CEiMB: Curried Chicken Salad

I’m late in posting my weekly CEiMB recipe because, quite frankly, I was hesitant to make it. For one thing, I was less than impressed with the last chicken salad we made. Also, I didn’t know if I would like curry powder, even though I recently discovered a love of Indian food.

I reconsidered, though, after reading through the recipe and realizing that it is not that different from my standard chicken salad. It is basically the same, except substituting almonds for walnuts and adding both curry powder and cilantro. Plus, I have heard about the popularity of curried chicken salad and even saw an episode of Barefoot Contessa where Ina Garten prepared it, so I gave it a try.

On a side note, I LOVE Ina Garten’s food. I think her show is a little very unrealistic and it drives me a little crazy (seriously, who entertains that much and has that many male friends?), yet I watch it daily and have prepared her food on many occasions.

Back to CEiMB: this week we were hosted by Sarah of Sarah’s Kitchen Adventures. To see the recipe, click here or visit Sarah’s blog.

I skipped the first part of the recipe, which called for poaching the chicken in chicken broth. I just pulled some frozen chicken breasts out and boiled them in water. I also did not toast the sliced almonds, but that was only because I forgot to do it!

Overall, I was pleased with the result of this recipe. The curry powder was not overwhelming but added a spicy warmth to the salad. I also liked the cilantro in the recipe because it made the chicken salad taste very fresh. I think this may be a permanent addition to my chicken salad, curried or not.

I ate the chicken salad as pictured, over greens, but I think it would be much more filling as a traditional sandwich. I also liked Sarah’s suggestion to serve it with pita chips, which I may try with the leftovers.

Thank you, Sarah, for a great CEiMB pick!

CEiMB: Emerald Stir-Fry with Beef

Hi everyone! First of all, thank you to everyone for the sweet comments on my Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 post. I appreciate the feedback!

I’m really trying to get back on track with cooking and posting for CEiMB. I skipped last week for two reasons: 1) I was getting ready for my cooking party, and 2) I knew Scott wouldn’t eat the Five Layer Mexican Dip and I didn’t want a whole pan of it tempting me over the weekend. Looking back, I could have made it for dinner for my friends since we also had tacos. As the infamous “they” say, hindsight is 20/20.

This week, our group was hosted by Alyssa of Alyssa’s Two Bites, who has a lovely blog if you haven’t checked it out.

I was really looking forward to this week’s recipe, Emerald Stir-Fry with Beef. I love green vegetables, and this one included some that I normally do not add to stir fries – specifically asparagus and edamame. However, this ended up being a nice combination that also included broccoli (my favorite!) and snow peas.

I will admit that I did not follow the measurements of the vegetables exactly, but I did mix the mirin-soy-orange sauce exactly according to the recipe. I know some of the other CEiMB members found the sauce to be a little bland, but Scott and I both enjoyed it very much. I thought it was sweet but had a little heat from the addition of crushed red pepper flakes. I do think the recipe would benefit from a small amount of salt, which I am sure Ellie left out of the recipe due to the amount of soy sauce called for, but with the amount of fresh vegetables in the recipe I think it needs some added in.

I do plan on making this dish again. It was quick, easy, and flavorful and a good vehicle to get some fresh veggies into my husband. As he said, “I wasn’t too enthused when I first looked at it, but it is delicious!”

I also loved Alyssa’s idea to make the stir-fry with shrimp and to marinate it in the sauce while the vegetables cook. I will definitely try that next time!

Thanks to Alyssa for a great CEiMB pick!

CEiMB: Arugula, Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza

I am a slacker. I made this recipe last Wednesday so I could post on Thursday (and actually follow the rules of CEiMB for once), but I just never got around to it. So, sorry to my other group members – and here it is!

The recipe for this week was Arugula, Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza chosen by Maria of Half Meatball/Half Matzoh Ball. I was actually looking forward to this one because I love goat cheese.

The only changes I made to this recipe were to use actual pizza crust rather than whole wheat tortillas (I have several batches of whole wheat pizza dough in my freezer that I made a couple weeks ago) and to put the arugula on top of the pizza fresh rather than wilting it into the onions (so I could split the onions between two pizzas, this recipe and one for Scott).

