TSB: Strawberry Chicken Salad

This month's Challenge for "The Salad Bar" was to use berries! I made this salad 2 years ago, and just remade it again this past week. Its delish and a keeper. I love my picture from it, so I just used it again.

STRAWBERRY CHICKEN SALAD

2 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper, to taste 

6-8 cups chopped Romaine Lettuce

1 cup Strawberries, sliced

1/4 cup sliced Almonds

1 cup Poppyseed dressing

1/2 cup light Raspberry Vinaigrette

• Start by brushing oil on chicken breasts and then season with salt and pepper. Grill chicken on your barbecue or indoor grill pan. Grill for 5 minutes on each side, or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Set aside.
• On two plates, add the romaine lettuce, sliced strawberries and almonds. Slice your grilled chicken and place on top.
• Mix together the poppyseed dressing and raspberry vinaigrette together. Pour over the salad and dig in!

Visit and check out the other salads for the month!

FBF: Romaine Salad with Avocado

FLASH BACK FRIDAY

ROMAINE SALAD WITH AVOCADO

click on image to see full post from 6/2/11

St Patrick's Day Food Ideas

Here are a few ideas of "green foods" that would be great for St Patty's Day!

  

  

  

  

  

  

The Perfect Salad

I've been on a really big "Salad Kick" lately, and have found the perfect way to create a delish salad that can be changed and has a huge variety of choices. Its much better than the bland old lettuce with bottled dressing with preserves and unwanted ingredients.

Start with the basics. From there, learn your favorite combinations. After the image, I've listed my favorite combinations that I make the most.

My favorite:

• Olive Oil + Apple Cider Vinegar + Dijon + Honey + Salt + Strawberries + Feta Cheese
• Clementine Olive Oil + White Wine Vinegar + Dijon + Honey + Salt + Oranges + Blue Cheese
• Olive Oil + Red Wine Vinegar + Dijon + Honey + Salt + Apples + Gorgonzola Cheese

Get creative! And remember, Feta cheese goes with everything! Its my favorite cheese, but don't forget to try Asiago Cheese, Gorgonzola, Blue Cheese, and even Goat Cheese (with honey).

You can also find many flavors of Olive Oil and Vinegars. "O Olive Oil Company" has some amazing choices, but many brands have infused Oils and such.

Always taste-test your dressing before tossing with the salad, and adjust ingredients to you liking!

Please Pin It on Pinterest to share this around! It would be greatly appreciated! =)
 

Spring Greens Salad w/ Fennel & Avacado

SPRING GREENS SALAD

with FENNEL & AVOCADO

1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1-1/2 Tblsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 (9oz) bag spring greens
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
2 carrots, grated
2 medium fennel bulbs, trimmed of feathery stalks and thinly sliced
1 cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 avocado, chopped
2 Tblsp unsalted sunflower seed kernels

• Make the salad dressing: in a small bowl, whisk the mustard, honey, salt and vinegar. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking to emulsify. Taste and adjust as needed.
• In a large bowl, combing spring greens, tomatoes, carrots, avocado, fennel and cucumber. Lightly toss to combine. Drizzle with some of the dressing, toss and taste, repeating until all ingredients are lightly coated.
• Top with sunflower seed kernels and serve immediately. 

This recipe can be found in this amazing cookbook:

And don't miss a chance to enter this amazing giveaway! SOOOO many ways to enter!

Elegant Holiday: Green-Grapes Salad and Olive Rolls

For the Introduction to this series of recipes, click HERE

TOSSED GREENS-AND-GRAPES SALAD

(Salad on top right)

3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1-1/2 Tblsp Dijon mustard
1-1/2 tsp honey
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

1 (15oz) pkg spring greens mix or sweet baby greens
2 cups seedless red grapes, halved
1 cup salted, roasted cashews
2oz Manchego cheese, shaved

• Stir together olive oil and next 5 ingredients in a large serving bowl. Add spring greens and next 3 ingredients, and toss. Serve immediately. 

