Remember the Dilly of a Chopped Salad that I posted a few days ago? Well I had some of the salad dressing leftover and decided to use it on my cucumbers for the 4th of July. I sliced the cukes very thin on a mandoline and then placed them in a colander over a bowl, heavily salted them and let them sit on the counter for a few hours. I then rinsed them VERY thoroughly, drained them and coated them with the leftover dressing. After chilling in the fridge, they were extremely good with the ribs and potato salad.
Here's the link to the dressing:
http://inpatskitchen.blogspot.com/2012/07/dilly-of-chopped-salad.html
I made this salad a few weeks ago when the weather started getting really warm. The cream dilled bacon dressing adds a nice dimension to a simple chopped salad. Tonight I'm making it again but adding some leftover grilled chicken to it. A totally complete meal for a very hot day!
6 slices crisp cooked bacon, reserving a tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup homemade or food quality commercial ayo
1 clove garlic, mashed or put through a garlic press
1/2 cup fresh minced dill
2 Tbl milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 large heart romaine lettuce, chopped
1/3 of an English cucumber, thinly sliced and then each slice halved
2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, chopped
3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 cups chopped cooked chicken(optional)
Combine the sour cream, mayo, fresh dill, salt, pepper and milk. Crumble 2 slices of the bacon very finely and add to the dressing along with the tablespoon of rendered bacon fat. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
When ready to serve, combine the chopped lettuce, cucumbers and onion. Chop the bacon and eggs and add them to the mix. Gently fold in the blue cheese. Serve with the dilled bacon dressing.
Add 2 cups chopped cooked chicken to make this a hearty dinner salad!
This salad dressing is not quite Caesar and not quite Green Goddess but rather something in between. Green garlic and green onion blended in a homemade mayo with anchovies for spark make for a great topping for a variety of salads. I offer an example of the salad I first made for the two of us. The dressing makes more than enough for this salad and will keep a few days covered in the fridge.
Serves 2
Green Green Dressing
1 room temperature egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 medium green onions, rough chopped
2 medium stalks of green garlic, rough chopped (or use 1 clove)
3 anchovy fillets from a 2 ounce tin of anchovies (save the rest for the salad)
The anchovy oil from the 2 ounce tin of anchovies
3/4 sup neutral oil such as vegetable or canola
In a mini food processor place the egg, salt, mustard, lemon juice, green onion, green garlic and anchovy fillets. Begin processing and the slowly add the anchovy and vegetable oils through the tiny holes on top of the cover of the processor. Process until smooth and rather thick. Cover and refrigerate.
Little Salad
1 Romaine lettuce heart torn into bite size pieces
6 thin slices English cucumber
1 large radish thinly sliced and then cut in moons
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
The remaining anchovies from the 2 ounce tin
The Green Green Dressing
Either toss or arrange all ingredients in a bowl or on a platter. Serve with the dressing.
We roasted a duck for dinner last night and wanted a salad with some sweetness to complement the richness of the duck. This fit the bill.
Walnut Sage Dressing
4 Tbl honey
4 Tbl walnut oil
3 Tbl apple cider vinegar
2 Tbl water
1/4 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts (toast in a 350F oven for 8 to 10 minutes and then chop)
2 Tbl minced fresh sage leaves
1/4 tsp salt
Whisk all ingredients together and set aside.
For the salad
1/2 cup whole walnuts (about 12)
1 Tbl granulated sugar
1 Tbl honey
5 to 6 cups assorted baby salad greens
1/2 Asian pear sliced into matchstick size pieces
3 fresh sage leaves, finely sliced
The walnut Sage dressing
Coat the whole walnuts with the sugar and honey and then place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350F for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
Divide the salad greens between 2 salad plates. Place half of the walnuts, half of the Asian pear slices and half of the sliced sage over each plate of greens.
Dress the salad with a few spoonfuls of dressing and serve.
Many of you are familiar with the JL Hudson Company, at one time THE Detroit department store.
Hudson's is long gone but at least two of the famous dishes served in their restaurants remain (at least here in Michigan) Chicken Pot Pie and Maurice Salad. Maurice Salad is our all time favorite summer dinner when the heat gets the best of us. Here's my version which makes a HUGE bowl:
For the dressing:
1 cup mayo
3/4 cup Miracle Whip
1 medium onion grated on the large holes of a box grater
3 to 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped fine
1/2 chopped parsley
Mix everything together and refrigerate to let the flavors mingle.
