Succotash is a hot bean and corn dish that was  popular during the Great Depression because of the ingredients were more readily available than most other foods and relatively less expensive. I’m not a fan of traditional succotash… but turn it into a cold salad with basil dressing, and I’m all in!

Succotash Salad with Basil Dressing

2 cups frozen baby lima beans, thawed
2 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed
1 tablespoon salt
1 pound green beans, trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Two 15- to 16-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed, drained
3 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
2 cups peeled and diced sweet onion
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil, divided
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Roma tomatoes, sliced

Bring a large saucepan of water to boil. Add the lima beans, edamame, and salt and cook 2 minutes. Add green beans and cook until all beans are just tender, about 4 minutes longer. Drain. Rinse beans under cold water; drain well. Transfer to large bowl. Add kidney beans, corn, and onion.

Puree 3/4 cup of the basil, yogurt, mayonnaise, and vinegar in a blender or food processor. Add dressing to bean mixture; toss to blend well. Season salad with salt and pepper.

Transfer salad to a platter. Surround with tomato slices. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup basil over salad and serve.

Serves 8

We’re going to use the first portion of the roasted vegetables from yesterday’s post in this recipe. You will need to estimate and set aside 1/4 of the yield from each vegetable, keeping them separated. Then make a tart crust (or you could just use 1 sheet of puff pastry).  I link you to a tart dough recipe here on the blog. You’ll only need half of it, but go ahead and make the full amount. You will love this tart and you’ll want to make it again, I promise! So make the full amount and freeze the other half of the dough and it’ll be even easier to make the next time.

I served the tart at a dinner party atop baby greens that were lightly coated with this vinaigrette,  but straight up is great too.

P.S. I’m just sorry that I served it on this bright peppermint stripe platter (hey, it was still the Christmas season) because it totally distracts from how bright and colorful the tart is. Go back up and see the top photo for proof of that!

Roasted Vegetable – Goat Cheese Tart

1/2 tart crust recipe from HERE
4 ounces goat cheese, room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 egg
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 of the Roasted Vegetable yield from HERE, (peppers, thinly sliced; eggplant, fennel, and onion, roughly chopped)

Roll out the tart crust dough into a 16 x 7-inch rectangle. Line a 13 x 3.5 x 1-inch rectangular tart pan with the dough, pressing firmly into the corners, cut off any excess draping over the sides. Lightly poke the bottom of the crust with a fork and Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Move one of the oven racks to the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees.  Blind bake the chilled crust for 12 minutes, or until set and lightly browned.  Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly while you prepare the filling.

Using an electric mixer combine the goat cheese, cream cheese, and 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan cheese in medium bowl until smooth. Add egg and mix on high until smooth and creamy, for about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.

Spread the cheese filling evenly over the bottom of the tart shell. Arrange the roasted vegetables decoratively, in horizontal rows, over the filling.

Bake the tart until the filling and topping are heated through and the crust is golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese.  Let cool 5 minutes before cutting and serving. (May also be served at room temperature.)

Serves 6 to 8

Last night was the first time I’ve cooked any sort of food for Dave and myself… in… let’s see… 11 days. Unbelievable! I think that is the longest stretch of “no-cook” time for me since back in 2008 when we were traveling through France and Italy with the kids. But, I’m back and the recipes will again be flowing, thanks for hanging in there with me through the trip to Sedona, the foot injury, and birthdays. :-D

On Wednesday, my dad took me to True Food Kitchen at Scottsdale Quarter for my birthday lunch. I usually order the light and luscious Edamame Dumplings, or their delicious Herb Hummus, or the fabulous Wild Ahi Sliders… but this time I decided to try the Mediterranean Chopped Salad. Good choice! Actually, I’ve never had anything I didn’t enjoy from the menu. The photo at the top is the True Food salad – taken with my new iPhone 4s, which I LOVE!  Once I got home, I just had to recreate it for Dave.  He, of course, loved it… and you will too.

True Food uses red quinoa in their salad, I had the white on hand (you can also find black quinoa), otherwise, this salad tasted exactly like the one you’d be served at the restaurant. They also offer the salad with the addition of grilled chicken or salmon, obviously you can too.

