Anjou Pear and Danish Bleu Cheese Salad

This belongs in my SUMMER SERIES.

ingredients:

1-2 anjou pears cut into chunks
2 tablespoons of danish bleu cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds* (see below)
craisens
dark greens, or spinach
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
1/2 cucumber, seeded, and sliced into small trips
1/4 cup purple onion, sliced into rings

* to toast almonds, in shallow pan, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon white sugar. heat on stove top and add almonds. WATCH them carefully, as they can burn easily. swirl the pan and coat the nuts. They will be fragrant and should not take long to toast. Dump on wax paper and roughly chop after cool down. Sprinkle over salad.

Cholay ~curried Chickpeas~

This is another one of my curry infused dishes. Cholay is a northern India recipe, but we're over here, in Northern America, and we're gonna eat it my way..:) it is flavor packed with sassy bengali/indian flavors, and full of protein and fiber. Oh, and did I mention it is gluten free AND vegan? It can be enjoyed by many. You can eat it alone, or how I suggest it, topped with pico de gallo. I just think it only adds another depth of flavor and fills you up good.

2 cans chickpeas, drained
2 tablespoons fresh chopped garlic
1" freshly grated ginger
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp cinnoman
1 tsp coriander
the juice of one lime
1 tbs crushed red pepper
fresh pico de gallo (see post for complete recipe)

Saute garlic and ginger in a large pan saute chickpeas in a little sesame oil until a rich golden color.

Incorporate spices, starting with curry, garam masala, and allow fragrance to be released. Pour chickpeas in, and roast and toast! They will be a beautiful sunshiny yellow color.

continue to add rest of spices, cinnoman, coriander, and squeee in the lime juice. add red pepper and remove from heat once everything is coated and toasted.

top with fresh pico de galo or just cilantro leaves and you are good to go!

Sesame Salad with Grilled Soy Sauced Chicken

This fun flavorful salad is absolutely delicious, if I do say so myself. Packed with pop and crunch, it fills you up, without making you feel as though you ate something heavy and overpowered with dressing.. I grew up seeing a rendition of this recipe in all the church cookbooks, but this new and improved meal is sure to keep your tastebuds tickled. Enjoy it to the fullest! 

 You'll need: 

 a head of cabbage-chopped into shreds 

1 bunch of romaine lettuce-torn/chopped 

1 bunch green onion-chopped 

2 packages raman noodles 

1/3 cup sliced almonds 

3 tbsp butter 

1/3 cup sesame seeds 

 Dressing: 1 cup canola oil 

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar 

2/3 cup sugar 

salt/pepper 

1/4 tsp garlic powder

 dash of cayenne-give it a bit of heat!

 Day before: Throw together in a huge ziplock bag, 2 pkgs of raman noodles (with seasonings) and sauted almonds.sesame seeds (that's what the butter is for) and beat it up a bit, so everything is well mixed and more than able to fit into your mouth.. 

 Next day: Toss romaine, cabbage and green onion in large salad bowl. Throw in your ziplock bag of goodness and toss with hands. Next comes dressing. Also thouroughly mix in with hands till everything is coated. 

 For chicken: Grab a thawed couple of chx breast (boneless) and rub with about 2 tbsp soy sauce, ginger, and salt and pepper. Cook in a fry pan until you've got a nice brown coating on the outside of the meat. Add salt and pepper and whatever else you fancy. 

 The chicken is optional...but I do reccomend it! Top the salad with cut up slices of grilled chicken..