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10 Unexpected Thanksgiving Leftovers

YumSugar — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:30:52 -0800

Thanksgiving leftovers can sometimes be too much of a good thing. Tons of turkey meat and side dishes can be great, but not if they mean eating uninspired leftovers with monotonous flavors. Thankfully, there's loads you can do with leftovers beyond pot pie, sandwiches, and chili. Here are 10 of our favorite new ideas.

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Whet Guests' Appetites With a Spicy, Seasonal Salad

YumSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:00:02 -0800

Whenever I have people over for a sit-down holiday dinner, I like to set the tone with a hunger-inducing salad as the first course. For my most recent dinner, I foreshadowed the Fall meal to come with a peppery medley of in-season produce.

This salad, with its salty, spicy, tangy, and sweet components, turned out to be the perfect way to get guests psyched for supper while still leaving plenty of room for the main course.

Toasted on the stove, pepitas, or hulled pumpkin seeds, impart a nutty flavor to the olive oil, which plays a crucial part in the aromatic dressing. Make this your Thanksgiving salad when you keep reading.

Kim Kardashian Is Latest Face of Carl's Jr.

YumSugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:50:27 -0800

Guess who's joining the ranks of Paris Hilton, Padma Lakshmi, and Audrina Patridge as Carl's Jr. spokesperson? None other than reality show temptress Kim Kardashian.

Kardashian is teaming up with the burger chain - known for its risqué commercials - to promote its new premium salads. It'll be the first commercial spot the company has done for a menu item that's not a burger. The reality TV star tells People that while she's a healthy eater today, she has a number of fond memories involving Carl's Jr.

"Driving to Las Vegas, my dad would take the family and we'd stay at Circus Circus and we always stopped at Carl's Jr," she says.

"I remember this food fight my sisters and I all had in the back of the van – it was so funny. We got in so much trouble!" Do you think Kim Kardashian and Carl's Jr. will make for fun viewing?

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Arugula Salad With Mushrooms

partysugar — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:30:05 -0700

Do you eat enough salads? I don't, that's why I'm making a conscious effort to have a huge, hearty salad for dinner at least once a week. I'm starting with this arugula, mushroom, walnut, and goat cheese salad. The recipe calls for one pound of mixed mushrooms, so use whatever mushroom type you enjoy and can afford.

Although it may seem like a lot of steps to flash-marinate and broil mushrooms for salad, it adds a necessary depth to the dish. Also, when serving salad as a main course, it's nice to have a variety of textures, flavors, and temperatures. If desired, serve with a slice of toasted bread. To look at the recipe, read more.

Arugula Salad With Grilled Mushrooms
From Food & Wine

Ingredients

1/2 cup dry white vermouth
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound mixed mushrooms- oyster, shiitake, portobello and cremini
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon very finely chopped shallot
4 ounces baby arugula
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 1/2 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled (scant 1/4 cup)

Directions

In a large bowl, whisk the vermouth with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Trim the root ends of the oyster mushrooms, leaving them attached in small bunches. Discard the shiitake stems and leave the caps whole. Stem the portobellos. Wipe off the cremini. Add all of the mushrooms to the vermouth marinade, then toss and let stand for 20 minutes, stirring them occasionally.
Light a grill or preheat a broiler. Drain the mushrooms; reserve 1 tablespoon of the marinade. Grill the mushrooms or broil them over high heat until browned and tender, about 15 minutes. Thickly slice the grilled mushrooms.
Add the vinegar and shallot to the large bowl and whisk in the reserved marinade to taste. Add the arugula and walnuts, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.
Transfer the arugula salad to plates, top with the grilled mushrooms and crumbled goat cheese and serve.

Serves 4.

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Taleggio Tartines With Watercress Salad

partysugar — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:50:58 -0700

Although a tartine is an open-faced French sandwich, this tartine recipe employs taleggio, a gooey Italian cheese. Taleggio smells stronger than it tastes and pairs well with fruit and bitter greens - in this case grapes and watercress. A quick vinaigrette combines grainy mustard with sherry vinegar and agave syrup. Don't skip the step that steeps the red onion in the vinaigrette because it gives the onion a slightly pickled flavor. To look at the recipe, read more.

Taleggio Tartines With Watercress Salad
From Vegetarian Times

Ingredients

Vinaigrette
2 1/4 tsp. sherry vinegar
1/4 tsp. whole-grain mustard
1/4 tsp. agave syrup
1Tbs. olive oil
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
Tartines
3 oz. Taleggio cheese
41/2-inch-thick slices walnut bread, lightly toasted
4 cups watercress or arugula
1 cup red seedless grapes, halved

Directions

To make Vinaigrette: Whisk together vinegar, mustard, and agave syrup in small bowl. Whisk in oil, stir in red onion, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Let stand 10 minutes.
To make Tartines: Preheat broiler. Spread 3 Tbs. cheese on each piece of toast, and broil 1 minute, or until cheese is melted.
Remove onion from Vinaigrette. Toss onion with watercress and grapes. Add 1 Tbs. Vinaigrette to salad, and toss to coat.
Top each bread slice with 1 1/4 cups salad, and serve.

