Chicken or Shrimp Salad with Spinach and Roquefort Vinaigrette

This is a very loose adaptation of Helen Corbitt's recipe for Roquefort Mousse with Seafood Salad. That dish is wonderful, but it's really a party dish -- the mousse is more time-consuming than you might wish for a simple supper at home. So I've incorporated the main ingredients of the mousse into a dressing. You could use any kind of seafood instead of or in addition to shrimp, or chicken shredded or cubed (this is a great use for leftover chicken). The idea for the spinach and watercress comes from Craig Claiborne, who suggests this as a bed for seafood salad. I think it seems more like a complete meal with the greens, and they provide a lot of flavor and texture. The dressing is delicious with or without the cream -- obviously the cream will make the dish richer.

Chicken or Shrimp Salad with Spinach and Roquefort Vinaigrette

olive oil
lemon juice
Roquefort cheese, crumbled
tarragon
finely chopped parsley
finely chopped pimiento
finely shopped capers
grated onion
peeled and grated cucumber
salt
pepper
(heavy cream)
Cooked shrimp or shredded or cubed chicken
chopped spinach
watercress

After peeling and grating the cucumber, wrap it in a dish towel or paper towel and squeeze to release moisture. Then spread on paper towel and pat dry.
Combine cheese, cucumber, parsley, pimiento, capers, onion, salt, and pepper and mix well (you can use a food processor for this) until smooth. Add lemon juice and chopped tarragon, then dribble olive oil while stirring vigorously.
Arrange shrimp or chicken on a bed of the spinach and watercress. Top with dressing.

Cosmo "Mocktini"

This is a festive summer cooler for those who prefer a drink without alcohol. You can make it "straight up" or frozen. For the alcohol version, add vodka instead of sparkling water and substitute an orange liquer ( like Cointreau or Grand Marnier) for the orange juice.

This is very good with tzatziki dip (see recipe for gyros in the April archives) and toasted pita triangles.

Cosmo Mocktini

1 jigger cranberry juice
1 jigger club soda, Perrier, or sparkling water of choice
juice of 1/2 lime
long pour of orange juice (count to 2...or to taste)

For the "straight up" version, combine above ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker, shake, and strain into a martini or margarita glass.

For the frozen version, combine ingedients with ice in a blender. Blend until ice is completely integrated. Pour into martini or margarita glass.

Ham Pepper Slices with Romaine and Northwood Dressing

When I was growing up, the buffets at Northwood Country Club held one main attraction for me: the "Northwood" salad dressing. The manager of the club always kept the recipe secret, and when he retired he refused to divulge the secret ingredient. I have tried over the years to replicate it, and this is the closest I have come. I knew it had shredded hard boiled egg, but it took me a long time to realize that the "secret ingredient" must have been beets!

This dressing is fantastic on anything. At the buffets, we had a choice of shrimp, crab, stuffed eggs, various marinated vegetables, chicken salad, etc. Chopped romaine lettuce holds up best to the rather heavy dressing.

Here, I have chosen pepper slices because I have some leftover pepper and ham salad. But start with the dressing and romaine, and let your imagination (and your refrigerator) be your guide (you could also stuff the pepper with cream cheese, tuna, etc.)!

Ham Pepper Slices

1 medium red or green pepper
ham salad

Wash and trim the pepper (removing ends, seeds, and membranes). Stuff with ham salad. Chill for 12 hours. Slice with a hot, sharp knife.

Northwood Dressing (or the closest I can come!)

1/2 cup vinaigrette (with garlic & Dijon mustard)
2 shredded hard boiled eggs
2 tablespoons julienned cooked beet
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon chopped onion
1 tablespoon chopped stuffed green olives

Place all ingredients in blender (or use immersion blender) and pulse two or three times.

Serve the pepper slices on a bed of chopped romaine lettuce and top with dressing.

