Forever Nigella: Salad Days

 

One thing I love about Nigella Lawson is how she can use simple ingredients found in the pantry to create an equally simple, but delicious meal.  Some of the best recipes come about just by scrounging around in the fridge or the pantry and using up what you have lying around. 

This month’s Forever Nigella is hosted by Dom at Belleau Kitchen and the theme is Salad Days.  After looking through as many of Ms. Lawson’s salad recipes as I could find, what tempted me most wasn’t a recipe for a salad, but a recipe for a salad dressing.  Using some pantry staples, you can create a quick and easy homemade Honey Mustard Dressing. 

Click here for Nigella’s recipe for Golden Honey Mustard Dressing.

As you can see in the recipe, Nigella gives the measurements for each ingredient, but I think she probably wings it a little.  This recipe is ridiculously easy.  Just assemble your ingredients and add to a jar, then shake, shake, shake!  This could be very therapeutic after a rough day.  Two things to think about with this recipe: First, I’m not sure, but I think that this recipe calls for Rapeseed oil (as mentioned in the introduction) instead of Grapeseed oil as listed in the ingredients.  Rapeseed oil and Canola oil are practically the same thing, so that’s what I used and it was perfect.  Second, it took me a lemon and a half to get the right amount of juice.  But I could probably have done well enough with just one lemon.  My suggestion is to add half of the suggested lemon juice, shake and taste.  You can always add more later.

So what kind of salad goes with a dressing this tasty?  I started with some leftover salad greens.  Then I searched through my refrigerator where I found some bacon bits, shredded cheese, a hard-boiled egg and a leftover fried chicken tender.  A few croutons from the pantry and my salad was ready to receive a lovely drizzle of golden dressing.  There’s something very comforting about the flavors of the egg and honey mustard dressing, it’s hard for me to resist.  It would have been fantastic with some cucumbers as well, but the point I’m making here is that I used what I had.  And it was delicious!

 

Here’s a reminder of the rules: Forever Nigella #5 “Salad Days”
Challenge: To prepare and blog any Nigella salad recipe
Deadline: Sunday, May 29 at midnight wherever you are.
Round up: By the next weekend.
There are:
No rules about how often you must take part
No rules about stuff being secret until certain dates
No rules that everyone cook exactly the same thing
No rules about not being able to submit to any other blog events – but do check it doesn’t contravene any rules the other guys may have.
But there are 3 rules:
1. We want everyone to keep buying lots and lots of Nigella books so that she keeps writing them so you must NOT reproduce recipes verbatim as shown in Nigella’s publications. If you are sticking exactly to the original recipe, just tell us which book it was from and if available, provide a link to it on Nigella.com http://www.nigella.com which publishes a lot (but not all) of her recipes. (You may also find some recipes on sites for some TV stations and newspapers).  Alternatively, you may blog an adapted Nigella recipe so long as you have changed at least two ingredients and write the directions in your own words. Tell us what you changed and why.
2. Publish your Forever Nigella blog post (in English) by the closing date including the latest Forever Nigella graphic and giving a link to this post and the Forever Nigella home page http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/forever-nigella .  Your entry must have been published since the announcement post. You may only re-blog something from your archives if you republish it with the badge and links to this post before the deadline.
3.Email the details to me at Dom@thepersuaders.co.uk  and please c.c. sarahATmaisoncupcakeDOTcom – I need your name, your blog name, a link to your post and a photo no more than 300 pixels wide. No billboard sized images please.

Salad Days Round-Up

Yummy Once--Yummy Twice--Yummy Chicken Soup with Rice

Have you missed me? I'd like to say I've been really busy with no time to write. In reality, I've just been too pregnant and lazy to be motivated to do anything much. Even though I should probably save every tiny amount of motivation I might find for baby prep, I felt that at least one post before Baby Liam gets here should be in order.

This recipe came about one afternoon when I was trying to figure out what we'd have for dinner. Too hot to spend much time in the kitchen, and too weary to do much standing, I decided it was a crock-pot kind of night. I threw some chicken into the pot and then searched the kitchen for something to give it flavor. I found a can of chicken and rice soup and decided that would do.

That evening, I fished out some of the chicken from the crock-pot and served with whatever sides I had prepared. It made our taste buds sing! There was some chicken left, (not to mention that beautiful golden liquid) all of which went straight to the fridge. The next day for lunch, I took the remaining chicken and mixed it with some rice and peas and the reserved soup. DELICIOUS!!

If you just want the chicken by itself, follow the first part of the recipe, but continue on for the chicken and rice recipe.

