Modified Cobb Salad

With temperatures climbing every day, I am happy to find any recipe that doesn't involve using the oven! I saw a this recipe on 30-Minute Meals with Rachael Ray and I knew it would be a good choice for a hot day.

I modified the recipe some in part because I couldn't find watercress at the grocery store and I forgot to get my chicken out of the freezer! So, I used only the steak and bacon and a bit of romaine lettuce. It was delicious. The marinade for the steak really gives it a great flavor. In addition, to save some time, I didn't make a homemade dressing. I used a small amount of raspberry vinaigrette already on hand and it was perfect.

I like the versatility of salads. You can add hardboiled egg, onion or even another type of meat. You could even cut out the meat entirely for a vegetarian entree. No matter what you try, it's bound to be good!

Cobb Salad: Double the Meat and Hold the Lettuce
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons grill seasoning blend (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick)
2 tablespoons hot sauce, eyeball it
4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus some for drizzling
2 pounds flank steak
8 pieces "thin cut" chicken breast cutlets
2 slightly under ripe Hass avocados - dark skinned, but still firm
2 vine ripe tomatoes cut into wedges
2 bunches watercress, trimmed and roughly chopped
8 strips bacon, thick sliced
1 lemon, zest and juiced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper
1/3 pound blue cheese, crumbled (recommended Maytag Blue)
Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill to high heat.
Mix garlic, steak seasoning, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce and vinegar. Whisk in the extra-virgin olive oil. Divide the mixture between 2 shallow dishes. Add the flank steak to one and the thin chicken cutlets to the other. Toss to coat all of the meats thoroughly and marinate for 5 minutes.
While the flank steak and chicken are marinating, cut the avocados in half lengthwise cutting around the pit. Separate the halves then, using a spoon, scoop out the pit, then use the spoon to scoop the avocado from its skin. Chop the avocado flesh into bite size pieces add to a mixing bowl. Add the tomatoes, watercress and crisp chopped bacon. Dress the salad with the juice of 1 lemon and a generous drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.

Grill flank steak 6 to 7 minutes on each side. Grill the thin cut chicken cutlets 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove both meats from the grill to a cutting board to rest for about 5 minutes. Thinly slice the flank steak on an angle, cutting the meat against the grain. Cut the chicken into thin strips. Add both meats to a platter or dinner plates. Top the meats with a mound of the salad. To make the dressing, combine in a small bowl the lemon zest and juice, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, crumbled blue cheese, whisk in 3 tablespoons EVOO. Pour the dressing over the salad. Eat and enjoy the lack of lettuce getting in your way!

Recipe from 30-Minute Meals with Rachael Ray

A New Chicken and Rice Recipe

I like the "traditional" chicken and rice recipe -- chicken, white rice, cream of mushroom soup. I think it's one of the first things I prepared for my husband when we began dating. Recently, on Paula's Home Cooking she made a chicken and rice casserole, with a few additions. I tried it at home and aside from the fact that it makes a very large casserole, it's really tasty. It's also very simple to make. I omitted the water chestnuts because I don't care for them. The pimentos and wild rice add a nice flavor to the dish. Since this has green beans, I didn't make another vegetable to serve alongside. With a simple garden salad, this casserole is a meal.

Chicken and Rice Casserole
2 (14 1/2-ounce) can green beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups diced cooked chicken
1 medium onion diced and sauteed
1 (8-ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
1 (4-ounce) can pimentos
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of celery soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (6-ounce) box long-grain and wild rice, cooked according to package directions
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar
Pinch salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly.

My Birthday Dinner

Lucky for me, my birthday coincided with our recent trip to New York. I am a big Bobby Flay fan, so I chose one of his restaurants for my birthday meal: Mesa Grill.

Being from Kansas, I can't say that you don't experience a bit of sticker shock in New York City restaurants. But the food at Mesa Grill was worth every penny.

We ordered two appetizers: blue corn pancakes with BBQ duck and a stuffed tamale. The tamale was good, but the blue corn pancakes were absolutely fantastic. The pancakes were a little heavier than a regular pancake and they had a nice flavor. The BBQ duck was tender and moist. I've ordered duck in restaurants in the past, only to be disappointed. It is easy to overcook duck and it can be very dry. That was not the case on this night.

For dinner, I had Mexican spice rubbed pork tenderloin with bourbon ancho chile sauce and a sweet potato tamale with crushed pecan butter. The pork was tender enough to eat with a fork. The ancho chile sauce with sweet and spicy. I love sweet potatoes, so I enjoyed this adaptation on a traditional sweet potato.

For dessert, we had a peach and blueberry ice cream sandwich. Yummy!

I've had some really wonderful birthdays over the years. This one ranks toward the top of the list.

New York Food Show

To gather information for a research project I'm working on, my husband and I recently attended the Fancy Food Show sponsored by the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade.

At this show, food manufacturers and distributors showcase their products for potential food buyers. With over 160,000 products, it's a little overwhelming to first-timers like me. We walked the show floor, sampling products and talking with vendors. This is a great opportunity to learn about different types of food, as you can find everything from cheese to olive oil to coffee.

One highlight of the show: I met Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa! She was there to showcase her new line of Barefoot Contessa products by Stonewall Kitchen. I have several of her cookbooks and I've made many recipes from each. I will admit I was a little shy about meeting her, so my husband dragged me to her. She was very nice and wished us good luck!