Pear, Brie, and Spring Mix Salad with Sweet and Spicy Dressing

One of my favorite hors d'oeuvres has always been sliced Bosc pears with Brie. So why not turn it into a salad with spring mix or field greens and a sweet and spicy vinaigrette?

Wash & trim the greens. Slice the pears thinly.

Prepare the vinaigrette: white balsamic vinegar, olive oil, squeeze of lime, and dab of sweet and spicy mustard. Salt and white pepper. Adjust amounts to taste.

Toast a French roll, and then spread with Brie.

Toss the greens and pears in vinaigrette. Serve Brie French roll on the side.

Chicken Fajitas

Back in the 80s I went to a place called Diet Center in an attempt to regain my girlish figure. It was one of those places where you had a "personal counselor" with whom you were supposed to check in at least once a week (you could go more often if you wanted to). You kept a "food diary" of every morsel that had passed your lips, weighed in, and received encouragement and advice. They also provided you with a handy purse (or pocket) - sized list of "restaurant options" -- mainly grilled fish with no butter or oil, and CHICKEN FAJITAS! My experience of ordering fish with no butter or oil was that the restaurants just didn't seem to be able to do it. But chicken fajitas? No problem. Diet Center was also very nutrition-conscious...the focus was not just on losing weight but on eating a healthy diet. And chicken fajitas served with onions, green peppers, and even red peppers actually compose a very healthy low-fat meal -- IF you forego the flour tortillas, cheese, guacamole, and sour cream. Anyway, chicken fajitas have remained a favorite ever since. One of the few healthy, low-fat, low-calorie options that is also a satisfying taste treat and easy to prepare!

Chicken Fajitas

Marinade:

1/3 cup lime juice
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon chile powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 jalapeno, stemmed, seeded, and coarsely chopped
1 cup cooking oil

Place lime juice, garlic salt, chile powder, black pepper, oregano, and jalapeno in a  blender and blend until completely pureed -- about 1 minute.  Add oil and blend briefly to combine.

Pour marinade over 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts and refrigerate for at least 1 hour but no more than 1 1/2 hours (any longer and the lime juice will begin to chemically cook the chicken as in ceviche).

The onions, green and red peppers:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, cut into strips
1 green pepper, cut into strips
1 red pepper, cut into strips
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil, then onions and peppers, tossing and stirring until softened -- about 20  minutes. Just before they are done, add garlic, thyme, and cilantro. Cook 2 more minutes. Remove to a bowl and reserve.

The fajitas:

Drain marinade from chicken and grill, saute, or oven broil. When golden brown and just cooked through, slice sideways in 1/4 inch pieces.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Mix the chicken with the onion and peppers and place into the skillet. Pour 3 tablespoons of lime juice over the meat (this is what creates the "sizzle" and wonderful aroma, as well as fresh flavor) and serve immediately -- with tortillas, cheese, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, and salsa if desired.

Watermelon, Mango, and Argula Salad with Lime, Honey, and Feta Dressing

I first saw the recipe for this salad on television -- the Today show, I think -- and I was skeptical. But the chef said that watermelon has a "special affinity" for arugula, unlikely as that might seem. So I thought I'd give it a try. My sister Marian was in town and bringing her son William over to swim...Marian is a vegetarian and one of the few foods William liked was watermelon, so this seemed like a good recipe for them. It was delicious! I put each ingredient into a separate plastic bowl and let each person compose their salad themselves...for William I had some plain cheese so he could have just cheese and watermelon. It was the perfect supper for a hot summer evening by the pool, and much more filling than I would have thought.

Watermelon, Mango, and Arugula Salad

I bought the watermelon and mango already cut up at the grocery, and then chopped further into bite-sized pieces.  Washed and chopped the arugula. Served a bed of arugula topped with watermelon and mango, with a little crumbled feta.

Lime, Honey, and Feta Dressing

Combine olive oil, lime juice, and honey to taste...it really depends on the size and acidity of the lime and the type of olive oil. Add salt and white pepper, and a little feta cheese. Whisk well. Chopped mint is nice, too.