Cobb Salad

Cobb (Posh) Salad

Not Your Ordinary Salad!

I'm a salad girl. I confess! As much as I'd love to tell you I'm your solid, meat-and-potatoes girl with a heart for cheesy side dishes, my heart yearns for that fresh crunch of lettuce under a sweet vinaigrette. Don't get me wrong though! I love a good chicken pot pie or fall-off-the-bone ribs. Yet, every now and then, I want a meal to freshen up my palate, as I step back from all the heavy cooking. So, I give you this Cobb Salad, with tons of posh and so many ways you can make it your own! In fact, I'm calling it Cobb (Posh) Salad. Give it a chance! (You might just like this whole 'salad' thing!)

There are so many ways you can make Cobb Salad (or most salads, for that matter). This is how I did it. You do it the way you want! I customized each plate for each person (all three of us - Mom, Dad, and me!) Extra tomatoes on one, bacon on two, avocado on all three, you get the idea! But talk about fun to make! It's like an entire plate of posh! How you arrange the veggies, what type of dressing, chilling the plates, serving the eggs warm, grilling the corn etc etc etc! We should really just omit the "Cobb" and call it "Posh Salad."

Each topping can be poshed as well. For example, the corn (the only thing not individually pictured below, of course) was from a partial bag of frozen corn. I defrosted it in the microwave, and threw it in a cast iron skillet. Then, cook until it browns, season with garlic powder and pepper, and viola! Perfectly poshed corn to top this Cobb (Posh) Salad. Think of all the creative ways you can posh the other toppings!

The dressing is another very important salad component. I love this brand called Annie's. (Check out annies.com to see all the great products!) It's natural, organic, and delicious! This was the the first time I tried the Annie's brand salad dressing and it was amazing! A good Cobb (Posh) Salad needs a dressing which will allow the flavors of the toppings to really shine, just like this Fat Free Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette. It wasn't too sweet and had just enough tang to lightly flavor the entire dish.

So what are you waiting for!? Posh up some fun in the kitchen and impress your dinner guests with customized Cobb (Posh) Salads! 

With love (for food),

Ellen

--A dash of posh can make all the difference in your next dish!--

Campfire Baked Potato

Posh Cuisine: Outdoor Style!

Mid-70s during the day, in the '40s at night - now that's good camping weather! Yes, I was a little chilly at times... (it can be in the '80s and I'll be cold.) However, with a roaring campfire, and these campfire baked potatoes (and a bag of marshmallows, of course), my Daddy-Daughter camping trip this past weekend was wonderful! Not only did I learn some valuable camping skills, manage to keep my feet dry as I crossed flowing rivers and brooks, and catch up on some valuable bonding time with my favorite Daddy - I was also able to bring the posh outdoors! And with some planning ahead, you too can put the posh in campfire cooking!

Now, when it comes to outdoor cooking, my Daddy is a pro. If you can make it indoors, he can make it outdoors. (Needless to say, I ate very well during this camping trip.) And we were really roughing it, too. I made pancakes with no spatula for Saturday's breakfast and ate my dinner that night right out of the pan! (Tough times, I'll tell ya.)

Now, let me tell you about these potatoes! We used Yukon Gold potatoes (they have an awesome buttery taste and make delicious mashed potatoes). We also planned and prepared our meals in advance (a great suggestion for you future campers) and stored everything in a cooler. And, by making this dish in the foil so it was all ready to go, dinner was one less thing to worry about as we hiked, gathered wood, and enjoyed the fresh mountain air.

Now, where's the posh? Adding posh is no challenge when planning ahead. Below you'll see how we set up this potato dish and ways to incorporate your own special posh before heading into the wilderness.

This is where the dish can become whatever you want! We kept it simple by adding a dash of Tuscan seasoning mix, and wrapped it up. *Note: Wrap it in foil twice! The outer foil can get charred and blackened during the baking process, while the potato and first layer of foil stay clean and wonderful!

Once it's all 'poshed' up to your liking and you're ready to eat, it's time to make the fire! That means gathering firewood... When you think you have enough wood - go get more. THEN it should be enough. Next, (carefully) make the fire and once it's going strong, just tuck the foiled potatoes onto the side of the flame. You don't want them directly in the fire (unless you want burned-to-a-crisp baked potato). The potatoes should be perfectly cooked after about 40 minutes (we left ours in a little longer and they were so soft and delicious). Now, what if you didn't pack any tongs/pickups!? How will you ever get them out of the fire!? This is where handmade tongs made out of a tree branch become very useful (bottom center picture). Now that's posh!