I really enjoyed the caramelized onions. I have never tried to make them before this recipe and found that it really isn’t that difficult. They were very soft and sweet and gave a nice contrast to the tang of the goat cheese.

If anyone decides to try this recipe with pizza dough, I will let you know I baked my crust completely before adding the toppings. I was afraid everything else would burn in the time that it took the dough to bake, so I just added them at the end and returned the pizza to the oven so the toppings could heat through.

I think if I make this recipe again, I will use spinach rather than arugula. After making two recipes with it, I have decided I just don’t like it, which is great since I now have a huge tub of it in my refrigerator. Guess we’ll be eating lots of salads this week!

Overall, this one was so-so. It is something I would make again if I had all of the ingredients on hand, but not a recipe that I would add to my regular rotation.

Thanks to Maria for hosting this week!

CEiMB Rewind

Hi everyone! It’s Thursday, so it’s time for CEiMB. This week the assigned recipe was Sweet and Spicy Peanut Soup, hosted by Mary at Popsicles and Sandy Feet. I decided not to make this one, however, because I’m not a big fan of thick, blended vegetable soups (unless it’s Baked Potato, yum!) so I picked a recipe that the group made before I joined this summer. Sorry, Mary – after reading several posts, it seems like everyone else really liked the soup!

This week I made Ellie Krieger’s Nutty Granola, which was originally hosted by Leslie of Lethally Delicious in February of last year. Just click the link to view the recipe.

I have a basic granola recipe that I created several months ago that is easily customizable, but I wanted to give this one a spin as well. I really love nuts of all types, and this recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups total. I was sold immediately!

I really liked the combination of walnuts, pecans, and almonds in this mix. I also enjoyed the fact that it is very crunchy – I hate soft granola! Chewy granola bars are good, but if I am going to sit down with a bowl of cereal, I want it to hold up to the milk or yogurt that I add rather than becoming a soggy mess.

The only changes I made to this recipe were to use agave nectar instead of maple syrup, lower the oven temperature to 250 instead of 300 (because agave burns so easily), and I added the raisins at the end rather than baking them with the mix. I have found that baking any kind of dried fruit along with oat mixture dries it out too much and even loses a little of its flavor.

I will probably make this again and try different nut/fruit combinations, and I will definitely be enjoying some yogurt parfaits for breakfast in the upcoming week!

CEiMB: Lemon Icebox Bars

This recipe for Lemon Icebox Bars is the latest CEiMB offering, hosted by Amy of Playing House. This recipe appears in Ellie Krieger’s newest cookbook, So Easy, and I am happy to say that this is truly the easiest recipe I have made for CEiMB so far.

I was very excited to try this one because I LOVE lemon bars! There is a restaurant here in Greensboro, Cafe Carolina, that sells them in their bakery and I have to get one every time I am in that area of the city shopping. So, it is fantastic to have an easy recipe so I can make them at home!

These lemon bars were creamy and tart, and the crust was slightly salty and crunchy in contrast. I tasted the lemon mixture before pouring it over the crust and refrigerating, and at first I thought it didn’t pack enough lemon flavor for my taste. However, the flavor really comes together during the eight hours it sits in the fridge. If any of you decide to try this, make sure to give the bars the full amount of time in the refrigerator even if the gelatin sets before the time is up.

The only substitution I made to this recipe was to use pasteurized egg whites instead of egg substitute – the only brands in my store all included onion powder in their ingredient lists and I really didn’t want to mix that into a dessert recipe!

Thanks to Amy for a great pick, and be sure to visit her beautiful blog!

CEiMB: Broccoli & Cheddar Stuffed Potato Skins with Avocado Cream

Hi everyone! It’s been awhile. I know I haven’t posted in several weeks, and I’ll keep the sob story short: basically, my laptop crashed and my job is killing me. Just kidding! I love my job, but it does take a lot out of me. However, I have been cooking and photographing, just not posting. Hopefully I will come back from the upcoming Christmas break (yay, two weeks off) refreshed and ready to do some more consistent blogging!