True Food Kitchen’s Mediterranean Chopped Salad Knock-off

2 cups cold water
1 cup uncooked quinoa

Lemon-Oregano Vinaigrette
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons fresh oregano, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 of an English cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 large handfuls green beans, trimmed and steamed
2 cups cherry or teardrop tomatoes
3/4 cup Marcona almonds
3 cups arugula or spinach leaves
1 cup crumbled feta or queso cotijta cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the quinoa and stir, simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, cover, and set aside for 15 minutes.  Fluff with a fork and spread out on a plate to cool to room temperature.

While the quinoa is cooking and cooling, make the vinaigrette. Place the garlic, lemon zest, juice, vinegar, mustard, honey, oregano, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl and blend well.  While continually whisking, slowly drizzle in the olive oil, until dressing is emulsified.

In a large salad bowl, toss together the cucumber, olives, green beans, tomatoes, almonds, and arugula. Add the cooled quinoa, cheese, and vinaigrette.  Toss until all ingredients are coated with the vinaigrette, taste for seasoning, and serve.

Serves 4

This is the recipe using smoked salmon that I told you about a couple days ago, the one I found in an old Gourmet Magazine and wanted to try for my smoked salmon-loving husband.  It is a winner!!! Perfect for picnics, tailgating, or lunch brown-bagging.

If you made the Brussels sprout salad from yesterday’s post, then you have extra mustard vinaigrette leftover… use 1/4 cup of that and just stir in the shallot listed here… then skip making the vinaigrette in this recipe, and you are ready to rock and roll.

Picnic Salad in a Jar

Inspired by a recipe from Gourmet Magazine 2008

1/2 pound haricots verts, cut into 1-inch lengths
1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard
1 small shallot, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
6 hard-boiled large eggs, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup mayonnaise or Greek yogurt
2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce
1 large celery rib, finely diced
2 tablespoons minced chives
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 pound sliced smoked salmon, coarsely chopped
5 cups baby spinach leaves

4 (16-ounce) wide mouth jars with lids

Blanch beans in a medium saucepan of boiling salted water, uncovered, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.

Lift beans out with a slotted spoon or spider and drop into an ice bath to stop the cooking and cool. Drain on paper towels.

In a medium bowl, whisk together mustard, shallot, vinegar, oil, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Add green beans to bowl and toss to coat.

Stir together chopped eggs, mayonnaise, Sriracha sauce, celery, chives, lemon zest and juice in a medium bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Divided the egg salad among the four jars. Layer the salmon, green beans, and then the spinach on top. Screw on the lids and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Assembled jars can be chilled for up to 36 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.

To serve, invert the  jar over a dinner plate and gently dump ingredients onto plate. Season with freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately.

Serves 4

If you have ever eaten at Chelsea’s Kitchen, here in Phoenix, then you have most likely enjoyed or watched someone else enjoy the out-of-this-world Brussels sprout salad.  The only thing I can’t get over is the price… $14 for a salad seems a tad pricey. Luckily this delicious salad is easy to make at home for just pennies on the restaurant dollar.

And this mustard vinaigrette… one of the best and most versatile vinaigrettes you will ever make. So although you don’t use even half of it for this salad, you are going to want to use it on salads from here on out!

Brussels Sprout Salad

Salad
1 pound Brussels sprouts
1/4 cup dried Trader Joe’s Triple Fruit Treat, or a mix of dried cranberries and blueberries
1/4 cup whole Spanish Marcona almonds
2 ounces Manchego cheese shavings (using a vegetable peeler)
2 slices maple bacon; cooked crisp, drained, and crumbled

Mustard Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons honey or agave nectar
1  1/2 tablespoons Champagne or white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
1 large garlic clove, peeled and minced
3/4 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Slice the end off of each Brussels sprout and peel off the outer leaves. Once the leaves become difficult to remove, slice off a bit more of the bottom of each sprout until the leaves come off easily.  Discard the cores or save for another use. You will have about 6 loose-packed cups of leaves.

In a large pot of boiling water, blanch the Brussels sprouts leaves for about 1 minute, or until they are a vibrant green and just tender-crisp.

Use a slotted spoon or spider to lift out and immediately transfer to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

Drain and place in a single layer on paper towels, layering paper towels, if needed.

Then roll up the paper towels and place in the refrigerator to chill and crisp the leaves for at least 45 minutes.

In the meantime make the vinaigrette: In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, vinegar, lemon zest, lemon juice, mustard, and garlic. Continue whisking while slowly drizzling in the olive oil until the oil is thoroughly incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill.  (Makes about 1 cup which is more than is needed for this recipe.  It will keep for 1 week, covered and refrigerated.)

