Caesar Salad

Music: James Taylor, Sweet Baby James - The album that put him in the spotlight with the amazing song Fire and Rain.

Menu: I CANNOT have Caesar without garlic bread.  

Usually, I'm not an ingredient snob.  Like when it mentions, a high quality EVOO, psssht, I just use my regular stuff.  Or cheese...cheapest always wins my heart!  However, I will tell you I am a snob about my caesar salad.  I've had to make it with other ingredients before and still tastes good and everything, but the greatness of this recipe is unachievable without a quality anchovy paste and whole grain mustard.  These are my go to brands and they truly make the dressing (with lots of garlic, of course). 

This recipe was my mom's and most families have some variation of this recipe.  I truly thought it was my mom's super secret recipe for a long time.  I think I was in high school and told a friend that I wanted to make her my mom's super secret caesar salad and her response was, "you mean with worcestershire?" And I was like, "damn!".  But that's when I found out that my mom's recipe wasn't so secret. 

Over the years I have slightly changed the recipe.  Instead of a raw egg, I now use some plain non fat yogurt...yes, my stomach is a weak pathetic excuse of a stomach.  I have also added a good splash of tabasco, which I learned from a restaurant I used to work at.  Both are great additions to any caesar salad. 

So, as you can see from the pics above, one of the most important steps is smushing the mustard grains.  I use the back of a spoon and it works great.  Then I make a paste with the anchovy paste and garlic.  I usually crush the garlic too with the spoon.  The paste is then combined with all the other wet ingredients.  I always taste the dressing BEFORE adding parm.  There's a much better chance to reseasoning before the cheese goes in and it gets all cheesy, but remember light on the salt as parm is a pretty salty cheese. 

And the parm slices just add a nice touch!  Hope you enjoy this recipe, but let me know how you make your favorite caesar dressing!

Amanda's Caesar Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 large head of romaine lettuce, washed and torn into big pieces
  
• 2 tspn. whole grain, stone ground mustard
• 1/2 tspn. anchovy paste
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced 
• 2 tspn. worcestershire sauce
• 1 TB red wine vinegar
• S & P
• Dash of tabasco
• 1 TB plain, fat free yogurt
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• Parmesan shavings for garnish
  

Directions:

1. Using the back of a spoon, crush the mustard grains, so they pop (you can hear them).  
2. Add the anchovy paste and garlic.  If the garlic is not finely minced, you can use the same technique as the mustard and help crush the garlic even more.   Stir mustard, paste, and garlic to form a paste.  
3. Add worcestershire, vinegar,  S & P, tabasco, and yogurt to paste.  Stir until well combined.
4. TASTE - if the dressing is too sour, try adding a little more yogurt.  If it's too bland, try some more vinegar or worcestershire.  The more you make the dressing, the easier it is to identify what is off.  
5. Add cheese and stir to combine. 
6. Add dressing to lettuce and toss to combine.  Top with shaving and devour.
   

Wheat Berry Salad

Music: City Park Jazz, once again...have I mentioned how much I love Denver :)
Menu: Wheat Berry Salad, wine, and I believe there was a Ho-Ho cupcake involved somewhere in the night!



Alright, so here is the beginning of this story. I have discussed our AMAZING supermarkets in Denver, yes? Well, for those lucky enough to live in Sunflower Market districts, you have experienced the excellent selection met with even greater prices. N-E-WAYS, they have a great bulk section, and I mean pretty great. I get most of the grains, nuts, and granola that we eat from here. Naturally, I peruse this section and scout out unknown stuff. Wheat berries has unfortunately been one of those things. I finally found a simple and great sounding recipe to debut this grain into our diet.


The end of the story is yum, yum, yum...yum, yum, yum. Really. They are a tiny bit starchy, with a little bite, but with a hint of sweetness...in other words full of flavor for a whole grain. Definitely two thumbs up from us!

Wheat Berry Salad
Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups wheat berries
• 2 1/2 cups chopped English cucumber
• 2/3 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1 1/2 cups loosely packed chopped arugula (I used spinach)
• 6 TB minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved (I used chopped vine ripe tomatoes)
  
• 1 TB grated lemon rind
• 3 TB fresh lemon juice
• S & P
• 1/2 tspn sugar
• 2 TB EVOO
• 3/4 cup (3 ounces) crumbled goat cheese (I used feta)

Directions:

1. Place wheat berries in a medium sauce pan, cover with water (with at least 2 inches above berries). Cover and let stand for 8 hours, drain.
   
2. Place wheat berries in same saucepan and cover with fresh water. Bring to a boil, reduce, heat, and cook, uncovered for 1 hour or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water.
3. Place wheat berries in a large bowl and combine with cucumbers, green onions, arugula, parsley, and tomatoes.
4. Separately, combine lemon rind, juice, S & P, and sugar in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in EVOO. Drizzle dressing over the salad, and toss well to coat.
   
5. Top with cheese and let stand at least 20 minutes before eating to let the flavors combine.
   

Picnic Tuna Salad

Music: City Park Jazz - I LOVE Denver

Menu: Tuna Salad w/crackers, cheese, and veggie sticks.

I LOVE this tuna salad. It's tasty without the mayo. So, for anyone who doesn't like the mayo or if you need to transport the tuna salad to, let's say, live free jazz concerts in downtown Denver in a beautiful park, then this is what you should make. It's super easy, quick, and delicious. I made a massive amount of it and met about 10 people at the park and it was devoured in about 5 minutes. I think I even saw some licking their fingers :)

And if you are a Denver-ite and have never been to Sunday evening, City Park Jazz, it's a must! Sundays from 6 - 8pm FREE jazz! Just pack a cooler, join the crowds, and enjoy living in such a great city. Here's a pic from last weeks fun...

Picnic Tuna Salad

Amanda

Ingredients:

• 3 cans of tuna in water, drained well
• 1 can of artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, sliced thin
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 1/2 cup Kalmata olives, roughly chopped
• 1 TB parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, juiced
• EVOO
• S & P

Directions:

1. Mix tuna through lemon juice and stir to combine. Add 1-3 TB EVOO to your liking and season to taste with S & P. Chill salad if you have the time. Serve!