I wanted to come back with this CEiMB pick because I remember seeing it on the list awhile back and thinking that it sounded great! This week we made Broccoli & Cheddar Stuffed Potato Skins with Avocado Cream, and this recipe was hosted by Anne at Rainforest Recipes.

One of the reasons I was looking forward to this recipe is that is incorporates broccoli, something that Scott and I eat 3-4 times a week. In fact, I think it has made several appearances in the background of other recipe pictures in my posts. We enjoy broccoli, but eating it steamed with a light sprinkling of salt every time gets old.

Like several of the Ellie Krieger recipes we have made in the past, I found this one to have a lot of steps and resulted in a large pile of dirty dishes. It was worth it, though, because these potato skins were quite tasty! The only changes I made were to use real bacon instead of Canadian bacon and to add the lime zest to the avocado cream in addition to the juice.

Isn’t my prep board for the avocado cream lovely? I thought all of those beautiful shades of green deserved their own picture.

The avocado cream was very good, and I would like to use it as a substitute for traditional guacamole in the future. I also want to make the cream again with a ripe avocado – I waited until today to purchase one and all of the ones at the grocery store were quite under ripe – because my version today never really came together in the food processor.

Thanks to Anne for a great pick! I plan on adding this one to my regular rotation for some variety with my vegetable side dishes.

On another note, Miss Shelby has proven herself to be the perfect dog for a foodie owner. We have not been giving her human food at all, but when I dropped a piece of cilantro on the floor today, she snapped it right up and looked for more!

Isn’t she growing quickly? She’s so cute!

CEiMB: Chicken Chop Suey

It’s Thursday again, so here is the latest CEiMB offering! This week we made Chicken Chop Suey, and this recipe was hosted by Ali of The Healthy Hostess. I think one of my favorite parts of participating in this group is exploring the other members’ blogs as they host. Check out Ali’s blog – she has a lot of great recipes and tips for entertaining and green cleaning!

As for the Chicken Chop Suey, I have to admit that I didn’t think chop suey was a real dish. I had heard the term before, but had never had it. Maybe I didn’t think it was real because I had only heard of it on TV? Who knows.

This recipe included another of Ellie’s extremely long ingredient lists, but that didn’t bother me as I had most of the ingredients on hand…or so I thought. As I was making the dish, I almost felt like it was a comedy of errors – so many things went wrong!

As you can see in the picture, my chop suey included broccoli instead of cabbage. When I cut open the cabbage to prep it for the recipe, I discovered it had succumbed to dry rot. It was mottled all throughout the cabbage, not just on a few leaves, so into the trash can it went.

You may also notice white rice on my platter instead of brown. I was SO sure I had a big bag of brown rice in my pantry, but when I went to get it I couldn’t find it anywhere! I was thinking “Where is my brown rice? I KNOW I have some!” Oh wait, I used it a few weeks ago to try to soak water out of my cell phone after it took a trip through the washing machine. Silly me.

Finally, my wonton skins almost burned while I was distracted with the above problems and my desperate search to find a substitute for cooking sherry (guess what – water works just fine).

Even with all of the problems, this recipe was a winner. I did not use the amount of oil called for in the recipe because it seemed excessive, so I used cooking spray on the wontons, only two teaspoons of vegetable oil and only one tablespoon of sesame oil instead of two. I did really enjoy the combination of chicken broth, soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch to make a stir fry sauce, though, and I’ll probably use it again in the future and just mix and match the other ingredients according to what I have in the refrigerator and pantry. The sesame seeds and wonton skins added a nice crunch, and I also sliced a few extra green onions to garnish as well.

Thanks Ali, it was fun cooking with you this week!

CEiMB: New York Breakfast

Two CEiMB posts in one day? I’m finally getting caught up! This week’s recipe was New York Breakfast, chosen by Sara of imafoodblog. Sara is a native New Yorker and also the person who makes CEiMB possible.

I couldn’t decide how I felt about this recipe after reading it, since 1) I have never tried real smoked salmon, and 2) my only experience with bagels and lox was an unfortunate one involving the salmon cream cheese at Bruegger’s Bagels. Enough said about that.

