Aisle Twelve

There.  Just looking at this bright salad has me convinced that summer is on its way.  Because if you live in Michigan you know it is most certainly not.  Last Sunday it was a humid 80 degrees and here we are one week later...cold and blustery.  And yesterday it snowed.  You are such a tease Michigan.  No one likes a tease. A salad is a good fake out into thinking its summer...and also if you don't feel like really cooking.  I know salads are a perfectly acceptable meal but I can't help but think they are kind of a culinary cop out.  I mean, anyone can throw together a salad.  It doesn't take rocket science or much effort really.  So I decided to make this cobb salad which does put forth a little extra effort instead of just piling a bunch of ingredients on a plate.  You know me, I can't take all the fun out of making dinner.  The good thing about a cobb salad is that you can put just about anything on it that you ...

  Heat and humidity. When it’s been a heat wave like it has been the last couple weeks, turning on the oven or stove or standing over a hot grill is the least desirable thing there is; and after eating out for days on end, I needed to make up a dinner that was healthful, filling and refreshing. But then the eternal question….what to make for dinner? What would fulfill all these requirements? Sometimes when I over think a dinner question to death, I decide to just give up and let the culinary gods decide for me. Luckily, they were very good to me today. Someone at work graciously brought in their bumper crop of the most delectably ripe cantaloupe. My first plan for this melon was of course, breakfast. But as the melon sat on my desk at work, and the ripe melon smell kept wafting to my nose…my stomach started to get inspired. Who says melons just have to be for breakfast? I decided to make the melon part of dinner in a melon and prosciutto salad. For years I have seen recip...

Oh the lazy days of summer! That includes me being lazy about updating this blog! It never fails that every summer no matter how hard I try, each work night fills up with things to do to prepare for the weddings, showers, bbqs , reunions, etc. of the weekend. It doesn’t seem like there is much time to eat let alone get dinner on the table. Good thing that salads are quick and easy and the perfect summer meal. This salad is a great, refreshing summer side salad. It’s crisp, crunchy and juicy. It’s tart, sweet and savory. It’s my fennel grapefruit salad. I got the idea from a combination of a Barefoot Contessa and Giada DeLaurentis recipe. I start with spicy arugula and top it with a bed of thinly sliced fennel and thin rings of shallot (I use a mandolin to get paper thin slices). I segment a grapefruit and drop the juicy gems on top of the fennel and shallot. The juice of the grapefruit is reserved for a quick and easy grapefruit vinaigrette with basil, salt pepper and olive oil. T...