EASY ASIAGO-OLIVE ROLLS

1 (13.8oz) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
1/4 cup refrigerated olive tapenade
1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 Tblsp butter, melted

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Unroll pizza crust dough. Spread olive tapenade over dough, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Sprinkle with cheese and rosemary. Gently roll up dough, starting a 1 long side. Cut into 10 (1-1/4 inch thick) slices. Place slices in a lightly greased 9-inch round cake pan. Brush top of dough with melted butter. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden. Serve immediately.

"An Elegant Holiday Dinner"

from Southern Living's 

"Cooking for Christmas"
Cherry-Pecan Brie
Tossed Greens-and-Grapes Salad
Easy Asiago-Olive Rolls
Pancetta-Wrapped Beef Tenderloin with Whipped Horseradish Cream
Crispy Potatoes with Fennel
Lemon-Garlic Green Beans
Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

For the Introduction to this series of recipes, click HERE

Easy Supper Club: Roasted Veggies & Salad

"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

ROASTED FALL VEGGIES

[I just roasted carrots to keep it a little more simple, but below is a list of other veggies that would taste wonderful as well]

10 small carrots with greenery

8 baby yellow beets

8 baby candy cane beets

3 Tblsp Olive Oil, divided

1 tsp kosher salt, divided

1/2 tsp pepper, divided

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Cut tops from yellow and candy cane beets, leaving 1/2 inch stems.Peel beets and cut in half. Cut tops from carrots, leaving 1/2 inch of greenery on each.
• Toss yellow beets and carrots with 2 Tblsp olive oil in a large bowl; place in a single layer on 1 side of an aluminum foil-lined jelly roll pan. Sprinkle veggies in pan with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.
• Toss candy can beets with remaining 1 Tblsp olive oil; arrange beets in a single layer on remaining portion of jelly roll pan. Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper.
• Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes; stir once, and bake 15 minutes more or until tender.

BASIL-AND-BLUE CHEESE SALAD

Our Elf joined us this day for dinner! So this was "Elf-Approved"!

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup seasoned rice vinegar

1 tsp country-style dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp dried crushed red pepper

10 cups mixed salad greens

1/2 cup firmly packed fresh basil leaves, coursely chopped

2 ripe pears, thinly sliced

2 navel oranges, sectioned

2 avocados, sliced

1 (4oz) package blue cheese, crumbled

• Whisk together first 5 ingredients. Cover and chill until ready to use (up to 24 hours).
• Toss together greens and basil. Top with pears, oranges, avocados, and blue cheese; toss. Drizzle with vinaigrette. Serve immediately.

[Its best to wait to slice pears and avocados last minute so they won't turn brown]

Tomato Carpaccio Crab Salad

This recipe is from Cajunlicious and I fell in love--I HAD to try this!!

TOMATO CARPACCIO CRAB SALAD

1 Heirloom Tomato (or just a "regular" tomato)
1/4 cup Jumbo Lump Crabmeat (it comes in a can)
1/2 avocado, smashed
salt & pepper, to taste
1-1/2 tblsp Greek yogurt (plain)
1/2 tsp rice vinegar
Zest & Juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp parsley
[I did not add capers...yuk]
1 tsp red onion, diced really small
1 small Roma tomato, seeded and diced really small

• Dill for garnish
• In a medium bowl, combine avocado, yogurt, vinegar, zest & lemon juice, parsley, onion, diced tomatoes and mix well. 
• Gently fold in the crab and season with salt & pepper. 
• Place in refrigerator, tossing every hour for 2 hours or until ready to serve.
• To serve: Slice the heirloom tomato paper-thin and arrange them around the center of the plate. Place the crab mixture in a circle-mold. 
• Squeeze the other half of lemon over top and top it off with some dill.