Serves 4.

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Beet Salad With Goat Cheese and Walnuts

partysugar — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:50:53 -0700

On the weekends, I like to treat myself and eat whatever I feel like eating, be it an oversize serving of macaroni and cheese or a decadently fudgey brownie. However, that means during the week I stock up on tons of vegetables and fruits. One way to do this is to enjoy salads for dinner. The key to a satisfying salad is to select elements that have different textures. There has to be something creamy, crispy, chewy, and tangy. With its beets, goat cheese, walnuts, and balsamic vinaigrette, this recipe is just the sort of salad I'm talking about.

The ingredient list calls for bottled balsamic dressing, but I prefer to quickly whisk my own. To serve up this salad, get the recipe and read more.

Beet Salad With Goat Cheese and Walnuts
From Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients

2 small cooked beets or one 8-1/4-ounce can tiny whole beets, chilled
1 tablespoon snipped fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tablespoons bottled reduced-fat or fat-free balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
4 cups mixed baby salad greens
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
1 ounce semisoft goat cheese (chevre), crumbled

Directions

Slice beets into bite-sized wedges.
In a medium bowl, combine cut-up beets, basil, and pepper. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the salad dressing; toss to coat.
Arrange greens on 2 salad plates; sprinkle with remaining dressing.
Top with beet mixture, walnuts, and goat cheese.

Serves 2.

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Butternut Squash Salad Two Ways - Beginner and Expert

YumSugar — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 05:50:44 -0700

October has barely begun, but I already miss my favorite Summer salads. Thankfully, I've got plenty of autumnal ingredients, like roasted butternut squash, to add into the fresh mix. If you plan meals ahead of time, channel your focus into a Fall salad with lots of splendid details, like port-soaked raisins, toasted walnuts, and oven-broiled goat cheese. Hoping to make the salad the night of? You still can - with the help of apples, cheese, cranberries, and a speedy balsamic glaze. Decide which one works best for you and read more.

Fast & Easy Dinner: Mediterranean Shrimp Salad

partysugar — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 07:50:37 -0700

When making quick and simple dinners, it's important to look to the grocery store for help. While everyone is familiar with using rotisserie chicken, cooked, peeled, and deveined shrimp should also become a staple of your weeknight pantry. If you think about it, shrimp is practically as versatile as chicken!

Serve it with pasta or sandwich with cheese in between two tortillas for quesadillas. Or as is the case with this recipe, toss with a lemony marinade and plate with veggies to make a Mediterranean-style salad. Sound delish? Try it tonight and get the recipe now.

Need Dinner in 15 Minutes? Make This Salad!

partysugar — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:50:03 -0700

It's not a new technique for celebrity chefs, magazines, and television networks to capitalize on Americans' lack of time - Rachael Ray's entire existence depends on creating 30-minute meals. What is less common, however, is a recipe that can actually be made in the allotted (short) amount of time.

When I saw this recipe for chicken salad in a Bon Appétit article entitled 15 Dishes in 15 Minutes, I was beyond skeptical. I decided to put it to the test, and surprisingly, it was ready in exactly 15 minutes!

Combine shortcuts like using rotisserie chicken and feta crumbles with minimal chopping, and the result is a dish that is wildly fast, wonderfully easy, and ridiculously delicious. If you're in need of a quick, simple, and balanced meal, consider this salad. To check out the recipe, read more.

Chicken and Watercress Salad With Almonds and Feta
From Bon Appétit

With its white balsamic vinegar and almond and grapeseed oils, the ingredient list is a bit pretentious; I subbed in sherry vinegar and olive oil.

Ingredients

1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
1 large shallot, chopped
3 tablespoons almond oil, walnut oil, or grapeseed oil
3 tablespoons grapeseed oil
3 large bunches watercress, thick stems trimmed
2 fully cooked chicken breast halves, meat torn into bite-size pieces
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
4 apricots, pitted, each half cut into wedges
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions

Combine vinegar and shallot in medium bowl. Whisk in both oils. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
Place watercress, chicken, cheese, and apricots in large bowl. Add dressing; toss.
Divide salad among 4 plates. Sprinkle each with almonds.

Serves 4.

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Chicken Salad Piccata

partysugar — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:50:52 -0700

Traditionally, a piccata consists of floured meat cutlets that are quickly sauteed and served with a simple sauce made from pan drippings and lemon juice. This recipe employs boneless skinless chicken breasts to make the piccata. Instead of placing the cooked chicken on a bed of pasta, it's set atop a mixture of red potatoes and green beans, with the sauce acting as a dressing for the vegetables. This affordable meal is a delicious variation on a crowd-pleasing classic, so be sure to get the recipe.