I wanted to try this New York Breakfast, however, since the rest of the sandwich reminded me of a wrap I used to get at my favorite coffee shop back home (which contained cream cheese, cucumber, tomato, onion, almonds, and sprouts).

While I was at the grocery store, I debated for a long time over which smoked salmon to purchase. Hot or cold smoked? Lox? Nova lox? AHHH! I ended up with the cold smoked salmon, mainly due to the price and the fact that the recipe calls exactly for “smoked salmon,” but the vibrant color of it also attracted me over the other items.

One interesting thing I learned upon opening the salmon package is that is was one solid filet rather than slices. It wasn’t a problem – I just took out my sharpest knife and easily cut a thin slice. I guess it just wasn’t what I expected. I also sampled a small piece before assembling the sandwich, and it was very good. I think I now have a project for the next time my father breaks out his smoker. :)

I noticed that most of the other CEiMB bloggers served their sandwiches open-faced as pictured on the Food Network site, but I decided to make a regular sandwich. I wanted something a little more filling but I also didn’t want two whole open-faced sandwiches.

I think this is one of my favorite Ellie Krieger recipes so far, and I actually plan on making it again over the weekend. I made this for my lunch today while Scott was at work and I want him to have an opportunity to try it, plus I want another one!

Thanks to Sara for another fun choice!

CEiMB: Sweet & Spicy Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

This one is only one week late – that’s not so bad, right?

Sorry for my lack of posting lately. You would think that six weeks at my new job and two weeks with the new puppy would be enough time to get settled, yet I come home every afternoon completely exhausted. I have regularly been taking pictures of my recipes and editing them; I just haven’t set aside time for actual blogging.

Anyway, last Thursday Leslie of Lethally Delicious was the host for CEiMB, and her choice was Sweet & Spicy Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. I was so excited because Rachel ♥s grilled cheese!

This recipe is actually very similar to my regular grilled cheese sandwich – I always use two types of cheese, add tomato, and use cooking spray instead of butter. The only real difference this time was the addition of sautéed red onion, which I found gave the sandwiches a really nice flavor. I also enjoyed the spicy kick from the pepper jack cheese.

I served this for dinner with tomato soup for myself and salad for Scott. We both enjoyed this meal, however Scott requested that next time we have these sandwiches for lunch instead of dinner.

Thanks to Leslie for choosing a great twist on a classic. Also, congratulations to her for her recent one year blogiversary!

CEiMB: Mexican Tortilla Pizza

This week’s CEiMB recipe was Mexican Tortilla Pizzas, hosted by Joanne of Apple Crumbles (who has a beautiful new site, check it out!).

I wasn’t sure how this one would go over with Scott, who cringes when he hears the words Mexican or beans. However, he eats at Taco Bell like it’s his job. He’s weird.

After I read the recipe, though, I realized how similar the toppings are to the ones I use on my fish tacos. For the first time, I decided to modify the weekly CEiMB recipe completely in order to satisfy both myself and Scott. Instead of baking them as pizzas in the oven, I turned them into soft tacos and added some grilled tilapia for extra protein.

I made the bean dip with only two modifications (left out the cumin and mashed it with a potato masher instead of using the food processor). I grilled the tilapia with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and chopped the toppings. It was very easy and very good!

Bean dip:

The toppings (onion, tomato, red cabbage, and cilantro):

My favorite tortillas:

Even though I have tried them several times, I just do not like corn tortillas. I think they have a raw flavor or something – I can’t pinpoint it but I just don’t enjoy them. These flour tortillas are great, however, clocking in at only 80 calories with 2 grams of fiber each. Pair that with an ingredient list with nothing suspicious, and I think they can’t be beat.

Thanks to Joanne for another great CEiMB pick!

CEiMB: Waldorf Chicken Wraps

This is actually the CEiMB recipe from September 3, but as I said in my last post I got a little behind with my posting. This recipe is for Waldorf Chicken Wraps and was hosted by Jessica of Johnstone’s Vin Blanc (who is also my “neighbor” since she is another North Carolina blogger. Hi Jessica!).

