Cobb Salad

What does summer mean to you?

Summer to me means grilling and corn on the cob and light and refreshing meals like salads and fruits and veggies. Summer is Cobb Salad.

Grilled Cobb Salad at that.

It's one of my fave things. 

And this Cobb has grilled corn on the cob and juicy grilled chicken, cuz grilled food always tastes better. For reals... baked chicken? or GRILLED chicken?!??! There's no question, right? Grilled = major flavor + grill marks.

And grill marks are everything.



Seriously, I've been watching this show called American Grilled on the Travel channel. I'm obsessed. It's got me wanting to grill everything! Really, they do everything on the grill! Pasta, pizza, duck, giant cuts of beef, and lots of other local ingredients like frog legs, hog's head, crawfish, Cracker Jack's, and wild boar. It's one of my favorite things to watch lately. And I feel like I'm learning a lot when I watch it... even simple things like being sure to oil your meats and veggies before putting on the grill so they don't stick. And even the simplest of marinades and rubs. I'm so intrigued and hope to learn a lot more about grilling with other methods than a gas grill, grilling different kinds of meats, more about marinades and rubs, and learning how to perfect that gas grill method of grilling, too.

I'm itchin to buy a charcoal grill reeeeeeeeeal soon.

Anyways, now that I've got that outta my system, grill everything. While you can. While summer's still here. Not that you can't grill when it's not summer, but summer and grilling just go together. And nobody wants summer to end. So let's take a stand... grill everything you can get your hands on. Starting with some chicken and corn on the cob for this delicious Cobb Salad.











Cobb Salad
adapted from Meg's Everyday Indulgence

• romaine hearts, chopped
• grilled corn on the cob
• hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• avocado, diced
• bacon, cooked and crumbled
• grilled chicken breast, diced
• crumbled bleu cheese
• dressing of your choice

Assemble salads with lettuce on bottom, topped with grilled corn kernels removed from the cob, egg, avocado, bacon, chicken, bleu cheese, and dressing of your choice. 

May I recommend Litehouse Jalapeno Ranch, or Meg's Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette also sounds amazing.


Printable Recipe

As you can see, I don't really have perfect, exact measurements for this recipe, because really you can't go wrong with any amount! There were two of us, and I think we used 1-2 romaine hearts. I think we only used 1 ear of corn but again, can't go wrong with more. I'd say at least 2 hard-boiled eggs. 1 avocado is probably enough. Probably like 4 strips of bacon, or more if you plan on eating most of it before it makes it to the salad, like me. I'd probably say 1 chicken breast per person. However much crumbled bleu cheese looks right, Meg suggests 1/4 cup. You'll love this (grilled) cobb salad no matter how much of each ingredient you use. 

Linking up here.

Peace, and bacon grease!

Broiled Goat Cheese Arugula Salad with Grapes and Candied Pecans

Sometimes you are lucky to come across something that will forever be in a part of your life. 

 




























































This salad is one of those things for me.

I was so lucky to have Debra's blog (oh, don't forget her cat Eliot!), Eliot's Eats, for this month's Secret Recipe Club. Lots of good recipes along with tales about her garden, travel and adventure, and even some non-food crafts. I inspire to be like her! 

 
























































Her Creamsicle Strawberry Pops sound like the perfect summer treat! Also eyeing her Jalapeno Relish and these Dulce de Leche White Chocolate Cookies. Ahh, so much goodness! But that Baked Goat Cheese Salad really caught my eye, and seemed like the perfect lunch for me when I was all by myself one Sunday afternoon. The perfect solo lunch. By the time I got around to making it though, it was almost dinner time, so I put it in the fridge, saved it for dinner, and let PJ have half.

So glad I did. He loved it! So much. He wants to put it on our regular menu and said it was one of the best salads he's had in awhile. I agree. 

Broiled Goat Cheese Arugula Salad with Grapes and Candied Pecans
adapted from Eliot's Eats

For broiled goat cheese:

• 1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme, minced
• olive oil
• 3 rounds of garlic goat cheese log (cut in 1/2 inch slices)
• sea salt + freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For salad:  

• arugula
• 1/4 cup red seedless grapes, halved
• 1/8 cup honey roasted pecan pieces
• balsamic dressing 

Preheat oven to broil. 

