One of the things I like best about summer is the many fresh, local fruits we have available. In the age of the global economy, we have available all fruits year round, but there is nothing like a fresh picked peach or nectarine from the farmers market. I bought some nectarines last week, and when they were finally ripe, found a new way to eat them. I made a delicious salad for dinner. Here's what I made, and a few possible variations. I hope you enjoy.
Nectarine Pomegranate Summer Salad
1 head butter lettuce, leaves separated
1 ripe nectarine
2 T. fresh pomegranate seeds (available at Trader Joe's)
fresh ricotta cheese (available at Trader Joe's and far superior to the supermarket variety)
Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing (I used the bottled dressing from Trader Joe's but you could make your own)
I made the salad for two, and here's how I assembled it. I took enough lettuce leaves for two portions and put them in a mixing bowl. I cut up one nectarine in thin slices and put it in the bowl. I added about 4 tablespoons of pomegranate seeds, and just enough dressing to coat. I did not want a heavy amount of dressing, so start with a little, then mix the salad to coat all leaves. Arrange salad nicely on individual plates, then take three small spoons of the ricotta cheese and put the dollops of cheese around the plate. Voila. You have a wonderful nutritious summer salad. You can vary this in several ways. Use raspberries or blueberries instead of pomegranate, and use peaches instead of nectarines. I love the ricotta cheese, so stick with that.
It was a hot summer night, and I wanted to keep the meal light, so I added a boneless chicken breast, sliced, as an accompaniment to the salad. I took a large boneless chicken breast, covered it with a light coating of reduced fat mayonnaise, then took a mixture of panko bread crumbs and parmesan cheese and covered the chicken breast, top and bottom in the bread crumb mixture. I browned it on both sides with a little butter in a fry pan on top of the stove, then finished it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. I let it rest for five minutes, then sliced it. The chicken was moist and flavorful. Just delicious. The whole meal, from start to finish, took 30 minutes. Hope you enjoy.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Nectarine Pomegranate Summer Salad
One of the things I like best about summer is the many fresh, local fruits we have available. In the age of the global economy, we have available all fruits year round, but there is nothing like a fresh picked peach or nectarine from the farmers market. I bought some nectarines last week, and when they were finally ripe, found a new way to eat them. I made a delicious salad for dinner. Here's what I made, and a few possible variations. I hope you enjoy.
Nectarine Pomegranate Summer Salad
1 head butter lettuce, leaves separated
1 ripe nectarine
2 T. fresh pomegranate seeds (available at Trader Joe's)
fresh ricotta cheese (available at Trader Joe's and far superior to the supermarket variety)
Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing (I used the bottled dressing from Trader Joe's but you could make your own)
I made the salad for two, and here's how I assembled it. I took enough lettuce leaves for two portions and put them in a mixing bowl. I cut up one nectarine in thin slices and put it in the bowl. I added about 4 tablespoons of pomegranate seeds, and just enough dressing to coat. I did not want a heavy amount of dressing, so start with a little, then mix the salad to coat all leaves. Arrange salad nicely on individual plates, then take three small spoons of the ricotta cheese and put the dollops of cheese around the plate. Voila. You have a wonderful nutritious summer salad. You can vary this in several ways. Use raspberries or blueberries instead of pomegranate, and use peaches instead of nectarines. I love the ricotta cheese, so stick with that.
It was a hot summer night, and I wanted to keep the meal light, so I added a boneless chicken breast, sliced, as an accompaniment to the salad. I took a large boneless chicken breast, covered it with a light coating of reduced fat mayonnaise, then took a mixture of panko bread crumbs and parmesan cheese and covered the chicken breast, top and bottom in the bread crumb mixture. I browned it on both sides with a little butter in a fry pan on top of the stove, then finished it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. I let it rest for five minutes, then sliced it. The chicken was moist and flavorful. Just delicious. The whole meal, from start to finish, took 30 minutes. Hope you enjoy.
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