Salad with Gorgonzola, Bacon and Concord Grapes

Salad with Gorgonzola, Bacon and Concord Grapes

adapted from Food & Wine

Bacon, gorgonzola cheese, toasted hazelnuts and grapes gives you a combination smoky, savory, nutty an sweet with a slightly sour from the lemon vinaigrette.

Makes 2 servings                       8 WW pts / salad + 2 WW pts / Tbsp. of dressing

2 slices of bacon
2 Tbsp. hazelnuts
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. sherry vinegar
2 Tbsp. minced shallots
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. sugar substitute
2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. water
3 cups torn romaine lettuce or your preferred greens
1/4 cup seedless grapes, halved
2 oz. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

1. Preheat the oven to 325°. 
2. Place the hazelnuts in a small baking dish; Place in the oven and bake for 12 minutes.
3. If the hazelnuts have their skins on, transfer to a kitchen towel and rub until the skins are removed; Season the nuts with salt and pepper.
4. Place a rack on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet; Put the bacon on the rack and bake for about 17 minutes, until browned but still chewy or to taste. 
5. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain, then cut into 1-inch pieces. Leave the oven on.
6. In a small bowl, whisk the sherry vinegar with the minced shallots, lemon juice, sugar substitute and olive oil until incorporated; Season to taste with salt and pepper. 
7. Divide the lettuce between 2 plates;  Layer the lettuce leaves with the bacon pieces, chopped hazelnuts, grapes and Gorgonzola dolce. 
8. Serve passing the vinaigrette at the table.

Enjoy!

Modern Waldorf Salad

Modern Waldorf Salad

adapted from Crowded Kitchen

Waldorf salad is named for the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City, where it was first created for a charity ball given in honor of the St. Mary's Hospital for Children on March 13, 1896. The original recipe was just apples, celery, and mayonnaise. Over the years nuts, chicken, turkey and dried fruit have been added.1

Best apples to use are sweet and tart such as Granny Smith of Honeycrisp.

For the dressing I used a Dill Vinaigrette but you can use what ever is your favorite.

Makes 2 servings                                                                 3 WW pts / serving

1/3 large head of romaine lettuce, chopped
1/3 cup seedless red grapes, halved
1/3 cup sliced cucumber
1/3 large apple, diced
2 Tbsp. dried cranberries
Walnut pumpkin seed brittle (recipe below)

Walnut Pumpkin Seed Brittle                                                 2 WW pts / Tbsp.    1/2 cup raw, unsalted walnut pieces

1/4 cup pepitas
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Your favorite low fat salad dressing with 1 WW pt / Tbsp.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 275˚F.
2. Add walnuts and pumpkin seeds to a mixing bowl. 
3. In a separate bowl, stir together maple syrup, olive oil, salt and pepper. 
4. Pour the maple syrup mixture over nuts and toss well to coat. 
5. Spread out on a small parchment lined baking sheet. 
6. Bake on the lowest rack of the oven for about 35 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. 
7. While the brittle is cooling, whisk together dressing ingredients; Set aside.
8. Divide the lettuce, grapes, cucumbers, apple and cranberries between 2 bowls.
9. Toss the salad ingredients with 1 Tbsp. salad dressing. 
10. Crumble the brittle and sprinkle 1 Tbsp. on top of the salad.

Enjoy!

Notes:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_salad

Pork Chops with Grapes and Bumped Up Sauteed Zucchini

I think I am on to something. With me eating all of these fruits and veggies, I have prepped watermelon, pineapple, mango, green beans, zucchini, beets and have strawberries and blueberries ready to be eaten. I cooked the pork then  pulled all of these out of the refrigerator and told the boys to pick two. (Knowing they were never going to touch my sauteed zucchini below.) No fighting about fruits and veggies. I has worked two days in a row. I think I am on to something!
You can use bone in or boneless pork chops for this recipe. for small cuts of meat there is no difference between cooking on or off the bone. One significant difference cam be the price of the meat itself. If it is truly a bargain, I will buy the bone in version, de-bone it myself and use the bones in stock. 
Tonight I just pulled bone-in chops from the freezer.

 
Pork Chops with Grapes
adapted from EveryDay with Rachel Ray January / February 2013
4 bone-in pork chops
1/2 cup red grapes, halved
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 teaspoon thyme
Coat a skillet with cooking spray.  Cook the pork over medium-high, 5 minutes per side. Put on plate; tent with foil. Add grapes, garlic and thyme to skillet. My skillet was rather dry so I added a couple tablespoons of vegetable stock.Cook, stirring, 5 minutes. Top pork with grapes. 

Bumped Up Sauteed Zucchini
adapted from Bon Appetit – September 2007
1 ¼ - 1 ½ lbs zucchini, trimmed, cut into ½ inch thick slices
2 large garlic cloves sliced
1 ½ tsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 c small cherry tomatoes, halved
6 sliced pitted Kalamata olives
¼ c thinly sliced fresh basil
Balsamic vinegar
Cooking spray
Coat a skillet  with cooking spray.  Over medium-high heat saute the zucchini, garlic and rosemary. with a sprinkle of salt and pepper until the zucchini is just tender, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and olives. Sauté until tomatoes just begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with  basil and vinegar. Season vegetables to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl to serve.

A Great Lunch !!!!

Chicken Grape & Blue Cheese Salad over Greens
Serves 1

2 oz cooked chicken breast, chopped
1/4 c grapes, halved
1/2 tsp dehydrated celery flakes or 1 Tbsp chopped fresh celery

1 Tbsp reduced fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp blue cheese crumbles


Combine mayonnaise, vinegar and blue cheese. Add the chicken, grapes and celery. Toss to coat.

Serve over a bed of mixed salad greens.