I had a hard time getting together on this recipe. I had all of the ingredients on hand, I just couldn’t get motivated to actually make it. I finally finished up around 8:00 on the night of September 3, then discovered my computer would not read my camera’s memory card. I ended up going to bed frustrated because I finished the recipe just in time to post, then I couldn’t do it!

My thoughts on this recipe:

- I liked the dressing very much, although I found there was too much of it. I don’t like chicken salad that is really wet – I prefer just enough dressing to hold the other ingredients together.

- I loved the addition of grapes and apples. I always put grapes in my chicken salad but I’ve never tried other fruit before, but the apples added a very nice crunch.

- Chicken salad is not photogenic AT ALL.

- I was disappointed to find the next day that the dressing had separated and it was very difficult to mix back together.

I am not sure if I will try this exact recipe again, but I will probably continue adding extra fruit to my normal chicken salad mixture. Also, since I like only a small amount of dressing, I will keep the amount of mayonnaise the same but omit the Greek yogurt – I think the mayonnaise is such a small amount it doesn’t make the dish completely unhealthy, and it will be thick enough to hold the salad together without separating.

CEiMB: Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Sauce

It’s Thursday again, which means it’s time for CEiMB! This week was hosted by Cathy of The Tortefeasor, and she chose Chicken Sate with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce. It seems like we are continuing with the Thai theme from last week, which is fine with me because I love Thai food but don’t eat it all that often.

Once I read over the recipe and got over the initial shock of the lengthy ingredient list, I rummaged around my pantry and realized I only had to buy three things to complete this meal: coconut milk, chicken stock, and bamboo skewers. Yes, that’s correct – I have fish sauce in my pantry but not chicken stock. Crazy, right?

When I mixed the marinade for the chicken, I have to say that I wasn’t that fond of the smell and was afraid I would not like the finished product. However, I think the ingredients really came together in the grilling process, just like last week’s Thai salad dressing/marinade. The chicken was very moist, slightly salty from the soy and fish sauces, and had a little bit of brightness from the lime zest.

I also really enjoyed the peanut sauce. The only change I made was to substitute sriracha for the red curry paste – I don’t like curry very much, but I love chili sauce. I used a generous amount, probably close to 1 1/2 tablespoons, and found that the sauce was perfectly spicy for my taste. I noticed that some other CEiMB members commented that the sauce was too thick, but I didn’t think so. It may be because I used a no-stir natural peanut butter than regular, but I also blended it for a long time. Maybe that made a difference, maybe not.

As you can see in the picture, I also stir-fried some broccoli and straw mushrooms to go along with the chicken. It was very simple. I used vegetable oil, broccoli, and one can of drained mushrooms then finished it off with a drizzle of sesame oil for extra flavor. This was my first experience with straw mushrooms, and they were just okay – next time I’ll use sliced fresh instead.

To round out the meal, I wanted some kind of starch. Since I love spicy things and Scott loves pasta in any way, shape, or form, I picked up these Simply Asia Chili Garlic noodles at the grocery store for a quick addition to the meal. I’m not sure what kind of noodles these were, but before cooking they looked similar to soba noodles. The spiciness level was labeled “medium,” but I found the noodles rather mild. They were good, but next time I would probably add some sriracha to spice the dish up even more. The best part was definitely the chili flakes sprinkled on top!

I’ll mark this one as a success. Thanks to Cathy for another great recipe choice!

CEiMB: Grilled Thai Beef Salad

This week’s CEiMB recipe was Grilled Thai Beef Salad and was hosted by Jen of Jen B’s Cooking Carveout.

My husband and I just ate a steak salad last week with balsamic vinaigrette and bleu cheese, so I considered skipping this week in favor of trying something new. We both enjoyed the first salad, however, and I don’t want to get into the habit of skipping weeks in the cooking club since I’m enjoying it so much. So, I decided to make it anyway, hoping that Scott wouldn’t ask “Didn’t we just eat this a few days ago?” (Which he did, by the way.)

