I don’t know about you but when I start to crave salad I get kind of obsessed about it. I like my salads heavy on the veggies, fruits and nuts and light on the “other” stuff. I’m a bit of a salad purist I guess you can say, sometimes simple is just best in my opinion.

We ended up at Panera and enjoyed our lunch outside by their fountain.  You really can’t beat Panera’s salads as far as freshness and quality go. You already know how I feel about their bread and sandwiches, but just so you know, their salads are pretty much at the top of the list too, especially when I’m looking for something healthy when I’m eating or taking out.

I ordered the Fuji Apple Chicken Salad and my little one had herself a sandwich with yogurt. This was my first time ordering this salad at Panera and ohmygoodness it was so good. I loved everything about it..but especially the apple chips and vinaigrette. Everything was very fresh and tasted great. I’m not a big chicken eater but I did taste it for fun and gave the rest to my little girl who gobbled it up in minutes. I think the chicken might have been her favorite part of her lunch, she kept asking for more (and actually still is, lol). I was pretty happy to read on the menu that the chicken used at Panera is all natural and antibiotic free. That’s always a good thing.

I found it pretty interesting to learn more about the chefs and what goes into creating the recipes at Panera. These guys really care about how their food tastes and it shows.  You can find a couple of quick videos for you to watch featuring Panera’s Head Baker Tom and Head Chef Dan and their inspiration and passion for food. Hey Dan, Can I come work for you? Thanks. (Nothing personal Tom, but I’m just not a great baker. Unless you want to teach me…now that’s an idea!)

Tom and Dan Introduction

At the Farmer’s Market

“Our menu wasn’t developed in a test kitchen. It was inspired by the food.” (<<<< I love this!!)

If you are a Panera lover like I am visit them on Twitter: @panerabread and Facebook!

(Disclaimer:  Panera Bread provided me with compensation for writing this post. My opinions, however, are always my own.)

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So since our weather here in Florida has definitely warmed up, my salad cravings have just gotten a little more intense. I loved this Fuji Apple Chicken salad so much that I decided I needed to make my own version of it at home.  The salad base was simple…greens, sliced apples, cheddar cheese, red onion, grape tomatoes and toasted pecans. Make it your own by adding leftover grilled chicken, sliced hard boiled egg or maybe use spinach for the greens. The vinaigrette was bright and slightly sweet with the addition of apple juice, though you can always add a little honey if you like it sweeter.

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Apple, Nut & Cheese Salad with Apple Vinaigrette

• Author: Aggie's Kitchen
• Category: Salad

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Ingredients

For the Salad

• Greens (mixed greens, romaine, spinach)
• Sliced Apples (fuji or granny smith)
• Cheese (cubed cheddar or crumbled gorgonzola)
• Nuts (toasted pecans, almonds or walnuts)
• sliced red onion and tomatoes

For the Vinaigrette

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons apple juice
• 1 teaspoon minced shallot (or sweet onion)
• 1 teaspoon minced apple
• salt and pepper

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Instructions

1. Combine ingredients in jar or container and shake well. Adjust to taste (I don’t like a lot of oil in my dressings, you may want to add more to your liking).

If you’re still craving salad after this, check out these great salad creations:

Cucumber Feta Salad – Two Peas and their Pod
Grilled Romaine with Blue Cheese Dressing – Mom’s Cooking Club
Chopped Broccoli Salad with Tahini Soy Dressing – Family Fresh Cooking
Blackened Fish Taco Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette – Aggie’s Kitchen
Spinach Couscous Salad – Aggie’s Kitchen

Follow Aggie’s Kitchen’s board Salads on Pinterest.

The post Apple, Nut & Cheese Salad with Apple Vinaigrette appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

If you asked me a couple of years ago if I would be creating recipes to enter into cooking contests where I could win trips to Culinary School in Napa Valley, I would have laughed and said … whatever.  I’m a competitive gal, but when it comes to cooking…well, I just love to cook, not necessarily to win anything, but just because I enjoy it.  But here I am…sharing with you my creation for the Everyday Chef Challenge.

Here’s the scoop for the Everyday Chef Challenge:

I am one of 5 Featured Bloggers chosen to part of a cooking challenge where a secret ingredient plus a Pacific Natural Foods staple item are revealed.  We have one week to create, cook and then share a recipe for voting.  There are two Challenges in total, and winner of each Challenge moves on the the Final Round where voting starts over and the competition is really on for the Grand Prize – all expense paid culinary bootcamp at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley.

Now…I don’t have to be the only one having this much fun!  There is a totally separate Challenge going on here too…that includes YOU.  YOU can enter a recipe using those same “secret ingredients” and compete for the same prize!  Don’t you want to go to Cooking School with me???  I’ve already recruited a blogger friend, Merry, to enter…I put the idea in her head and 24 hours later her recipe is entered!

Okay…so do you want to know about my recipe?  Challenge 1’s secret ingredients were Mushrooms and any Pacific Natural Foods broth.  After thinking about it for a couple of days, I was pretty much stuck on the idea of Mushroom Marsala.  But how to serve it was my challenge…

The Mushroom Marsala is definitely where the flavor of this dish is…but the Garlic Herb Quinoa Pilaf is no joke either.  I wanted to keep the dish meatless, so I bulked up the veggies by adding fresh spinach leaves and sundried tomatoes to the baby portobellas.  I seasoned and floured the mushrooms before sauteeing them to add a little more texture too.  The marsala wine and Pacific Mushroom broth combo made an awesome sauce for it.