In a large bowl, toss the Brussels sprouts leaves, dried fruit, almonds, and just enough vinaigrette to lightly moisten.

Mound the salad on a plate, and top with the Manchego cheese shavings and crumbled bacon. Serve immediately.

Serves 4

Since today is Saturday, I am back to being plain old Linda, instead of Juror #7. But on Wednesday morning, after arriving in the jury room with my fellow jurors, the bailiff entered and requested that Juror #7 come with her to the Judge’s chambers. I am sure the remaining 8 thought I was in trouble, but I knew what it was about. Of course, I still can’t tell you, but stay tuned, I’m certain that you will find it quite entertaining.

What I find entertaining is how each time we (The Jury) enter and exit the courtroom, all remaining people in the room are told to “rise for The Jury.”  Like we are royalty or something. The 9 of us, who are being paid $12 a day (plus mileage) get the royal treatment.  You know what I would honestly appreciate so much more? If each person in the room would just put a dollar or two on each or our chairs every time we enter or exit. That would be preferred to having them stand, and it would more double our compensation. I’m considering making that request… On second thought, that might result in me being called into the Judge’s chambers again, and this time I would be in trouble, probably for contempt.  I’ll keep that suggestion to myself, for now at least.

For you, today, I have a delicious partially roasted and partially fresh cherry tomato and fennel salad using the fennel frond pesto from yesterday. I hope you enjoy the salad and the long holiday weekend.

Tomato & Fennel Salad with Fennel Frond Pesto

2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half, divided
2 cups thinly sliced fennel bulb, divided
Olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup Fennel Frond Pesto
Salt
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place half of the cherry tomato halves and half of the fennel slices on a baking sheet. Drizzle lightly with olive and season generously with pepper. Roast in preheated oven for 20 minutes, transfer to a plate and set aside to cool.

While roasted vegetables are cooling thin the pesto slightly with a couple teaspoons of hot tap water until it is at a consistency just thin enough to drizzle.

Divide the fresh sliced fennel between two plates and scatter half of the roasted tomatoes and fennel between the plates, atop the fresh fennel. Place the fresh cherry tomatoes halves on top and drizzle each plate with the thinned pesto. Sprinkle both salads with pine nuts, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Serves 2

I am just getting around to using up the remaining radicchio and Napa cabbage from this post. And I’ll be using a favorite dressing that I’ve already told you about as well, so use the link in the ingredient list for the dressing recipe. I used a portion of the greens already for fish tacos and I’ll share that recipe in a few days. Not much more to say, time is short, so I am just happy to get dinner on the table and have time to post the recipe and keep the streak alive… 71 and counting.

Summer Garden Salad with Smoked Paprika Shrimp

4 thick center-cut bacon slices
1 pound jumbo shrimp (21-25 ct), peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large shallot, peeled and diced
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Sweet Basil Dressing
1 Napa cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
1 head radicchio, cored and thinly sliced
2 cups teardrop or cherry tomatoes
2 cups mini mozzarella balls (brocconcini) halved
2 ripe avocados, peeled and cubed

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels; cut in quarters crosswise. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon drippings from the skillet.  Increase heat to medium-high. Sprinkle shrimp with paprika, salt, and pepper.  Add shrimp to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove to a plate, spreading out to cool.

Add the shallot and corn to the skillet and saute until the shallots are soft and translucent. Stir in the thyme. Remove from heat and add the corn mixture to the plate with the shrimp to cool. While the shrimp and corn cool, make the dressing.

Place the Napa cabbage and radicchio in a large bowl and toss with 1/2 cup of the dressing.  Divide the greens between 4 large dinner plates. Top each plate with 5 to 6 shrimp, 1/4 cup corn mixture, 1/2 cup tomatoes, 1/4 cup mozzarella halves, 1/2 avocado, and 4 bacon pieces.  Drizzle each salad with additional dressing and serve.

Serves 4

Tonight is the big Cookbook Happy Hour. In the next week, I’ll post recipes for the drinks and appetizers we enjoyed; including drink recipes for those infused vodkas I made at the end of July.  Now a little rundown of the blog birthday official numbers…

2 years
730 days
668 posts
577 recipes
1,508 comments (Thank YOU!)
11,876 spam (what the heck?!?)

