Pea, Almond, and Blue Cheese Salad

This scrumptious pea salad recipe is from my wonderful sister-in-law (who is truly like a REAL sister to me). The flavors in this pea salad might sound interesting but they work together beautifully especially with the vinaigrette of mustard, olive oil, garlic, mint, green onions and lemon juice. It's savory, tangy, and has excellent textures from the pop of the peas to the crunch of the toasted almonds. I've made this salad twice since Marg gave me the recipe, once with goat cheese crumbles and once with blue cheese and I must say the blue cheese is much better. But if you aren't a blue cheese or goat cheese fan it would also be delicious with chunks of fresh mozzarella or even grated fresh Parmesan cheese. It only takes as long to make as it does to boil the peas and goes great with just about anything you're making for dinner! 


Pea, Almond, and Blue Cheese Salad
From my lovely sister Margaret
Printable Version
Ingredients
1 package of frozen peas
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup slivered or sliced almonds, toasted in a pan for about 5 minutes over medium low


Directions
Boil peas in salted water according to directions on package. Drain and cool, the pat to remove excess water. In a large bowl whisk all of the remaining ingredients except for the blue cheese and almonds. Add the peas to the vinaigrette and combine. Top with blue cheese and sprinkle with almonds. 

Strawberry Blueberry Clafoutis

It was blueberry season in Michigan while hubby and I were visiting our family this July.
So we decided to head to a blueberry farm one beautiful morning and to pick some fresh, plump blueberries ripened by the summer sun.
 
We were one of the only people picking at the farm, so we each grabbed a bucket and raced to find the biggest blueberries. It only took us 45 minutes to fill our buckets with these little lovelies. 

We used the berries in pancakes, muffins, straight from the bowl, and in this Strawberry Blueberry Clafoutis. What is a clafoutis?? I had no idea either until I saw this post from Honest Fare. Gabrielle taught me that Clafouti (pronounced CLA-FOO-TEE) is a French rustic style dessert that traditionally is made with whole cherries. It can also be made with fresh berries and is a beautiful, simple recipe that ends up tasting like a mix between cake, custard and bread pudding. This is one of those great desserts that you can use any fruit or berry that you have on hand.

I made my Clafoutis for a send off party with my good friends. I didn't get a good picture of it after it came out of the oven, but it was pretty flat because I used a 9X13 pan. Next time I would use a deeper, pretty bowl for thicker Clafoutis and better presentation!

Strawberry Blueberry Clafoutis
From Honest Fare
Printable Version
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup strawberries, sliced into small pieces
1 cup blueberries
Whipped cream (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a blender blend the milk, 1/3 cup of the sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt, lemon zest, cinnamon, and flour.

Pour a 1/4 inch layer of the batter in a lightly and evenly buttered fireproof baking dish. Place in the oven until the batter firms up a bit (a film will set in the pan) about 8 minutes. 

Remove from oven and place the berries over the batter. Sprinkle on remaining sugar and pour on the rest of the batter evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour. The clafouti is done when puffed and brown and knife plunged in the center comes out clean. Great served warm or room temperature with whipped cream. Refrigerate leftovers.

BBQ Chicken Salad with Avocado and Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

Want to try a salad that is bursting with flavors and textures and is over the top delicious? then you have to try this BBQ Chicken Salad from Two Peas and their Pod. It involves creating a lot of different things: two homemade vinaigrettes, crispy cooked potatoes and grilled BBQ chicken, but every step is so worth it and so delicious. The salad alone is super yummy: tomatoes, corn, red onions, and black beans atop fresh greens.  I still cannot decide which of the dressings I liked better, the avocado or the blue cheese. Both are incredibly savory, tangy, creamy, and thick. They kept for several days so I dipped crackers and pretzels into after the salad fixins' were gone! 


The next time you are craving a salad, you gotta try this one! It's a salad that is m-e-a-l! You will not be disappointed!