See? With some simple planning ahead and preparation, you too can bring the posh outdoors! And may I say, it is delicious and such a comfort at the end of a busy, camping-packed day! What would you add to your campfire baked potato dish?? How would you 'posh' it up???

With love (for food),

Ellen

--A dash of posh can make all the difference in your next dish!--

Thai Salad - As Seen on TV!

Ty's Thai Salad

This salad, an original from "Trisha's Southern Cooking" show on Food Network, is amazing! I made it for dinner the other night, and it was such a hit - I had to share! Now, this recipe makes a huge batch! (I even cut it in half and we're still eating leftovers!) That being said, it would make a great addition to a BBQ this summer, or even a potluck. (Or dinner with plenty of leftovers for the week.) The crunch of the cabbage and edamame, plus the sweet lime-cilantro dressing make this salad like no other!

Ty's Thai Salad (With Posh!)

Plus, you can posh it up however you like! I piled plenty of avocado on top, along with some chives. This salad would also look beautiful layered, or with a sliced lime garnish. Whichever way you choose, it will be delicious, zesty, and refreshing. (Don't be surprised if you find yourself making this dressing for other salads, too - it's that good!) People will just eat it up (literally!) once they experience the sweet lime flavor with this crunchy, fresh salad. So thank you Trisha Yearwood! (Find the recipe here.) Enjoy!

With love (for food),

Ellen

--A dash of posh can make all the difference in your next dish!--

(Make Your Own) Pasta Salad

Pasta Salad - YOUR way!

It's finally hot outside! (and humid...let's not forget that.) All the same, I'm loving every warm, sunny day! Now, during a hard (hot) day of baking and yard work, I was in the mood for a colorful, cold pasta salad - but oh what kind do I make!? How much dressing? How many veggies? How much pasta!? Well, lucky for you, I have already fretted over these questions, and after much estimating (and Pinterest pasta salad recipe searching), I've got a great base recipe for pasta salad! I'll show you how I made my pasta salad, with what was in my "fridge-of-goodies," and explain how you can transform this to make your own pasta salad!


First thing's first - you must assess your ingredients! Use whatever veggies you have on hand, any pasta you find in the pantry - even dare to make it a twist on leftovers! (Plus, there's no need to go out and buy an entire pack of bell peppers if you're only going to use 1/2 cup, or a zucchini if you only need half. See what's hiding in that vegetable drawer, first!) Below are the ingredients I had on hand, cut up and ready to go!

With pasta salad, practically anything goes! It's a canvas for true creativity and posh. For example, you could go vegetarian and substitute beans or eggs for the tuna. Perhaps you have leftover ham or turkey in the fridge? Chop it up and toss it in! You could even try adding fresh dill and cucumbers! (My mind is racing with ideas before my fingers can type now...) If you find your salad is too dry, whip up some more dressing or simply drizzle the salad with a bit more olive oil, garlic salt, and pepper. *I usually use garlic salt in cooking because it tends to add a great hint of flavor. Of course, this does not apply to baking (Yum.. garlic-y chocolate chip cookies - no thanks!)

*As a tip, do not rinse the pasta with cold water to 'chill' it faster for the salad. Doing so could prevent the dressing from properly sticking to the pasta. (No one wants slippery, unflavored pasta, right?) I'd recommend making this salad in advance and keeping it in the fridge until serving (overnight would be ideal, plus then the flavors have time to become better acquainted...) Of course, making it up for that day's lunch may require some quick 'freezing' an hour or so beforehand.

Can we also take a moment to appreciate how colorful and healthy this pasta salad is? Full of veggies, grains, a small bit of healthy fats (from the dressing), those beautiful herbs... (and all topped with a bit of 'posh!' - what more could you possibly ask of a simple salad like this!?) So, next time it's hot and humid, and you're in the mood for a refreshing lunch (or even a side dish to dinner), see what you have for leftovers and create! Make your own pasta salad, and don't forget the posh!

With love (for food),

Ellen

--A dash of posh can make all the difference in your next dish!--

Homemade Fettuccine - Pasta from Scratch!