Enough reflection – time for a recipe #578.

Another place that Kathy took me out to eat while in Florida was to Rocco’s Tacos in West Palm Beach.  Cute name, nice place, with a huge menu.. but really, we had to order tacos for lunch.  With that name, it wasn’t really much of a decision. The tacos were satisfactory, the sangria and guacamole yummy, but what intrigued me was the special salad of the day. I dissected it and made it for dinner last night… it is a winner.  Especially the chipotle vinaigrette I created. It would be awesome on a potato salad or coleslaw too. Check it out and see if you agree.

Romaine Salad with Chili Crusted Chicken and Sweet Chipotle Vinaigrette

Sweet Chipotle Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 small canned chipotle chile in adobo plus 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons peeled and finely diced red onion
Freshly ground black pepper

Chili Crusted Chicken
1 large lemon
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1 tablespoon peeled and minced garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 or 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Salad
2 hearts of romaine; washed, spun dry, and torn into bite-size pieces
1/2 cup thin red onion slices
1 cup roasted red pepper slices
1 avocado, peeled and thinly sliced
1 cup fresh or frozen corn, thawed

Sweet Chipotle Vinaigrette: Place all ingredients, except the red onion, in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Transfer to a bowl and stir in the red onion.  Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.

Chili Crusted Chicken:  Zest and juice the lemon into a small bowl.  Stir in the oregano and chili powder to make a paste. Stir in the garlic.

Brush 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over the top side of the breasts and then coat with the chili paste.  Leave the bottom side of breasts uncoated.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add remaining olive oil and sear the chicken, uncoated-side down.  Cook for about 6 to 7 minutes. 

Turn chicken over onto the top coated-side and cook for 5 or 6 additional minutes, or until chicken is cooked completely through.  Set aside until cool enough to handle, then slice on a diagonal.

Salad:  Place the romaine in a large bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Divide evenly between 4 large dinner plates. In the same bowl, add the onion, pepper, avocado, and corn and toss with 2 tablespoons vinaigrette. Divide evenly between the dinner plates, topping the lettuce.  Finally, place the sliced chicken in the same bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon vinaigrette. Lay the chicken slices atop the salad, along the outside edge.  Serve, passing the remaining vinaigrette.

Serves 4

Last Monday morning, after Marissa had left for work and I returned back to her apartment from taking Dave to the airport, I sat down to eat lunch. It consisted of a boxed salad I’d picked up at Trader Joe’s the day before. My plan was to eat half of it and save the remaining half for lunch on Tuesday; that didn’t happen. I scarfed down the entire tasty thing.  Monday night, when Marissa came home from work, we jumped in her car and headed back to Trader Joe’s to do her “big” grocery run.  She would finally have stocked shelves, refrigerator, freezer, and wine rack and could stop eating like like a “third grader with a drinking problem.” Instead she is now a young woman with healthy choices and plenty of nice wine to accompany her adult meals. (Did you know that in California “Two Buck Chuck” is actually two bucks, well actually $1.99?  Not that the $2.99 we pay in AZ is a bad deal, but I always wondered why it was called “Two Buck” when it really cost three bucks… now I know.)

Anyhow, point is, I picked up another box of the same salad for my Tuesday lunch… and finished it off again after a long morning of shopping for the apartment. I’d made myself a long “must get” list, which resulted in a late (as in around 2:30) lunch, so I was famished.  Now what was I going to to for my lunch on Wednesday?  You guessed it… I bought another box of the same salad.  And this time, I didn’t even bother transferring to a dinner plate, just ate it right out of the plastic box, pitiful!

Believe it or not, I’m not sick of it yet… so I made it for dinner last night.  Best part? There are leftovers. I’ll be having it for lunch today, and I’m already looking forward to it.  The recipe I’m going to give you has several revisions, substitutions, and two regrettable omissions.

• I used seared scallops instead of grilled chicken, just because I had scallops in the freezer I wanted to use up. Any protein will do, chicken, fish, beef, or pork… or none at all, it’s a filling salad with or without.
• I substituted Jarlsberg Swiss cheese for the Asiago, again because I had it on hand, I’ve decided I prefer the Asiago.
• I used red Belgium endive instead of red cabbage because I didn’t want a nearly full head of cabbage leftover and I adore those little packs of 2 white and 1 red Belgium you can get at TJ’s.  They never go to waste around here.
• I subbed other dried fruits for the dried currants in the TJ version. There is a package of TJ’s Triple Fruit Treat in my pantry (a mix of dried mango, cranberries & blackberries). This, I recommend highly, it really added to the salad. Besides, currants are hard to find, even TJ’s rarely has them available.
• And finally, I forgot that the salad had corn and diced red bell peppers in it until I went to post the picture here a few minutes ago. So you won’t see corn or peppers in the picture of my salad, but I’m adding them to the recipe, they are a must!

