Granny Smith & Gouda Salad

You know, sometimes you give and you give and you get nothing back. I've come to accept that it's just a part of life. You've heard of that anecdote, "Life's not fair," right? Well, it's true. Sometimes life can hand you a bucket full of sunshine and other times you want to stuff yourself into a closet and never come out. Yeast makes me feel that way sometimes...

The last couple months, with all the free time I've been having, I wanted to give myself a bit of a challenge: yeast (well maybe not a bit, more like a mound). First, it was Jim Lahey's groundbreaking no-knead bread. Did I mention I met the guy while at his bakery in New York? Yep, it was amazing and he was incredibly kind and witty. Even though the bread was incredibly easy, I still managed to mangle it a little by over baking it. Hmph!

Next, it was lion house rolls. Upon first meeting, it charmed me with its warm buttery bliss. But, the next day it dried out like a river in the summer. Dry, dry, dry. Tears were shed. Anywho, then it was on to this epic 7 grain bread that received more than merry reviews from the plenty of folk at Allrecipes. It came out beautifully yeasted, nice and toasty brown on top but the flavor was less than satisfactory. After all this... I have come to the conclusion that yeast and I are not friends. No siree. 

After all of that mess, I've decided to take a break from yeast for a while. It was necessary. During this break, whaddaya know? Life brought me something delicious, addicting and all kinds of good. The dressing is my favorite part; slightly tangy and just a bit creamy. This salad is filled to the brim, but don't let the crowd of ingredients scare you! They all fit together wonderfully. 

It was funny, as I was shooting the salad, I noticed so many other things in my garden that exhibited the same color palette as the salad. It was awesome. Please enjoy!

Granny Smith & Gouda Salad
Yields: about 4 - 6 servings
Original recipe here.


For the green apple vinaigrette:
1/2 Granny Smith apple, cored and coarsely chopped
1/3 cup sherry vinegar
1/4 cup apple juice
1 tbsn. Dijon mustard
3 tbsn. honey
3 tbsn. minced shallot
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2/3 cup vegetable oil


For the salad:
8 oz. smoked gouda, cut into matchsticks or cubed

1 large granny smith apple, cored and thinly sliced

1 red delicious apple, cored and thinly sliced

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced diagonally 

2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced

1/2 small red onion, very thinly sliced
1 cup candied walnuts
10 oz. fresh baby spinach (I used baby greens), about 8 lightly packed cups
salt and pepper, to taste
*smoked turkey can be added for a heartier salad


To make the dressing, combine all of the ingredients except the oil in a food processor and whiz until well combined. With the food processor still running, slowly drizzle in the oil until slightly emulsified and combined, set aside in the refrigerator until use. To make the salad, toss the gouda, green apple, celery and onion in a large bowl with enough vinaigrette to coat lighly. Toss the spinach in another large bowl with enough vinaigrette to coat lightly. Season the spinach to taste with salt and pepper. Arrange the spinach on top of each plate. Top with some of the gouda-green apple mixture, then sprinkle with some tomatoes and walnuts. Lastly, arrange the red apple slices around the salad and serve.

Turkey & Cilantro Chutney Pressed Pita

B is always hungry, and I mean always. I have to feed that boy at least 5 - 6 times a day. Crazy huh? It's a wonder to watch him scarf down so much food without gaining a single ounce. So for one of his late night cringes of hunger, I had to dig deep. And I mean deep! There was absolutely nothing in my refrigerator, so I took some random ingredients and was extremely surprised with my result. He loved it, I loved it, what more could you ask for? 

I actually got my fresh cilantro chutney at the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market in San Francisco, but I've heard that Trader Joe's actually carries some (another reason to love it eh?). But if you can't find it there, a recipe can be found here. Sounds simple enough and trust me, it's good on everything, and boy do I mean everything!

Turkey & Cilantro Chutney Pressed Pita

Yields: Enough for one

2 Pita Breads

4-6 Slices of Turkey

3-4 slices of smoked cheddar cheese

3-4 tbsn. cilantro chutney

garlic powder

freshly ground pepper

salsa or pico de gallo

Tapatio

Note: I have ranges on mostly all of the ingredients because it really depends on your preference to how spicy, how garlicky, or how cheesy you want it. 

Lay one pita slice on your counter and spread the cilantro chutney over it. Next layer half of your cheese, then your turkey, then the other half of your cheese. Sprinkle with pepper and garlic powder. Grill (preferably by a panini press or a George Foreman). Cut into fourths and serve alongside some salsa. I like to mix Tapatio in my salsa for some extra kick! Enjoy!

Picnics & Paninis

There are some days where the sun is shining just right; not too hot with just the right amount of warmth grazing across your face. The days when a picnic is just calling your name and you can linger in the freshly cut grass under the shade of a big tree.

"Where springtime always lingers, where winter never enters, and where the last rose of summer is never seen. Where rains fall gently and ocean winds breathe softly under the Western sky. In the glow of the setting sun, there is Orange County."

- Unknown

My Ultimate Picnic Panini:

Yields: Enough for 2

4 slices of sourdough bread

2 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. cesear dressing

4 tsp. pesto (you can use pre- made)

4-6 slices of turkey

6 slices of bacon (cooked)

2 roma tomatoes, sliced

4 slices of mozzarella cheese

8 basil leaves

garlic powder

freshly ground pepper

With your sourdough bread, spread the butter on one side of each slice (use more butter if needed). Then sprinkle the garlic powder on the side that you spread the butter on. Lay the butter side down and on the other side of two slices spread both the pesto and cesear dressing. Then layer with the mozzarella cheese, basil leaves, tomatoes, turkey, and cooked bacon. Sprinkle with pepper and close the sandwich. Heat through in a panini press or George Foreman grill until the cheese is melted and the crust is nice and golden brown, about 6-9 minutes. Enjoy!