Salad kick

I've been on a bit of a salad kick lately. Nothing fancy: some fresh organic baby spring greens, some baby spinach, red cabbage (I love raw red cabbage), celery, shredded carrots, just a bit of diced red onion, and some alfalfa sprouts. Sometimes some red bell pepper and/or some radishes. Sometimes a few chopped green or kalamata olives.

I'm not a huge fan of salad dressing, but I've been splashing on about a tsp of Italian dressing lately, and some croutons. 

The problem with salads, for me, is that I'm hungry again in an hour or two. So I've also been trying to make sure I get a little protein -- a couple chicken fingers, a handful of almonds. Something. Because I honestly really like salad (sans tomato -- not a big tomato fan), but it's not the most filling thing ever. But whenever I eat salad I am reminded of how much my body seems to crave raw veggies. If you haven't had a good salad in awhile, I'd recommend it.

big mushroom

Has anybody tried marinating a portabella cap in soy sauce? I've got one I'm going to grill, and I usually do a little olive oil, chopped garlic, and Italian seasoning on it, but I was thinking about trying soy sauce. Thoughts?

If I just throw caution to the wind and try it tonight, I'll let you know how it goes.

Grilled Cheese

I've not been cooking a whole lot lately, but I have rediscovered my deep love for grilled cheese sandwiches. I, and my doctor, blame Tim, who makes amazing grilled cheeses and melts. Now, one hardly needs a recipe for a grilled cheese. It's rather self-explanatory. Still, there seems to be a technique that I'm starting to get down (again, thanks to some tutelage by Timmer). But my latest obsession ala grilled cheeses is olive tapenade. 

This probably isn't a true olive tapenade, but I've been crushing up marinated green olives (in white wine, garlic, herbs, etc. I buy them already marinated), a few kalamata olives, and a couple sun dried tomatoes with just a dash of olive oil. Then I spread that on the bread before adding a slice of pepperjack cheese, then sliced portabella mushrooms, then a bit of shredded mozz (for stretchiness). Holy o'golden, it's my new favorite thing.

And while this isn't a cooking note, it is an eating note. If anybody happens to find themselves in Lawrence, KS, can I recommend Zen Zero? The drunken noodles are fanFREAKINGtastic.

Man Salad, Version 1

There's not much prep for this salad. Just throw it all together and mix. Just leave out whatever you don't have / don't like. 

Ingredients:

Chicken (I like to pull the meat off half a breast and go with that)

Dried Cranberries

Pine Nuts

Feta Cheese

Banana Peppers / Pepperoncini Peppers

Chunks of Bacon

half a bag of salad greens

Good Olive Oil

A splash of vinegar

Salt + Pepper

I like to get all the main ingredients in a bowl and then put the salt and pepper on top. Then I drizzle the olive oil and vinegar over the top while tossing it around with tongs. I also like a little bit of the juice from the canned peppers splashed in there. It's good with a slice of my grilled bread. 

Cooking lull

I think it's been because I've been so busy at the end of the semester, perhaps coupled with the fact that it's been getting a bit warmer around here, but I haven't been cooking much. I've been thinking about that sesame noodle dish, though. That's good cold. So maybe that's on the horizon. But, dear readers, you already have the recipe for that. 

So far it's mostly me and Braden keeping up with this thing (hi Braden!), but if any lurkers out there have any good summer recipes, I'd be happy to get a look.