy side dish.
My daughter didn’t care for the cranberries and nuts- so I took them out for her and she ate the grains. I made a simple green salad on the side and we had a light and delicious meal.
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Mango and Rice Salad
I love, love this salad. I utilized our favorite fruit in the house-mangoes. I make everything with this delicious fruit- entrees, appetizers, salads and dessert, oh, and some delicious drinks as well. I needed to serve a side dish with the shrimp curry I posted yesterday. I wanted to make some kind of a starch and also vegetables. I decided to make a rice salad (never made one before) and use mangoes, red peppers, green onions, cilantro and mint. How can you go wrong with all those delicious ingredients??
I made a fabulous dressing consisting of rice vinegar, honey and olive oil. It is amazing to me how just the right ingredients can make such a big difference in a dish. The tangy dressing made the rice salad absolutely delicious and it went perfectly with the shrimp curry. We ate the rice salad a few days even after the curry was finished. It tasted better the next day.
This salad will be perfect with any grilled entree like hamburgers, hot dogs or even steak. This will be a staple in our house for the summer.
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Spinach and Strawberry Salad
This salad epitomizes summer according to me. It looks bright and colorful with the baby spinach and strawberries. It is super healthy and includes walnuts- which, just like spinach is a super food.
We were having one of our Friday pizza parties and I was grilling pizzas outside. I wanted to make a light, easy salad that will be delicious with the dinner.
I had lots of strawberries and always keep baby spinach in the fridge. I paired them together and added the walnuts to the mix. I came up with a simple balsamic dressing. Since strawberries were the main ingredient, I added some strawberry jam to the dressing. It added a great delicious tang to the vinaigrette.
Overall the salad was delicious. It went perfectly well with the grilled pizzas, in fact I think it will go well with any entree. I served a chilled white wine and the meal was great.
Try this salad this summer, you will love it.
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Zucchini Risotto with Arugula and Steak Salad
Family was visiting from Austin and wanted to eat something delicious, different and gourmet- what the heck was I supposed to make??
Risotto was discussed briefly and so I started thinking about arborio rice. How should I cook it and what should I serve with it? When I am coming up with a menu- I try to include a vegetable and a protein with the starch. I am thrilled to include all the food groups on one plate.
My husband reminded me of the zucchini pesto in the fridge- “maybe you can add that to the risotto”, he said. Wow, I thought – all this cooking is rubbing off on him as well. What a great idea- that is what I did. I made a simple risotto with chicken broth and folded in some velvety zucchini pesto.
What about the protein? We were in Trader Joes and my idea was to buy the marinated, frozen rack of lamb. It is delicious and very easy- just roast in the oven and serve. Turns out that some of them didn’t care for lamb- so it was back to the drawing board. I was walking around Trader Joes and came across tip steak. I decided to marinate the steak and make a salad with the arugula and serve them on top of the hot risotto.
Well, the combination was delicious. I love cold salad on top of anything hot. In this case the bitter arugula was fabulous with the garlicky steak and the creamy risotto. It was a big success and everyone loved it. We drank a wonderful merlot with the meal- it is great spending time with family!
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A Rustic Panzanella Salad Recipe
This salad is delicious. I have watched people on food television in the past making many different versions of it.Panzanella salad is essentially a way to use up day old or even up to a week old bread and any other things you may have in the fridge. Italian cuisine is well known for using leftovers and coming up with new, innovative dishes- I love it!
I had it first in Umbria last month when Paola made it for us. She made a 6 course meal for us- which was delicious. We started with this salad which she put together in a matter of minutes. We bought a big loaf of rustic bread earlier that day. She sliced it and topped it with a combination of greens, cucumbers, fresh extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. I have seen different versions of this – but never this particular one- so simple!
I was a bit hesitant to replicate this easy dish as I wasn’t sure if my ingredients would stand up to the one Paola used. I bought everything from the farmer’s market, including the bread. I made the salad the same day and served it with the sausage and peppers pasta. Well, it was delicious! The ingredients were fresh and exactly how they are supposed to taste. Everything worked really well together and the bread was soaked just the right amount and was a bit mushy and crunchy at the same time. I think you could definitely make a meal out of it- especially if you add some protein like shrimp or chicken.
It took me back to the kitchen in Spello where we sipped wine and watched Paola cooking. I love how food takes you back…
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