BBQ Chicken Salad with Avocado and Blue Cheese Vinaigrette
From Two Peas and Their Pod
Serves 4
Printable Version

Ingredients
For the Avocado Vinaigrette:
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
1 medium shallot, chopped
3 tablespoons peach jam (I used rhubarb because I had it, and only used 1 tablespoon)
1 medium ripe avocado
Salt and pepper to taste

For the Blue Cheese Vinaigrette:
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
1 medium shallot, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, dry pan roasted and chopped (I browned these in a skillet for a few minutes)
2 tablespoons peach jam (again I used my rhubarb and only 1 tablespoon)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup blue cheese or Gorgonzola
Salt and pepper to taste


For the potatoes:
1 pound red or small white potatoes, scrubbed and sliced
1 medium shallot, minced
1 small bunch parsley, finely chopped


For the chicken:
4 chicken breasts
3/4 cup BBQ sauce - use your favorite brand

For the salad:
Mixed greens
Tomatoes, chopped (I used cherry tomatoes)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup corn
French Fried onions for garnish

Directions
Make avocado vinaigrette by combining all ingredients in a blender or food processor and mix until smooth. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve salad.

For the blue cheese vinaigrette combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and mix until smooth. If the dressing is too thick add a drizzle of olive oil and mix again. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve salad.

To make potatoes, slice thinly and saute in a large skillet with olive oil and shallots until browned and crispy. Stir in parsley. Set aside and keep warm until serving.

Grill the chicken and brush each piece liberally with BBQ sauce. Cut into strips and set aside.

To plate the salads layer first with mixed greens. Lay the sliced chicken on top of the greens. Top with tomatoes, black beans, corn, and tomatoes. Place potatoes on top. Garnish with french fried onions. Drizzle entire salad with the avocado and blue cheese vinaigrettes. 

Cobb Guacamole

When I saw this recipe for Cobb Guacamole on Strawberry Cake, I decided right then and there that I was going to make this fabulous looking dip my best girlfriends from college came to visit. I am a fiend for guacamole anyway and this guac is filled with the goodness of a cobb salad: corn, tomatoes, onion, bacon, blue cheese - do I really need to go on? Make this scrumptious dip the next time you have guests, need to bring an appetizer for a picnic or get together, or if you just want something incredible to pig out on! I made taco salad for dinner that night and it was even better topped with a dollop of this delicious cobb guac.

Cobb Guacamole

From Strawberry Cake - Thanks Sheila!
Printable Version

Ingredients

3 avocados

1 small sweet onion, diced

1 large roma tomato, 2 if small, diced

1 cup canned corn (sweet, no salt added), drained (I used fresh corn on the cob that I boiled first)

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

4 slices thick bacon, fried up crispy

Dressing

1 clove garlic, minced

6 leaves of fresh basil, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

fresh ground pepper, to taste

a dash of Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon sugar

Directions

Mix the avocado, onion, corn, and tomato together in a medium sized bowl.

Whisk the dressing ingredients together and pour over the avocados and mix around, squishing the avocados a little as you do. When ready to serve, sprinkle the blue cheese on top, then put the crumbled bacon on top of that. Serve with Tostitos Scoops and enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Over Memorial Day weekend this year my husband and I met my sister and brother in law and mother and father in law at Cape Cod to celebrate my in laws 35th Wedding Anniversary. We stayed at a lovely cottage in Brewster, Mass and dined on the local fare of lobsters and clams and buffalo chicken pizza. Buffalo chicken pizza? Yes, that's right! We got pizza one night from a local pizzeria and the buffalo chicken was out of this world. Any "alternative" pizzas always catch my attention because I'm not much of a traditional tomato sauce/pepperoni/sausage kind of girl. I'm the girl that likes veggie pizzas or white pizzas or chicken pizzas. After one bite of this pizza I declared, "I'm going to try to make this pizza myself!" That's one of the best things I've found through all of my cooking adventures - once I try something I really like, I know I can now make my own version at home. 

