Showing posts with label Pine nuts. Show all posts
Spinach Salad with Mushrooms, Mozzarella and Sautéed Chicken
I love this time of year not only for the warm weather but for the variety of salads we enjoy, with this being one of our favorites. It is perfect for a summertime supper!
What sets this spinach salad apart from the others is that the chicken and mushrooms are placed in separate plastic bags to marinate with the salad dressing before sautéing. Added to the salad’s flavors is mozzarella cheese, a chopped apple, dried cherries and pine nuts. Dried cranberries or golden raisins could replace the dried cherries, if you prefer.
Then I topped it with the delicious Italian dressing. The dressing is robust and complements the salad ingredients perfectly. This is one of the best salads you can imagine and you will be making it many times once you try it! You will see how very delicious it is and all that spinach has to make it healthy also!
Here’s the recipe:
Italian salad dressing:
Ingredients:
¾ cup salad oil
¼ cup wine vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano leaves
¼ teaspoon dry mustard
¼ teaspoon paprika
3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, optional
Method:
In a blender or food processor, blend all ingredients, except cheese.
Process until well blended.
Add Parmesan cheese, stir in.
Cover and refrigerate for 3 or more hours before using.
Spinach Salad with Mushrooms, Mozzarella and Sautéed Chicken
Ingredients:
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Italian salad dressing
2 packages (10 oz. each) white mushrooms, sliced
8 cups baby spinach leaves
1 medium apple, chopped
½ cup dried cherries
2 tablespoons pine nuts
5 ounces mozzarella cheese, cubed
Method:
Pour ¼ cup Italian dressing over chicken in large re-sealable plastic bag, turn to coat.
Close bag and marinate in refrigerator up to 2 hours.
Repeat with mushrooms in additional ¼ cup dressing in separate re-sealable bag and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.
Remove chicken from plastic bag and sauté in a skillet until it is cooked thoroughly. Set aside.
Remove mushrooms from plastic bag and sauté in skillet until tender and golden.
Thinly slice chicken into strips.
Arrange spinach on serving platter.
Top with apple, cherries and cheese, then mushrooms and chicken.
Just before serving, drizzle with remaining dressing or however much you desire.
4 servings
This is one tasty summertime salad that’s great for lunch or supper!
Give it a try!
Roasted Green Beans & Shallots
in Beans, Green beans, Holidays, Kathy's recipes, Pine nuts, Shallots, Side Dish, Vegetables on Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Not only can Kathy, Matt’s girlfriend, make gorgeous flower arrangements (remember the Nov. 28 post ?), she can cook great also! She prepared this delicious dish for our Thanksgiving dinner and it was an instant hit so I just had to cook it myself.
You know how green beans always make an appearance on the holiday table with the ubiquitous mushroom soup and onion rings? Although being tasty, it is a creamy rich dish, high in calories. Well, this recipe is an up-graded green bean recipe taking them to a higher level. Roasting the green beans and shallots with a little olive oil, pine nuts and salt and pepper is an excellent way to amplify their flavor without adding a lot of extra calories.
After tasting it, this dish is now my favorite way to prepare green beans! It’s amazing how the ingredients all come together, rendering it absolutely delicious. The oven roasting makes it extra flavorful and is an amazing alternative to a casserole or steaming the green beans. Roasting the shallots gives it a caramelized flavor and the pine nuts top it off in a grand delicious way.
This is definitely my favorite green bean recipe and I will be cooking it many times! Thanks, Kathy!!!
Roasted Green Beans & Shallots
Ingredients:
1 ½ pounds fresh green beans
2 large shallots, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons olive oil
Pine nuts (as many as you wish….Kathy uses ¼ cup toasted, so do I)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place green beans, shallots, olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix well. Spread evenly on baking sheet (use two if necessary). Bake for 15 minutes.
Stir beans, return to oven for 15 additional minutes. Check on them and see how they look. Roast them longer if you like.
Put pine nuts in small pan and toast on medium heat for a few minutes. Watch carefully because they will brown quickly. Toast evenly.
Transfer green beans to a serving dish and spread toasted pine nuts on top.
Excellent, you will love this as an addition to your Christmas dinner!!!
ENJOY!!!
