Roasted Salmon Nicoise Platter (sort of)

While on vacation at our cottage a few weeks ago, I saw Ina Garten whip up this tasty salmon platter on her show. It looked simple enough and oh so delicious. I didn't quite have all the fixings on hand so I made do with what I had. I didn't have the haricots verts, tomatoes, watercress or olives. Lol, so why even bother calling this salmon nicoise? Because I can and it was delicious. I also cut the recipes in half. I added some radishes to the plate and used spinach in place of the watercress. I guess I could have thrown some capers on the plate to add the saltiness that was missing from the olives/anchovies, but obviously I didn't. The salmon marinade was excellent as was the dressing. Maybe one day I'll try making this again the correct way. But for now, below is what I did.

2 lemons, zested and juiced

1/8 cup olive oil

1/8 cup Dijon mustard

2 garlic cloves, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 lbs. skin-on fresh salmon fillets

1.5 lbs. small Yukon gold potatoes

3-4 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and cut in half

1 bunch spinach

6-7 radishes

Vinaigrette

1/8 cup champagne vinegar (I used rice wine vinegar)

1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup good olive oil

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

For the marinade, whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, mustard, garlic, 2 teaspoons salt and 3/4 teaspoon of pepper in a small bowl and set aside. Place the salmon on a sheet pan that has been covered in aluminum foil, and drizzle the marinade over the salmon. Allow the salmon to sit for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the potatoes and 2 tablespoons of salt in a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are barely tender when pierced with a knife. Drain the potatoes in a colander, then place the colander with the potatoes over the empty pot off the heat and cover with a clean, dry kitchen towel. Leave the potatoes to steam for 15-20 minutes, until tender but firm. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them in thick slices and set aside.

Place the salmon in the oven and cook for 12-15 minutes, or until it is almost cooked through. Remove to a plate and allow to rest for 15 minutes. Remove the skin and break into large pieces.

For the vinaigrette, combine the vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil to make an emulsion. Set aside.

Arrange the salmon, potatoes, radishes, spinach and eggs on a large platter. Drizzle some vinaigrette over the fish and vegetables and serve the rest in a pitcher on the side.

Mediterranean Chopped Salad With Shrimp and Chickpeas

We eat a lot of salads but sometimes chopping up all those veggies is so time consuming an such a pain. So I decided to find a recipe that combined everything into a nice little salad. And while I was reading this recipe, there was a little note along the bottom that said the spiced pita chips would go nicely with the salad. So since I needed pita chips for the salad recipe anyway, I decided to make those too (recipe also below).

1/2 head Romaine lettuce, cut crosswise into thin strips (8 cups)

1 lb. cooked, peeled and deveined medium shrimp

1/2 English cucumber, chopped

1 15.5-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed

1/2 medium sweet onion, chopped

3/4 cup Feta cheese (about 3 oz.)

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, halved

2 cups pita chips, broken into pieces

3 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

kosher salt and black pepper

In a large bowl, add the lettuce, shrimp, cucumber, chickpeas, onion, Feta, olives and pita chips to the oil and vinegar. Add 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper, and toss.

Spiced Pita Chips

4 pitas (I used the mini round pitas and cut them in half)

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. smoked paprika

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Heat the broiler. Split the pitas to make 8 rounds and brush them with the oil. Sprinkle with the paprika, oregano and salt. Slice the pitas into triangles. Arrange on 2 baking sheets and broil until crisp, about 2 minutes.

Turkey Taco Salad

Yesterday I had the day off work. It wasn't as joyful as it sounds as I had a dentist appointment in the morning, but I digress.

I took some ground turkey out for dinner but had no idea what to do with it. So as usual, I took to the Internet to help me with my dinner challenge. I came across this easy salad recipe and decided it was the one. It made quite the tasty lunch the next day too!

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 lb. ground turkey

kosher salt and pepper

1 16-oz. container store-bought refrigerated fresh salsa

2 tbsp. sour cream

1 head romaine lettuce, cut into pieces (about 8 cups)

tortilla chips

1 15.5-oz. can pinto beans, rinsed

1 avocado, diced

1 cup grated Cheddar

1 6-oz. can sliced black olives (optional)

Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Cook, breaking up with a spoon, until no longer pink, 5-6 minutes. Pour off any excess liquid. Stir in half the salsa and cook until heat through, about 1 minute.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the remaining salsa and sour cream.

Divide the lettuce, chips, turkey mixture, beans, avocado, Cheddar, and olives (if using) among bowls. Serve with the salsa-and-sour-cream dressing.

Braised Chicken with Lemon & Green Olives

So another fantastic gift we got for Christmas was a 5-quart Dutch Oven. I'm in love with this thing. I've been looking for recipes specifically so I can use my new toy. One of my favorite food blogs to get ideas from is Good Things Catered. I saw this fantastic recipe and just had to try it! I didn't have the amount of chicken pieces it called for, and only used 2 HUGE bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts. I left all the ingredients the same though just to make sure it turned out. It was great...and such unique flavorings. Enjoy!

8 mixed chicken pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 cup Chardonnay
30 green olives - I used 15 BIG ones, but in half
1 lemon, sliced 1/8 inch thick
2 bay leaves
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp. sifted flour

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large braiser over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil until almost smoking. Working in batches, brown the chicken on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes total. Transfer to a plate. Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, for 15 seconds; do not allow it to burn. Add the Chardonnay wine reduction and cook, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom, about 2 minutes. Add the olives, lemon slices and bay leaves and cook, stirring occasionally, 4 to 5 minutes. Return the chicken to the pan, add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the chicken is very tender, about 1 1⁄2 hours.Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Garnish with the parsley and serve immediately. Serves 4 to 6.



Here's another picture once I remembered to put the parsley on


I served it with some roasted potatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika and crushed red pepper flakes on them.

Chic Greek Salad

I know some people absolutely despise Rachael Ray, but she does have some pretty tasty recipes...this being one of them. And it's so easy! I did have to stop by the store on the way home to pick up some of the ingredients, but I was dead set on making this! Especially since I pretty much ate like crap this week and this is all veggies, so it made me feel better. I did have a few Costco mini spinach pie things on the side, but they were so yummy!!

1/2 seedless cucumber, chopped
2 vine-ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 can quartered artichoke hearts in water, drained
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped
Coarse salt and black pepper
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 small shallot, minced
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, eyeball it
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball the amount
2 cans imported tuna in oil, drained
12 pepperoncini hot peppers
1 cup pitted kalamata olives

Arrange the cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and peppers, artichoke hearts and parsley on a platter. Squeeze the lemon juice over the platter, juicing the fruit cut-side-up to keep the seeds from falling into salad. Season with salt and pepper. Place shallots, vinegar and oregano in a bowl and let stand 5 minutes. Whisk in extra-virgin olive oil in a slow stream. Pour dressing over salad. Garnish salad with chunks of tuna, hot peppers and olives. We added some feta to the top too.

This makes a TON of salad, but now we have lunch for tomorrow. Enjoy!