Archive | April 2012

Cobb Salad by Rachel Ray and my friend Kelly

Apr22

Right after I had Ty, my friend Kelly brought me her version of Rachel Ray’s Cobb Salad, with a dressing she created. Even without the cheese and egg that traditionally go with Cobb Salad, it was so delicious and so satisfying! We licked the plates. Here is Rachel Ray’s recipe, and Kelly’s dressing. I think instead of the poultry seasoning Rachel recommends, Kelly marinated the chicken in the salad dressing.

  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 8 ounces each
  • 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning, eyeball it
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 large eggs
  • 8 sliced bacon, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 3 hearts romaine lettuce
  • 2 lemons, juiced
  • 2 ripe avocados, halved and scooped from skins with a spoon, then diced
  • 2 vine ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced
  • 1 red onion, chopped
  • 2 cups white cheddar or Monterey Jack, shredded (or blue cheese crumbled)

Directions

Heat a grill pan or nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Coat chicken breasts with 2 teaspoons oil, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Wash hands. Grill or pan-fry chicken 6 to 7 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and let rest 5 minutes. In a small pot, cover eggs with cold water. Place over high heat and bring water to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, cover the pot and turn off the heat. Set a timer for 10 minutes. After the 10 minutes, cool eggs under cold running water. Peel and chop. Brown chopped bacon in a skillet over medium high heat. Drain bacon on paper towels. Chop 3 hearts of romaine lettuce and place in a large serving platter or salad bowl. Dress chopped lettuce with the juice of 1 1/2 lemons. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil over lettuce. Season greens with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss diced avocados with juice of remaining 1/2 lemon, to retard browning. Halve chicken breasts and chop the meat. To serve, arrange rows of chopped chicken, chopped hard boiled egg, crisp bacon bits, diced avocado, diced tomato, chopped red onion and shredded cheese on top of either 4 individual portions of dressed romaine or 1 large serving platter.

Kelly’s dressing:

1/2 c. olive oil

1/4 c. lime juice

1 1/2 t cumin

2 T honey

1 T dijon mustard

salt and pepper

Shake and serve!