O Olive Oil Recipe Review

eRecipeCards has given me an opportunity to compete in a contest from O Olive Oil. Dave, creator of eRecipeCards, designed a website where you can upload recipes, share, like other recipes, and keep it organized just like you would on your own recipe book. I'm a "blue ribbon" contributor from being there from almost the beginning, and consistently adding my recipes. The photos do not have to be professional or magazine quality either! Check them out:

I also want to thank O Olive Oil for the contest! There were so many submissions, they are going to have a hard time deciding the winners. They are giving away almost $1000 in prizes, and I'm really crossing my fingers that I would be one of them.

Here is a run-down on the recipes I've posted for O Olive Oil and their competition. Click on image to see the full recipe!

  

 

  

 

  

I hope you have enjoyed these recipes as much as I enjoyed making them! O Olive Oil now has a permanent place in my pantry. You can find them in Whole Foods, which I will be visiting next time I'm in a big city. 

O Olive Oil: Recipes that Shine!

O Olive Oil company has asked to take the products they sent and create a dish that will make the oils shine in all their glory. In cooking, I find myself hesitant and shy about trying a dish that doesn't come with a recipe, its difficult for me to make one up. The ones I usually do are simple, nothing elaborate, easy to follow. That's just how I roll.

Here are a few dishes using the O Clementine Olive Oil:

Citrus Salmon with Baby Green Salad

This salmon recipe has got to be one of my favorites to date. It is extremely moist and the flavors mold together in harmony. The salad was a great addition that completed the plate. There wasn't any flavor conflicts or bad tastes, you can tell these oils and vinegars have been made to compliment each other!

4 salmon fillets

1 tablespoon creole seasoning (recipe below)
3 tablespoons O Clementine Olive Oil
4 cups baby greens
1 tablespoon O Clementine Olive Oil (for dressing)
1 tablespoon O California White Balsalmic
small can of mandarin oranges

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Cover a large cookie sheet in aluminum oil and light spray with cooking spray. 
• Place salmon fillets on prepared sheet and drizzle oil over top. Sprinkle with seasoning and lightly rub it in to cover entire fillet.
• Place in oven and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Be careful to not over cook.
• After finished cooking, gently brush tops of fillets with a little more O Clementine olive oil.
• For the salad, place a small cup of baby greens on the plate.
• Put olive oil and basalmic in a small covered container and shake for 30 seconds. Drizzle over salad and top with mandarin oranges.

Creole Seasoning

I made my own creole seasoning last year, and it was the perfect blend of spices to compliment the salmon. 

Click here to see the recipe

O Clementine Olive Oil Bruschetta

This recipe is a very simple one that you can really appreciate the olive oil.

1 french load, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces

3 tablespoons O Clementine Olive Oil, divided

1 can mardarin oranges

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp chili powder

• Brush the tops of bread slices with the O Clementine Olive Oil and broil for a few minutes until lightly browned. 
• In a bowl, combine 1/4 cup of mandarin oranges, drained and coarsely chopped, the salt and 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Top the toasted bread slices with a little orange mixture and lightly sprinkle with chili powder.
• Serve immediately.

O Clementine Olive Oil Bread Dip

If you want an even simpler dish, pour some of the flavored olive oil in a small bowl and lightly sprinkle with kosher salt and crackled pepper. Serve with fresh bread slices, can even been lightly toasted.

I hope that gives you some ideas on how to handle and prepare dishes that have a light citrus flavored oil to it!

Again, thanks Dave with eRecipeCards for the opportunity to experiment! 

You can find out more information about O Olive Oil on their website or on Facebook.
Find eRecipeCards on FaceBook or their webpage.

Please see disclaimer for more details on a sponsored post.

O Olive Oil Products and Review

eRecipeCards has provided a wonderful opportunity to explore the flavors the O Olive Oil company provides through their wide variety of products. Thanks to Dave at eRecipeCards for selecting me and my blog for this experience!