This Buffalo Chicken pizza from Sandra Lee was so yummy! With grilled chicken strips marinated in buffalo sauce, cooled off by blue cheese and celery, it isn't exactly like the Cape Cod creation, but I loved the crunch and coolness that the celery added. Celery on a pizza - yes it sounds crazy, but is actually terrific - even my hubby who was a bit skeptical agrees. I made homemade pizza dough for this pizza and will post that recipe next. 

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

From Sandra Lee

Ingredients

1 pound chicken tenders, cut into small strips

1 cup buffalo wing sauce plus 2 tablespoons

Pizza dough (Sandra recommends a 13.8 ounce can of refrigerated dough. I made my own)

1 cup blue cheese dressing (This is where I made a mistake and bough blue cheese crumbles instead. Still turned out great!)

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 small red onion, sliced

1 cup celery (2 stalks), diced

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside. Carefully unroll dough and place on prepared baking sheet. Press out dough with clean hands to form a 13 X 9 inch rectangle. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 7 minutes or until crust begins to brown. Meanwhile place chicken strips in a large bowl with 1 cup of the buffalo sauce. Toss to coat the chicken. Grill the chicken strips for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. 

Remove crust from oven and top with blue cheese dressing leaving a 1 inch border. (Since I bought the crumbles instead of the dressing I just sprinkled the dough with the crumbles and drizzled a little olive oil and buffalo sauce over the cheese as the base). Next top with the chicken strips, red onion, and celery. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of buffalo sauce.

Cover with mozzarella cheese. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown and cheese has melted. 

**I made my pizza indoors, but you can also make it on the grill. If you want the directions for the grilled version, click on the link (Sandra's name) above.

Cape Cod Sunset

Low Fat Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing

Just a few days after I made Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing I saw this recipe for Lowfat Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing on Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes. I am 100 percent hooked on homemade dressing! Store bought dressing just does not measure up.

I used the Blue Cheese Dressing to cool off Buffalo Chicken that I served with cruidtes. The dressing was excellent and you would never know it's low fat - actually mine not be since I used full fat mayo. Oops! :) I doubled this recipe so we would have extra for dipping veggies into later on. After it sat for a day or two it was even better, too!

Lowfat Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing

From Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Ingredients

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

6 ounces fat free yogurt

1 tablespoon light mayonnaise

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (I just used regular vinegar)

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

In a small bowl mash blue cheese and yogurt together with a fork. Stir in mayo, lemon juice, vinegar, and garlic powder until well blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Makes 1 cup. 

Grilled Ribeye Steak with Onion-Blue Cheese Sauce

To....die....for! That is what my husband said about these Grilled Ribeye Steaks with Onion-Blue Cheese Sauce. I borrowed this recipe from one of the best cooking blogs out there, The Pioneer Woman (http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/). I feel like I gain weight just browsing Ree Drummond's delicious recipes. She is so down to earth and so funny. Her food blog is light hearted and entertaining. Best of all she shows you what the recipe looks like step by step.

Once I saw how this recipe combined sauteed onions with melted blue cheese I knew it was the perfect choice for Christmas Dinner. My husband loves steak, but I rarely use beef at home, so I knew this would make him a very happy man. I added a blend of sauteed mushrooms to the top of the steak and served it with oven baked dill potatoes. Yum! Be sure to try this amazing sauce. It would be great on pretty much anything...chicken, potatoes, eggs, or Ree even says it can be served as a side. Sooooo good, yet so bad.

Ingredients

• 2 whole Ribeye Steaks
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• Salt
• Pepper
• 4 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 whole Very Large Yellow Onion, Sliced
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• ½ cups Crumbled Blue Cheese

Instructions

Salt and pepper both sides of the steaks. Grill until

medium rare.

Saute the onions in 4 tablespoons of butter over high

heat. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until dark and

caramelized. Reduce heat to summer and pour in cream.

Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until reduced by half.

Stir in blue cheese until melted.

Serve steaks on generous portion of sauce.

Faint.