Beet and Goat Cheese Salad

We were eating at one of our favorite restaurants in town.  We go there because they have the best fries served with garlic aioli.  We ordered a bucket of fries.  So I decided to go light with lunch.  The Beet Salad caught my eye.  This is my attempt to recreate it.  The restaurant used fresh roasted beets.  I’m using pickled beets.  I like mine better.

Beet and Goat Cheese Salad

Serves: 4
Time: 10 minutes
Hardware:  Salad bowl & salad tongs, measuring spoons and cups, a strainer, a cutting board and knives, a bowl, 4 serving dishes

Ingredients

• 1-5 ounce bag of pre-washed mixed spring salad greens
• 16 ounces pickled beets
• 2 small oranges.
• 6 ounces chèvre
• 6 ounces chopped walnuts
• 4 green onions
• 1 cup of  Balsamic Vinaigrette
• Salt & Pepper

1. Drain the beets.
2. Chop the green onions including the green part.  Peel and section the oranges removing any strings, seeds, or pith.
3. Toss the greens and onions with ⅓ cup of the vinaigrette. Salt sparingly.
4. Place the salad into the serving bowls.  Top each serving with ¼ of the beets and oranges.  Sprinkle on 1½ ounce each cheese and walnuts.  Drizzle on a little more vinaigrette.  Finish with a few grinds of black pepper.

Beautiful, healthy, and tasty

 

Simple Vinaigrette

This is the most basic vinaigrette. Simple is best.  The basic formula for salad dressing is 3 parts oil to one part vinegar. 
You can make this dressing your own:

• Use different vinegars like white wine vinegar, champagne vinegar or rice wine vinegar
• Substitute part or all of the vinegar with citrus juice
• Honey or brown sugar can be used instead of white sugar
• You can also infuse the vinaigrette with almost any herb
• A splash of Dijon mustard, soy sauce, or horseradish will give your dressing a little kick

Just play around.  I made this for my Beet and Goat Cheese Salad.  I replaced part of the vinegar with orange juice. I also used honey instead of sugar.

Servings:  2 cups

Time:  10 minutes
Hardware:  Cutting board and knives, measuring spoons and cups, a bowl and a whisk, a glass jar with a lid (or a salad dressing bottle), a funnel

Ingredients: 

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot (can substitute 1 teaspoon dried mined onion)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cup light extra virgin olive oil (the best you can afford)
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar

1. Place the vinegar, sugar, and salt in the bowl and whisk until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Pour everything into the jar.  Add the rest of the ingredients and shake like crazy.  Store in the fridge.

Portobello Mushroom Fajitas

Meatless Monday is actually difficult to celebrate at my house.  My husband is a very picky eater and little of what he eats involves vegetables.  He does, however, love Tex-Mex.  So, I do what I can.

This was actually delectable.  The lime juice was slightly sweet and the mushrooms have the texture and woody taste of meat.  My husband said he would eat this again.  On a Tuesday….

Servings: 5-6 fajitas

Time:  Prep: 10 minutes, Marinating: 30 minutes, Cooking:  20 minutes
Hardware:  A cutting board and knife, a large skillet (a cast iron skillet or a grill pan works best), kitchen tongs, a large plastic bag, 2 plates

Ingredients

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 1 jalapeño pepper
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 large onion
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 pound portobello mushrooms
• Salt
• Olive oil to cover the bottom of your pan
• 6 corn tortillas (you can use low carb wraps)

1. De-stem the mushrooms.  You can save the stems for something else or, like me, just use them in the fajitas.  Slice the mushrooms into ¼ inch strips.
2. Dice the jalapeño.  Put the diced pepper, the oil, juice, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder and cayenne pepper into the plastic bag.  Shake and massage until the marinade is completely mixed.  Place the mushrooms in the bag.  Toss and gently massage until the mushrooms are covered.  Place the bag on a plate and put it into the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. While the mushrooms are marinating slice the onions into rings. Then slice the rings in half.    Remove the white ribs and seeds from the peppers and slice them into long then strips.
4. Heat the oil over the highest heat your pan can take.  When the oil begins to shimmer add the bell peppers and onions.  Allow the to veggies to cook until the edges begin to brown. Toss them.  It is okay if they char on the edges. Cook them until they are desired texture. I prefer them still a little crisp, but some people like them soft.  Remove the peppers and onions from the pan. Salt them.  Set aside.  Keep hot.
5. Add the mushrooms to the pan. Salt them generously.  Mushrooms release a great deal of liquid.  I find it necessary to pour some liquid off while cooking.  Cook, tossing often, until the mushrooms are crisp on the edges (about 7 minutes.)  Taste a mushroom and adjust the salt.

Serve the mushrooms and onion/pepper mix with warm tortilla wrappers.  I served them with Corn and Black Bean Salsa on the side.  Delicious and healthy.

Chicken Philly Sandwich

Chicken Philly Sandwiches are a variation of Philadelphia’s famous Philly Cheesesteak. In Philadelphia the street vendors use Cheez Whiz, a processed cheese food, on their sandwiches.  I’m all about authentic, but I’m not about to eat Cheez Whiz.  If you want to you can.  However, my Cheese Sauce doesn’t contain carrageenan.   

These sandwiches are very hearty.  I usually cut them in half and serve the half sandwich with a side salad or fries.

Servings: 4-8
Time:  Prep: 10 minutes   Cooking:  10-15 minutes
Hardware:  A cutting board and knife, measuring spoons and cups, 2 bowls, a large skillet, tongs

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 ⅓ lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 large onion
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup cheese sauce (or Cheez Whiz)
• Salt & Pepper
• 4 hoagie rolls

1. Slice the onion into rings.  Slice the peppers into long thin strips, removing the white ribs and seeds.  Dice the garlic.  Set aside.
2. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces, removing the fat and gristle.  Salt and pepper it generously and set aside.
3. Slice the hoagie rolls lengthwise making sure to not cut all the way through.  (You can toast them if you want.)
4. Heat the olive oil in the skillet over medium high.  Add the veggies. Cook until the edges of the onions begin to brown, about 5 minutes.
5. Toss in the chicken and the Worcestershire sauce. Cook, tossing often, until the chicken is cooked through, about another 7-8 minutes.  Mix in the cheese sauce.
6. Place the chicken mixture into the hoagie rolls.  Serve hot.