I think the best thing about a steak salad is that they provide a great way to incorporate beef into a dinner that is otherwise light and low in fat. We had our salad served with a baked potato (one that Scott and I split in half) and it made a very filling meal.

I also love Thai food and this was a good way to recreate and enjoy the flavors at home while still having a healthful meal. I have to admit, though, that I usually steer away from Thai dishes that are extremely heavy on basil, so the amount called for in this recipe (1 cup) seemed like too much to me. I cut it down to less than half and still found the flavor a little overwhelming.

This recipe requires you to make a dressing (using lime juice, oil, soy sauce, ginger, brown sugar and garlic) that is divided to both marinate the meat and dress the salad. I thought the marinade was quite good on the beef, but I did not enjoy it uncooked as a salad dressing – I think the flavors needed to be heated on the grill to really come together. I also believe this would be a good marinade for other protein as well and I will probably try it on chicken or shrimp in the future.

I did make two changes to the dressing – first, I used crushed garlic and grated ginger rather than mincing the two ingredients. I personally hate biting down on a piece of either of these items raw, and I found that crushing them helped to emulsify the dressing rather than having these ingredients sink to the bottom. I also used sriracha instead of curry paste just because I enjoy the flavor more.

Finally, I used thinly sliced onions on top of the salad instead of shallots. Unfortunately my grocery budget for the week did not allow me to pay $4.00 for three shallots when I already had an onion at home.

Overall, I enjoyed the flavors of this recipe but not the final product. If I make this again, I will marinate and grill the meat and possibly serve it with a side salad, but I do not plan on combining all of these ingredients into one composed dish again.

CEiMB: Stuffed Turkey Burgers

This week’s CEiMB recipe was Stuffed Turkey Burgers, hosted by Peggy of Pantry Revisited.

At first I planned on making the burgers substituting beef for the turkey, but I changed my mind during a last minute trip to the grocery store for supplies. My husband and I ate a lot of turkey burgers last year, almost once a week for the majority of the summer months, and I just got so tired of them! I thought I never wanted to eat another turkey burger again but decided to give them another shot.

The recipe was very simple, only using ground turkey, roasted red peppers, mozzarella cheese, salt and pepper. I got a little creative, though, and added a few crushed red pepper flakes and some Worcestershire to the meat for extra flavor. I also mixed the salt and pepper into the meat rather than sprinkling the outside of the patties to ensure the meat was flavored throughout.

While I was mixing the red peppers and mozzarella cheese to stuff the burgers, all I could think was pimento cheese. I guess it was pimento cheese in its most basic form, but the smell of it was fantastic and got me a little more excited about the recipe.

(topped with Dijon mustard, romaine, tomato and onion and
surrounded by one of my Light Brioche Sandwich Buns)

I noticed in some of the comments for the recipe that other people noted these burgers are very messy, but I didn’t think so at all. I had no problems with the filling leaking out while I was grilling the burgers or running out when I cut mine in half.

Here are my tips for a mess-free stuffed burger:

- Rather than forming two thin patties of equal size, I made the bottom patty a little larger than I wanted the final burger to be and added the stuffing. Then I made the top patty just large enough to cover the stuffing and overlapped the bottom patty and sealed it instead of just pinching the edges together.

- I also let the burgers rest for a few moments after grilling, not only to redistribute the juices in the meat but to allow the cheese stuffing to set up a little. That prevented the stuffing from running out.

My husband and I both enjoyed these burgers. His official review: “You could make these again…,” and let me tell you that’s the same as two thumbs up. I, however, enjoyed the stuffing more than the actual burger and will probably go back to my original idea of using beef instead of turkey. Either way, I know Scott will enjoy them because he has never met a burger he wouldn’t eat!

Thanks to Peggy for choosing another great Ellie recipe!

CEiMB: Carrot Cupcakes with Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting

This week’s CEiMB recipe, Carrot Cupcakes with Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting, was chosen by Enjoying My Favorite Things. I have to admit, this one had me at the words “Cream Cheese Frosting.” It doesn’t really matter what stands as a base for cream cheese frosting, whether it is red velvet cake, cupcakes, or brownies - I will probably enjoy it just because I love cream cheese! The fact that this base is a healthy carrot cupcake just makes it that much better.

