Grilled chicken salad with raspberries and goat cheese

We have a problem with raspberries in our house.



The problem being that when we buy them, the Peanut gobbles up the whole lot of them in one sitting. They are just too delicious and too fun. And too perfectly shaped for little fingers.



However, Mama would argue that they are also too expensive for a mere toddler snack. So, in order to get our fair share, I thought I'd throw them in a salad.



Super easy and I'm sad that I just now discovered it with summer over. Basic grilled chicken, simple balsamic vinaigrette (like the one used here), fancy lettuce, fresh raspberries, pecans and crumbled goat cheese.

I asked Peanut what he wanted for breakfast this morning. His response? "Salad."

In praise of caprese

Summer means salads and the one that I am currently obsessed with is caprese. That perfect combination of fresh tomatoes, spunky basil and mellow mozzarella. One of the best meals I had in Albuquerque was actually a vegan caprese salad at the Mint Tulip. Kind of a weird choice in a city known for it's amazing Mexican food, but it was a refreshing break from chile rellenos. And the "mozzarella" was a revelation in fake cheese. I'm told it's called "Teese".



So, last night I tried to recreate this tasty salad, but with, you know, the addition of tasty, artery-clogging animal products. Grilled steak and buffalo mozzarella, to be exact. Just a bed of spinach, diced tomatoes and cheese, a sprinkling of chopped basil and a few slices of rare rib eye all drizzled with the simplest balsamic vinaigrette. I can not wait to try again in a few weeks with actual home grown tomatoes (Uh, Dad? Hi! Tomatoes, please!). Summer on a plate.

Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad

This was inspired by a salad made by my friend Donna’s mom, Miss Felicia.  I’m not sure if the ratios are quite right, but when I asked dear Miss Felicia for her recipe it was given in more “a little of this, a little of that” type measurements rather than precise quantities. But isn’t that how all the best picnic recipes go?

This was the best I could recreate, based on what I remembered of her directions (and after a quick email to Donna!) and it really did turn out pretty well.  It's a great addition to the summer salad line-up. It’s mayo-less, so it can set out a bit, and it can be thrown together quickly ahead of time. 

Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad

Serves 8 

Ingredients:

• 1 head of broccoli, florets only, cut in to bite size pieces
• 1 head of cauliflower, florets only, cut in to bite size pieces
• ¼ onion, finely diced (thin red onion slices would have been nice, but our grocery store was inexplicably out of reds)
• ½ pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
• ½ can black olives, sliced.
• 1 packet dry ranch dressing mix
• ½ cup mild vinegar (I used rice wine)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Adobo salt (Probably not in Miss Felicia's recipe, but have you tried this yet? It's like magic flavor dust. Find it in the international aisle or even in the regular spice section.)

Directions:

1. Combine veggies in a large bowl. Whisk together dressing, oil and vinegar in seperate and then toss with vegetables.
2. Season to taste with adobo salt. Refrigerate for an hour or two prior to serving.