O Olive Oil is a company that prides themselves in the industry with their citrus pressed olive oils and wine vinegars since 1995. O Olive Oil uses the finest ingredients like fresh California Mission olives and organic citruses to create their signature line. The wine vinegars are made with a different technique than most other brands. O Olive Oil is one of the few remaining companys that ages the vinegars in wood barrels instead of force-aging them mechanically. The results are clear, and the quality and company is set apart from the rest.

O Olive Oils and Vinegars now come in a variety of flavors and combinations. The citrus oils come in flavors like meyer lemon, blood orange, clementine, jalapeno lime, ruby grapefruit and tahitian lime as well as other oils like extra virgin and roasted garlic.  The wine vinegars have a wide variety which include: champagne, cabernet, pinot noir, zinfandel, sherry and many more. The rice vinegar comes in ginger, yuzu and sudachi. O Olive Oil also creates hand-crafted, and aged in oak wood, balsamic vinegars including: white, port and even the newest addition of fig balsalmic.

I have the pleasure to enjoy the combination of my choice to share with all my readers and fans. I choose the Clementine Olive Oil and the White Balsalmic Vinegar. I have used a few ideas and flavor combinations that O Olive Oil suggests on their web page, as well as adding my own creativeness to create a personal take on the amazing flavors.

O Clementine Olive Oil
The O Clementine Olive Oil has been combine with the flavors of mandarins crushed together with Mission olives to create a sweet,smooth and richly unique flavor. As suggested by O Olive Oil, it is perfectly paired the the white balsalmic vinegar.

O California White Balsalmic Vinegar

The white balsalmic vinegar has a flavor that combines almonds, pears and green apples. The flavor is light and crisp and absolutely delightful for your taste buds, especially over Spring-time dishes. 

O Olive Oil suggest splashing over fresh fruit, or combining it with the clementine olive to make a dressing for a Spring mix salad.

 

Asian Pear and Baby Greens Salad with Blue Cheese and O Clementine Oil and I California White Balsalmic

A recipe suggested by O Olive Oil that lets the flavors of the Oils shine in the perfectly blended combination.

Click here for their recipe.

Watermelon and Feta Salad

Another recipe suggested by O Olive Oil is this perfect-for-summer dish that will touch every taste bud in your mouth! The unusual combination of watermelon, basil, feta, salt and the signature oils will definitely surprise anyone your serving.

Click here for the recipe. 

This has got to be one of my favorite dishes in this whole experiment!

Watermelon and Feta Bruschetta
Since I loved the recipe above, I took it a little further. I toasted the bread using extra virgin olive oil and then topping it with the watermelon salad (chopped).  This added a wonderful crunch to the scrumptious salad and it would be a perfect appetizer to any meal or BBQ.






You can find out more information about O Olive Oil on their website or on Facebook.
Find eRecipeCards on FaceBook or their webpage.

Please see disclaimer for more details on a sponsored post.

Flash Back Friday #15

FLASH BACK FRIDAY #15

STRAWBERRY CHICKEN SALAD

Click on image to see full post from 5-8-11

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My favorite from last week was from Angela with 

 

And her Peanut Butter Pie Recipe

Like i needed ONE MORE THING to make my rear end enlarge =)

So stop on by and tell her HI!

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Thanks to ALL who linked up!
Comedy Plus, One Mixed Bag, Mom 4 Real, Mis Adventuring Mommy, Create with Joy, be there 2 day, Aissa Family, Moms bookshelf, The Kitchen in my Playground, Catch my Words, Cranium Bolts, hearts in fur coats, Why We Love Green, The Southern Fried Bride, eRecipeCards, Year on the Grill, Catalina Bakes,Cooking with K

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Follow Cookin' for my Captain and Cookin Mimi  on GFC [Google Friend Connect] and then Link away!

• Please only link up the URL straight to a post--not just the blog site
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• Link back to Cookin’ for My Captain, Cookin’ Mimi or both if you’d like.
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