What began as a heap of flour, eggs, and oil soon became a wonderful homemade fettuccine dish! Pasta entirely from scratch! Don't be scared now, it was so easy! And much tastier than that boxed pasta we all know (and love perhaps a little too much).

It's been a couple of days since I made this for dinner, and my parents are still raving about it! I can already tell I'm going to be making it again very soon.. it was that good! Unlike dried pasta, this fresh dough had so much more flavor, each noodle had great texture, and after 2 minutes in boiling water, it was perfect! (But we'll get to that part.)

"Making Homemade Pasta" This can be a scary, almost intimidating phrase to anyone. Immediately, you may be thinking "I don't have time for that," "I need some sort of machine," or "Why not just buy it?" To that I say... no excuses!! I've wanted to make homemade pasta for so long and while reading through my latest Taste of Home magazine, I found the perfect recipe for fettuccine. No fancy machines required! So here, I'd like to walk you through making this homemade pasta step by step, with help from the Taste of Home recipe. It is totally worth each and every (simple) step!

First, we need to make the dough. There's only 8 ingredients! We start by whisking together 2 eggs, 1 egg yolk, 1/4 cup water, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper (number 1, above). Next, I put my 1-1/2 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of semolina flour on the counter. (I found semolina flour at Hannaford in the baking aisle. The package was completely vacuum-sealed - wicked cool!) I mixed together the flour right on the counter, made a well in the center, and poured in the egg mixture. This is where things got messy... so I HIGHLY RECOMMEND adding a little egg mixture at a time to the flour, and mixing it with your fingers until it is all incorporated. This will ensure the egg does not ooze beyond the flour and across the counter as you frantically try to catch it with your arms and keep it from diving off the edge.. (not that this happened to me, of course.. I just want to make you aware of what could happen.)

Once the dough is formed, shape it into a ball and place it on a lightly floured surface, seen in number 3. *To keep the counters clean and the dough from sticking as much, I recommend using a towel dusted with flour when working with any breads or dough. It makes forming them into a ball (and cleaning up later) a breeze! Next, cut the dough into 6 wedges, and roll each into a cute little ball. Then, cover with plastic wrap (I hate plastic wrap by the way.. I made this on the same day as my strawberry lemon cake batter frozen yogurt and my plastic wrap mishap, which is a whole different story!) After letting these rest for about 30 minutes, it's time to form the pasta!

Using a well floured rolling pin, form each ball into an 8" x 10" 'shape', and roll into a tube (jelly-roll style). Cut into 1/4" strips and unroll the spirals for fettuccine! *This is the most time-consuming part of the recipe. It took me (and my mom) forever to unroll each piece! So, in a moment of genius, I decided to skip these last two steps, and cut the strips out of the flattened 8" x 10" shape. Of course, this "aha!" moment only came when rolling out the second to last ball of dough.. Just have patience when cutting the long strips to ensure they are even. Now, the final step is to cook the pasta. (Then, we smother it in sauce!)

I added about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the water and boiled the pasta for 2 minutes, drained it, and stirred it into the sauce. That's all there is to it! Now, for the sauce... it wasn't anything too fancy. Since the star of this dish was the pasta, I had no objections to using prepared alfredo sauce - jazzed up with some personal posh, of course! With no precise measurements (let the smell and taste be your guide), I added some Parmesan cheese, milk, and spices to a jar of 3 cheese sauce. I also added some veggies, as seen below. 

Simmer the asparagus in the sauce for about 5 minutes, or until it's fork tender. Then, add the squash and zucchini, (when you julienne them, keep the skins, and don't include the seeds) and keep the mixture hot on the stove until the pasta is cooked and drained. Stir, plate, posh it up (I used some fresh basil from my newly planted herb garden), and enjoy your homemade pasta dish!

It's INCREDIBLE! The pasta has great flavor and texture, it soaks up the sauce, and makes a wonderful, hearty dinner! You have to try it! Don't be afraid to try something new, and get a little messy in the kitchen! This pasta has endless possibilities! What kind of sauce would you pair with it? How would you cut it to make fettuccine? Spaghetti, perhaps? And what kind of posh would you add?! 

With love (for food),

Ellen

--A dash of posh can make all the difference in your next dish!--