Cranberry Rice Pilaf
in Casseroles, Cranberries, Holidays, Pecans, Pine nuts, Rice, Shallots, Side Dish on Saturday, December 3, 2011
Wild Rice
Maja Smend
American pilaf’s originated in the South. Rice pilaf is different from ordinary steamed or boiled rice in that the pilaf’s rice is cooked in butter or oil first, which makes the grains begin to swell. The liquid added is not plain water, but a flavorful liquid such as vegetable or chicken stock, which along with seasonings, adds richness to the rice.
Rice pilaf is a great dish with lots of flavor when you want more than just regular rice and the addition of dried cranberries makes it a winner. It would work just as well with dried cherries, raisins or apricots. Mushrooms would complement it well also.
This recipe takes rice to a new level and is a wonderful side dish for your holiday table. It will go with any meat or seafood and is a great alternative to potatoes; you will love the aroma of it!
Cranberry Rice Pilaf
Ingredients:
2 cps. vegetable or chicken stock
1 T. butter
½ T. olive oil
1 or 2 large shallots, minced
1 c. wild rice
1/3 c. dried cranberries
1/8 t. dried thyme
Salt & pepper to taste
1/4 c. flat leaf parsley, minced
1/4 c. pecans, coarsely chopped and toasted (or pine nuts) *
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a small pan, bring the stock to a simmer.
In a large saucepan, melt the butter with the oil.
Add shallots and sauté 2-3 minutes until translucent.
Add rice and stir until well coated, about 3 minutes.
Stir in the heated stock, dried cranberries, salt and pepper and thyme, bring to a simmer, stirring well.
Transfer to a 1 ½ quart casserole dish.
Place in 375 degree over and bake for about 40-45 minutes, until rice has absorbed the liquid.
Remove from oven.
Add parsley and toasted pecans. Fluff with a fork.
Serve hot or warm.
* To toast pecans or pine nuts, spread on small baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-8 minutes. Stir frequently. Watch that they don’t burn.
Serves 4-6
ENJOY!
Gnocchi with Shrimp and Asparagus in Pesto Sauce
in Asparagus, Entree, Fish/Seafood, Garlic, Gnocchi, Parmesan, Pasta, Pine nuts, Sauces/Marinades, Shrimp, Vegetables on Saturday, September 24, 2011
OK, would somebody please help me…
I’ve seen many of you writing about gnocchi and a lot of you have even made it from scratch. It’s new to me. It took me 10 minutes, at least, to find a package of the potato dumplings in the grocery store the other day and they only had two of them.
If I had known how to pronounce the word, I would’ve asked the clerks what aisle to go to find it. Usually it never bothers me to ask anything but I didn’t want to stumble around with the word that day. So, I wandered from the boxed potato aisle to the frozen foods at the other end of the store, back to the cold food section, over to the pasta aisle and finally to the ethnic area and imagine that! There it was in the Italian food section. So, please tell me ~ is it gnocchi with a “hard” G as in good or is it gnocchi with a “silent” G as in gnat?
However it’s pronounced, we think it’s great and I’m sorry it took us so long to meet. Gnocchi is a great hearty alternative to pasta and a perfect addition in this recipe! I loved the texture and size of it and how quickly it cooked. The taste of the shrimp, fresh asparagus, and homemade pesto sauce with the gnocchi was absolutely delicious!!!
Would you just please tell me how to pronounce it…
Gnocchi with Shrimp and Asparagus in Pesto Sauce
Ingredients:
1 (16-ounce) package vacuum-packed gnocchi
4 cups asparagus (about 1 pound), sliced into 1” pieces
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
1 cup basil leaves
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Method:
Bring 2 quarts water to a boil in a large pan.
Add gnocchi and cook 4 minutes or until done. Gnocchi will rise to the top.
Remove gnocchi with a slotted spoon and keep warm in a large bowl.
Bring water back to a boil.
Add shrimp and cook until done, drain well.
Meanwhile, in another pan, add asparagus and cook until tender, drain well.
Add shrimp and asparagus to gnocchi bowl.
Combine 1 tablespoon water, basil and next 4 ingredients (through garlic) in a food processor.
Process until smooth, scraping sides.
Drizzle oil through food chute with food processor on; process until well blended.
Add basil mixture to shrimp mixture.
Toss to coat.
Serve immediately
4 servings
It’s delicious!!!
Pam's note: For a better procedure, see StephenC's second comment, #17.
Be sure to enter the $65 CSN giveaway I posted on Sept. 15th!
Check out my friend, Linda’s blog, at My Kind of Cooking for her great recipes and the 4 cookbooks she's giving away!
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