For the salad:
1 large head iceberg lettuce, shredded
3/4 pound diced deli ham
3/4 pound diced deli turkey
1/2 pound diced Swiss cheese
Toss all together and serve with the dressing
I did some research on Greek salads recently and found that basically only in the Detroit area do restaurants put sliced beets in them. You can find Greek salads with or without lettuce but always feta cheese, tomatoes, kalamata olives, and onion. So go ahead and put whatever you like in them. Here are some suggestions:
Lettuce
Cucumber
Red onion
Kalamata olives
Feta cheese
Beets
Pepperoncini
Tomatoes
Anchovies
Tomato
Parsley
Chicken
Shrimp
Green or red bell pepper
Here's a quick dressing recipe:
Combine the juice of 1/2 a lemon,1/2 cup olive oil, one clove of crushed garlic, 1/4 tsp dried oregano and salt and pepper into a jar with a lid or the mini food processor.
Remember the 3 turkeys we fried and froze the day after Thanksgiving? Well, Matt came back in town yesterday and so it was a mini Thanksgiving dinner last night. Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and dressing. Normally on Thanksgiving I make a small oyster dressing casserole for the few of us who love oysters, but they weren't available to me this year. Fortunately, the other day I found an 8 ounce container of East Coast oysters. This recipe is simple, but the oyster flavor gives it something extra.
1 medium onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
8 ounces of your favorite mushrooms, sliced
1/2 stick butter
1/2 tsp each of thyme, salt, and black pepper
6 cups of unseasoned stuffing mix
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 beaten egg
1 8 oz container of fresh oysters with liquor, chopped
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
Saute the onion, celery, and mushrooms in the butter until softened. Add the thyme, salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Add the broth and stuffing mix and let the mixture cool for about 10 minutes. Stir in the egg, oysters, and parsley and place the mixture into a medium size greased casserole or baking dish. Bake, covered at 325F for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake at 350F for about 15 minutes or until a slight crust forms on top of the casserole.
Now we have leftovers and sandwiches for a couple of days....
Our favorite pizza carry out is from The Alibi Restaurant in Troy, Mi, which also serves great fish and chips, pasta, an Italian sub which is out of this world, and good antipasto and Greek salads.Last night we wanted pizza and salad but I couldn't justify buying the salad when I had all the makings sitting in the fridge. The only ingredient missing was the wonderful Greek salad dressing that the Alibi serves with either salad. They won't sell the dressing without a salad purchase, and as much as I've tried, they won't give out the recipe. So I made the antipasto salad by mixing romaine lettuce, ham, salami, shredded mozzarella, red onion, and pepperocini. ( The Alibi adds tomato, but I substituted thinly sliced red onion). As for the dressing, I had some purchased dressing from Olga's Restaurant. Papa Vino's Restaurant will sell you their dressing which is quite good, also. And another great option is the Good Seasons Zesty Italian which you shake up yourself....... and the pizza was wonderful!!!
My mom made the best stuffed whitefish with crabmeat dressing, but the recipe required a 4-5 lb. fish, too much for the two of us, so over the years when I had a craving for this I made the deconstructed version: the dressing surrounding the fish. The other day salmon was the best option at the market (whitefish fillets were too thin). You certainly can use any fish you like for this.
1 Tbl. olive oil
2 Tbl. butter
1 cup diced onion
2 stalks celery, diced
5-6 fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs made from day old white bread (I use my mini food processor)
6-8 oz. crabmeat
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup melted butter
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 - 1-1 1/2 lb. salmon fillet, skinned
Saute the onion, celery and mushrooms in the butter and olive oil until the onion softens. Let the mixture cool a few minutes, then add the crab, breadcrumbs, parsley and half and half. Season with salt and pepper.
Place the fillet in the center of an oiled baking dish and surround with the dressing. Pour the melted butter mixed with the wine over the fish and dressing (I add a few shakes of sweet paprika to this)
Bake in a pre-heated 400 F oven for 20 minutes.