There were several reviews on the Food Network site for this recipe that claimed these cupcakes are more like muffins, and I can see why. These cupcakes are dense from the whole wheat flour, but still wonderfully moist from the applesauce and freshly grated carrots. Even though there is some debate on the cupcake/muffin issue, this recipe still has a five star average and I will admit they are quite delicious.

I did make a few substitutions based on what was readily available in my kitchen, but nothing drastic:

• white whole wheat flour instead of whole wheat pastry flour
• regular pastry flour instead of all purpose
• allspice instead of nutmeg
• cinnamon applesauce instead of regular
• no nuts (the husband doesn’t like them)

I also really enjoyed the frosting with its addition of lemon zest. At first I wondered if the lemon flavor would take away from the carrot cake, but in the end I think the flavors complimented each other well. I also think the little yellow flecks are very attractive!

My husband and I both enjoyed these cupcakes, and I am looking forward to sharing with my parents who are going to visit this weekend. I don’t know if I would make this recipe again on a regular basis since it is just my husband and I in the house, since we certainly don’t need a dozen cupcakes sitting around for our convenience. However, I will add this recipe to my special occasion collection and make it for future family gatherings.

CEiMB: Cobb Salad

So I decided to join Craving Ellie in My Belly, as I mentioned in an earlier post, but immediately got behind. I did make last week’s recipe, Cobb Salad, at the right time. However, life got in the way and I didn’t get the opportunity to post until today. Sorry to the other CEiMB members, I promise the next one will be on time!

This Cobb Salad recipe was chosen by The Feast Within, and I was very excited to try it. I love Cobb salad but rarely order it in a restaurant to avoid the heavy toppings and typically creamy dressings, and I have never make one at home before. I was also a little concerned that my husband wouldn’t play along, but he actually enjoyed it. Note to self: serving salad as a main entree will go over well as long as there is plenty of protein as a topping!

I was also determined to make this recipe exactly as written since it was my first post for CEiMB, but I was not able to find watercress at either of the two grocery stores where I shop and substituted arugula instead. I also made a half recipe since it was just me and my husband and we found that it made three servings total instead of two.

Some other notes on the recipe:

• I really enjoyed the dressing and will make it again for other salads. It is a little tangy, however, so I would include something with fat to cut the tartness rather than serve it over plain greens.
• I also enjoyed subbing Black Forest ham for bacon, but found the amount called for in the recipe to be way too much. I would cut the amount in half for the future.
• While the salad was beautiful with the ingredients all lined up, it seemed almost to be a waste of time since they all mixed together upon serving. In the future, I will probably spread all of the toppings evenly over the salad greens.

Here is the recipe:

Cobb Salad

source: Food Network, Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger

Ingredients

For the Dressing:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the salad:

• Cooking spray
• 1/4 pound sliced Black Forest or other smoked ham
• 2 hard-boiled eggs
• 6 cups romaine lettuce (about 6 ounces) coarsely chopped
• 2 cups watercress, thick stems removed
• 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 avocado, diced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1 cup cooked diced chicken breast 1 (6-ounce) breast
• 1/2 cup crumbled Roquefort or Blue cheese (about 2 ounces)

Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients and set aside.

Slice the ham into 1/2-inch strips. Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray and preheat over a medium-high heat. Add the ham to the skillet and cook over stirring frequently, until the ham is warmed through and crisped, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Remove and discard the yolk from 1 of the hard boiled eggs. Chop the remaining egg white and whole egg and set aside.

In a large bowl toss the romaine and watercress with 2/3 of the dressing. Put the dressed greens onto a large serving dish. Place the tomatoes on top forming a row down the middle. In strips on either side of the tomatoes place the avocado, chicken, cheese, diced egg, and the crisped ham on top of the greens. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.

Per Serving:

Calories 360; Total Fat 24 g; (Sat Fat 7 g, Mono Fat 13 g, Poly Fat 3 g) ; Protein 28 g; Carb 11 g; Fiber 4 g; Cholesterol 115 mg; Sodium 770 mg