the arugula files

Curried Chicken Salad

My husband thinks this chicken salad is ludicrous.  Raisins and nuts in chicken salad?  Stop the insanity! I offered it to him for lunch.  He turned it down, ran out the door, said he would buy lunch. He probably went to Subway.  Sigh.

Me? I think it's the only way to eat chicken salad.  So much flavor!  

This dish is inspired by the prepared foods section at Whole Foods, where they sell it by the pound.  The recipe is not posted on their website because, let's face it, who is going to spend $13 on a small container of chicken salad when they can make it at home for half the price.  Oh wait.  Me.  I buy it.  

Not anymore.  

It's so easy to make.  

Summer Salad with End-All Be-All Vinaigrette

Brace yourself.  

This salad is going to rock your world.

In fact, even though we still have about a month of summer to go, I'm going ahead and naming it THE salad of the summer.  

It's heavy on flavor, but is light and refreshing.  It was the perfect antidote for the heat wave we had a few weeks ago.  It takes a little time to pull together, since there is grilling involved, but as I often do on Sunday, I grilled and roasted a bunch of my CSA vegetables, put them in the fridge, and then pulled them out during the week.  There is no way that I could construct a salad like this on a week night.

The End-All Be-All Vinaigrette

If like me you have been searching for the perfect vinaigrette, the search is over. It's OVER. Done. You don't have to spend one more minute on THE SEARCH.  I found the recipe. The end-all be-all vinaigrette. As in, "the very best or most important" salad dressing ever made.

I can't take credit for this vinaigrette. A person named Simone created the recipe. I didn't even discover it. Bon Appetit did. I can tell you that it is delicious and simple and is my new favorite dressing.

Chimichurri

When it comes to herbs, I've never been that impressed by parsley.  That was until I started making Chimichurri, the most addictive form of this otherwise underperforming herb.  Chimichurri sauce takes minutes to make.  No chopping required, just toss everything into your food processor. Make it at the beginning of the week and then add it to anything you aim to transform from bland to delicious.  I've used it to top grilled hanger steak, roasted sweet potatoes, or raviolis.  Careful, chimichurri – or crack parsley as I like to call it – is habit forming, and could result in periods of extreme happiness, followed by withdrawal symptoms.

A Variation of Sophie Dahl's Warm Winter Salad

If I had to pick a cookbook to live in, I would pick Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights.  I imagine it would be like living in Anthropologie.  My walls would be lined with Venetian Bouquet wallpaper.  On rainy days, I would stir up vintage cocktails.  It would feel cozy all the time, like being wrapped in a throw that just came out of the dryer.  Suburban sprawl would be replaced with rural, country cottage romance.   Basically, a modern day Downton Abby. 

I like Sophie's style in the kitchen, but I haven't cooked much out of her cookbook, mostly because its pages offer inspiration, rather than exact recipes follow.

Grilled Chipotle Chicken Salad with Cilantro-Lime Dressing

Remember last week when I suggested that you spend one million dollars at the farmers market to build a delicious salad?  I complained that there was no possible way to recreate such deliciousness from a regular, old supermarket salad? That if you cared about your taste buds, then you should hand over your Benjamins for some mixed greens, or else.  That if you are a true foodie, you will remortgage your house for rocket and mesculen.

What a snobby food elitist!   

Want to keep it real?  How about this whammy: I heart iceberg lettuce.  I love the light, fresh, crispy crunch of each nutrient void bite.  

Peach and Blackberry Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing (Plus Tips on How to Make a Gorgeous Summer Salad)

You know what impresses me?  When someone creates a delicious, Natalie-Cole-style salad.  As in: unforgettable.  Yes, that unforgettable.  Unforgettable, in every way.  The lettuce.  The dressing.  The little gems of fruit and beads of salt.

An extrodinary salad is not something one throws together at the last minute.  It takes great care and attention to detail.  It also costs a few bucks.   If you have a garden, then you are on your way.  Otherwise, make your way to the local farmers market.  It's summer.  Get.  Out.  Side. (Or, as my favorite writer would say to me:  Mary, leave your natural habitat-- the couch--behind).

"Chinese Coleslaw"

 

I singled this dish out at a work potluck.  It was a holiday party so it's no surprise that it was the lone dish on the conference room table that actually included vegetables.  I had a bite and immediately fell in love with it.  I'm sold because, while it appears healthy (and, for the most part, is healthy), it actually includes Ramen as one of the main ingredients.  Which is, of course, not healthy.  But, oh well, at least you get some cabbage, carrots, and almonds.  What's the saying...just a spoon full of Ramen?  

By the way, when I asked my co-worker for the recipe she called the dish "Chinese Coleslaw," which I found odd because I've always thought of Ramen as Japanese.  After some extensive internet research on Wikipedia I found that ramen noodles actually originated in China, not Japan.  Who knew.  Anyway, I place quotes around the name of the dish because no matter where ramen noodles come from, no one in China is eating this cole slaw.  Plus, I like to put quotes around things; especially air quotes.  And sometimes I get carried away and use air quotes when they are not really called for.   Yes, I'm one of those people.

I recently made this dish for dinner on New Year's Eve.  It paired nicely with homemade egg rolls and crab rangoon.