Easy Supper Club: Bacon-Arugula-Apple Bites

"Easy Supper Club"

from Southern Living's 

"Cooking for Christmas"
Bacon-Arugula-Apple Bites
Herbed Pork Roast
Roasted Fall Veggies
Puffed Mashed Potatoes
Basil-and-Blue Cheese Salad
Brandy Alexander Cheesecake

For the Introduction to this series of recipes, click HERE

Bacon-Arugula-Apple Bites

• Toss Red Delicious apple slices in lemon juice; pat dry. Spread each with about 2 tsp garlic-and-herb spreadable cheese. Top with cooked and crumbled bacon, baby arugula sprigs, and freshly cracked pepper.

Tuesday: Herbed Pork Roast
Thursday: Roasted Fall Veggies & Basil & Blue Cheese Salad

Friday: Puffed Mashed Potatoes

FBF: Rosemary Ribeye Steak & Bread Salad

FLASH-BACK FRIDAY

ROSEMARY RIBEYE STEAK &BREAD SALAD

click on image to see full post from 8/4/11

Rosemary Ribeye Steak & Grilled Bread Salad

ROSEMARY RIBEYE STEAK

This is a wonderful summer-time steak. Fresh rosemary and corn make it meld together and the flavors just pop. Follow the instructions closely to get that perfect steak.

2 ribeye steaks, cut 1 inch thick
1 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp finely snipped fresh rosemary
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
snipped fresh rosemary (for garnish)

Ready for the grill

Trim the fat from the steaks. Brush with oil. In a small bowl, combine 1 tblsp rosemary, salt and pepper. Sprinkle over both sides of the steaks; rub in with your fingers. Cover and marinate at room temp for 30 minutes.

Sprinkle the steaks with a little more salt right before grilling.

Charcoal grill is the best for the steaks, but you can use gas grill if that's all ya got. Get coals to medium heat and grill, uncovered, for 10 to 13 minutes doe med-rae, 12 to 15 for medium. [For gas grill, preheat oven and cook over medium heat, covered, until at the right doneness] Sprinkle steaks with fresh rosemary before serving.

GRILLED BREAD SALAD

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 ears of corn, husks and silks removed
3 1/2-in-thick slices Italian bread
4 cups baby arugula
1 cup cherry tomatoes


For dressing, combine 1/4 cup oil, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper. Cover and shake well; set aside.

Brush all sides of corn and bread slices with remaining oil.

Place corn on grill (same time as the steaks) and grill for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender, turning occasionally to brown evenly. Add bread slices at the end, and grill for 3 to 4 minutes, or until toasted. (careful--we burned a few!)

In large bowl, toss together the arugula and tomatoes. Cut corn from cob and add to mix. Cut bread into bite-sized slices and add to mix. Shake dressing and add to the salad; toss to combine.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Recipe adapted from Better Home and Gardens "Grill it" Special Interest Publications, 2011

Sweet Corn Cakes with Creole Shrimp

These are a great appetizer dish! My kids even loved them.

SWEET CORN CAKES WITH CREOLE SHRIMP

Click HERE for printable recipe

SAUCE & CORN CAKES
1/4 cup light mayonnaise
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp Creole Rub **
3 cups canned corn, drained, divided
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 large egg, beaten
3/4 tsp baking powder
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
SHRIMP & SALAD
8 oz large, uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tblsp canola oil, divided
2 tsp Creole Rub
1 tsp lemon zest
3 1/2 Tblsp fresh lemon juice
6 cups loosely packed arugula


Directions:
For sauce, combine mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice and rub in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

For cakes, place 1 cup of the corn in food processor and pulse until coarse paste forms. Combine flour, buttermilk, egg and baking powder in a medium bowl; whisk until smooth. Add corn paste, remaining 2 cups corn, green onions and black pepper to corn paste mix and mix well.

In large saute pan, spray with canola oil and heat over medium heat 1-3 minutes, or until shimmering. Scoop corn batter onto pan for a total of 12 cakes, lightly pressing down with back of scoop. Cook 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until cakes are golden brown. Remove cakes and keep warm.

For shrimp, combine shrimp, 1 tsp oil, rub and zest in medium bowl; toss to coat. Arrange shrimp on pan and cook over medium-high heat for 1 1/2 -2 minutes on each side or until opaque.

For salad, whisk together remaining 2 tsp oil and lemon juice in small bowl. Combine arugula and lemon juice mixture in medium bowl; toss gently.

To serve, divide arugula among serving plates' top with corn cakes and shrimp. Drizzle with sauce.

Creole Rub:
1 1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano

Click HERE for printable recipe

Recipe adapted from Pampered Chef "Make it Fresh, Make it Healthy" Cookbook

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Pork Tonkatsu with Watermelon-Tomato Salad

Put your aprons on--this one is a doosie! Actually, the process is very simple...the FLAVOR is what will blow your mind!

~This is Japan's take on schnitzel~

PORK TONKATSU

w/ WATERMELON-TOMATO SALAD

2 cups 1/2-inch cubed watermelon [I used a melon-baller and cut them in half]
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups baby arugula
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves [mine were fresh from my garden!]
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tblsp Dijon mustard, divided
1 tblsp fresh lemon juice plus 4 lemon wedges
1/2 tsp kosher salt and 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper plus more
2 large eggs
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
4 4-oz boneless center-cut pork chops, pounded to 1/8-inch thickness [mine weren't that thin, and I wish I made them even thinner! When in doubt--pound some more]
6 tblsp vegetable oil, divided

Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk olive oil, 1 tblsp mustard, and juice in a small bowl. Season  dressing with salt and pepper. Set salad and dressing aside. [I had more salad than watermelon and tomatoes, but that is our preference. The first bite of this salad with dressing and watermelon and tomatoes...you won't ever forget it!]

Whisk eggs and 1 tblsp mustard in a medium bowl. Combine panko, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper on a large plate. Season pork lightly with salt and pepper. Dip in egg mixture, then in panko, pressing to adhere. [I skipped putting the s&p in the panko crumbs, and just put a little more on the chops themselves]

Working in 2 batches, heat 2 tblsp veg oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and cook pork until golden brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels.

Toss salad with dressing; season to taste with s & p. Serve pork with salad and lemon wedges for squeezing over. [I also served with mashed potatoes, and it was perfect!]

recipe adapted from Bon Appetit magazine, July 2011 edition