As for the quinoa…I wanted to kick it up a bit and cook it in a way I hadn’t before.  I looked up the term “pilaf” on Wikipedia (culinary research!) and it says:

Pilaf … is a dish in which a grain, such as rice or cracked wheat is browned in oil, and then cooked in a seasoned broth.

So that’s what I did.  I started the quinoa with a quick saute of minced garlic and onion in a little olive oil, then added the quinoa and toasted it till fragrant and slightly brown.  Instead of water I used vegetable broth and then added toasted pine nuts at the end.  Wow is all I have to say.  If you’ve tried quinoa and haven’t been impressed, give it another try cooked this way.

If you think this sounds delicious (I assure you, it was.) then I would love to have your vote!  You can vote one time a day everyday until next Wednesday so you may get a friendly reminder or two from me!  Thanks so much!

Mushroom Marsala with Garlic Herb Quinoa Pilaf

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

For Quinoa Pilaf:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups Pacific Vegetable Broth
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 shallots, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

For Mushroom Marsala:

• 1 and 1/2 8oz packages of sliced portobella mushrooms (total 12 oz)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1-2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup marsala wine
• 1/2 cup – 3/4 cup Pacific Mushroom Broth
• 1 3oz package of sundried tomato halves (not in oil)
• 2 cups fresh spinach leaves

Additional Toppings

• freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
• Toasted pinenuts, optional

Directions:

1. Pre-rinse quinoa in a fine mesh strainer until water runs clear. Let water drain and let quinoa dry for a few minutes prior to cooking. In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add minced shallots and garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add quinoa to pan and stir frequently for about 5 minutes. This will toast and enhance the flavor of the quinoa. Once quinoa is fragrant and a light golden brown, add vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce down to slow simmer and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add toasted pine nuts, salt and pepper to quinoa and gently stir to combine. Cover and set aside.
2. In a large shallow dish, combine flour, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano and thyme. Gently toss sliced mushrooms in flour mixture. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add sliced shallots and minced garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Gently dust excess flour off sliced mushrooms and add to pan. While mushrooms are cooking, add 1 tablespoon butter to pan and continue to saute. Cook mushrooms until browned, about 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of Marsala wine to pan and bring to a quick boil.  Add mushroom broth along with sundried tomatoes and spinach leaves and bring to a quick simmer. Gently stir together as spinach leaves and sauce cook down.  Season lightly with a pinch of salt and pepper. Serve over quinoa pilaf and with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and additional toasted pine nuts (optional).

The post Mushroom Marsala with Garlic Herb Quinoa Pilaf {Pacific Natural Foods Everday Chef Challenge Entry} appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

I’ll have to admit, when I first saw this recipe as a pick for our Craving Ellie in my Belly group, I was a little hesitant about making it. As much as I love to cook, I have hangups about cooking certain types of food (for example…roasts and anything with yeast!). Curry is not something I am very familiar with, though I know I’ve had a few curry dishes in the past that I absolutely loved. After a little self talking, I convinced myself that this was another great opportunity to cook out of my comfort zone. I get in my share of cooking ruts and know how important it is to for me keep things interesting in the kitchen.

The ingredient list of this recipe is fairly simple, you can most likely find red curry paste in the Asian aisle of your grocery store or easily find curry powder with the spices. I went for the red curry paste. I also used some frozen mahi-mahi that I had on hand.

What a delight!
This dish was so light and tasty, my husband and I really enjoyed it. The flavor combination was perfect, I’m always happy cooking with cilantro and lime!
I will definitely be making it again…
next time will be trying this recipe with some shrimp and a little extra heat!

A big thank you to Liz over at The Not So Skinny Kitchen for choosing a recipe that I might have normally skipped over. Visit her blog along with the other members of CEimB to see their versions and variations of this great recipe!

Thai-Style Mahi with Coconut-Curry Broth

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 4 shallots, finely chopped (about 3/4 cup)
• 2 1/2 teaspoons red curry paste, or 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus 1/4 teaspoon, plus more for seasoning
• 4 (6-ounce) pieces mahi-mahi
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 scallions, green part only, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups cooked whole wheat orzo or brown rice, for serving
• Steamed spinach, for serving

Directions:

1. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt and simmer until reduced to 2 cups, about 5 minutes.
2. Season the mahi with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Arrange the fish in the pan and gently shake the pan so the fish is coated with the sauce. Cover and cook until the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 7 minutes.
3. Arrange a pile of steamed spinach in the bottom of 4 soup plates. Top with the fish fillets. Stir the cilantro, scallions, and lime juice into the sauce and season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Ladle the sauce over the fish and serve with orzo or rice.

Recipe adapted from Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave or Food Network

Follow AggiesKitchen on Instagram and show us what recipes you are making from the blog! Use the hashtag #aggieskitchen - I'd love to see what you are cooking up!

 

 

Cooking Light week continues! See Day 4 here!

The post Thai-Style Mahi with Coconut-Curry Broth {CEimB} appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.