Click here for the Printable Recipe at Tasty Kitchen.

Yummy Chicken and Rice
serves 6

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cans chicken and rice soup + 2 cans of water
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsps butter
salt and pepper to taste
*******************************************
6 cups cooked rice
1 can of green peas, drained

Directions:
Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock-pot and drizzle with olive oil and add butter. Add soup and water. Cover crock-pot and turn to high and allow to cook until done, (according to crock-pot instructions).
********************************************
Place the chicken in a large bowl and shred. Add rice, peas and the remaining soup and mix well. Devour!!

I told you once
I told you twice
all seasons
of the year
are nice
for eating
chicken soup
with rice!

--Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak

A Fish Called Wonderful

Salmon: my all time favorite kind of fish. Bake it, broil it, smoke it (oh yeah!), fry it, and grill it! Doesn't matter what you do to it, I'm gonna eat it. Unless it comes from a can. One time I opened a can and pretty much they had just stuffed a whole fish in there. I know you can eat the skin and bones, but I just don't want to. I steer clear of the canned fish and go for the vacuum packed foil pouch fish. It tastes better anyway.

One way we enjoy salmon at my house is Salmon Patties. Call 'em fish cakes if you want, but I've got a two year old, I don't need to confuse her. For this recipe, you can use foil packed salmon, canned salmon (gag), or cook your own fresh salmon beforehand.

My mouth is watering!

Salmon Patties
6-8 Servings with 2 or 3 patties per person

Ingredients:
12 oz. cooked salmon

6 oz. box of cornbread stuffing mix (herb flavored recommend)
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup canola oil (may need more or less depending on your skillet size)

Directions:
In a large mixing bowl, mix together stuffing mix and water. Add salmon, mayo, lemon juice and mozzarella; stir to combine well. Refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.

Heat oil in a skillet on medium , (oil should pretty much cover the bottom). Using the scoop of your choice, (large ice cream scoop, 1/4, or 1/3 cup measuring cup depending on desired size), scoop out mixture and form into slightly flattened patties using your hands. Add to oil and cook about 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Move cooked patties to a paper towel lined baking sheet to drain while cooking other patties. (Tip: a slotted spatula is the way to go here)

Special Notes:
To make ahead, form patties and then store in refrigerator freezer. If freezing, let thaw before cooking.

This would also be a good way to use up leftover homemade cornbread dressing. Omit the water and follow other directions using 6 oz. of your own yummy dressing.

Click here for the printable recipe at Tasty Kitchen.

Creamy and flaky on the inside and a little crunchy on the outside.


I think I'll have just one more...or two!

Leftovers for Lunch

Logan's Roadhouse = YUM!

We love Logan's! We like to start out with their Fried Mozzarella Cheese Sticks and Loaded Potato Skins. But you've got to save room for all those Yeast Rolls! And let me just say, the Parmesan Peppercorn dressing...AMAZING! I like to order the Mesquite Wood Grilled Salmon, (I replace the garlic-dill sauce with the Parmesan Peppercorn dressing.) But probably our all time favorite is the Logan's Grilled Chicken. It is a generous portion of grilled chicken, topped with the Parmesan Peppercorn dressing, and served over rice pilaf, (which beautifully soaks up the juices from the chicken.)

By the time we've had our appetizers, rolls, salads, and stuffed ourselves with peanuts, it is usually impossible to finish the entire meal. That means about half of the chicken is sure to come home with us. Could I have a to-go box please?

It would be easy to pop in the microwave the next day for lunch, but I have a better idea! Don't have a Logan's near you? No problem, just use any grilled chicken that you know to be delicious.

Easy Grilled Chicken Sandwich

What you need:
Leftover Grilled Chicken, still cold from the fridge
Bread of your choice
Mayonnaise
Mozzarella Cheese, (sliced or shredded, it doesn't matter as long as you cover most of the bread)
Butter (optional)
Any other ingredient you would like to add to the sandwich (optional)
A Panini press or some other indoor grilling instrument

What to do:
-Dice or shred the chicken and add to a bowl.
-Mix in just enough mayonnaise to hold the chicken together. Start out small, it shouldn't take much.
-Place your mozzarella on your bottom slice of bread.
-Top with chicken mixture and any other ingredients you wish.
-Cover with more mozzarella and top with the other slice of bread.
-Butter the outside of the sandwich if you wish.
-Grill the sandwich on a medium-high heat until bread is browned and cheese melted.
-Now eat the yummy thing!

Leftover chicken. I know it tastes good, but it doesn't look so good.

Now that's more like it!