Field Fresh Chopped Salad with Seared Scallops and Sweet Basil Dressing ala Trader Joe’s

Sweet Basil Dressing
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
3/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup water, or more to adjust to desired consistency
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 large garlic clove, peeled and smashed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Salad
1  3/4 cups water
1  1/3 cup Israeli couscous
1 pound sea scallops, defrosted and patted very dry
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 hearts Romaine lettuce, chopped
1 head red Belgium endive, thinly sliced
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted and patted very dry
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 small red bell pepper; cored, seeded and diced
3/4 dried TJ’s Triple Fruit Treat, or any dried fruit of your choice
1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese
3/4 cup chopped toasted pecans

Dressing:  Place all ingredients, except the oil and black pepper, in a blender or food processor and blend on high until well combined. With the motor running, add oil in a steady stream through the feed tube, until the mixture is thick and emulsified. Taste and thin with more water if desired. Season with black pepper, to taste.  Makes about 3 cups. May be stored in a jar for up to 12 days in the refrigerator.

Salad: Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the couscous and simmer, covered, for 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with fork and spread out onto a large baking sheet to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, pat scallops dry and generously season with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over high heat and add the olive oil and butter.  When the butter is bubbling, add the scallops. Do not crowd the pan, leave space between each scallop; sear until golden brown on one side, turn over and sear on other side until golden brown and just cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes total. Transfer to a plate. When scallops have cooled slightly, cut each into 4 pieces.

In a large serving bowl, toss together the cooled couscous, Romaine, endive, corn, green onions, bell pepper, dried fruit, and cheese. Divide between 6 dinner plates or large flat bowls and top with toasted pecans and scallops. Pour dressing into a small bowl or pitcher. Pass at the table and allow guests to dress their own salad.

Serves 6

Today we’ll use two more of the 10 “cheap super-foods” I introduced you to on Sunday; sweet potato and mango.  I’ll leave it up to you on how to use the remaining “everyday” five; low-fat milk, eggs, oatmeal, black tea, and dried cranberries.  Although, tossing a few “craisins” on top of this salad, wouldn’t be such a bad idea.  And… you could pump it up a bit more by serving this color-packed salad on a bed of very thinly sliced fresh kale. That would give you four of the ten “supers” in your supper.

PLUS, Happy Birthday to my dear friend and mentor, Barbara Pool Fenzl! Can’t wait to celebrate a week from today. Until then, have a lovely birthday week. I love you and adore you! xoxo

Roasted Sweet Potato, Edamame, Fennel, and Corn with Fresh Mango Salad

3 large sweet potatoes
1 cup shelled edamame
2 ears of fresh white corn, kernels removed
1 medium fennel bulb, sliced; fronds minced and reserved
4 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons agave nectar
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 large mango
1/4 cup minced fresh basil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Scrub the sweet potatoes and then dry well.  Cut into 2-inch cubes and place on a foil lined baking sheet.  Toss until well coated with 2 tablespoons of the oil and season generously with salt and pepper.  Place in preheated oven and roast for 10 minutes.

Add the edamame, corn, and fennel slices and return to oven.  Roast for another 10 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are tender.

During the last 10 minutes of roasting time, prepare the dressing. Whisk together the agave nectar, vinegar, lemon zest, and lemon juice until well combined.  Slowing whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, until emulsified.

Cut the mango into cubes (CLICK HERE if you need a reminder on how to easily do so) and place into a large bowl along with the basil and reserved fennel fronds.  When the vegetables are finished roasting, cool for 5 minutes; add to bowl with mango and toss with dressing.

Serves 4

After nearly two weeks in the cool North Woods of Wisconsin, returning to this hot (and recently – very dusty!) desert is a bit of a shock to the system.  An oven-free meal is called for!  The old standby, rotisserie chicken, is my savior today.

