Chicken Salad - Two Ways

Did I mention that it's hot?

Not just "baby, it's hot out there," hot. But a relentless, mind-numbing, hovering-around-100-degrees-every-afternoon kinda HOT.
(yeah, yeah I know you're probably sick of listening to me grumble about the heat - thankfully it is due to break soon and then I'll stop whinging)

In the meantime, my Big Cooking Adventure last week was to poach a load of chicken breasts in the coolest part of the day possible (around 1:30 am, with my current schedule) and come up with clever ways to use them in meals that don't require even getting near an oven.

My solution: Chicken Salad.


Lemony Chicken Salad with Zucchini, Dried Cranberries and Almonds
serves 4

• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  
• 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• finely grated zest of 1 lemon, plus juice of 2 lemons
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 medium zucchini (2 pounds), cut into 3-by-1/2-inch sticks
• 1 large shallot, minced
• 2 poached skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut or shredded into large pieces
  
• 1/4 cup whole, blanched almonds
  
• 2 cups lightly packed arugula
  

In a large bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the olive oil with the garlic, cumin, lemon zest, half of the lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper.
Add the zucchini and cranberries and toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, in a shallow glass or ceramic dish, combine the minced shallot with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the remaining lemon juice. Add the chicken pieces and stir to coat thoroughly with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
In a small skillet, toast the almonds over moderate heat until golden brown. Cool and chop.
Add the chicken with its marinade, the chopped almonds and arugula to the marinated zucchini and cranberries. Toss everything together.
Serve immediately.

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Vietnamese Chicken and Cabbage Salad (Goi Ga)
serves 4

Dressing

• 1 small, red chili, minced (and seeded if you want to temper the heat)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce

Combine all the above ingredients in a bowl and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Set aside.

Salad

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 4 cups (8 ounces) finely shredded Napa cabbage
• 1-2 carrots, peeled and shredded
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup fresh mint, slivered
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, slivered
• 2 tablespoons unsalted and roasted peanuts, chopped (optional)

Place the chicken breast in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then lower heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook about 15-20 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts to a plate and let cool.
When cool enough to handle, tear the meat into long, thin pieces and place in a large bowl. Add the shredded cabbage, carrot, onion, mint and cilantro to the bowl.
Pour the dressing over and mix everything together.
Serve immediately, garnished with the optional peanuts.

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Photo du Jour - Salade de Roquette aux Tomates et Copeaux de Parmesan

Keeping it simple. Keeping it cool.
Or trying to anyway. Pin It

A Gutsy Cherry Tomato, Garlic, Arugula and Feta Cheese Pasta Sauce Recipe

We're practically drowning in tomatoes.

There are currently two big bowls that need eating/canning/whatever. Two big bowls. Which isn't bad actually, the other day there were four.

One big bowl with ripe red, giant black and zebra striped green tomatoes and a smaller bowl with normal sized cherry, little yellow teardrop and tiny cherry tomatoes.



Trying to incorporate them into almost every meal without inciting boredom has been the challenge.
I never want to hear the words, "not tomatoes, again?" This winter we'll be longing for the taste of sweet, vine ripened tomatoes, so we must gather ye rosebuds...

Good ol' reliable epicurious.com aimed to please when it popped up with this fabulous recipe;
Pasta mixed with juicy, bursting cherry tomatoes cooked with garlic and spring onions, mixed with peppery arugula and scattered with a generous amount of crumbled feta cheese. We didn't have campanelle or fusilli, but I'm not that fussy when it comes to matching pasta and sauce. (actually I do think that there are a few pasta sauces that must be matched with the appropriate pasta shape, but this wasn't one of them). I used penne and it was just fine.

Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen campanelle here anyway.



This was one great dish! It deserves to be made a couple more times before tomato season finally ends.


Campanelle with Tomatoes and Feta

from Bon Appétit magazine

8 ounces campanelle (trumpet-shaped pasta) or fusilli (spiral-shaped pasta)
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
6 green onions, chopped (about 1 cup)
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 pint whole cherry tomatoes
1 pint whole grape tomatoes
5 cups (loosely packed) arugula
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese (about 7 ounces)

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add green onions, garlic, and all tomatoes; sauté until tomatoes begin to soften and collapse, about 7 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Drain pasta. Return to pot. Add tomato mixture, arugula, and remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil; toss until arugula begins to wilt. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer pasta to plates. Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve.

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Isn't the Internet Great?

We found this recipe online last night by searching for "italian sausage arugula recipe". This one from Restaurant Widow popped up so we decided to give it a try.
I didn't roast my own peppers, just used a couple of roasted peppers from a jar.

The result was tangy, a bit spicy and quite good! The olive oil drizzled on at the end really rounded out the flavors.

Pasta with Italian Sausage and Arugula - serves 2

6 ounces smooth penne
2 sweet or hot Italian sausage links
red pepper flakes
1/2 onion, cut into thin half moon slices
2 red peppers, roasted and cut into 2" by 1/2" slivers
2 large handfuls arugula, well washed and torn, any tough stems removed
salt and freshly cracked pepper
2 tbsp vinegar - sherry, plain white, apple cider would all work well
Good extra virgin olive oil
good Parmesan cheese, optional

Cook the pasta in well-salted water according to package directions; remove a little of the pasta water and set aside, then drain the pasta and set aside.
In the meantime, heat a large skillet over medium heat, add a little olive oil, and add the sausage to the pan - slice the casings and crumble the sausage with your fingers into the pan; season with crushed red pepper flakes.
When the sausage is cooked through, drain off the fat and place the sausage on a plate.
Add the onions to the pan and saute over medium-high heat - you want them to have some "toothiness" left, not to go all soft.
Add the peppers and return the sausage to the pan. Stir everything through.
Add a little (1/4 cup) of the pasta water to the pan and scrape up any browned sausage bits that have accumulated. The starch in the pasta water will help bind your ingredients together.
Add the arugula to the pan and sprinkle liberally with salt.
Stir everything together, add the vinegar, and allow the arugula to wilt down and soften.
Stir for about 2 minutes and taste a piece of arugula; add a little black pepper and correct seasonings as needed, cooking a little longer if the arugula is too tough.
Add the pasta back to the pan and toss to coat.
Place pasta in bowls and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired, and grate a little Parmesan over. Pin It