Mix together Panko bread crumbs and minced thyme.  Generously coat a plate with olive oil. 

Dip each side of the goat cheese round in the olive oil and then coat with bread crumb mixture.   

Place goat cheese slices in a metal baking dish and season with salt and pepper.

Broil for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. Let cool to warm before serving. 

Assemble salad with arugula, grapes, and pecan pieces. Top with broiled goat cheese slices and dressing and serve. 


Printable Recipe


 






















































Can you imagine all the perfect flavors and textures? Peppery arugula, sweet grapes bursting with juicy flavor, crunchy and sweet candied pecans, crunchy tart broiled goat cheese all topped with a sweet balsamic dressing. I used Private Selection's White Balsamic & Honey Dressing. Like I said, so good. 

I may or may not have made another salad that night.  
 

Check out my past Secret Recipe Club posts!

An InLinkz Link-up

Linking up here.

Peace, and bacon grease!

 

Endive, Avocado, and Bacon Salad with Chipotle Ranch Dressing

Time for another one of the many challenges I participate in... the Eating the Alphabet Recipe Challenge, hosted by the lovely Brenda at Meal Planning Magic!

This month the letters were E or F, and remember you have to choose a vegetable, fruit, bean or grain. I chose endive because I had never eaten it before.

 






















Did you know there are different kinds of endive? I didn't, until I got to the store and saw just plain endive, which looked like lettuce kinda, and Belgian endive, which looked like tiny little white corn on the cob husks, and are hollow when peeled off the head. I went with the endive lettuce. When I got home I saw that the original recipe called for California endive. Good God, could endive be anymore confusing?  :)

Oh well, it was still delicious. I mean, how can you go wrong with all those ingredients in a salad? Avocado, bacon, homemade dressing with chipotles! And I added some diced onions, just because. And let's be honest here, the endive was just there to soak up all that dressing. What, isn't that the purpose of lettuce in a salad? :) I kid, I kid. Kinda.

Endive, Avocado, and Bacon Salad with Chipotle Ranch Dressing
adapted from All Day I Dream About Food

*Yields: 2 small side salads

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons mayo
• 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 gloves garlic, minced
• 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon adobo sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon dried dill weed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Salad:

• 1 head of endive lettuce, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped
• 1/2 a roma tomato, diced
• 2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1-2 tablespoons red onion, chopped
• 1-2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese

For the dressing, combine all ingredients in a sealable glass jar and shake vigorously.

For the salad, divide chopped endive lettuce among two salad plates. Sprinkle with avocado, tomatoes, bacon, onion, and cheese. Drizzle with dressing. Remaining dressing can be stored in fridge.
  

Printable Recipe

























Be sure to check out my past Eating the Alphabet Recipe Challenge entries. You're bound to find some keepers.

   
Linking up here.  


Peace, and bacon grease!

Cranberry Gorgonzola Salad

I just wanted to share a quick semi-recipe with you all - I don't have measurements, but just throw it all together to make this wonderful salad with an array of flavors in it!

I told you that I drizzled that dressing on just about anything I could... including this salad!

Cranberry Gorgonzola Salad

• Green leaf or red leaf lettuce
• Red onions, sliced
• Toasted pine nuts - they must be toasted! 
• Dried cranberries
• Gorgonzola crumbles
• Hard-boiled egg, sliced
• Cherry tomatoes, halved
• Croutons  
• Creamy Lime Cilantro Ranch Dressing

Season sliced egg and halved tomatoes with salt and pepper. Combine/layer all ingredients and drizzle the dressing on top.

Ta-da!

That's tough stuff right there, do you think you can handle all of that strenuous work?  :)

Next time I make it, I promise I will try to get some measurements! It just seems silly to measure out the lettuce, and each ingredient. I did use one hard-boiled egg though, that is the one measurement I know.

And a soakfest of dressing. Is soakfest a measurement?

I am linking this up to Tuesday Night Supper Club - the theme this week is SALAD... AND you will be entered to win a cookbook giveaway. I'm all about cookbook hoarding collecting! Come join me!

....and what do you know!? The theme for This Week's Craving is salads also! I'm linking up there also!

Updated 6/5/11: I am also linking up to Souper Sundays over at Kahakai Kitchen.

Peace, and bacon grease!