Shredded Chicken Salad with Wonton Crisps

Dressing
3 cloves garlic cloves, peeled and minced 
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
Finely grated zest of 1 lime
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons Vietnamese fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili flakes
3 tablespoons olive oil
Chicken Salad
2 pounds shredded chicken meat from a rotisserie chicken
2 celery ribs, diced
4 cups shredded or thinly sliced green cabbage
2 peeled and julienned carrots
1/2 cup fresh mint, leaves stacked and then thinly sliced
1/2 cup fresh basil, leaves stacked and then thinly sliced
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (white and pale green parts)
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
Wonton  Crisps
8 wonton wrappers
About 2 cups vegetable oil

Dressing:  Whisk together garlic, sugar, vinegar, lime zest, lime juice, fish sauce, salt, pepper, and pepper flakes in a large bowl until salt is dissolved, then whisk in the olive oil until combined well.

Chicken Salad:  Add the chicken, celery, cabbage, carrots, mint, and green onion to dressing and toss gently to combine.

Wonton Crisps:  Halve each wonton wrapper to make 2 rectangles, then halve each rectangle diagonally to make a total of 4 triangles per wonton.

Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until thermometer registers 360 degrees.  Gently lay 4 triangles on oil (do not drop in, or triangles will lose their shape and oil will splatter) and fry, turning over once with tongs, until just golden, 15 to 30 seconds total. Transfer with a slotted spoon or spider to paper towels to drain and immediately season with salt.  Fry remaining triangles in same manner.

Gently toss the cilantro leaves into the salad just before serving.

Serve chicken salad in bowls or martini glasses topped with wonton crisps.

Serves 8

The cobb salad was created nearly 80 years ago at the famous Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant and has been an American favorite ever since. I prefer to serve it as individual salads as opposed to presenting on a large platter.  That way it looks lovely for each guest. If served on a platter, it looks great for the first guest or two, but by the end of the line, all the “goodies” on top are either gone or mashed into a nasty looking mess.

Classic Cobb Salad

Dressing
3/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Salad
1 head iceberg lettuce, cored and thinly sliced
1 head romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
1 bunch watercress, leaves only
4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
10 strips cooked bacon, roughly chopped
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and cut into wedges or slices
4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 avocados, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons chives, minced

Dressing:  Combine the canola oil, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire, sugar, and garlic in a food processor or blender.  Puree the ingredients to make a smooth dressing and season with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Salad:  In a large bowl, combine the iceberg and romaine lettuces along with the watercress. Toss with 1/4 cup of the dressing.  Divide the greens between 8 salad plates.

Arrange the blue cheese, bacon, eggs, tomatoes, chicken, and avocado on top of the greens in wedges or neat rows.

To serve, drizzle salad with dressing, season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with chives.

Serves 8

The 4th of July weekend is here and here is a festive, fun, and tasty watermelon flag bowl perfect for that fruit salad you need to bring to the party. The recipe for the actual salad and dressing is way down at the bottom of the post.  Leading up to it are step-by-step pictures to help you make the patriot melon.  Here we go….

Watermelon Flag Bowl filled with Fruit Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

1 large watermelon
1 cantaloupe, halved and seeded
1 honeydew melon, halved and seeded
Two 15-ounce cans mandarin oranges, drained
20-ounce can pineapple chunks, drained
3 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
2 cups seedless grapes, halved
1 1/2 cups blueberries, picked over to remove any small stems
Poppy Seed Dressing
1/4 cup olive oil
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons agave nectar
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper

With a large, sharp knife, remove a quarter section off the top of the watermelon as show in the picture above.  If you would like to make the flag design, just follow all of the picture above.  Using a melon baller, scoop flesh from inside of watermelon, removing as many seeds as possible.  Leave 1/2 inch of flesh inside the shell of the watermelon.

Scoop cantaloupe and honeydew in the same manner, removing as much flesh as possible, and discarding the rinds. Refrigerate fruits separately until ready to assemble.

Poppy Seed Dressing: In a bowl whisk together oil, lemon zest vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, nectar, poppy seeds, salt, and pepper until smooth.

To serve, place watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew balls in a large mixing bowl.  Add in the oranges, pineapple, strawberries, grapes, and blueberries.  Add half of the dressing and toss thoroughly.  Transfer mixture to watermelon bowl, and drizzle with additional dressing.

Set aside any fruit mixture that does not fit into the bowl, use to refill the watermelon as the bowl empties.

Serves a crowd