Apple, Chicken, and Cranberry Salad with a Creamy Homemade Dressing

Whoa.  I just typed the title and it was LONG.  Anyway...

I made some dressing today.  A ranch-type of dressing.  And I feel pretty darn cool right now.

What can I say?  Simple pleasures, my friends, simple pleasures.

It was pretty easy actually.  Just a few ingredients --

Buttermilk (or in my case milk plus some white vinegar, because I didn't have buttermilk), mayo (organic and unprocessed from Trader Joe's, since this is October Unprocessed month), white wine vinegar (um... champagne vinegar -- it's what I had), parsley (at least I think that's parsley... I just pulled it from my mini-herb garden), and some (sea) salt.

At least I got the salt part right.

I also made something like fried chicken.  Just not too fried.  I feel so domestic today.  All these new things that I have never done before...

The rest?  No brainer.  Throw some greens down, slice some apple and put on top, add a handful cranberries and the chicken, and drizzle the dressing on top.  A complete meal in a salad.  Score.

Simple pleasures.  They're a good thing.

Recipe adapted from Everyday Food, November 2011

PREP TIME: 20 min      TOTAL TIME: 30 min       YIELD: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unbleached flour
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs -- Trader Joe's has completely unprocessed ones)
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound total)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 pound fresh spring greens
• 2 apples, such as Gala or Fuji, cored and cut into thin wedges
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions

1. On a plate, season flour with 1/4 teaspoon salt. In a shallow dish, whisk egg with 1 tablespoon water. On another plate, season panko with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Pat chicken dry. Dredge chicken in flour, then dip in egg, letting excess drip off. Coat with panko, pressing gently to adhere.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium. Add chicken; cook until golden brown and cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes total, flipping once. In a small bowl, whisk buttermilk, mayonnaise, vinegar, and parsley; season with salt and pepper. Arrange greens, apples, and cranberries on a platter. Slice chicken, add to platter, and drizzle with dressing.
   
   

   COST: $7.97   COST PER SERVING (4): $1.99

A Week of New Recipes -- Day 3: Steak-and-Potato Salad with Mustard Dressing

I spent over an hour yesterday cleaning up after the asparagus explosion.  I was finding pieces of green everywhere, and I probably will be for days (or weeks... but hopefully not months!).  After spending so long in the kitchen I didn't know if I would be excited to try a brand-new recipe and spend more time in the kitchen (the first time going through a recipe is always much longer than the subsequent times, you know how it goes).  But I plowed through, and boy, am I glad I did!

Day three found me working with the freshest of ingredients once again.  I had potatoes, spinach, a lemon, an onion, tons of garlic, tomatoes, some steak, and a loaf of bread in front of me.  I love fresh ingredients.  They make me feel like I am doing a magic trick... taking a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and I get something (hopefully) amazing in the end.  THIS is the kind of stuff our bodies were meant to have!  I have come a long way from Kraft Mac n' Cheese and Rice-a-Roni ;)

And look at what I did with all that!

Once again, we loved this meal.  This week is having quite the success rate!  My husband loved it because it had steak, something I rarely cook -- who am I kidding?  I never cook steak.  Usually if we are eating red meat it is coming off the grill, and I have done nothing to make that happen.  I just enjoy it -- and let me tell you, I really do enjoy it.  (If you want good BBQ find a Brazilian to make it for you, you will not be disappointed.  Lucky for me to have married such a man, huh?) 

A view of our typical meat eating experience -- top sirloin
surrounded by veggie meat.  What can I say?  I like both!

While he was enjoying the steak-iness of it, I was amazed at how good my own made-from-scratch dressing was.  WOW!  I have made dressing before, but this was on par with the stuff from the pros, and a lot lighter feeling.  Again, we must give this meal a ten.  (Now before you think we are too easy here, last time I did a Weekly Meal Plan from Rachael Ray I think we gave almost everything a score in the 7-9 range, with only one 10, so this really means something.  Take our word, try it and see for yourself.)

The only change this time was I added some tomatoes to it.  It was something like Mary Poppins, practically perfect in every way.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3/4 pound small red-skinned potatoes
• 6 cloves garlic—3 thinly sliced, 2 crushed and 1 finely chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
• Grated peel and juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/4 whole wheat country loaf, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 3 cups)
• 1 pound skirt steak, cut crosswise into 2 or 3 pieces, at room temperature
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• One 6-ounce bag baby spinach

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a saucepan, combine the potatoes and crushed garlic with enough cold water to cover by 1 inch; season with salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the potatoes are just tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain; set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons olive oil, the mustard, lemon peel, lemon juice and finely chopped garlic; season with salt and pepper.
3. In a large cast-iron skillet, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat; add the sliced garlic and cook until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the garlic to paper towels to drain. Add the bread cubes to the pan, season with salt and pepper and toast, tossing occasionally, until golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
4. Wipe out the skillet. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and heat over medium-high heat until hot. Season the steak with salt and pepper, add to the pan and cook, turning once, for 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes before thinly slicing against the grain.
5. Quarter the potatoes and add to the vinaigrette, tossing well. Add the onion and spinach, season with salt and pepper and toss again. Divide the salad among plates and top with the steak, garlic slices and croutons.

COST = $13.75        PER SERVING (3) = $4.59
(Recipe from rachaelray.com)